Can you go home again?

[Wharn]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

Even since I've been in Kingston, London feels a lot bigger than it did in all the years I lived there. I also never noticed how multicultural London is until I moved to Kingston.

Try Woodstock, man. Here you don't even get the university crowd. I can literally count on one hand the number of non-white people I've seen in the past week. Strangely though, the downtown sushi restaurant is better than most of the ones that cater to the student crowd in London.

Originally Posted by ckkelley

I have decided to move back to London and the advice and input from those of you on this thread weighed substantially in my decision.

Welcome back home.

[middeljohn]

I've never lived or even been to BC, but last year I moved to London from Toronto. What I found is that London feels really small. I imagine that it wouldn't betoo much different for someone coming from Vancouver. Also, I found London to be incredibly white, which again you'll find similar.

People in London bitch about the traffic, but the reality is that you'll have a 25 minute commute or less most days. Coming from Toronto I found it really amusing when people talked about how jammed up Wellington gets.

Things move a lot slower in London, people are more laid back. It definitely has a city in the country feel to it. You'll hear a lot of rural Ontario accents among some of the out-of-town commuters. They'll deny they have it, but it's true.

You may also find people enjoy driving below the speed limit in non-peak hours. And a bunch of people will line up in one lane at a red light while leaving the other completely empty. I don't know why this is, but I saved a lot of time taking advantage of this without breaking any laws.

In general London is a nice quiet city, probably a good place to raise a family. The downtown is more vibrant than I expected for a city of its size, lots of bars and restaurants along with regional headquarters for all the banks and some other financial/insurance companies as well. It was an interesting change of pace for me and overall I liked the place, although not enough to keep me from moving on to another city.

[haljackey]

Originally Posted by middeljohn

People in London bitch about the traffic, but the reality is that you'll have a 25 minute commute or less most days. Coming from Toronto I found it really amusing when people talked about how jammed up Wellington gets.

You can't really compare London to Toronto, especially for transportation... It's not really fair.

Take a city similar to the size of London's population and roughly mimics its physical and urban geography, and compare that.

Based on that analysis, we have somewhat of a right to complain about our traffic and transit woes, as cities similar to us have better road and transit infrastructure. No real highway for London commuters, our best transit is half decent (plus no BRT or LRT but that may change) and the road system is not as well designed/subpar compared to elsewhere in terms of capacity and efficiency.

If I lived in Toronto, I would complain a lot more about driving, but at least transit is a good alternative there.

[Stevo26]

Originally Posted by middeljohn

I've never lived or even been to BC, but last year I moved to London from Toronto. What I found is that London feels really small. I imagine that it wouldn't betoo much different for someone coming from Vancouver. Also, I found London to be incredibly white, which again you'll find similar.

People in London bitch about the traffic, but the reality is that you'll have a 25 minute commute or less most days. Coming from Toronto I found it really amusing when people talked about how jammed up Wellington gets.

I live about 5km away from my office, and I find that I can get to the office in about 10 to 15 minutes without any major hassles. I don't think I could even do that well if I lived in my hometown of Sarnia, which is pretty compact and has essentially NO traffic to speak of anytime of day or night.

Heading north along Wharncliffe is pretty speedy up until you get to the intersection at Horton and Springbank. So I what I do is I avoid the bunch-up at that intersection and hang a right on Byron Avenue, up Wortley, then right on York and then left onto King and past the Middlesex County Health Unit and straight into the parking garage.

Things move a lot slower in London, people are more laid back. It definitely has a city in the country feel to it. You'll hear a lot of rural Ontario accents among some of the out-of-town commuters. They'll deny they have it, but it's true.

I don't know if I would say London has a 'city in the country' feel to it. But it definitely feels a bit smaller than it is. I find the most common rural accents I hear in London come from people who live north of London (think Hensall and Exeter areas) and from the Woodstock area.

