The World's Most Liveable Cities 2011 Top 10 Announced Read more at Suite101: The Wo

[snoop101]

http://www.suite101.com/content/the-worlds-most-liveable-cities-2011-top-10-announced-a350592

How Calgary got in 5th amazes me. I have traveled a lot and lived in different places, but I would have to say that Calgary has to be one of the worst places I have lived.

I think some of the only advantages of Calgary is the money (and we know that's why 75% of population is here) and the fact that we have so much sunshine. That's all I could come up with and the first reason is the only reason my wife and I are still here.

[syeve]

I also have travelled and been many places - Calgary is one of the best places on earth in my humble opinion. There are better (Chicago/Boston) but I would take calgary over 95% of the places I have been.

As a side, I should also state that I fucking LOVE our weather...vacationing somewhere hot is one thing, but to live in a hotter climate is terrible.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by syeve
I also have travelled and been many places - Calgary is one of the best places on earth in my humble opinion. There are better (Chicago/Boston) but I would take calgary over 95% of the places I have been.

As a side, I should also state that I fucking LOVE our weather...vacationing somewhere hot is one thing, but to live in a hotter climate is terrible.

Were you born here? If not where did you come from. I find the small % of people that were born here usually think Calgary is Ok.


Just looking over the news post again. It shows Environment as one of the categories, but im not to sure if they mean the weather or how clean the air and ground is. I would assume it wouldn't be the actual weather, because like the guy above me posted he loves the cold, yet most people cant stand it. So its more of a personal thing.

[Manhattan]

All depends on how you define 'liveable'. These things are usually skewed towards things like low crime, affordable housing, strong regional economy so I can see how Calgary is near top of the list. It's a decent city to earn a living and raise a family. Exciting and fun cities usually aren't at the top of the list because of high crime, bad traffic, or expensive housing. If I could choose where I lived and money isn't an issue then Calgary wouldn't be anywhere near the top 10. Most people are tied down to a city due to financial constraints. In that sense Calgary isn't a bad place to be because you can earn a decent living and live relatively well but it doesn't make this city a thriving metropolis.

[msommers]

Being so close to the Rockies probably adds considerable value. Our standard of living here is pretty high as is the average household income.

[adidas]

Wasnt calgary ranked last year on this same survey?

[Supa Dexta]

The mountain argument always made me chuckle.. Its like living 100kms from the ocean and saying 'well the ocean is basically at our doorstep'...:rofl:

If calgary wasn't here it would be a canola field or something...

[Unknown303]

Originally posted by Supa Dexta
The mountain argument always made me chuckle.. Its like living 100kms from the ocean and saying 'well the ocean is basically at our doorstep'...:rofl:

If calgary wasn't here it would be a canola field or something...

But why not argue that? We are so close to a lot of amazing landscape. I can do day hikes up so many different peaks and always have time to come home at night. Or for other outdoors stuff it's right there. I grew up in Jasper where you literally were in the middle of a mountain park and even now I don't think I'm that far away to discount it. I love camping, hiking, snowshoeing and because of Calgary's location I get to do all those things and still get to stay in a large city center that's relatively affordable.

[colt22]

Originally posted by snoop101
http://www.suite101.com/content/the-worlds-most-liveable-cities-2011-top-10-announced-a350592

How Calgary got in 5th amazes me. I have traveled a lot and lived in different places, but I would have to say that Calgary has to be one of the worst places I have lived.

I think some of the only advantages of Calgary is the money (and we know that's why 75% of population is here) and the fact that we have so much sunshine. That's all I could come up with and the first reason is the only reason my wife and I are still here.

LOL how is calgary the worst, please explain.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by colt22


LOL how is calgary the worst, please explain.

To name a few and im sure i'll piss people off, but this is IMO and I only been here for 5 years.

Calgary has the worst...

landscape: Most parks are ugly, We really dont have anything that brings people together. We have a walking path along the river downtown, but after it gets dark its really not to safe (from what I hear). I find Calgary to be very dirty. Ride on the Ctrain a bit and look out side the window, you can not go a block or two without seeing trash in the grass, etc.

Roads: We have some of the worst up kept roads. Pot holes and are lighting system is horrible. We have lights that just turn red for no reason AT NIGHT.

Communities: This can go both ways. Calgary is so broken up into different communities that a lot of people would leave their area unless they need to go to work. this is fine, but most communities look a like and are just based on box stores. Try to find a butcher or bakery in your community.Down south its next to impossible. The downtown core is like a ghost town at night.

Culture: Sure we have T&T and a small China town, but our culture here is nothing like Vancouver or Toronto.

Food: Same as culture. Its very hard to find "good" food in Calgary. Granted when you do find it, it is good.

People: I find that Calgary is made up of so many people from other cities that most people could give a shit and its surprises me when I say Hi to someone when walking the dog and they actually say hi back. Usually they look the other way.

There is more, but I got to start work :)

I grew up in BC, around lakes and mountains. So for me its a huge issue, but the money is here and I bought our place when the market was a bit high and now I have to wait.

[ExtraSlow]

Here's the factors that they use in the Mercer survey. I assume the Economist uses similar ones.

* Political and social environment (political stability, crime, law enforcement, etc)
* Economic environment (currency exchange regulations, banking services, etc)
* Socio-cultural environment (censorship, limitations on personal freedom, etc)
* Health and sanitation (medical supplies and services, infectious diseases, sewage, waste disposal, air pollution, etc)
* Schools and education (standard and availability of international schools, etc)
* Public services and transportation (electricity, water, public transport, traffic congestion, etc)
* Recreation (restaurants, theatres, cinemas, sports and leisure, etc)
* Consumer goods (availability of food/daily consumption items, cars, etc)
* Housing (housing, household appliances, furniture, maintenance services, etc)
* Natural environment (climate, record of natural disasters)

Sadly "awesomness" and "party atmosphere" are not reflected, which i suspect is the source of this derision.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by ExtraSlow

* Natural environment (climate, record of natural disasters)



I haven't been here long enough, but has Calgary ever had a natural disaster? Only thing I can think of is the flooding that occurred outside of the city down south, but even then that was somewhat small.

We lived in Kelowna during the Fires. IT was crazy they asked people to not use cell phones to much to keep the lines open. We had army convoy trucks taking soldiers into the mountains. Pretty crazy. It was raining Ash.

[soupey]

Originally posted by snoop101


To name a few and im sure i'll piss people off, but this is IMO and I only been here for 5 years.

Calgary has the worst...

landscape: Most parks are ugly, We really dont have anything that brings people together. We have a walking path along the river downtown, but after it gets dark its really not to safe (from what I hear). I find Calgary to be very dirty. Ride on the Ctrain a bit and look out side the window, you can not go a block or two without seeing trash in the grass, etc.
ever been to sask? or anywhere in nyc/nj area? i honestly never see that much trash out on the street unless im in the heart of the NE


Roads: We have some of the worst up kept roads. Pot holes and are lighting system is horrible. We have lights that just turn red for no reason AT NIGHT.
traffic lights are timed. and ive lived and driven on ny/nj roads, calgary's roads are incredibly maintained in contrast, and im pretty sure our budget on roadwork per km is much less than however much they spend here. My car is getting a workout going through the streets in the city and in NJ, if you think calgary has serious pothole issues, u must be thinking right out of the winter season when some road cracks are expected, even then, has nothing in contrast to other cities.


