Despite what most people generally think about Iowa there is quite a bit to do in Des Moines and the surrounding areas. The downtown lofts are very nice - there are plenty to choose from, there are also some brownstones in downtown which are very nice as well. There may be some houses walking distance to Downtown, but there are many within bicycle distance. If you are going to Grad school at U of I - will you be attending the Des Moines Satellite location (downtown Des Moines) or will you be attending class in Iowa City? The commute from DSM to IC on interstate 80 (East) is a very easy and uncongested drive - but your looking at about an Hour and a half of open highway at 70MPH. DSM to Ames for Iowa state is about 45 minutes north in Interstate 35. There are plenty of places to eat and shop downtown but many many more in the suburbs. Lots of chain resturaunts but there are also many different localy owned businesses/resturaunts.

You did not really describe your interests but some things that many people enjoy around here include: Des Moines Art Center, Science Center of Iowa (DSM), there are many different wineries, live music happens most nights a week at various venues across the city, we have AAA Baseball team ( Iowa Cubs), A minor league hockey team, and basketball team, there is the roller derby (some of them are on this forum), In the winter there is an outdoor skating plaza downtown, 45 minutes north is a decent ski resort. Some of my personal favorites in Iowa are The Downtown Farmers Market, Zombie Burger, Jasper Winery, and a music venue Wooly's. If you enjoy bars some of the unique bars downtown include El Bait Shop, Royal Mile (Voted best brittish bar in the United States), and Court Ave Brewery. And the best part of Iowa is all of the beatuiful nautre areas just outside of town, thousands of miles of bike trails, rivers, and lakes, etc. There is a great nightlife and lts to do during the daytime as well. The summer brings us different festivals all the time, music festivals, art festivals, food festivals, ethnic heritige festivals, the baloon classic, etc. We have a zoo, and were 2 hours away from one of the best zoos in the US (Omaha - Henry Doorly Zoo). In addition to everything Iowa has - you are also only a 5 hour drive from Chicago, 4 Hours from Minneapolis, 3 Hours from Kansas City, 2 Hours from Omaha, these places all make for nice regional getaways. There are literally hundreds of Gyms in town just like anywhere else - I am not sure what is downtown but I know a lot of the lofts downtown have their own gyms free for residents.

I have lived in Des Moines for most of my life, I also attended Iowa State in Ames, and have been to University of Iowa as well. Let us know what your interests are and perhaps we can provide a better list of attractions. I know many of Californians who move here and say they would never go back to Cali, they are both great in their own ways, but I personally prefer the midwest lifestyle.