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Interesting that the my image is the exact opposite. Downtown no one talks to each other. They live in fancy apartment buildings and go out to their events. I

Interesting that the my image is the exact opposite. Downtown no one talks to each other. They live in fancy apartment buildings and go out to their events. In the Suburbs, neighbors have BBQs, block parties. I knew all the people around the house when I lived in the suburbs. The Garys next door with their bull dog and their daughter Diane living in a detached apartment above the garage. The Alberas with a farm in their backyard. The Kumbs with their kids Gary and Janice and a pool. The Ryans who mister Ryan would always ask me to rub his back and his daughters Kim and Nannet were both my babysitter at one point or another. The Caldwells with their 5 kids Brian, John, Wendy and 2 too small for me to have played with. The Bargayos with Leah and Laura. I can name at least 7 more families. Since that time living in apartments in cities I've never made friends with a single neighbor. For most of my life that's been the stereotype. There are plenty of movies about people knowing each other in an ET/Spielberg movie style suburban neighborhood vs the cold hearted city.

ido 8y ago
I think you may be confusing being a child/adult (or having kids/childless) vs suburb/urban. We live in an apartment in an urban but not central part of Berlin and we know plenty of neighbours, especially since having kids. How many childless adults do you remember taking part of these suburban activities/communities?
- Baeocystin 8y ago
  Not the parent commenter, but in my experience, lots. When we had block parties, the whole block, non-children-having folks and kids alike, was involved. In fact, the parents in particular seemed to really enjoy these BBQ times because they got to have conversations with other adults while the collective kids of the neighborhood ran around doing their own thing. It was fun!
jeromegv 8y ago
Opposite anecdata. Lived in the suburb until my 20s, never had a block BBQ party, my parents would sometimes have a chat with the neighbour but that's about it. Living now on the subway line in a major city, can hop in to get to see friends all the time, walk to the groceries, community center, etc. Don't talk to neighbour either, but I feel much more part of a community living in close proximity with people.
remarkEon 8y ago
My experience is exactly the same. I've lived in several urban centers now as an adult, and I'm planning on moving to the suburbs or exurbs once I can afford to buy a house. Honestly the only people I've met in the city are the folks from Church, but all the ones with kids are moving out too. Cities feel super atomized to me right now, where folks really have little in common beyond shared misery in high housing costs. Obviously this is just my experience.
Fricken 8y ago
I work in a family farm a few weeks a year and if you head into town to pick up some things you gotta budget time for making chitchat with people, and it was the same deal when living in a built up walkable urban neighbourhood in Montreal, and in Vancouver, you see and interact with the same people every day. Now I live in a neighbourhood with many immigrants from Africa, and they're super tight knit, in terms of their involvement in the community they put anything else I've seen to shame, excepting maybe when I was staying in a small villages in Indonesia and Mexico back in my surfing days. But, like many, I grew up in a generic cookie cutter suburb and it was pretty dismal as far as community involvement and interaction goes. People get in their cars and drive away.

ido 8y ago

I think you may be confusing being a child/adult (or having kids/childless) vs suburb/urban. We live in an apartment in an urban but not central part of Berlin and we know plenty of neighbours, especially since having kids. How many childless adults do you remember taking part of these suburban activities/communities?

Baeocystin 8y ago
Not the parent commenter, but in my experience, lots. When we had block parties, the whole block, non-children-having folks and kids alike, was involved. In fact, the parents in particular seemed to really enjoy these BBQ times because they got to have conversations with other adults while the collective kids of the neighborhood ran around doing their own thing. It was fun!

jeromegv 8y ago

Opposite anecdata. Lived in the suburb until my 20s, never had a block BBQ party, my parents would sometimes have a chat with the neighbour but that's about it. Living now on the subway line in a major city, can hop in to get to see friends all the time, walk to the groceries, community center, etc. Don't talk to neighbour either, but I feel much more part of a community living in close proximity with people.

remarkEon 8y ago

My experience is exactly the same. I've lived in several urban centers now as an adult, and I'm planning on moving to the suburbs or exurbs once I can afford to buy a house. Honestly the only people I've met in the city are the folks from Church, but all the ones with kids are moving out too. Cities feel super atomized to me right now, where folks really have little in common beyond shared misery in high housing costs. Obviously this is just my experience.

Fricken 8y ago

I work in a family farm a few weeks a year and if you head into town to pick up some things you gotta budget time for making chitchat with people, and it was the same deal when living in a built up walkable urban neighbourhood in Montreal, and in Vancouver, you see and interact with the same people every day. Now I live in a neighbourhood with many immigrants from Africa, and they're super tight knit, in terms of their involvement in the community they put anything else I've seen to shame, excepting maybe when I was staying in a small villages in Indonesia and Mexico back in my surfing days. But, like many, I grew up in a generic cookie cutter suburb and it was pretty dismal as far as community involvement and interaction goes. People get in their cars and drive away.