Communities: This can go both ways. Calgary is so broken up into different communities that a lot of people would leave their area unless they need to go to work. this is fine, but most communities look a like and are just based on box stores. Try to find a butcher or bakery in your community.Down south its next to impossible. The downtown core is like a ghost town at night.


every city is broken up into communities at some level, i think you're generalizing all of calgary based on a token few neighbourhoods out south.


Culture: Sure we have T&T and a small China town, but our culture here is nothing like Vancouver or Toronto.
vancouver and toronto have a much larger population base, i honestly think new york has the most multicultural insanity going on in one place, for better or worse, that's one of the things that gives calgary a small town appeal even though it's still a growing city...i know it's subjective, but that preserved identity something i prefer over a lot of diverse culture. over time that's obviously going to change, even over the last 3-4 years the population in calgary has a different feel to it every time i come back to visit...it is much more diverse.


Food: Same as culture. Its very hard to find "good" food in Calgary. Granted when you do find it, it is good.
agreed on this point, over the last 4 years ive been out of the city the selection has become MUCH better though.


People: I find that Calgary is made up of so many people from other cities that most people could give a shit and its surprises me when I say Hi to someone when walking the dog and they actually say hi back. Usually they look the other way.
must be your experience talking to others, im comparing to new york/nj, calgary and vancouver are the only two cities that people will say hello if there's eye contact and abuse the word sorry randomly while walking on paths and sidewalks everywhere. that's my own experience, if you're walking around with the attitude that nobody in calgary says hi to you, nobody will.



There is more, but I got to start work :)

I grew up in BC, around lakes and mountains. So for me its a huge issue, but the money is here and I bought our place when the market was a bit high and now I have to wait.

don't get me wrong, vancouver is a great city. good to visit, but i sure as hell wouldnt like to settle there long term unless i was further out in coquitlam or something equivalent. call it the culture or whatever you want, but i feel like there's a hell of a lot more negative factors that can be brought into play in that city than in calgary if i were brought up there. (again, personal opinion).

[kertejud2]

* Stability
* Healthcare
* Culture and environment
* Education
* Infrastructure

Stability:
Economic-As long as people continue to use oil the economy of Calgary will at the very worst be 'okay'. So top marks there
Envronmental-has one of the best environmental records around, top marks again. For those who think that brown trees in winter is something to get up in arms about just take a look at most major cities air or waterways and then criticize Calgary's environmental standards.
Growth-hmm. Well Calgary can grow without much to stop it so that could be viewed as a plus. If its sustainable growth they're looking at, that was a hotly contested election issue so I can't really say anything there.

Healthcare:
-the Canadian healthcare system ensures that everybody in the city has access to healthcare, which is more than some world-class cities can say. How in-depth they want to go into the quality of healthcare is another matter but Vancouver and Toronto are in the same boat so we could call this one moot.

Culture and Environment:
-why these two are together is puzzling but I guess it depends on what sort of culture you're looking for. Calgary's not great, but I didn't see anybody complain about Sydney being #2 despite it being pretty 'pale' for a city of four million. Is culture really a problem and if so, what can fix it? Does Calgary not have its own distinct local culture more than say, Toronto? I know people say the Stampede is hokey, but what does a city like Toronto (or Sydney, or Auckland) have that is uniquely cultural to them more than the Stampede to Calgary? If you want a cultural pursuit they're to be had (Folk Fest, Film Festival theatre etc.) so you're not limited even if the events aren't as grandiose or noteworthy as other cities; culture also isn't solely based off food choice.
-As for the environment, its pretty clean from an environmental point of view and there are few places where you have access to such versatile activities in the environment.

Education
-most educated city in Canada, good schools and everybody has access to K-12. Two universities and a couple colleges, an art school etc. They might not be the best, but your educational pursuits are not in any way limited if you're "stuck" in Calgary. Its not like Calgary lags behind these other places in terms of education.

Infrastructure
-Public transit isn't good, but its used and improving. The roads are annoying but they're improving and not as bad as people make them out to be when compared to other cities. But infrastructure isn't just limited to transportation even if its the biggest one. But Calgary would at the very least get a "not terrible for a Western world city" without knowing what the infrastructure details are.



So there you have it, is it that surprising now?

[yellowsnow]

Originally posted by snoop101
To name a few and im sure i'll piss people off, but this is IMO and I only been here for 5 years.

Calgary has the worst...

landscape: Most parks are ugly, We really dont have anything that brings people together. We have a walking path along the river downtown, but after it gets dark its really not to safe (from what I hear). I find Calgary to be very dirty. Ride on the Ctrain a bit and look out side the window, you can not go a block or two without seeing trash in the grass, etc.

Fish creek park - Yeah, our parks aren't as lush as Vancouver or other coastal cities. But did you know it's CANADA's largest urban park? I think it's a great park, you feel totally secluded in some areas, and is right by the river. You can even go fishing here if you'd like. Nose Hill Park is also just lots of grasslands, but it's huge and you see tons of wildlife there. I've walked home from DT through PEI Park, never saw any trouble. You always "hear" stories on the news, but i feel much safer than in larger cities.



Roads: We have some of the worst up kept roads. Pot holes and are lighting system is horrible. We have lights that just turn red for no reason AT NIGHT.


That's what happens when you live in a snowy/cold city. Pot holes happen, but the city actually takes the time and money to fix them as fast as they can. So yeah it sucks, but it gets fixed. I dont' know how many cities have you lived in, but lights turn red... usually at night it changes a lot faster when it senses a car at the intersection.



Communities: This can go both ways. Calgary is so broken up into different communities that a lot of people would leave their area unless they need to go to work. this is fine, but most communities look a like and are just based on box stores. Try to find a butcher or bakery in your community.Down south its next to impossible. The downtown core is like a ghost town at night.


Everyone has cars here... if you were to open a local butcher/baker, you would lose to big competitors like superstore/wal-mart/costco... lots of small shops have shut down due to these powerhouses. There's one of those big supermarkets within 10 minutes of every community practically! I'm cool with that... saves me time and money to do all my shopping in one place.



Culture: Sure we have T&T and a small China town, but our culture here is nothing like Vancouver or Toronto.

Yeah, I find our culture quite small too. but the chinese food in calgary is better than most cities I've been.



Food: Same as culture. Its very hard to find "good" food in Calgary. Granted when you do find it, it is good.

Depends what you're looking for. It's like that in any city... just have to find the right restaurants.



People: I find that Calgary is made up of so many people from other cities that most people could give a shit and its surprises me when I say Hi to someone when walking the dog and they actually say hi back. Usually they look the other way.

Really?? I find Calgary to have the nicest people around. Where do you live in the city? Try living in Brisbane, or Edmonton, or LA or even Vancouver, people aren't as friendly. When I go hiking in the mountains, 99% of people will greet each other in some way. I'd say you're wrong here, but YMMV.