<snip>

In general London is a nice quiet city, probably a good place to raise a family. The downtown is more vibrant than I expected for a city of its size, lots of bars and restaurants along with regional headquarters for all the banks and some other financial/insurance companies as well. It was an interesting change of pace for me and overall I liked the place, although not enough to keep me from moving on to another city.

I've lived in London for the last 25 years and I still find it a bit boring at times, with not a lot to do. I would agree that London is a quiet place for a city of its size. I'm hoping I can retire in about eight years from now, and I'm not sure I want to stay in London. I'd love to live somewhere along the Lake Erie shoreline, i.e. Port Stanley or Port Bruce, but so would everyone else and now it takes $$$$ to buy a house in that area unless you're willing to live well away from the shore.

[Wharn]

Originally Posted by Stevo26

I don't know if I would say London has a 'city in the country' feel to it. But it definitely feels a bit smaller than it is. I find the most common rural accents I hear in London come from people who live north of London (think Hensall and Exeter areas) and from the Woodstock area.

Wehn I first moved to London for university way back in '09, I used to say that it felt like a "gigantic version of Orangeville". Or Woodstock times ten. Actually, probably moreso the latter, because London's urban planners essentially sat down and said "we'll just arterialize the concessions, throw in a few collectors, and voila! A city! We're so clever". Hence the "massive town" feel, which the lack of freeways and the massive amounts of downtown surface parking contribute to.

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by Wharn

Wehn I first moved to London for university way back in '09, I used to say that it felt like a "gigantic version of Orangeville". Or Woodstock times ten. Actually, probably moreso the latter, because London's urban planners essentially sat down and said "we'll just arterialize the concessions, throw in a few collectors, and voila! A city! We're so clever". Hence the "massive town" feel, which the lack of freeways and the massive amounts of downtown surface parking contribute to.

I don't find London to be particularly "rural".

[ssiguy]

I feel like I just read my lifestory.

I, like ckkelly, moved to Vancouver 24 years ago and often think of London with fond memories. I have always loved here and would want to move back.

I have never really warmed to BC er her people who are very aloof and parochial. I miss the chnahing colours, the beautiful brick homes {there are not brick homes in BC}, the friendlier people, a place you can actually afford to live, and a much more mellow lifestyle than Vancouver has to offer.

I often keep my eyes on the job ads in London as I would definitely move back except I would find it very difficult to get a job...........teacher of English as a second language.

[MolsonExport]

I lived in BC for a fair number of years back in the nineties. I loved the Province and the City (Vancouver, Richmond), but it never felt like home. I was thrilled to be back again in my hometown of Montreal, but alas, my career eventually took me to London. I miss Montreal terribly (except the lousy politics). But London has been good to me and my family, and I have decided to stay here for the rest of my career. We are already on our second house.

[ssiguy]

Despite all the bitching and moaning we do, London is a very desirable city and has a certain charm about it.

London is one of those VERY rare cities where you wouldn't want to visit but would like to live.

[MolsonExport]

^a pretty fair statement.

[Wharn]

Originally Posted by manny_santos

I don't find London to be particularly "rural".

After living in Toronto and nothing but for my entire life, it sure as hell felt "rural".

Originally Posted by ssiguy

London is one of those VERY rare cities where you wouldn't want to visit but would like to live.

While I agree with your sentiments on London in general, I don't think this type of city is all that rare. Consider the Tri-Cities, for example. Or Guelph. Then you have places like Fargo, North Dakota, or Perth, Western Australia (although if you are a self-professed sprawl hater, the latter may seem more like Hell on Earth).

[manny_santos]

Originally Posted by Wharn

After living in Toronto and nothing but for my entire life, it sure as hell felt "rural".

It's all about perspective I guess. Kingston feels "rural" compared to London, while London to me now feels like a mini-Toronto. The biggest difference between Kingston and either London or Toronto is the number of pickup trucks.

[MolsonExport]

every second driveway in London has one or two pickup trucks. bugs the fuck out of me. it doesn't seem like most people even use the truck as a truck (that is, for hauling), but just as a means to express their manliness, or whatnot.

