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Ruth Stroud's avatar

Fascinating to ride along with you on your investigative travel journey to Houston, Hoang! I’ve never thought of traveling in order to move somewhere, but whenever we do travel (more frequently lately because of my husband’s passion for making photography videos), we think about what it might be like to live in the places we enjoy the most. That has included many spots in the Northwest, including Portland and Seattle; the San Francisco Bay Area, where we met and still have relatives and friends; many places in Europe; Japan, where our son currently lives; and New Zealand, which we thought was the most beautiful place on earth--until we visited the piece of paradise where we are vacationing now on the west coast of British Columbia, Canada (will be writing more about it soon!). Sadly, many once affordable places no longer are. They’ve been discovered!

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Hoang Samuelson's avatar

I'm jealous of all the trips you take Ruth :) Can't wait to read about Canada!

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Marg Moon's avatar

Hello Hoang! Another really interesting article. I love that you are making the effort to check out places to see if they feel right for you and your family. I live in a warm place (Australia), although it does get quite cool in winter. Just when I get sick of the cold, spring arrives and I feel better about where I live and life in general. I also live quite close to the beach, which I love.

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Hoang Samuelson's avatar

Oh my gosh, I am so jealous. I dream of living close to the beach. The air feels so different there. Seriously. Australia is so fascinating to me, I gotta make sure I visit it someday.

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Marg Moon's avatar

Let me know if you do!

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David Terrell Ph. D.'s avatar

As an immigrant myself, I have learned that home is where your heart is.

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Hoang Samuelson's avatar

Well said, David. The question remains: where is my heart? Not sure right now...

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Sinù Fogarizzu's avatar

Thank you for taking us along this journey. I've never been to Portland, but I've always wanted to visit and, ironically, it's the only city in the US where I think I would like to live. All the greenery... it looks so beautiful.

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Hoang Samuelson's avatar

Thanks Sinu. There's a joke amongst people who live here that Portland is half the size of Seattle, so we're half as cool lol. Jokes aside, it is very green indeed. You might like the hiking opportunities. There's an area called Forest Park, which is literally next to a very hip and happenin' area filled with restaurants and such. It's like 5 mins away from downtown.

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Phoenix Layland's avatar

I can only imagine the tex mex food in Houston... Something I have grown to love. On the cost of living perhaps, you should try abroad. I feel like the quality of life for the price of living is more beneficial.

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