The only think I wish Calgary had was a big body of water. Our lakes are pitiful, and are mostly private. Gotta love BC for it's fruit season as well. You can't grow anything but crab apples in the city.

I've been living in Brisbane for a year (ranked 21st on that list), and we're really close to the ocean/beach, and get crazy warm weather. They also just suffered from one of the worst floods in history. They get torrential storms in the summer (Typhoons sweep into the East Coast every year). Rain is HEAVY... last night I couldn't see the condo building next to mine cuz of all the rain. Cost of living is much higher too. And although i enjoy the beaches, and the warm weather.. i can't wait to go home to Calgary. :dunno:

[Graham_A_M]

Being a born & Bred Calgarian, I can say Calgary once was an absolutely amazing place to live, back in the late eighties.

People were very friendly back then, (and if you can possibly fathom this: people knew how to drive), and we didn't have the retarded traffic & housing prices we do today.

Then everybody else found out how good of a city was, and things snowballed, then finally enter the housing crisis we had a few years ago.

Calgary is nice in a way that there are lots of jobs and we are an IT hub of the west in conjunction to the oil patch.
However its the reasons I mentioned that really kill this place.

I went to Italy this last spring, and it was amazing at just how depraved we are of culture in Calgary. I find Calgary to be an empty city, full of very shallow, hollow people.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by soupey

ever been to sask? or anywhere in nyc/nj area? i honestly never see that much trash out on the street unless im in the heart of the NE


traffic lights are timed. and ive lived and driven on ny/nj roads, calgary's roads are incredibly maintained in contrast, and im pretty sure our budget on roadwork per km is much less than however much they spend here. My car is getting a workout going through the streets in the city and in NJ, if you think calgary has serious pothole issues, u must be thinking right out of the winter season when some road cracks are expected, even then, has nothing in contrast to other cities.



every city is broken up into communities at some level, i think you're generalizing all of calgary based on a token few neighbourhoods out south.


vancouver and toronto have a much larger population base, i honestly think new york has the most multicultural insanity going on in one place, for better or worse, that's one of the things that gives calgary a small town appeal even though it's still a growing city...i know it's subjective, but that preserved identity something i prefer over a lot of diverse culture. over time that's obviously going to change, even over the last 3-4 years the population in calgary has a different feel to it every time i come back to visit...it is much more diverse.


agreed on this point, over the last 4 years ive been out of the city the selection has become MUCH better though.


must be your experience talking to others, im comparing to new york/nj, calgary and vancouver are the only two cities that people will say hello if there's eye contact and abuse the word sorry randomly while walking on paths and sidewalks everywhere. that's my own experience, if you're walking around with the attitude that nobody in calgary says hi to you, nobody will.




don't get me wrong, vancouver is a great city. good to visit, but i sure as hell wouldnt like to settle there long term unless i was further out in coquitlam or something equivalent. call it the culture or whatever you want, but i feel like there's a hell of a lot more negative factors that can be brought into play in that city than in calgary if i were brought up there. (again, personal opinion).

I get what your saying, but you cant compare Calgary to New York, and I been to NJ and its a shit whole. No offense if you lived there.

Cities in Europe are amazing compared to North america, but I assume some fail on Economy and being able to buy a house in your 20's.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by yellowsnow



Everyone has cars here... if you were to open a local butcher/baker, you would lose to big competitors like superstore/wal-mart/costco... lots of small shops have shut down due to these powerhouses. There's one of those big supermarkets within 10 minutes of every community practically! I'm cool with that... saves me time and money to do all my shopping in one place.



This is why we have no good places to buy food.

Box store butchers and bakeries are bad. Most things are shipped in and if there made on site its just the basics.

People seem to want cheap, easy access over quality.

I went to 3 places on the weekend looking for smoked pork hock. I ended up buying a pre packaged one at coop becuase I couldent find anything. Sure call me picky, but Even in Kelowna I could buy fresh smoke pork hock.

Bakeries are very hard to come by as well. I live in somerset and there isnt one close to be at all. (if someone knows one let me know)

[Godfuader]

The only problem with the survey is that it does not specify to which demographic. I love Calgary, and would like to move back there later in life. Living in Manhattan makes me realize how great Calgary truly is. I love Manhattan as well, at this stage in my life (young professionals, married, no kids), but it is not a place we can call home forever. Our plan is to move back to Canada (Calgary or Vancouver) when we decide to firmly settle down.

[msommers]

Originally posted by snoop101


To name a few and im sure i'll piss people off, but this is IMO and I only been here for 5 years.

Calgary has the worst...

landscape: Most parks are ugly, We really dont have anything that brings people together. We have a walking path along the river downtown, but after it gets dark its really not to safe (from what I hear). I find Calgary to be very dirty. Ride on the Ctrain a bit and look out side the window, you can not go a block or two without seeing trash in the grass, etc.

Roads: We have some of the worst up kept roads. Pot holes and are lighting system is horrible. We have lights that just turn red for no reason AT NIGHT.

Communities: This can go both ways. Calgary is so broken up into different communities that a lot of people would leave their area unless they need to go to work. this is fine, but most communities look a like and are just based on box stores. Try to find a butcher or bakery in your community.Down south its next to impossible. The downtown core is like a ghost town at night.

Culture: Sure we have T&T and a small China town, but our culture here is nothing like Vancouver or Toronto.

Food: Same as culture. Its very hard to find "good" food in Calgary. Granted when you do find it, it is good.

People: I find that Calgary is made up of so many people from other cities that most people could give a shit and its surprises me when I say Hi to someone when walking the dog and they actually say hi back. Usually they look the other way.

There is more, but I got to start work :)

I grew up in BC, around lakes and mountains. So for me its a huge issue, but the money is here and I bought our place when the market was a bit high and now I have to wait.

This post basically states, "You can't have it all." I guess that means Calgary sucks! Oh ya, no PST blows too.

[kertejud2]

Originally posted by Godfuader
The only problem with the survey is that it does not specify to which demographic. I love Calgary, and would like to move back there later in life. Living in Manhattan makes me realize how great Calgary truly is. I love Manhattan as well, at this stage in my life (young professionals, married, no kids), but it is not a place we can call home forever. Our plan is to move back to Canada (Calgary or Vancouver) when we decide to firmly settle down.

This is a very good point. I forget where I read it but it said (limiting himself to Canada) "In a perfect life I'd be 18 in Montreal, 30 in Toronto, 50 in Vancouver and 70 in Victoria" or something like that. Each place has different things that appeal to different crowds.

Living on my own there is a ridiculous amount of places I could live and be happy for different reasons. But there are much fewer places that I'd want to raise a family.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by msommers


This post basically states, "You can't have it all." I guess that means Calgary sucks! Oh ya, no PST blows too.

No what im saying is that Calgary has a lot of Issues and doesn't deserve 5th place. If it was in the teens then I would say, yes that sounds right.

I don't like Calgary myself, but this isn't about what you or myself think. Its based on stats that they acquired.

[msommers]

What would you rank top 5, top 10 for example?

