Northern Calfornia versus New England versus Pennsylvania (live, best, state)
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Pennsylvania is a large enough state to compare to other regions.
However before we start, I want to make one thing clear. We are comparing only what's within the boundaries of these places, that's it. Nothing more and nothing less than that, well I suppose the counties of the Philadelphia area within New Jersey are acceptable, but only the census defined ones. So that means no Reno, New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Atlantic City, or whatever else.
Major population centers: Boston (7,601,061), Hartford (1,331,406)
Compare on economic might, scenery (mountains, deserts, beaches, forests, valleys, whatever), interesting cities, culture, politics, major attractions, nightlife options, so on. Basically compare on everything you can think up. There aren't any barometers, so long as the areas are within the regions I defined earlier on.
Which one do you like best?
Last edited by Trafalgar Law; 01-30-2013 at 07:18 AM..
I can tell you as a native Philadelphian, that outside of the Philadelphia area and the Pittsburgh area, PA as a state SUCKS. There are some saving graces, like parts of the poconos, State College metro, Lehigh Valley metro, etc... but most of the state just downright sucks.
I live in NorCal and have no plans to leave CA but if I did, Boston is on my shortest list #2 right after Seattle (#1) for where I would go if I left CA.
I can tell you as a native Philadelphian, that outside of the Philadelphia area and the Pittsburgh area, PA as a state SUCKS. There are some saving graces, like parts of the poconos, State College metro, Lehigh Valley metro, etc... but most of the state just downright sucks.
The only parts of Pennsylvania that are legitimately terrible are the trashy old "coal patch" towns. You'll find most of them in Greene, Fayette, Somerset, Cambria and Clearfield Counties in the west, and Schuylkill, Columbia and Luzerne Counties in the east. Other towns might need a bit of a paint job, but they aren't as hopeless or backward as any coal patch town. Some small towns like Chambersburg, Wellsboro and Jim Thorpe are actually very nice.
As for the metropolitan areas, Johnstown seems to be the only one beyond repair, although Erie, Altoona and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre need some work, and so does Reading to an extent. Otherwise, Pittsburgh, State College, and all the metropolitan areas south and east of Blue Mountain are fine, and even Williamsport is getting a shot in the arm from the energy industry.
In my opinion:
1. Northern California
2. New England
3. Pennsylvania
No, I'm being serious. That's most probably the order I would personally choose them at. The scenery in Northern California is awesome enough to edge out my preference in cities for New England.
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