Iowa

>>1281409
Lived in Iowa for several years (DSM metro) here's the cliff notes.

>Des Moines metro is the only truly worthwhile place to live in the state. It is one of the nicer midsize and growing cities in the country. Ames is a fine place and is in the metro, depending on who you ask.

>There are neat, unique small towns for day trips like Fairfield and Pella.

>Iowa City is a fun weekend (much moreso than Ames) if you like football and/or drinking with twenty-somethings.

>Kansas City, Omaha and the Twin Cities are all easy day trips/short weekend getaways.

>>1281421
Thanks for the info! I've heard great things about Des Moines and iirc drove through it once but didn't know the degree to which it was true. What's the nature like out there?

>>1281519
Good buck hunting

>>1281421
Where's the university of iowa located? What goes on around there?

>>1281545
Iowa City. Actually pretty well established as a 'party town', even among its college city peers.

>>1281519
Rolling prairie, lots of rivers and some big manmade lakes.

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>>1281409
Dubuque is a cute old town on the Mississippi River. For what you get in terms of culture, beauty and architecture i've always thought it was a pretty cheap place to live or visit. Honestly though my grandma lives there and Iowa is pretty depressing to me.

Iowa isn't a bad place to live at all. Housing is quite cheap, so it's very possible to buy a nice house with a big yard to live in. Living there in general is very affordable, so you have a great opportunity to save away money.

>>1281544
This. If you enjoy hunting Iowa is one of the best states for that.

>>1281567
That doesn't sound so bad. At least there's an abundance of venison >>1281544.
>>1281800
>Living there in general is very affordable, so you have a great opportunity to save away money.
This is the biggest draw by FAR. Even if you're making close to six figs in a coastal/~cool~ city, none of that money is going into savings unless you want to live frugally (and forget about it if you're the main breadwinner). And while I haven't spent time in Des Moines yet, I can guarantee that it has most of the offerings of a Seattle or Austin for a fraction of the price and a population that doesn't have a massive stick wedged up its collective ass.
>>1281774
That's gorgeous; it's a damn shame it's too far from the Des Moines metro area to rent. Do you know if there are any places near Des Moines that have old-timey brick apartments?

>>1281824
You usually need to be in a city to find historic architecture like that, so i'm guessing Des Moines itself is probably your best bet.

>i havent spent any time in Des Moines yet but i'm sure of what it is
Get a grip

>>1281774

Is Dubuque really that comfy? I'll be driving from Portland to Chicago this fall. Worth a stop you think?

>>1281906
If you've never seen any of the old cities situated on the Mississippi River bluffs, yeah it's worth checking out. It will be a bit out of your way which makes me hesitant to fully endorse it since i don't know your timetable or what you're into, but that little corner of the midwest is really scenic.

>>1281895
>Get a grip
It's an up-and-coming small city with a growing 'hip' reputation, which means that it's going to have a decent amount of cultural offerings to be livable unless the local govt ran a huge shilling campaign to spread that kind of information inaccurately. I've been to/lived in enough cities with similar (and worse) reputations to have noticed that they're not much worse than the standard hip/coastal cities with a fraction of the cost-of-living.

The suburbs and areas surrounding those cities tend to be hot garbage, though.

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>>1281914

Ill probably make a stop then. I have a pretty loose timeline and I'm coming from Portland Oregon so it's pretty much on the way. My goal for the trip is to stay off interstates as much as possible in hopes of seeing some of the more rural parts of the Midwest.

Any specifics, or must see things for Dubuque? I'm into beer, food and old industrial shit if there's any of that.

>>1281409
If dining out is one of your pleasures Iowa is gonna suck for you.

>>1281939
Check out Jubeck's for beer, go to Stone Cliff Winery too, it's in a beautiful old historic brewing building with tons of history. Near there is the Mississippi Riverwalk with a view and a nice old industrial bridge. Walk downtown and check out the opera house and other old buildings. Hotel Julien is a really nice place to stay if you do an overnight. Pepper Sprout for food.

>>1281935
Whatever you say bub. Sounds like you have it all figured out, not sure why you even posted this thread.