[masoncgy]

Originally posted by Graham_A_M
I find Calgary to be an empty city, full of very shallow, hollow people.

Me too. That's one of the reasons I left.

Calgary, for the most part, has no sense of community. People are hung up on themselves and don't take the time to get to know their neighbors, etc. It's all the same everyday, get up, drive to work, come home, go to bed, repeat... at least in the suburbs anyway.

I will admit that there are days that I miss Calgary given it was my home for 10 years.

[Xtrema]

Other than the fucking winter, Calgary is pretty good to live in.

Now, I don't know how that will hold the next decade.

The rich/poor gap and population has created some social tension.

[desi112]

"the grass is always greener on the other side"

calgary is a fantastic city

[SOAB]

Originally posted by masoncgy


Me too. That's one of the reasons I left.

Calgary, for the most part, has no sense of community. People are hung up on themselves and don't take the time to get to know their neighbors, etc. It's all the same everyday, get up, drive to work, come home, go to bed, repeat... at least in the suburbs anyway.

I will admit that there are days that I miss Calgary given it was my home for 10 years.

Calgary wasn't always like this. it's the people that have moved here from other places in the last 5-10 years that have made it like this.

that means people like snoop101 have made Calgary into a snobby "i don't care about my neighbors" kind of place.

[Feruk]

So the world's "best" cities are also some of the most expensive to live in? I question this wisdom.


Originally posted by snoop101

I haven't been here long enough, but has Calgary ever had a natural disaster?
Every winter, welcome. :)

[ercchry]

inner city vs suburbia hell is a completely different experience, just like every city. living in summerset and complaining about life in calgary is like living in oakville and complaining about life in toronto :nut:

you want small shops and community feel? culture? go live in those neighborhoods. 17ave sw, mardaloop, kensington, etc... summerset? thats where people go to die and raising a family :rofl:

[arian_ma]

Originally posted by syeve
I also have travelled and been many places - Calgary is one of the best places on earth in my humble opinion. There are better (Chicago/Boston) but I would take calgary over 95% of the places I have been.
2 billion % disagree. I would rather live in Guatemala. On a side note though, I fucking HATE our weather.

Scientific proof right here I think.

[syeve]

Originally posted by arian_ma

2 billion % disagree. I would rather live in Guatemala. On a side note though, I fucking HATE our weather.

Scientific proof right here I think.

Whats stopping you? If there is a place I would rather be, I wouldn't waste time here. Life is short my friend.

Money is relative, I have enough to move pretty much anywhere, in my experience Calgary is one of the best places on earth. Part of the problem with Calgary of late is the "I fucking hate Calgary" mentality. Like someone else said - a grass is always greener mentality - is a lonely way to live IMHO.

[arian_ma]

Originally posted by syeve


Whats stopping you? If there is a place I would rather be, I wouldn't waste time here. Life is short my friend.

Money is relative, I have enough to move pretty much anywhere, in my experience Calgary is one of the best places on earth. Part of the problem with Calgary of late is the "I fucking hate Calgary" mentality. Like someone else said - a grass is always greener mentality - is a lonely way to live IMHO.
I was just kidding personally. I mean, the weather is not the best here and the city is lacking in culture, but overall, thinking about the other choices, Calgary is not that bad. I think in 2 or 3 years when they re-develop east village and continue their addition of small scale culture to the city, Calgary will be a really good city for the younger people, and maybe even have the nightlife of Edmonton. Also, a lot of people don't give a shit, but the mountains for me are like a haven; I love them.

Weather sucks though. Hard.

[in*10*se]

for all the haters and fucking hypocrites... if you don't like it here... no one is forcing you to stay... stfu or gtfo.

/thread.

[Toma]

Originally posted by in*10*se
for all the haters and fucking hypocrites... if you don't like it here... no one is forcing you to stay... stfu or gtfo.

/thread.
lol....
people like you need a slap lol.
:nut:

[CapnCrunch]

Originally posted by snoop101
[B]

I have traveled a lot and lived in different places, but I would have to say that Calgary has to be one of the worst places I have lived.


You sure don't have a very broad perspective for someone who claims to have travelled. Calgary is very clean, well educated, safe, healthy, and very prosperous.

90% of the world would kill you and your family to have a chance to live here.

[max_boost]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch


You sure don't have a very broad perspective for someone who claims to have travelled. Calgary is very clean, well educated, safe, healthy, and very prosperous.

90% of the world would kill you and your family to have a chance to live here.

:werd: I love Calgary!

Go Flames Go!

One recommendation? More restaurants that are open later. That's one thing I loved about going to other places. Late night after the bar in HK? Let's go for 5am Sushi! haha

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by snoop101
I haven't been here long enough, but has Calgary ever had a natural disaster?

We are protected by the mountains and we are not on a fault.

We get floods when river swells and that's it.

No earthquake
No volcano
No tornado (may be a twister the odd time)
No Hurricane/Typhoon
No forest to burn, may a grass fire or two.

And we are 3000 ft above sea level, we will be one of the last habitable places on earth when it turns into Waterworld. :rofl:

[max_boost]

Originally posted by Xtrema


We are protected by the mountains and we are not on a fault.

We get floods when river swells and that's it.

No earthquake
No volcano
No tornado (may be a twister the odd time)
No Hurricane/Typhoon
No forest to burn, may a grass fire or two.

And we are 3000 ft above sea level, we will be one of the last habitable places on earth when it turns into Waterworld.

:rofl:

That means home prices will go up. 89coupe will be thrilled lol

[Jeremiah]

I just don't see how Calgary is on the list.

Same with Toronto

[snoop101]

Originally posted by ercchry
inner city vs suburbia hell is a completely different experience, just like every city. living in summerset and complaining about life in calgary is like living in oakville and complaining about life in toronto :nut:

you want small shops and community feel? culture? go live in those neighborhoods. 17ave sw, mardaloop, kensington, etc... summerset? thats where people go to die and raising a family :rofl:

I lived downtown for about 6 months. Was probably one of the worst things I have ever done. Anyone who thinks Calgary has a good downtown core has never left Calgary or is one of those people who work, get off at 4 and never ever stays downtown. Calgary's downtown core is a ghost town after everyone leaves to go back to their homes in the suburbs. Everything closes. We always had to drive outside of the core to do anything.

On the flip side I lived in YaleTown in Vancouver and it miss it so much. Not only is everything Open, people come from outside of Vancouver's core to do stuff. We also had a supermarket (big one too) about 2-3 blocks away. Didn't even have to worry about driving.

Which is another thing that im curious about. how can they rate us so high when are transportation system is so bad. cities are supposed to care about the environment and work on having less people drive. Calgary is the opposite. they try to make people drive and make transportation something people take if its a last resort.

[kertejud2]

Originally posted by Jeremiah
I just don't see how Calgary is on the list.

Same with Toronto
What cities should be there instead?

Remember the factors that are taken into account, and what areas one might ignore when talking about the awesomeness of New York, London, Paris, Tokyo etc.

