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Post by ironnikki on Dec 22, 2011 7:53:11 GMT -8
I'm starting grad school in August, and have applied to three schools so far: University of Iowa, Boston University, and UTSW (Dallas). I'm flying up to CID at the end of January to interview with UI, but I'm not certain that I'll have time to get a chance to really get a feel for Iowa City. I know that at least one or two of the people on this forum are from that area, so I'd be interested to hear what you guys have to say about it. It sounds like there's a pretty healthy gaming population there (something completely foreign to me,) and from what I've heard, it kind of has a similar vibe to Austin, TX.
In particular, I'm interested in:
-Public transportation to get to work, groceries, and home -Coffee shops that aren't Starbucks -Reasonably priced living spaces near campus -Hole in the wall bars that don't require earplugs -FLGS that hosts games
Thanks, and happy holidays!
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Post by gandalftheplaid on Dec 22, 2011 8:43:04 GMT -8
Sorry. I live in Cedar Rapids and went to Iowa State. About all I can tell you is to don't try driving when there's a football game. Oh and the last time I had to drive through the campus area in the winter it appeared as though the plowing policy was "to have the buses mash down the snow." If however you're ever in the Ames area for some reason I can recommend Battles BBQ.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2011 15:42:47 GMT -8
i frequent iowa city....mainly to hang out at the only goth/industry dance night at a local restaurant. however i have seen quite a few and even sampled a couple quaint non starbucks coffee shops out there, my memory sucks but they are nice, as for lodging i'm not sure, one of my friend's who is a grad student there has a lil apartment and i think she has a decent rent, seems like iowa is very affordable in that regard......for anymore info about IC talk to Pukka Tukka, he lives there
also i was wondering what part of iowa you live in plaid wizard
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2011 6:07:44 GMT -8
I've lived in Iowa City for over a decade, and I absolutely love it! Coming from Oregon originally, I feel like Iowa City is a tiny Portland.
I don't really have time at the moment, but I'll try and put together some better details on the stuff you asked about, soon.
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Post by uselesstriviaman on Dec 25, 2011 3:32:28 GMT -8
I visited Iowa City's FLGS for the first time a coupla days ago. I was pretty impressed. (Can't vouch for public transport or the bar scene in that town though.)
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Post by ironnikki on Jan 2, 2012 7:56:49 GMT -8
Thanks for the replies, everyone! I look forward to hearing your thoughts, pukkatukka.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2012 15:24:48 GMT -8
In particular, I'm interested in: -Public transportation to get to work, groceries, and home -Coffee shops that aren't Starbucks -Reasonably priced living spaces near campus -Hole in the wall bars that don't require earplugs -FLGS that hosts games Okay, I'm finally getting off my butt and writing what I know of the town. Full disclosure -- I live here, but I've never lived here as a student. I don't live in the downtown area, which is where you mostly stay if you're a student. Also, I'm old now, so my tastes have changed. That all being said, I love Iowa City. It's the only place in the Midwest I could stand to live, and I plan to do so always. It's about 50,000, but because of the University, it has much more culture than a town this size. It's the left-wing, liberal, counter-culture, hippy, GLBT, freak capital of Iowa, for damned sure! It's also got an *enormous* university, the students of which account for about a quarter of the town's population at any given time, and where sports (especially football) are a major source of funding. So there's a fair bit of "jock" environment within the school, I believe... but it's big enough you can find your niche. Anyway, I can't tell you much about the school, you'll have to find that elsewhere. With regard to your specific points: *My experience with public transport in this town is limited, but I have lots of accounts from others. There is a very robust bus system, both within the city, and attached to the college. So I'd say it's very good on that front. There's also a shit-ton of cab companies, if you're in a jam and the buses aren't running. *Tons of coffeehouses, all over, especially downtown. There is a starbucks, but also T-Spoons, the Bread Garden, and a bunch of Java Houses. It's all good. *As far as housing... again, I'm a poor resource. I know there's a ton of it. Downtown is built to rent apartments to students, because there are so many. So I'm guessing there's lots of choices for every price range. How nice they are, and how close to campus they are... well, do some online hunting, I bet you'll get a sense. *Lots of bars. Some good ones. Assuming you're over 21, you have an issue with downtown bars. They are full of college students, there's the constant struggle with underage drinking, and the kids at U of I can't hold their booze. So in general, you want to find some townie bars. But there's tons, and many are nice. My favorite is probably just a short bus trip away. *We have only two gaming stores, really. Critical Hit is a real gaming store, complete with special nights for special games, a large community, and lots of annoying kids playing with Yu-Gi-Oh cards. I don't go there a lot, but in general, I don't get involved with the community. criticalhitgames.net/. We also have the Hobby Corner, which is a hobby store with lots of trains and models and things... but a hefty supply of games and RPGs. It used to be that they carried RPG stuff, but didn't know about it... but now some of the old hobby folks working there have died off (literally), and some of the new employees are actually gamers! It's got a good supply, and is near my home, so I usually go there. criticalhitgames.net/. *Okay, the stuff *I* like about Iowa City. Tons of good places to eat, several sources of good beer, both bar and store variety, a lot of nice parks, a *killer* public library, a few really nice bookstores, a pretty thriving theatre culture, especially for a town this size, a lot of musical performances and such... just lots of stuff to do, in general. It's a funky cool town, and for only being 50,000, that's saying something. Anyway, I hope some of that helps. And if you think you might have spare time when you visit, I'd be happy to take you out and show you a couple places. Just let me know. --Pukka Tukka
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Post by ironnikki on Jan 8, 2012 16:06:42 GMT -8
Thanks a lot, pukkatukka! I hadn't thought to ask about libraries, bookstores, or theatre (I began as a theatre major in school, so being able to see some interesting shows every now and then would be GREAT!). I'll be visiting from Jan 26-28, but I'm not sure that I'll have time to actually see the city. I think that if the interviews go well, I may come back to get a better feel for the area, but from what you've described, it sounds very similar to Austin.
