Weather not so bad, job opportunities are great
-
1/5/2012
Boston and Cambridge get a bad rap for being super cold, snowy, and expensive, but the truth is not nearly so bad.
Having grown up in Texas, my first winter here I thought I was going to die -- for about 2 weeks. And then I bought a good coat and got used to the chilly weather and started to really enjoy the snow. I moved away for a few years and lived in Wisconsin, and now that I'm back, I can honestly say that the winters here are not bad at all! The temperatures are pretty mild compared to the Great Plains, and if you dress right, you won't have a problem. Yes, on average we get about 4 feet of snow, but it's spread out over the winter, and if you rent, chances are you won't have to shovel a sidewalk. Better yet, don't bring a car to the city (you don't need one!) and you'll never have to shovel it out, either. I really love the snowfall -- it's very beautiful. And I don't really mind shoveling out my car, since the exercise is invigorating.
The Boston area gets more sunshine on average than the US, and during the summer the humidity is much less than average. That makes the summers here much more bearable than Wisconsin, and hugely more pleasant than Texas! The sea breeze helps enormously. Typically there will be a week or two when it gets really hot and we wish we had air conditioning, but then we just head up north to a beach to escape the heat. The only bad thing is that there's more wind than average which makes winter feel a bit brisk.
The cost of living here is high. But on average, jobs here pay more to compensate and the unemployment rate is much lower than the US average. When jobs in Wisconsin were nowhere to be had, we easily found jobs in Boston. I think it's a great place for young people to get experience -- often at some of the best firms/research facilities in the country.
And even though we pay high rent to live in the middle of Cambridge, the neighborhoods are amazing. I can walk down the street and enjoy a range of restaurants (Indian, Thai, Italian, Brazilian, whatever), bars, pubs, fabric stores, mattress stores, groceries, clothing stores, etc. etc. etc. There's a bus stop 2 blocks away. The T is a 5-minute walk away. The place is super-connected and diverse. I feel that I'm part of a community here. And you really don't need a car. We'll likely be getting rid of ours soon. (My partner lived here easily for a year without one.)
Melissa | Cambridge, MA