The 1-month comparison: Seattle vs. San Diego

I recently passed the one-month mark in my new home, which clearly qualifies me to make overarching generalizations comparing San Diego to my previous home base, Seattle.

There are obvious similarities between the two: each is is west coast city located on the eastern shore of an U-shaped inlet from the Pacific Ocean; hilly, and yet bike-friendly; with I-5 as the main north/south highway running through he city; known for it's water recreation; located about 2 hours south of a larger metropolis, and short drive from the international border; relatively dry summers and relatively wet winters; reputations as a "nice place to live".

There are even some not-so-obvious similarities: JACK-FM on the radio airwaves; incessant commercials for engagement rings courtesy of the Robbins brothers; a decent amount of Kroger, Safeway, and Albertson's grocery stores; and strong ties to the aviation industry.

And then there are the differences: San Diego is a city that seems to be built around a freeway layout while Seattle seems to do whatever they can to make getting around as difficult as possible; while Seattle has a relatively mild climate (mostly staying between 40 and 75 degrees), San Diego has re-defined mild (50 degrees is cold and 75 seems to be hot, with most days ranging from 55 to 70 year-round); the rain (although it is raining as I write this); the primary color around Seattle is green, while the primary color around San Diego is sandy brown; wearing beanies year-round is pretty typical in Seattle, while I have yet to see anyone wear one in San Diego; and lastly, not surprisingly, there seems to be much more technological innovation going on in my field in Seattle than in San Diego.

So which one do I like more? For someone with my interests, the early returns suggest that Seattle is a better place. While I certainly appreciate the warm and sunny days, I really miss having an outdoor place to spend them (like the mountains). Going skiing, snowshoeing, or sledding from Seattle is quite easy, and you have a range of options from which to choose. From San Diego, it's much more difficult and farther away. And I do miss the rain. Somehow, I am able to appreciate sunny days much more when they have a few cloudy or rainy days (or even months) mixed in. Here, a sunny day isn't much cause for celebration, or "I feel like working outside", or "today's a good day to go for a bike ride", feelings which I definitely felt in Seattle. Heck, even the wind here is so consistent (blowing from the north at 10 knots, rising from morning to evening), that picking out a good sailing day is much less interesting. It used to be that being blessed with a sunny and windy weekend day in Seattle added that extra je ne sais quoi to a Seattle sailing experience. Maybe those days exist here, but it takes some cloudy, no-wind days to appreciate them.

But I'm not down on this place at all. It really is quite nice, and very easy to get into a feel-good groove where each day mimics the last. While faster-paced than Seattle, it's not nearly as bad as LA, New York, or Boston. People have been very courteous (another similarity to Seattle), and overall it's been an easier transition than I had expected.