Again, thanks for putting all of that together. I definitely owe you a beer or two!
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azuretalon
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Post by azuretalon on Jan 8, 2012 19:09:56 GMT -8
I'm pretty sure it's a city ordinance that you must wear a tiny yellow bird head on atleast 2 peices of clothing at all times.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2012 19:11:46 GMT -8
Thanks a lot, pukkatukka! I hadn't thought to ask about libraries, bookstores, or theatre (I began as a theatre major in school, so being able to see some interesting shows every now and then would be GREAT!). I'll be visiting from Jan 26-28, but I'm not sure that I'll have time to actually see the city. I think that if the interviews go well, I may come back to get a better feel for the area, but from what you've described, it sounds very similar to Austin. Again, thanks for putting all of that together. I definitely owe you a beer or two! Oh, I forgot about the Austin tie-in! I have a friend who lived in Austin, moved to Iowa City for grad school, then to Chicago for a bit, and now back in Austin. He might have something to say about the comparison. Let me try and get in touch with him, and see...
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Post by Deleted on Jan 8, 2012 19:13:05 GMT -8
I'm pretty sure it's a city ordinance that you must wear a tiny yellow bird head on atleast 2 peices of clothing at all times. When people ask if I'm a Hawkeye fan, I tell them that, because I wish to live within the Iowa City limits, I am officially a fan... but unofficially, I couldn't care less.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2012 8:59:54 GMT -8
Thanks a lot, pukkatukka! I hadn't thought to ask about libraries, bookstores, or theatre (I began as a theatre major random factoid, if you do end up out there in IC and love theatre you should check out the nearby Quad Cities, it's about an hour away but we got some pretty kick ass theatre out here as well....and if you do decide to move out there and also decide to see a play out here (quad cities) then drag PT with you and make sure it's a play i've been cast in.....PT you still owe me for missing "Leaving Iowa"
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2012 15:35:55 GMT -8
Bah... you'll be in plenty of stuff! I'll catch one of them, I'm sure.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2012 19:10:42 GMT -8
Oh, I forgot about the Austin tie-in! I have a friend who lived in Austin, moved to Iowa City for grad school, then to Chicago for a bit, and now back in Austin. He might have something to say about the comparison. Let me try and get in touch with him, and see... Okay.. here's the take from the guy from Austin, who came here, and eventually moved back. I'm afraid his perspective seems to be more of a contrast than comparison, as though you're having to choose between those two cities... but for what it's worth, I'll post what he says, verbatim: ********************************** So I'm assuming its a person with familiarity with austin? there is certainly a similarity, but its a bit difficult to pin down. for the most part, the most interesting/dynamic/diy aspects of iowa city are fairly well contained within downtown in my experience - most interesting shops, shows, and restaurants, for instance. this in turn is hinged on the campus area. so being part of the student culture generally equates with being integrated with the town culture. and due to its size, one can get a pretty solid grasp on where to go within a month or six. along with the backdrop culture of farmcountry neighborliness and cultural homogeneity, its a downright nice place, especially for white folks. which brings us to austin, which i think has a much deeper cultural diversity. where iowa city is largely a white picket fence kinda town with big city imports in its student body and low-income assistance, austin is already a few shades darker just by virtue of well established latino communities that have been here for 100 years and more, and a significant african-american population. and just as iowa city draws all iowa freaks toward it, so does austin draw all the texas freaks. but consider the possible difference of having all of the freaks from quad cities, cedar rapids, and des moines, as opposed to the freaks from places such as dallas fort worth, houston, san antonio, el paso, and every mix of oil and cows and cotton in between. its a pretty rich stew, that infuses the whole city. in this way, it might be the difference between town and city. culture in austin shifts as the central locations get too expensive for people to live or do business in, and so new scenes develop as artistic folks occupy new neighborhoods. finally, theres the basic tension between being the in the freaky capital of a red state, with a ton of californians added to the lot. so there's a lot going on, everywhere, and being a part of the university does not equate to having any idea what's going on in town, or even what's going on in the immediate vicinity of the university. there's a beginning, anyway. add to it that i was much more successful in my educational pursuits in i.c. than austin. it's easier to be treated as an individual at the smaller school, and much easier to treat the town as an extension of the educational experience. and if you like being surrounded by bookish folks, i.c. is really the place. but to live and play and be reminded every day that you should be doing something crazy and big, starting now, austin is the place. and feel free to ask follow up questions. in the meantime, enjoy your winter, which i don't have, really, and i hope you are able to find something useful in my comments. ******************************* There ya go! --Pukka Tukka
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Post by ironnikki on Jan 11, 2012 8:00:26 GMT -8
Thanks again, PT. I can completely relate to what your friend was saying about Austin, and actually, reading that comparison gave me a much clearer picture of the differences between the two cities. Austin is kind of the melting pot of Texas, with all kinds of interesting and different people. Most of everyone is pretty cool, with the exception of the frat boy invasion and the occasional asshole, but being the only blue speck in a sea of red tends to attract a more diverse crowd. It's interesting to hear that IC differs in that way.
Veremond, I'll be sure to check out the theatre over there if I end up in IC! I'm starting to really miss participating in theatre, but I just don't have the time for it right now :-(
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