DenverCPI guess I’m not the only one who thinks Colorado is a pretty great place to live.  US News and World Report recently came out with their Best Places to Live list, and not only does Denver, Colorado top the list but a second city, Colorado Springs, cracked the top 10.  In addition, Outside Magazine routinely names Boulder, Colorado as one of the best places to live for outdoor lovers.

The US News report based their rankings on things like commute times, health care, job market, good schools and general quality of life factors.  It’s funny, but compared to life in Nederland, I think Denver has way too much traffic.  But one trip back to the east coast reminds me of just how good we have it here.

The magazine’s report comes as no surprise to those of us who live here or those who are contemplating a move.  Colorado’s population is increasing at a rapid rate, so rapid, in fact that the housing market in Denver is among the hottest and tightest of any places in the country.  The latest reports says if you want to buy a home or condo in the Denver metro area, be prepared to submit a bid well over the asking price, as well as writing a personal letter to the sellers pleading your case.

I can’t tell you how many times I run into someone visiting our fair state, who tell me that they are also on a scouting mission to check things out as they are thinking of possibly moving here.  They come for vacation to places live Rocky Mountain National Park and quickly start to envision how great their own lives would be if they too fell under the spell of Rocky Mountain High.

Is it really as great as people make it out to be?  For me, living in Nederland has brought me to a place of content, fulfillment and peacefulness that I had never experienced before.  But then again, I came here as a product of mountain living in the Sierra and knew how much I already lived that lifestyle.  I also think that happiness in a given place probably has as much to do with the inside job of happiness as to the place.  You know what they say — everywhere you go, there you are….

promoblock