(Note:rely on the homeowner for income and shelter, can’t just move easily and have mental issues)
It’s the worst of both worlds. Simultaneously I’m isolated from the city and have to drive to do absolutely anything, all of the people here are racist entitled assholes. Simultaneously its not isolated enough like a small town so theres no way to organize any independence or feel safe from troubles in said city, or to have any sense of community. There’s Simultaneously too many people and too little people, too much space and too little space.
I probably shouldn’t be comparing the situation here in Europe to the USA, because even our worst suburbs here are probably not as bad as US ones, but i recently moved from a small suburb (what we would call here a village, but really it’s a residential suburb just outside of the city) to the city and it was the best choice i ever made.
I immediately felt this immense liberation. I’m finally within walking distance of grocery shopping (the only shop i had nearby before was a bakery since those things are basically mandatory in this country) and pretty much everything else i need as far as services. Not needing a car anymore for every little errand feels great, and so does having good public transportation just around the corner (if only it wasn’t so expensive…). Of course there was some public transportation in the suburbs because this is still Europe after all, but it was not great; i’d have to take a not-always-so-reliable bus into the city itself to get any useful connections…
Plus, i’m now surrounded by people who are predominantly of immigrant background and i have never felt more comfortable. It’s not the most well off neighborhood but i don’t feel unsafe in any way, even at night (i like to take walks around the block in the evening and it’s mostly pretty well lit). And my new neighbors are some of the nicest people i’ve ever met.
Where i lived before it was full of petty bourgeois and upper middle class NIMBY type assholes who could never mind their own business and would constantly treat you like an outsider, you’d feel like they were always looking out their window about to call the cops on you as soon as you trimmed your grass or parked your car the wrong way.
And the biggest surprise of all: even the rent and other costs of living like utilities (especially heating and water) are cheaper for me now, and that’s with basically the same size apartment as before. The infrastructure is just better, i even have faster internet, and there’s a ton of great and reasonably cheap takeout places just a ten to fifteen minute walk away. So yeah, fuuuck the suburbs.
Only thing i’m missing is some nature, since there was a forest just at the end of the street i lived on before. But i know there’s a nice big park on the other side of the city i’ve been meaning to go to.
Oh, and the parking is a pain the butt, but that’s a small price to pay. More incentive for walking.