[whiskas]

Originally posted by snoop101
I find Calgary to be very dirty. Ride on the Ctrain a bit and look out side the window, you can not go a block or two without seeing trash in the grass, etc.

Hahaha, you clearly don't travel very much.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by Jeremiah
I just don't see how Calgary is on the list.

Same with Toronto

Exactly. My point was not what I like or what Joe blow who grew up here and has never left Alberta, it's that Calgary is rated on a list that includes the world. 80% of European cities blow us out of the water (if we had water). sure a lot of other cities get negative marks on income, housing prices, etc, they gain back on culture, transportation, general way of living. So I assume when they do their math that some things weigh in at a lot more then others.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by Jeremiah
I just don't see how Calgary is on the list.

Same with Toronto

Download the PDF on read the rating on the criteria.

Too bad you have to pay for the full report. I would love to know exactly how those rating are formed as well.

If you want an exciting life, there are bigger and better cities. But raising a family and making $, this city is pretty good.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by whiskas


Hahaha, you clearly don't travel very much.

Actually I have traveled more then most people I know, if not everyone. I used to work on cruise ships and also spent time all through Europe. Sure I haven't been to Asia at all.

I have talked to other people here in Calgary and they have agreed that we have a very dirty city. Most people dont see it because most people drive, but go for a walk or take the Ctrain and you will see. I will admit that the downtown core is somewhat clean.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by snoop101
So I assume when they do their math that some things weigh in at a lot more then others.

I think they just took an average. So if value culture, which is Calgary's weakest rating of all, Calgary won't even make it into top 30.


Originally posted by snoop101
I have talked to other people here in Calgary and they have agreed that we have a very dirty city. Most people dont see it because most people drive, but go for a walk or take the Ctrain and you will see. I will admit that the downtown core is somewhat clean.

It's relative. I found more ugly dumpsters in Rome or trash everywhere in NY when shops throw garbage out on the street @ night. We do have trash that picked up by the wind and end up is some places, but higher density cities has way uglier trash problem than we do.

Wait til you go to China and see all the spit on the ground.

[Type_S1]

I am born and raised in Calgary and have traveled to all the places people would recommend off the top of their heads. To be honest I would never want to live somewhere else then Calgary. Sure other places are fun for a week or a month but get old very very fast. I cannot believe Van is at the top of the list. I can be there for a few weeks at max and get so sick of the place. The food blows ours out of the water and the clubbing is more fun and thats about it.

[kertejud2]

Having lived in Paris, London and Dublin as well as hitting up pretty much all of Europe I can assure you that the difference in cleanliness, safety and the like is extremely different from the travel spots and the places people, you know, live.

If you have the money the places are incredible (well, not Dublin). If you don't, you can do much, much better if you're thinking long term. I was able to live in Munich and Prague for a couple months as well but turning that into extended stays would have completely changed how I could live so I can't really base my experiences there with determining on whether or not they're great places to live. I don't think the study is taking into account short stints or specific type of living (as Godfuader said about the difference between a bachelor, young couple or people looking to starts a family).

And when it comes to a lot of things, living on the outskirts of Calgary is much better than living on the outskirts of most cities, at least if you take the greater areas into account. In Canada alone Toronto and Montreal are awesome if you can live near the action. But if you're in Mississauga or Chateauguay things are considerably less awesome.

[CapnCrunch]

Originally posted by snoop101


Exactly. My point was not what I like or what Joe blow who grew up here and has never left Alberta, it's that Calgary is rated on a list that includes the world. 80% of European cities blow us out of the water (if we had water). sure a lot of other cities get negative marks on income, housing prices, etc, they gain back on culture, transportation, general way of living. So I assume when they do their math that some things weigh in at a lot more then others.

So you'd rather make low income, not be able to afford a house or travelling, but have more culture?

Let me paint a picture for you.

I live in a clean, safe city. I have free healthcare if I should need it. There is very little pollution where I live, and the drinking water is some of the best in the world. I have a 30 minute commute to work, where I make a very generous wage. I can afford 2 new vehicles, an expensive home, and I travel very often to places all over the world. I am educated, healthy, happy, and comfortable financially.

I have trouble finding a good restaurant, and wish they had more music, museums, and theatres.

Should I be content?

[Tram Common]

Not only is Vancouver's hockey team better... now this... curses!

[snoop101]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch


Should I be content?

Its not based on how many BMW's or Ferrari's you can fit in your garage. Im sure most people here are content, but the report said that we are in the top in the world. That means an average of all these different things. Its not based on the fact that everyone including people working at McDonald's make a decent living which then turns into people being happy. Sure you need money to live, but I rather make a bit less and enjoy my life. A lot of my friends sold their houses before everything went down and moved back to Vancouver and it was the best thing they ever did. Unfortunately some of us couldn't sell in time. If I wasent loosing a bit of money in my condo I would be long gone.


On a side note... I was talking to a guy a few years back that worked in France. He was telling me that its illegal in France for a corporation to lay anyone off. they are supposed to use the money that they made during "good times" to pay for "bad times". Anyone else heard this before? Sounds like job security to me.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by snoop101


Its not based on how many BMW's or Ferrari's you can fit in your garage. Im sure most people here are content, but the report said that we are in the top in the world. That means an average of all these different things. Its not based on the fact that everyone including people working at McDonald's make a decent living which then turns into people being happy. Sure you need money to live, but I rather make a bit less and enjoy my life. A lot of my friends sold their houses before everything went down and moved back to Vancouver and it was the best thing they ever did. Unfortunately some of us couldn't sell in time. If I wasent loosing a bit of money in my condo I would be long gone.


On a side note... I was talking to a guy a few years back that worked in France. He was telling me that its illegal in France for a corporation to lay anyone off. they are supposed to use the money that they made during "good times" to pay for "bad times". Anyone else heard this before? Sounds like job security to me.

This post is exactly why you love BC more than Calgary AB.

You are more of a communist than capitalist. Calgary is a capitalist city.

The job security in France is also why their productivity is low and not competitive in the world stage.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by Xtrema


This post is exactly why you love BC more than Calgary AB.

You are more of a communist than capitalist. Calgary is a capitalist city.

The job security in France is also why their productivity is low and not competitive in the world stage.

No I love BC because its beautiful, people are friendly, Doesn't matter where you go, you have mountains and water. People in BC also put pride into what they do for the cities and environment, people in Calgary could care less on the most part(dont want to get into it, but we are a anti-bike city). The province spends more time planning for the people and less planning on how they can extract more money out of big corporations to show off how much money we have compared to other provinces. Alberta in general has attitude that everything revolves around money. If it wasent for Oil & Gas then Albert a would just be flat barren land with a few bigger towns.

