Where Should I Live?

[Artemis]

In August, I'll be leaving Manchester with no intention of coming back. I still have a year of study to do if I want to achieve a proper degree but in the meantime I've been awarded a 'Diploma of Higher Education' which is a bit wank but better then nowt. The major benefit of it is that I'm no longer tied to the uni I've been studying at any more and now have the opportunity to take my pissy little diploma and check into a uni somewhere else.

I'm off travelling for a couple of years when I leave here but the idea of moving somewhere new when I get back excites me. The trouble is, I don't know where I want to go. This is where you lot come in. I'm open to be persuaded as to where's a nice place to live. Perhaps it would help if I told you that I've no great interest in setting up shop in the North of England again, and that although I've grown accustomed to city life, I'd prefer more of a large town then a city if I can help it (not too small though - I grew up in rural Wiltshire and feel I've served my time in hicksville already).

So can you help? Photos would be much appreciated but I'd prefer this not to turn into a "this is where I live" thread, so some critique with a view to advising someone considering moving there would be appreciated.

[sproggy]

Stoneybridge



Yes it does exist and it's on South Uist in the Outer Hebrides.  It doesn't have a bridge but there are a few stones (and a school)

[Jemble Fred]

Phew. I at first read that 'Where' as a 'Why' â€" not another suicide thread! Not before I can start my own!

Odd. This is very much in the front of my mind at the moment. I'm dating (yes, well I can't think of another word for it at this stage) a lady from Manchester â€" been going on a while, and talk's already turned to uprooting, so to speak â€" we're both in a state of flux, and it's a question of whether I could stick Manchester, or whether I can convince her that Bath is the best place in the UK.

Thing is, after many years of not really belonging, and three years of misery down here, I've only just come to the conclusion (now I live in the nice part of town and have a gorgeous view of the countryside and Broadband and so on), that Bath is it for me. I'd be quite happy to settle here. I0t's a bit expensive, and has pockets of snobbery, but my god it's beautiful. And vibrant. And fascinating. And where I want to live.

A not very good pic of the view from my desk, below. Problem is, I can only afford to live here as it's a student place, and won't last long. But it's easier to find somewhere to live with two....

[Milo]

Cardiff is pretty nice. It's a pretty well-equipped city but still has a bit of a large town feel. Accomodation and other things aren't too expensive and there are plenty of jobs available and a very good uni for if you wanted to finish off your course. Transport links are good (M4 corridor) and there are plenty of shops, pubs, restaurants and everything else you might need.

It is currently undergoing extensive redevelopment too so ought to be nicer when you finish travelling:



Also has some pretty nice parks and green spaces and whatnot:





And Cardiff Bay is pretty.

[wheatgod]

Bath is the best place in the UK.

Agreed. I grew up in Bath, and its still 'home'. Its a terribly nice place, and probably just what you're looking for if you can't stand Manchester. Similar is Cheltenham, which is also a spa town and a little smaller.

Jemble: did your change of opinion coincide with the destruction of Southgate?

[Jemble Fred]

Near enough â€" although as I work right by the place, it does mean my immediate environment will be a building site for a long time now.

Basically, in my experience, Bath is split in two â€" there's the Bristol side which, like the city it's named after, is horrible, drab, industrial, cheap and depressing (I lived over there for more than two years). Then there's the London side, which is exciting, expensive and the place to be. It's being over here that made me really fall in love with Bath, but I'd sooner move altogether than have to live over the Bristol side again.

[Artemis]

I've spent quite a lot of time in Bath, and my brother used to live there. I agree, it's a beautiful city, but what concerns me about it is that outside its gorgeous centre, is it still aesthetically attractive? My brother lived in a small flat right in the heart of it so I have no experience of residential suburbs aside from what I've seen on the train as I go past and no offence, but they don't look that welcoming.

Edit: Aaah, Jemble Fred may have shed some light on this. The London side (that's the Bradford on Avon side, right?) Does seem more attractive.

What are house prices like?

[wherearethespoons]

Come to Ipswich. You can live in my shed, after you put it up.

[wheatgod]

Like anywhere, there are grotty parts and nice parts. Jemble's description is sound.

What are house prices like?

Oh dear. Yes, that's probably a sticking point

[Artemis]

I'll probably be a student so sharing is acceptable if it brings costs down.

