I went to School in Spokane, and I intentionally moved out :)
But I'd rather live in Spokane than in the midwest, so I'm sure it'll be fine for 2-3 years.
I can't speak too much on where to live, as I always lived near campus, but if I moved back there it would be north of downtown, as that is the direction that all the colleges are located in.
Gonzaga University is located a stones throw north of downtown, and has about 7000 students. Whitworth University is 7 miles north of downtown, and has about 2700 students. Small schools, but it means you'll run into more young people at coffee shops and the like. Spokane its self isn't such a happening place that lots of young people are eager to move there. But it's a decent sized city, so it has its range of demographics. Fair warning, both schools are joked about as having a single bar and single bowling ally that they each go to, and otherwise everyone stays on campus. It's not quite true, but both schools have great campus and campus life, so the students tend to stay within their bounds more than I lot of schools I think.
If you end up on the north side, I can suggest some awesome drives. I grew up in the Mountains and continue to live close to them, but some of the drives up north of Spokane are hella fun. And I don't mean scenic, I mean drive them at 2am ;-)
Also, Spokane is NOTHING like the west side of the state. Spokane is a desert. Makes for some beautiful sunny winter days, but if you get outside the irrigated areas and away from rivers and lakes it isn't nearly as green. Wikipedia pegs the annual rainfall at 17inches (Seattle has 37). Wikipedia also says "Extremes range from 108 °F (42 °C) to −30 °F (−34 °C), but temperatures of more than 100 °F (38 °C) and less than −10 °F (−23 °C) are rare." There was certainly a time of year that we enjoyed at school, it was spring time when sweatshirts came off and you remembered that there is indeed a physical difference between men and women ;-)
I only ever hit of Mt. Spokane a few times. It's really hard to say personally, since I grew up in the NW around much better places. It's certainly not a destination location, and if you have a weekend to burn, you might opt to spend a half day traveling to some finer locations. That said, it's no crappy bunny slope, and should entertain you for a day/night run depending on your ability.
Spokane also has a great BMW scene, with a track that the PRO3 group races at every so often.
If anything I've said spurs additional questions, feel free to ask. As I said I spent 4 years there, though as a student so my feel for the area as a whole is somewhat muted by campus and homework :)
But I'd rather live in Spokane than in the midwest, so I'm sure it'll be fine for 2-3 years.
I can't speak too much on where to live, as I always lived near campus, but if I moved back there it would be north of downtown, as that is the direction that all the colleges are located in.
Gonzaga University is located a stones throw north of downtown, and has about 7000 students. Whitworth University is 7 miles north of downtown, and has about 2700 students. Small schools, but it means you'll run into more young people at coffee shops and the like. Spokane its self isn't such a happening place that lots of young people are eager to move there. But it's a decent sized city, so it has its range of demographics. Fair warning, both schools are joked about as having a single bar and single bowling ally that they each go to, and otherwise everyone stays on campus. It's not quite true, but both schools have great campus and campus life, so the students tend to stay within their bounds more than I lot of schools I think.
If you end up on the north side, I can suggest some awesome drives. I grew up in the Mountains and continue to live close to them, but some of the drives up north of Spokane are hella fun. And I don't mean scenic, I mean drive them at 2am ;-)
Also, Spokane is NOTHING like the west side of the state. Spokane is a desert. Makes for some beautiful sunny winter days, but if you get outside the irrigated areas and away from rivers and lakes it isn't nearly as green. Wikipedia pegs the annual rainfall at 17inches (Seattle has 37). Wikipedia also says "Extremes range from 108 °F (42 °C) to −30 °F (−34 °C), but temperatures of more than 100 °F (38 °C) and less than −10 °F (−23 °C) are rare." There was certainly a time of year that we enjoyed at school, it was spring time when sweatshirts came off and you remembered that there is indeed a physical difference between men and women ;-)
I only ever hit of Mt. Spokane a few times. It's really hard to say personally, since I grew up in the NW around much better places. It's certainly not a destination location, and if you have a weekend to burn, you might opt to spend a half day traveling to some finer locations. That said, it's no crappy bunny slope, and should entertain you for a day/night run depending on your ability.
Spokane also has a great BMW scene, with a track that the PRO3 group races at every so often.
If anything I've said spurs additional questions, feel free to ask. As I said I spent 4 years there, though as a student so my feel for the area as a whole is somewhat muted by campus and homework :)
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