[haljackey]

Still pales in comparison to Brantford. No idea why every other vehicle I see on the road when I visit is a pickup truck.

If you ever venture to Texas, you're in the minority if you're not driving a pickup.

[Wharn]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

every second driveway in London has one or two pickup trucks. bugs the fuck out of me. it doesn't seem like most people even use the truck as a truck (that is, for hauling), but just as a means to express their manliness, or whatnot.

Some people simply like large vehicles. Whether it is because they are tall and can't fit into a standard car, or like having their own personal space, it's not really my business to judge them. It may even be that they are buying a body-on-frame vehicle which can easily cope with the lousy roads you tend to find in Ontario cities. All valid reasons. Unless they are doing it for "manliness"; in which case, they are free to be mocked. There is nothing "manly" about a massive vehicles equipped with power steering an power brakes, which can be easily controlled by even the most diminutive young women. Come back when you can handle a a stock '55 Ford F100.

[Snark]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

every second driveway in London has one or two pickup trucks. bugs the fuck out of me. it doesn't seem like most people even use the truck as a truck (that is, for hauling), but just as a means to express their manliness, or whatnot.

Can't disagree with this observation. Yes, there are some folks who own a pickup and use it as such - but there is a huge segment who (knowingly or not) use their vehicle's enormous size and power as a metaphor for that other thing....

The truth is that very very few people require a duelie truck with a 5.7 L Hemi making 400 HP and providing a 5000lb hauling capacity. I still see a lot of them on the road though - without a scratch on them and hauling nothing. What I do see a lot of those pristine vehicles doing though is being driven at 130 kph. Yes, a lot of guys are out there driving a 7000lb brick as if it were a Ferrari. That defies understanding for me: it's about as graceful as trying to put a container ship into orbit.

[K85]

Originally Posted by Snark

5.7 L Hemi making 400 HP

My Charger 5.7 Hemi only does 340

And it's not to compensate for anything. I drive a fast fucking car because I want to drive a fast fucking car. I do more recycling than most, clean up after people when I go hiking and do outdoors stuff, and make an effort at home to conserve. The trees that the Hemi eats, gets fixed with the other stuff I try to do.

[middeljohn]

Originally Posted by Wharn

Some people simply like large vehicles. Whether it is because they are tall and can't fit into a standard car, or like having their own personal space, it's not really my business to judge them. It may even be that they are buying a body-on-frame vehicle which can easily cope with the lousy roads you tend to find in Ontario cities. All valid reasons. Unless they are doing it for "manliness"; in which case, they are free to be mocked. There is nothing "manly" about a massive vehicles equipped with power steering an power brakes, which can be easily controlled by even the most diminutive young women. Come back when you can handle a a stock '55 Ford F100.

I'm 6'6, so I have a problem fitting into the Fits, Fiestas and M2s of the world. But I comfortably fit into my Malibu which is great on gas. I don't need a giant truck just so my legs have room. Just somethind a little more roomy inside does the trick. The reality is that most people who live in cities and own pickup trucks don't use it for hauling stuff, but rather just to feel bigger and more important than they actually are.

[HillStreetBlues]

Originally Posted by middeljohn

The reality is that most people who live in cities and own pickup trucks don't use it for hauling stuff, but rather just to feel bigger and more important than they actually are.

Second this. I love seeing big beautiful pickups that may easily have been purchased with 84-month financing, with next to nothing in the bed. I’ve “hauled” more with my mid-sized Honda than a few people I know who own Tundras, Silverados, whatever.

I’ll withhold judgment on what size of vehicle anyone chooses to drive as soon as we have a carbon tax that reflects the true costs that emissions are imposing on our environment. Until then, these pickup truck and minivan (sorry- SUVs? “Cross-over vehicles”?) drivers are having their costs subsidized, which is the real reason they drive vehicles they don’t need.

[middeljohn]

Here's a thought: has anyone noticed that St Thomas feels a LOT like Pontiac?