But anyways this isn't about me or you, its about a list of cities and how we somehow ended up at the top, yet people can only come up with a few things why we should be there and they all revolve around money.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by snoop101


I lived downtown for about 6 months. Was probably one of the worst things I have ever done. Anyone who thinks Calgary has a good downtown core has never left Calgary or is one of those people who work, get off at 4 and never ever stays downtown. Calgary's downtown core is a ghost town after everyone leaves to go back to their homes in the suburbs. Everything closes. We always had to drive outside of the core to do anything.


not once did i say to check out the core... the inner city has lots of life though, i have traveled to many places and never understood the hype that some of these great european cities had... over crowded, over priced and rather limited variety for the size of them

[snoop101]

Originally posted by ercchry


not once did i say to check out the core... the inner city has lots of life though, i have traveled to many places and never understood the hype that some of these great european cities had... over crowded, over priced and rather limited variety for the size of them

17th ave is not "inner city", the downtown core is the "inner city".

[ercchry]

Originally posted by snoop101


17th ave is not "inner city", the downtown core is the "inner city".

uhh no? the downtown core is the core... inner city would be the... inner city, aka not suburbia :dunno:

[kertejud2]

Originally posted by snoop101
People in BC also put pride into what they do for the cities and environment, people in Calgary could care less on the most part(dont want to get into it, but we are a anti-bike city).





But anyways this isn't about me or you, its about a list of cities and how we somehow ended up at the top, yet people can only come up with a few things why we should be there and they all revolve around money.

I came up with a list that outlined how Calgary stacked up against the parameters the study outlined. I'll post it again:


quote:

* Stability
* Healthcare
* Culture and environment
* Education
* Infrastructure

Stability:
Economic-As long as people continue to use oil the economy of Calgary will at the very worst be 'okay'. So top marks there
Envronmental-has one of the best environmental records around, top marks again. For those who think that brown trees in winter is something to get up in arms about just take a look at most major cities air or waterways and then criticize Calgary's environmental standards.
Growth-hmm. Well Calgary can grow without much to stop it so that could be viewed as a plus. If its sustainable growth they're looking at, that was a hotly contested election issue so I can't really say anything there.

Healthcare:
-the Canadian healthcare system ensures that everybody in the city has access to healthcare, which is more than some world-class cities can say. How in-depth they want to go into the quality of healthcare is another matter but Vancouver and Toronto are in the same boat so we could call this one moot.

Culture and Environment:
-why these two are together is puzzling but I guess it depends on what sort of culture you're looking for. Calgary's not great, but I didn't see anybody complain about Sydney being #2 despite it being pretty 'pale' for a city of four million. Is culture really a problem and if so, what can fix it? Does Calgary not have its own distinct local culture more than say, Toronto? I know people say the Stampede is hokey, but what does a city like Toronto (or Sydney, or Auckland) have that is uniquely cultural to them more than the Stampede to Calgary? If you want a cultural pursuit they're to be had (Folk Fest, Film Festival theatre etc.) so you're not limited even if the events aren't as grandiose or noteworthy as other cities; culture also isn't solely based off food choice.
-As for the environment, its pretty clean from an environmental point of view and there are few places where you have access to such versatile activities in the environment.

Education
-most educated city in Canada, good schools and everybody has access to K-12. Two universities and a couple colleges, an art school etc. They might not be the best, but your educational pursuits are not in any way limited if you're "stuck" in Calgary. Its not like Calgary lags behind these other places in terms of education.

Infrastructure
-Public transit isn't good, but its used and improving. The roads are annoying but they're improving and not as bad as people make them out to be when compared to other cities. But infrastructure isn't just limited to transportation even if its the biggest one. But Calgary would at the very least get a "not terrible for a Western world city" without knowing what the infrastructure details are.

[snoop101]

Originally posted by ercchry


uhh no? the downtown core is the core... inner city would be the... inner city, aka not suburbia :dunno:

thats why I put " " cause lets be honest they also classify Mount royal as inner city. When I think of inner city like Vancouver I think of Yale town, etc. Yale town being only a few min walk from the core. As in mount royal I could imagine (cause who walk it) be like hour walk, if not more.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by snoop101


thats why I put " " cause lets be honest they also classify Mount royal as inner city. When I think of inner city like Vancouver I think of Yale town, etc. Yale town being only a few min walk from the core. As in mount royal I could imagine (cause who walk it) be like hour walk, if not more.

bankview to the drum takes me 40min to walk :dunno: or 15min the other way and im in mardaloop... at narah or aj's

[snoop101]

Originally posted by kertejud2





Education
-most educated city in Canada, good schools and everybody has access to K-12. Two universities and a couple colleges, an art school etc. They might not be the best, but your educational pursuits are not in any way limited if you're "stuck" in Calgary. Its not like Calgary lags behind these other places in terms of education.


http://oncampus.macleans.ca/education/2010/11/10/our-20th-annual-university-rankings/

Not sure how accurate that is, but Calgary shows up on one list at 8th, down from last year. We dont even rank in the other two.

[kertejud2]

Originally posted by snoop101


http://oncampus.macleans.ca/education/2010/11/10/our-20th-annual-university-rankings/

Not sure how accurate that is, but Calgary shows up on one list at 8th, down from last year. We dont even rank in the other two.

The University of Calgary showed up at 8th...and you missed the point entirely.

[SilverGS]

Originally posted by snoop101


Actually I have traveled more then most people I know, if not everyone. I used to work on cruise ships and also spent time all through Europe. Sure I haven't been to Asia at all.

I have talked to other people here in Calgary and they have agreed that we have a very dirty city. Most people dont see it because most people drive, but go for a walk or take the Ctrain and you will see. I will admit that the downtown core is somewhat clean.

You sound a bit biased. You seem so focused on the things you hate about Calgary that you ignore the great things about the City.

EVERY city has garbage in some places of the city. And yes it tends to be where the train systems are. Otherwise there is a reason many places consider Calgary among the cleanest cities in the world.

http://www.aboutmyplanet.com/environment/worlds-cleanest-cities/

http://www.travelermania.com/traveler-chit-chat/cleanest-cities-in-the-world/

But you of course must be more of an expert because you travel the ctrain and see some garbage.

I will agree that we don't have that great of a cultural scene but it seems to be getting better quickly the last 10 years.

You complain about road conditions? Pot holes? I have lived here all my life and used to complain about pot holes as well but after traveling quite a bit I don't complain about it as much after seeing most cities have it worse than us.

Most here would say that Calgary drivers are among the worst. I was just in Vancouver again this past weekend and I think it is worse there than here.

Maybe it's just you but I have found people overall here still very friendly overall. I know who my neighbours are and talk to them often. There have even been block party's on some of the streets. It does seem less due to the huge influx of people from other places moving here the last 20 years but most people are quite friendly. When I go hiking or even out I find myself striking up conversations with people on the path just out of the blue.

I have visited many places that I find cool to visit but I have found very few places I would rather live than Calgary. Clean city, good economy, close to mountains, sure it can get cold but no natural disasters to really worry about, good education system, great people.

[frizzlefry]

I was born and rasied in Calgary for the most part. I lived in Oakville as a kid for 2 years and lived in St. John's NF for 3 years in my early 20s. I have been to New York, Miami...typical tourist stuff. Been to Toronto lots of times, family there. I really like Calgary. Could not see myself living anywhere else. Great water treatment, clean (though its not AS clean as it was 20 years ago but its still pretty damn clean, esp downtown) low crime, great pay, lots of jobs, strong economy. I have lived downtown the past 12 years and I love it. 15 minute walk to work. No way I could afford that in Vancouver or Toronto. Culture is lacking but culture sure ain't worth making less, getting taxed more, having to commute for an hour in the morning and having to hook up your tap water to a filtration system so you can drink it.

