Minneapolis, Minnesota

It's big enough to feel cosmopolitan but small enough to avoid that scene when you’re not feeling it. In other words, if you like a Hobbit lifestyle but want to reserve the right to mix with the erudite, arts-oriented crowd, the twin cities are good for you. You can get the city when you want it, and the quiet life when you don’t.

Here's a pov on Minneapolis from a transplant:Speaking only for myself here…I love it. I'm originally from California, spent about 6 years in New Jersey, and have been here for a little over 6 years now. To me, Minneapolis is the right scale of city -- it's big enough that it has everything you might want out of a city (food, arts, culture, music, sports, etc) but small enough that it's not overwhelming, either on a physical scale like the sprawl of LA or on a density/people scale like a place like NYC.

For more reviews of Minneapolis from locals check out: The Buzz

Winter is a six month grind in the Twin Cities that can be difficult to adjust to if you’re not used to winters. While the city does its best to mitigate the havoc this can wreak on city infrastructure, winter driving in Minneapolis has historically been more of an issue than in other midwest cities like Chicago. Brush up on your winter driving skills and pack a coat or three.

Here's a local with a pretty balanced pov on the weather:Summers are hot and humid, and in some places the mosquitoes are out of control. Fall is really nice until late October or early November. After that the bottom drops out, and you are in for a brutal winter. The cold can be really painful, even dangerous. Realistically, you'll switch to shorts in early May.

Minneapolitans are considered nice-ish, public radio listening, Prius/Subaru-driving, fashion-illiterate, hardworking, responsible, slightly judgmental and environmentally conscious. Locals are well educated and there is a certain ‘house mouse’ vibe (readers, walkers and urban monks), but make no mistake, Minneapolitans get loud for their pro baseball, football, hockey (of course) and basketball teams.

Minneapolis is also serious about performing arts, none more so than theater, and the city is known for its quality craft beer scene. One common critique is that dating and making new friends is hard as it tends to be a standoffish culture (the term ‘passive-aggressive’ gets tossed around a lot in conversations about twin city dwellers).

If you want to see what locals get up to for fun and culture check out the calendar of events:https://www.minneapolis.org/calendar/