Texas Hill Country?

[NorthSideSox72]

So, my wife and I have joked around about what warm place we might move to later in life when the kids are out of the house. I like the southwest and mountain west - sunny and usually dry. She likes the southeast with all its humidity. The place in between is.... Texas. I've spent time in El Paso, San Antonio and Dallas, and driven through parts of North Texas. None of those much appealed, though San Antonio was fun.

 

I stumbled across (online) this area of south-central Texas called the Hill Country. It sits basically between Austin (which I've heard is a great town) and San Antonio (which we liked visiting). It is mostly smaller towns, rolling hills, warm but only sometimes brutally hot in summer, pleasant in winter, wonderful in spring and fall, moderate humidity. Low cost of living, good outdoor opportunities, not far from a couple cities... sounds pretty idyllic to me.

 

But to be brutally honest, as my wife and I are native Midwesterners and liberal-leaning SOCIALLY (not talking politics here)... I have concerns about being in a place that's maybe too closed-minded and lacking in the types of people we usually hang out with. Perhaps that is just my unfair perception of Texas.

 

Anyone been in the area? Any thoughts on it? Is my perception unfair or incorrect?

 

[iamshack]

So, my wife and I have joked around about what warm place we might move to later in life when the kids are out of the house. I like the southwest and mountain west - sunny and usually dry. She likes the southeast with all its humidity. The place in between is.... Texas. I've spent time in El Paso, San Antonio and Dallas, and driven through parts of North Texas. None of those much appealed, though San Antonio was fun.

 

I stumbled across (online) this area of south-central Texas called the Hill Country. It sits basically between Austin (which I've heard is a great town) and San Antonio (which we liked visiting). It is mostly smaller towns, rolling hills, warm but only sometimes brutally hot in summer, pleasant in winter, wonderful in spring and fall, moderate humidity. Low cost of living, good outdoor opportunities, not far from a couple cities... sounds pretty idyllic to me.

 

But to be brutally honest, as my wife and I are native Midwesterners and liberal-leaning SOCIALLY (not talking politics here)... I have concerns about being in a place that's maybe too closed-minded and lacking in the types of people we usually hang out with. Perhaps that is just my unfair perception of Texas.

 

Anyone been in the area? Any thoughts on it? Is my perception unfair or incorrect?

Don't liberal social habits/customs generally rise from liberal politics? I'm not really sure I understand the difference all that much...but assuming liberal social activities means what I think it means, one would think having Austin nearby would be fairly ideal and provide for you and your wife a wonderful outlet for your social life.

 

As for the weather, I am not quite sure I have ever heard of a woman enjoying humidity, but at least you guys have the "warm" part right I can't tell you how much more I enjoy life living in an enjoyable climate. I can't rule out moving back to Chicago, but after experiencing "nice" weather, I will say that many many things would have to align for me to move back to that god forsaken weather you guys have. I generally try to stay out of the business of telling people what to do with their lives, but I will say you don't know what you are missing...

[NorthSideSox72]

Don't liberal social habits/customs generally rise from liberal politics? I'm not really sure I understand the difference all that much...but assuming liberal social activities means what I think it means, one would think having Austin nearby would be fairly ideal and provide for you and your wife a wonderful outlet for your social life.

 

As for the weather, I am not quite sure I have ever heard of a woman enjoying humidity, but at least you guys have the "warm" part right I can't tell you how much more I enjoy life living in an enjoyable climate. I can't rule out moving back to Chicago, but after experiencing "nice" weather, I will say that many many things would have to align for me to move back to that god forsaken weather you guys have. I generally try to stay out of the business of telling people what to do with their lives, but I will say you don't know what you are missing...

Yeah, I'm probably not wording this well. Forget "liberal", that was the wrong word. What I mean is, Chicago is a diverse city, with people from all walks of life, and the culture follows that. Lots of variety available in music, food, social events. Also means that people just tend to be more open-minded, and are themselves from lots of different backgrounds and beliefs. That's what I'm afraid we may lose in Texas. But again, I could be totally wrong on this. I just haven't spent much time down there.

 

[iamshack]

Yeah, I'm probably not wording this well. Forget "liberal", that was the wrong word. What I mean is, Chicago is a diverse city, with people from all walks of life, and the culture follows that. Lots of variety available in music, food, social events. Also means that people just tend to be more open-minded, and are themselves from lots of different backgrounds and beliefs. That's what I'm afraid we may lose in Texas. But again, I could be totally wrong on this. I just haven't spent much time down there.

That's pretty much what I thought you meant...and yes, that is definitely one of the incredible things about living in Chicago, or most major cities, for that matter. Chicago has an incredibly rich culture in terms of those things you highlighted.

 

I don't think you're ever going to replicate that unless you move to another major city, such as NYC, LA, etc. That being said, you do have quite a few major cities in Texas to get your "fix," and I do think cultural diversity is fanning out further and further every day, especially as more and more folks are exposed to it as a result of tv and the interwebs.

 

Missing out on the culture of Chicago is certainly the toughest thing for me. Ultimately, there are going to be pros and cons to any decision to relocate, and you're just going to have to see what you value more. Like I said, it was a tough choice, but in the end, I don't regret leaving.

[NorthSideSox72]

That's pretty much what I thought you meant...and yes, that is definitely one of the incredible things about living in Chicago, or most major cities, for that matter. Chicago has an incredibly rich culture in terms of those things you highlighted.