Newfoundland has lots of culture and friendly people but you think our roads are bad? Brutal there. Hubcaps all over the sides of the roads the holes are so bad. Yeah they have neat multi-coloured houses that look good on TV but you don't get to smell the raw sewage they pump into St. John's harbour when you see how pretty St. John's is on TV. St. John's downtown smells like raw sewage. First time I went there I almost threw up. But you get used to it.

Calgary is not as friendly as it once was. But thats mostly due to people from cultured "cool" cities like Vancouver and Toronto moving here because they could not get a job or buy a home where they lived. Calgarians are still very friendly, but yeah, the transplants from other places not so much.

[frizzlefry]

Originally posted by Xtrema


We are protected by the mountains and we are not on a fault.

We get floods when river swells and that's it.

No earthquake
No volcano
No tornado (may be a twister the odd time)
No Hurricane/Typhoon
No forest to burn, may a grass fire or two.

And we are 3000 ft above sea level, we will be one of the last habitable places on earth when it turns into Waterworld. :rofl:

Plus, it gets damn freezing in winter but no big heavy dumps of snow. So, when the zombie apocalypse happens, we just have to wait for a cold snap and smash the frozen zombies. Easy to spot as we don't get massive dumps of snow that would bury them.

[ZEDGE]

I have been in Calgary most of my life. Having traveled around the world to many cities this is a great place to live. Its clean, safe, has good schools, jobs, access to outdoor and indoor activities.. etc etc. Its a great place to raise a family. The problems we have with traffic, transit etc are more to do with the city growing too fast with so many people coming here. In 30 years Calgary has more than doubled in size, thats just crazy. Things are getting better too. And for those comparing to Vancouver or Toronto, that is not even a fair comparison. Vancouver has twice the population, Toronto has more people than Alberta and BC combined, not to mention its much older, come on for pete's sake.... :rolleyes: And there are areas in Toronto and Vancouver that make Forest Lawn look like Malibu. So this OMG there is garbage on the roads stuff is just stupid.. The city is dirty in the winter, just like any other in Canada that has a cold winter.

Most of the haters are people who have come here for the money, have no interest in the City itself, don't take the time to get to know people or the local scene but bitch about how they hate it constantly, and how where they came from is so much better. These are the kind of people that bring this city down, seems we have a few posting in this thread. They make Calgary sound like Kabul or something, its rather pathetic. Nightlife does not make a city livable.

What ever, those of us who like the city know its not perfect but its getting better by the year. The winter is shit (its the prairies) yea, but thats why we travel to warm places.

/rant

[Hakkola]

Hah, I was expecting to see Helsinki on there, awesome, it should have been placed above Calgary, but it can be expensive.

[flipstah]

Originally posted by kertejud2


The University of Calgary showed up at 8th...and you missed the point entirely.

Now I'm surprised that the school did that high. :rofl: Thanks Haskayne and Schulich for keeping us at top!

Back on topic, Calgary is a great place to live compared to other cities. As people have stated before, a select few are thinking short-term with 'partying' and 'having fun' while the ranking focuses on long-term such as 'stability' or 'healthcare'

You can party all you want but it won't help pay the bills. That's what it means to have a livable city; so you can live and not be a partying bum.

Balance is key and we do have a nightlife; not AS great as others but better than most.

FYI, Calgary loves to party. Check out The Back Alley. :thumbsup: And if fistfights aren't your thing, we'll just fly to Van or Vegas and make it rain.

[A|pine]

True Calgarians, i.e. born and raised Calgarians are nice - they give you the white hat treatment that we are famous for. Like anything, there are always bad apples in the barrel like Vancouver Canuck Fans ;)....kidding.

Calgary is a clean city, it happens every year post snow melt. There will be garbage on the ugly brown grass and the rugged environment will look less 'full' due to the lack of leaves on the the trees. Spring when things begin to bloom and the elementary kids finishing cleaning up their respective playgrounds things are different without a doubt. You cannot compare this to Vancouver - even in the winter you can golf year round (the climate is just that moderate and the humidity is just that high)

Comparing Vancouver to Calgary and Calgary to Toronto is like comparing LA to Denver and NYC. All these cities have their own positives and something that makes them unique.

Really Calgary is a great city and is well rounded (although lacking in certain cultural diversity + big metro night life). I go to Vancouver every year and yes the food is amazing as well as the company / night life. Cuisine has definitely improved over the past 15 years within Calgary and it will continue to do so in the future. There are some pretty high ranking restaurants in Calgary e.g. Rouge, Teatro, Catch, etc. Vancouver shuts down when they get snow (15 cm), Calgary just putts along.

While I was growing up, I could remember getting to any arena for hockey (even airdrie) in under 30 minutes any time of the day. Course it is different now, but that is just how the cookie crumbles.

I like to think of Calgary is like Tyler Myers. The city grew so fast that the people still are adjusting to get used to it. If you ever go to the Glenbow museum (I highly recommend it) you will learn about the history and the philanthropy funded by the energy industry. This gives you a lot of respect and understanding of how the city was built and where its true roots are. You will see that despite the few bad apples and inconveniences in your day, the true spirit of the west is still kicking around.

[911fever]

I liked Calgary, but after traveling about 42 states in the US, and much of Europe, I'd never consider it a top 5 place to live. Vancouver definitely deserves its number one spot, much more beautiful, greater cultural depth, and overall much nicer city to live in. I love where I live now (GTA) and I find absolutely tons more things to do here in Toronto then in Calgary, which was drink, and drink more. Calgary isn't a bad city and doesn't deserve negative press that even Snoop is accusing it of, but I definitely would not want to live there again for any length of time. The only thing I miss about Calgary? The Mountains. The lakes and rivers are a joke compared to BC and ON.

[CapnCrunch]

Originally posted by snoop101
[B]

Its not based on how many BMW's or Ferrari's you can fit in your garage. Im sure most people here are content, but the report said that we are in the top in the world. That means an average of all these different things. Its not based on the fact that everyone including people working at McDonald's make a decent living which then turns into people being happy. Sure you need money to live, but I rather make a bit less and enjoy my life. A lot of my friends sold their houses before everything went down and moved back to Vancouver and it was the best thing they ever did. Unfortunately some of us couldn't sell in time. If I wasent loosing a bit of money in my condo I would be long gone.

So you're here for the money, but you dont care about money, and you'd be happier somewhere with more culture making less money, but you can't leave because you'll lose money? :confused:

[ExtraSlow]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch
So you're here for the money, but you dont care about money, and you'd be happier somewhere with more culture making less money, but you can't leave because you'll lose money? :confused: +1:nut:

[SilverGS]

Originally posted by 911fever
I liked Calgary, but after traveling about 42 states in the US, and much of Europe, I'd never consider it a top 5 place to live. Vancouver definitely deserves its number one spot, much more beautiful, greater cultural depth, and overall much nicer city to live in. I love where I live now (GTA) and I find absolutely tons more things to do here in Toronto then in Calgary, which was drink, and drink more. Calgary isn't a bad city and doesn't deserve negative press that even Snoop is accusing it of, but I definitely would not want to live there again for any length of time. The only thing I miss about Calgary? The Mountains. The lakes and rivers are a joke compared to BC and ON.

