Related Posts
Visual Storyteller
Chief
Additional Posts in Seattle
How is Issaquah Highlands? Good neighborhood?
Is there a home buying group for Seattle area?
New to Fishbowl?
Download the Fishbowl app to
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
I mean recently moved here Seattle but I don’t want to talk to strangers at the bus station… I don’t think that’s a radical reaction at all, regardless of how friendly you were. it’s a personal preference thing and I wouldn’t correlate that experience with the culture and identity of the city
Lolol I’m sorry youve had that experience, but equally anecdotally, I have found in my own experiences that Seattle freeze is an overhyped phenomenon that isn’t as bad as people actually say. No, this isn’t the Midwest or south where people stop and talk to strangers on the streets or in stores, but I’d argue those are the outliers compared to normal city life
Welcome to Seattle…
Try googling the Seattle freeze for information regarding your encounter at the bus stop. This is one of the main reasons why I’m leaving this place.
Seattle freeze is slightly different than what OP experienced. Both are normal Seattle experiences though
Seattle native here. I have enough friends. I don’t want to talk to a stranger on the street. It’s not the norm to talk to strangers, and if you do, I am thinking you might be mentally ill, a scammer, or on drugs. So, best to avoid and walk away.
Ha I just said basically the same thing, attempting to speak with someone is often viewed as a threatening behavior here
Oh man. I feel you.
I used to do the same. When I first moved here, I used to also to say hi to people I passed walking down the street. Everyone I tried to make light conversation with ignored me, or avoided responding.
Sitting at the bar, at a restaurant is the only place I found people who would chat and be polite with strangers. Try being around wherever other transplants are. 👍
Everyone will mention the Seattle Freeze. It’s a real thing. Whatever hospitable and gregarious place you moved from… sadly, Seattle is very different.
But I’m happy you’re here. 🫶
I’m from VA and noticed the same thing when i moved here 🙃 Don’t let it stop you from being friendly and talking to strangers! Spring/summer is a more friendly time around here
Why do people want to talk to strangers? It’s weird- like live your life I’ll live mine, no need to talk to someone during a 5 minute wait for coffee
Gotta b street smart
It’s definitely a thing.
The more that engage and encourage communication the better :) I’d say keep it up, they’ll get used to
It.
I wouldn’t count on that 😐
I’ve lived in greater Seattle area for over a decade. We don’t talk to each other on public transit. The end.
Maybe it’s just me but I find public transit to be an especially poor venue to have conversations…
Where did you move from? Ive lived in a bunch of cities, can’t say strangers are constantly talking to one another at bus stops, subways etc.
Seattle freeze does exist, but maybe you’re being a chatty weirdo at a bus stop
As a woman, I generally don’t talk to strange men, especially at bus stops. I’ve had too many creepy experiences, sadly. I’m a 10-year transplant from the East Coast, and the Seattle Freeze is real and persistent. I always tell newcomers that I have found many (but not all) people from/in Seattle to be polite but not friendly. The Freeze manifests in different ways: “Sure, I’d love to meet up. Let’s do it!” (Translation: Not really interested and your efforts will go unanswered) and when you do manage to schedule a time to meet up it often ends up in endless cycles of rescheduling or cancelling w/ no intention of rescheduling. Or ghosting. This doesn’t apply to everyone, but a lot of people I’ve met. So keep expectations low, don’t take it personally, and keep your spirits high and enjoy your own company. You’ll meet people, eventually.
I live in Shoreline and have found the people to be very friendly and outgoing!
I'm also new here, and when I exited a bus line I was riding for the first time, realizing I didn't know where I was in relation to the subway I had to get to, the person I tried to ask (a fellow passenger who'd gotten off the same bus) turned out to not speak English. He understood where I was trying to get to and gestured for me to follow him but we were not able to converse on the walk there.
Could be your person also didn't feel comfortable with English? My parents are immigrants, and they don't feel confident enough about their language skills to spend a lot of time outside the home. They actively avoid social situations.
I heard about the Seattle Freeze before moving here, but I've experienced the reverse, that people are exceptionally friendly. One of my friends thinks it's because I moved here in the summer, while the weather was nice. (Possible!) But I think the other commenters could be onto something; public transit, like elevators, is a place where people stay in their social bubble or maintain silence.
Don't give up, but consider conversations in spaces that are intended to be social or where there's an obvious common interest. I would reply to a stranger in a grocery store or say, at a bookstore or concert, but probably wouldn't be the initiator.
I visited Seattle for a month last year to get a feel for whether I wanted to live there. For the most part, nobody on the street talked to me. It felt pretty cold socially. But the one or two people who did make light conversation, it felt refreshing to me. I'm pretty sure those people were transplants too, which tracks.
Hahahahahahahah ya you’re not from around here are you. We don’t talk to strangers here. Not only is it offensive, we immediately assume you’re a threat trying to get our guard down. If you want small talk move to the south, if you want to be verbally accosted every day move to the northeast (NYC/Boston)
That’s because it’s the bus station. People want to look at their phones and not talk to someone.
But, like, what if the person trying to talk to you is cute???