A friend of mine was looking at moving and seriously considered Falmouth. Yes, it's in the middle of nowhere with little going on but my god that part of the country is beautiful and I'm done with the kind of rodents that appear at night on the weekends in Manchester (and other cities, I'd imagine).

Bath is a serious contender but my family live in a little village close to it, well within the 'discomfort zone' I've psychologically measured at about fifty miles radius around them.

[Paaaaul]

You need to have a tolerance for berks like this in Bath, beware.

[Jemble Fred]

I'll probably be a student so sharing is acceptable if it brings costs down.

Well, this is it. I'm living with students at the top of an old Georgian townhouse equidistant (is it possible to use that word without thinking of Partridge?) between the Royal Crescent and the Circus, and I'm paying TWO HUNDRED AND SIXTY FUCKING QUID. Just unbelievably cheap for Bath. But, like I say, it may not last long.

:(

I seldom use emoticons, but seriously. :(

[Emma Raducanu]

Artemis, what is wrong with Manchester, in a bit more detail please!

[Artemis]

Artemis, what is wrong with Manchester, in a bit more detail please!

It's by far the best place to live in the North, as far as I'm concerned, but not really a place you can look at, take a deep breath and tell yourself it's where you want to spend the rest of your life. I feel my time is up.

Manchester's undergone regeneration on an almost indescribable scale since 1996, but the place is seriously over-run with chain bars and tacky clubs. It suffers the same problems most cities do, I'd imagine, which makes going out on an evening, especially at the weekend, a matter of enduring loud, obnoxious, aggressive drunkards. I went from a small town with a population of under 20,000 to Manchester and it's the place that's taught me how to be a grown up in many ways, but I just fancy something a bit quieter for myself now, somewhere with a bit more character and substance to it.

[VegaLA]

Come back to L A.
We miss yah !!

[biniput]

I think Manchester is a great place.  However i can see Artemis's point of view in that if towns and country are what you are used to then no amount of "great new city areas" can get over the fundamental differences in living in those places.  I would think you may have answered your own question on where is best to live.

[Artemis]

I've lived in cities for ten years now. It's what I'm used to and what I like. However, I can't say I enjoy the overbearing hustle bustle anymore or the kind of crowds the evenings attract. I love the amenities and convenience and that's why I'm still looking for a large town - I'd feel claustrophobic if it was too small.

[Jemble Fred]

I've often though of just shifting over to Chippenham if I can't afford to live here anymore â€" admittedly I don't know the place very well, but I'd still be in this glorious part of the world, only an hour or so from London, ten minutes from Bath... and twenty minutes from Bristol â€" when I need to visit Wilkinsons.

[Neville Chamberlain]

I'll second Bath. I've spent a lot of time there recently and, as Jemble says, it's fascinating and vibrant and weird and cool. I'm going to do everything I can to make sure I end up in Bath when I return to the UK (although I would consider Birmingham too as I love Brum)...

[Neville Chamberlain]

I've often though of just shifting over to Chippenham if I can't afford to live here anymore â€" admittedly I don't know the place very well, but I'd still be in this glorious part of the world, only an hour or so from London, ten minutes from Bath... and twenty minutes from Bristol â€" when I need to visit Wilkinsons.

...and an hour or so from Yeovil, which is by far the sexiest town in Europe...

[Jemble Fred]

Is it really? Well I never â€" I shall have to check it out.

I think all the nice folk on here should move to Bath â€" forming some kind of commune would save a fortune on rent.

[Paranormalhandy]

The view from my bedroom window ...



Can I move to Bath, please?

[CaledonianGonzo]

You poor bastard.

[supinebeing]

bethnal green is where its at

[supinebeing]

Is it really? Well I never â€" I shall have to check it out.

I think all the nice folk on here should move to Bath â€" forming some kind of commune would save a fortune on rent.

and you can swim outside in the spa waters if you have a spare 20 nicker, which is lovely

[Neville Chamberlain]

Oh, do they work now?

[the midnight watch baboon]

Harrogate is nice, the town's surrounded by acres of nice parks and gardens which aren't allowed to be built over, it's full of lovely cafes, cobbled streets and watering holes, has a monthly comedy night at the thatre, and Leeds is nearby for more urban nights out. Yah.