So you are basing it on things to do. Already been stated that Calgary clearly doesn't have a night life or cultural diversity to match the bigger cities but when you look at the big picture and long term I think most could find it on the top 10 list.

You can find something good and bad about every larger city out there. Some won't like Calgary due to the reasons they stated already and some love it for the reasons they stated. Really just depend on your priority.

[kertejud2]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch


So you're here for the money, but you dont care about money, and you'd be happier somewhere with more culture making less money, but you can't leave because you'll lose money? :confused:

It's not cheap to live in a city with more culture that doesn't care about money evidently.

[soiledunderwear]

Calgary is a damn good place to be. Not the best but not the worst either. Proud to live in this city and the best Province in Canada.

[CapnCrunch]

Originally posted by SilverGS


So you are basing it on things to do. Already been stated that Calgary clearly doesn't have a night life or cultural diversity to match the bigger cities but when you look at the big picture and long term I think most could find it on the top 10 list.

You can find something good and bad about every larger city out there. Some won't like Calgary due to the reasons they stated already and some love it for the reasons they stated. Really just depend on your priority.

+1.

I don't think anyone has said Calgary has good culture. It sucks. Food here sucks or its very expensive. If thats ALL you care about then you might not like it here.

That doesn't mean you get to take away all the great things this city has and say its a terrible place.

Bitching about Calgarys traffic and then saying you'd rather live in Vancouver or Toronto or Paris is just :facepalm:

[core_upt]

Calgary isn't GREAT at anything, but I think it is GOOD at everything, and that is why it is on the list.

There are lots of great cities in the world, but few that offer as much as Calgary can in terms of completeness. Clean, safe, growing, employment opportunities, schooling, some culture/arts, we have the mountains, it's somewhat affordable, not a huge gap between rich and poor - or at least the poor aren't in as dire of a place as other cities.

Also, people in Calgary (and Canada) ARE very friendly. People in Sweden bury their face if you smile at them walking down the street - as if you're some sort of weirdo for actually being happy to see another human. People in Poland get mad when you go into their store to spend your money - it's crazy!

Calgary has it's problems - car dependency/sprawl/poor transit (all related) is maybe the biggest - but after a 6 months living in Sweden and traveling Europe, I can't wait to come back home.

[ExtraSlow]

Calgary is pretty affordable, compared to Canada, and compared to "great" cities globally.
660 news - Calgary one of the most affordable cities in Canada (http://www.660news.com/radio/660news/article/188455--calgary-one-of-the-most-affordable-cities-in-canada)

Try buying a house in Hong Kong, Tokyo or London.

[ReasonOne]

I think Calgary is a nice place to live. It is not perfect, but I am happy to have called it home for many years. Things have been a little murky because of the drastic increase in population in recent years.

It seems to me that Calgary is slowly losing it's identity. Fear and xenophobia are increasing rampantly. Snooty yuppies hole up in their McMansions in neighborhood X looking down on anybody living in neighborhood Y or Z, terrified of areas that differ from their own. These yuppies (who are in reality a pseudo-middle class) don't even realize that they are looked down on in turn by high society who own their lush rolling estates - it doesn't even phase them. On top of that - inner city dwellers laugh at suburbanites for living in crappy housing while those living in the ' burbs consider the inner city to be a full fledged demilitarized zone. Some Calgarians pass judgement based only on where you live! Heaven help any non-caucasians, because generalizations are made based on ethnicity on top of that.

Obviously not every Calgarian thinks this way, but it is an increasing trend in my opinion. What has Calgary come to? It didn't used to be this way. There are still friendly people around as I regulary get "hello's", nods and waves from strangers - but not nearly as much as in the past. I also love being able to meet with people of varying cultures from many different parts of the world. Somehow I feel that there are a lot of citizens out there that need to relax, slow down, take a deep breath and smell the roses once in a while.

Oooh - the "poorer" neighborhoods..... I don't want to be near them.... there's so much crime... all the gangs live there.... yada yada.... Crime occurs everywhere in this city - some places more than others and some more visible than others. This has NEVER prevented me from going somewhere I wanted to go. I've had very few problems no matter where I travel in this city and I have lived in Calgary most of my life. And the grow ops and the gang shootings happening in the 'burbs? No.... that would never happen where I live - so some think. Is Calgary that scary?!? Compared to other cities I have been/lived worldwide it is a paradise. Residents have no idea how good they have it. If people consider Calgary dirty, they need to see the world a little more before making such accusations.

I love the city and the province I live in. Overall we have a good standard of living, a highly educated population, a rich history and heritage, an increasing amount of cultural diversity and a healthy entrepeneurial spirit. One person with one good idea can make themselves wealthy here. My only concern is that when many people do make their fortunes here - they forget where they have come from or how they got their wealth in the first place. The level of materialism is reaching unhealthy proportions. Calgary has it's share of problems, but compared to many other cities worldwide it is a good place to live.

Yes, Calgary's population is increasing and with that come the growing pains. When cities reach certain sizes criminal elements will also gravitate to where they can find a good number of potential victims and customers. But the price of an increased population shouldn't be a reduction in civility towards fellow citizens. And it's a damned shame too..

[snoop101]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch


So you're here for the money, but you dont care about money, and you'd be happier somewhere with more culture making less money, but you can't leave because you'll lose money? :confused:

Lol ya pretty much. We moved out here from BC thinking that its going to be a good place to live. I make good money out here and we bought a place. Thing is now if we sold we wouldent have enough to take back to put a down payment on a place back in BC. so were stuck here until the market moves up a bit.

And yes my life was way better in BC making half the money I do now.

[Type_S1]

Originally posted by snoop101


Lol ya pretty much. We moved out here from BC thinking that its going to be a good place to live. I make good money out here and we bought a place. Thing is now if we sold we wouldent have enough to take back to put a down payment on a place back in BC. so were stuck here until the market moves up a bit.

And yes my life was way better in BC making half the money I do now.

Calgary won't miss you. :thumbsup:

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by snoop101


Lol ya pretty much. We moved out here from BC thinking that its going to be a good place to live. I make good money out here and we bought a place. Thing is now if we sold we wouldent have enough to take back to put a down payment on a place back in BC. so were stuck here until the market moves up a bit.

And yes my life was way better in BC making half the money I do now.

Vancouver market has always out paced Calgary's. Unless you're moving to a interior small town, there is never a way to selling a Calgary home can get you a similar home in Vancouver.

The only reason you can't go is probably because you are underwater on your current home and very close to it.

By the time Calgary market picks up again, Vancouver would have picked up twice as fast. You may as well bite the bullet and move now.

When you move from a bigger city to a smaller one, you can rarely move back to the bigger one without some concession.