 

I don't think you're ever going to replicate that unless you move to another major city, such as NYC, LA, etc. That being said, you do have quite a few major cities in Texas to get your "fix," and I do think cultural diversity is fanning out further and further every day, especially as more and more folks are exposed to it as a result of tv and the interwebs.

 

Missing out on the culture of Chicago is certainly the toughest thing for me. Ultimately, there are going to be pros and cons to any decision to relocate, and you're just going to have to see what you value more. Like I said, it was a tough choice, but in the end, I don't regret leaving.

Typically that is the case, larger cities have more of that. But I've travelled the US enough to see that towns, even smaller ones, can sometimes have a wide difference in that sort of thing. For example, I could look at a town like Taos, new Mexico, which is pretty small, but has a ton of art, music and culture, and a wide variety of people. Then I could go 20 miles down the road to another town nearby, of similar size, and it is quite the opposite.

 

My idyllic, fantasy-land picture is a smaller community, next to or surrounded by natural areas of some kind (ideally with some mountains and water), in a warm or semi-warm climate (at least less snowy and grey than Chicago), with a diverse community, a short distance from a larger town or city with more to do.

 

Am I asking too much? LOL

 

[iamshack]

Typically that is the case, larger cities have more of that. But I've travelled the US enough to see that towns, even smaller ones, can sometimes have a wide difference in that sort of thing. For example, I could look at a town like Taos, new Mexico, which is pretty small, but has a ton of art, music and culture, and a wide variety of people. Then I could go 20 miles down the road to another town nearby, of similar size, and it is quite the opposite.

 

My idyllic, fantasy-land picture is a smaller community, next to or surrounded by natural areas of some kind (ideally with some mountains and water), in a warm or semi-warm climate (at least less snowy and grey than Chicago), with a diverse community, a short distance from a larger town or city with more to do.

 

Am I asking too much? LOL

Not until you include the part about it being affordable

[farmteam]

Been to Austin once to visit a friend, it was a lot of fun, neat city. Just kinda weird, since it's the liberal bastion of Texas, but it's still Texas. Barely ventured into Hill Country, my they were telling me about it and it was basically exactly like you described. Went to the most amazing barbecue place I've ever been to, the Salt Lick Ranch. Spectacular.

[dasox24]

The Hill Country is beautiful. Depending on where you are, Austin or San Antonio wouldn't be too far away. When Tex sees this thread, I'm sure he'll have some better input on specifics.

[chw42]

Been to Austin once to visit a friend, it was a lot of fun, neat city. Just kinda weird, since it's the liberal bastion of Texas, but it's still Texas. Barely ventured into Hill Country, my they were telling me about it and it was basically exactly like you described. Went to the most amazing barbecue place I've ever been to, the Salt Lick Ranch. Spectacular.

 

Salt Lick is great, especially the original. Although there are better around the Austin area.

[chw42]

So, my wife and I have joked around about what warm place we might move to later in life when the kids are out of the house. I like the southwest and mountain west - sunny and usually dry. She likes the southeast with all its humidity. The place in between is.... Texas. I've spent time in El Paso, San Antonio and Dallas, and driven through parts of North Texas. None of those much appealed, though San Antonio was fun.

 

I stumbled across (online) this area of south-central Texas called the Hill Country. It sits basically between Austin (which I've heard is a great town) and San Antonio (which we liked visiting). It is mostly smaller towns, rolling hills, warm but only sometimes brutally hot in summer, pleasant in winter, wonderful in spring and fall, moderate humidity. Low cost of living, good outdoor opportunities, not far from a couple cities... sounds pretty idyllic to me.

 

But to be brutally honest, as my wife and I are native Midwesterners and liberal-leaning SOCIALLY (not talking politics here)... I have concerns about being in a place that's maybe too closed-minded and lacking in the types of people we usually hang out with. Perhaps that is just my unfair perception of Texas.

 

Anyone been in the area? Any thoughts on it? Is my perception unfair or incorrect?

 

I live in the North Austin 'burbs and usually hang around North Austin. I'll go down to South Austin to play softball.

 

People here are nice and I think I've met more vegans here than when I was in Chicago/Champaign.

 

I can't speak for what goes on in the Hill Country since the only time I've really been there was when I drove down to San Antonio.

 

Maybe a good place for you to look at is San Marcos. It's a smaller town (I think Texas State University is there) so it's quieter than Austin or SA, but you also won't feel like you're out in the middle of nowhere.

[Palehosefan]

Not sure what form of liberal you are looking for, but Austin is liberal politically and very open to different lifestyles. Austin is a beautiful city, but it's not for me. People are trying way too hard to be "different", very similar to Portland. Hippy culture is a pretty good descriptor, but so is great food and amazing weather.

[Texsox]

You will find everything in Hill Country. Extreme to both ends, but overall it is a lot like Illinois. The further from the bigger cities the more conservative and monocultured it gets. We're planning on moving to the area in the next year or two. We are basically looking west of I35 between Round Rock and San Antonio.

 

From an outdoor perspective the hiking, biking, backpacking, etc is as good as it gets in the area. I believe you would be happiest looking in the Austin area. There is a reason that Austin is growing at a very fast rate, one of the fastest in the country.