[Gemme]

I lived on Kitsap Penninsula for more than 4 years, which is across the Sound from Seattle and about an hour away. Where I was, there was a small town feel and the usual fair could be found...movies, museums, hiking trails, etc. I lived in Bremerton, a Navy town. We chose to live there because we found Seattle to be entirely too expensive and congested. I like a little bit of space in my bubble.

Going into Seattle was fun though. There's always something to do. Pike Place Market, Music Museum, concerts, shows/theatre, underground tours, etc. The Space Needle is a tourist trap, though. Sure, the view is gorgeous, but you have to pay a minimum to dine up there and the service sucks. The food is okay, though.

As far as actually living there, Seattle is horrible during harsh winters. The hills (and there are a LOT of them) ice over and it's very common to have cars sliding back down into one another. For me, that's very scary.

However, the spring and summer cannot be beat! SeaFair brings in the speedboats and bathtub racers and Blue Angels but they are only a small part of the fabulousness of summertime in the PNW. Swimming, hiking, camping and day/road trips are the thing then. Temperatures are usually from the high 70s to the low or mid 90s, rarely hitting triple digits, but when they do, it's good to have a/c (half the homes don't have it).

Fall is absolutely stunning, with the leaves changing color and the nip and chill in the air.

I found that the atmosphere is quite tolerable there. Lots of family and lots of tatted and pierced folk all over. Friendly!

Wherever you decide to relocate to, definitely do your research. I did some with online income calculators only and they were all waaaay off base! WA and OR are right in line with CA as far as living expenses.