Calgary is a pretty young city so it's reasonably well catered towards young families who want to raise children. There's plenty of things that are good, but there are definitely things that should be acknowledged as things that can make it uncomfortable for someone living here.
- The weather is all over the place. Chinooks are warm winds that essentially bring small gaps in winter weather that are like spring time or autumn breaks. Chinooks can also trigger migraines for some people and a flash freeze after a Chinook makes for a nasty commute. Literal ice rinks everywhere. Oh, and it's possible to snow in July.
- Calgary is very dry, especially compared to the coastal cities. On one hand, it's kinda cool that you can air dry clothes on a rack in 3-5 hours and they feel nice and dry, not damp like in humid places. But that same air wreaks havoc on some people ranging from basic dry skin, inflammation of skin conditions, easy nose bleeds, dry eyes etc.
- The mountains are beautiful and really darn close. It's pretty darn easy to get good deals for equipment to enhance your mountain activities. Lots of sunlight is also a weird underrated thing to have.
- Calgary's economy has always been feast or famine and many people forget there's famine. If you're diligent, it's surprising how quickly you can accumulate a solid balance in your savings account. But it's also just as easy to blow through your savings. Calgary doesn't have as much activities as other cities to just plug in, so often times, people spend the money they accumulate to make their own entertainment.
- Do you know anyone in Calgary? Calgary isn't always the easiest place to meet people. Lots of Calgary locals are creatures of habit and prefer to do their own thing/hang out with the people they known forever. Lots of people who are from out of town end up banding together because they are the ones seeking to connect with others. But then again, Calgary is a young city so you'd be in the majority demographic. It might be hard to connect at first, but once you do, it'll generally seem like you'll be accepted into friend circles and exponentially meet people, rather than incrementally meet them. This is kind of a factor of the "not much to plug in, make your own entertainment" factor.
- Cost of living vs salary ratio is pretty damn good if you can get a decent job. It's a pretty good time to be a renter right now. Calgary is a seemingly small place where it seems like most places aren't too much more than a 20-30 minute drive way from the most frequented places. I've lately realized that I've run into quite a few people who are transitioning lifestyle wise and end up slightly frustrated with decision paralysis. It just bizarrely seems like if you want something within an average budget, you can afford to live in nearly every community in Calgary. $2,000 Canadian a month for rent is probably enough to allow you to consider 80% of all communities in Calgary without even starting on looking at the bedroom communities outside of Calgary.
- You want to drive in Calgary and most places never seem to be more than 20-30 minutes away from the most frequented locales. Calgary is not really a place you want to rely on transit, especially with kids. The transit here is adequate, but a vehicle really straddles the line between luxury and necessity when weather flares up (maybe 1-3 times a month on average).
But overall, I think Calgary is awesome. It's home for me and as a young family it offers things overwhelmingly positive to the current stage of life I am in right now vs other cities.
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