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Boston is distinctively American, yet has a European flair. This makes it a fascinating city.
Chicago has a brilliant skyline and nice architecture.The Chicago loop is just marvelous. This probably surprises international visitors, who probably tend to have low expectations. My brother for example, is convinced that going to Chicago is a death wish.
I don't get those that voted NYC either. What were they expecting?. I don't think I've ever heard anyone say "Yeah just went NYC...disappointing ". NYC exceeded my expectations. But it's maybe not for everyone.
It's certainly not just international visitors, I've talked to international visitors and tons of domestic tourists and people here for conventions when I'm out at bars, etc. It's amazing how many of them had this low expectation of Chicago, and almost always people are blown away when they get here and see how wonderful much of the city is, especially the downtown area. I kinda like it, as normally there are 50 times as many people who are very surprised and have it exceed their expectations than people who are let down or expecting more.
How is it possible that Atlanta,with one of the highest educational attaimnt average,one of the fastest growing millionaire population,Is Fourth in the world in number of international headquarters,and in the top 10 cities in te U.S. with the fastest growing urban core by percentage from 2011-2012,and by 2020 is projected to be the 7th largest city in the U.S. ahead of Boston just after Miami,Houston and Dallas, somehow have a reputation with cities like Flint,Detroit,Newark and Baltimore? which are loosing population for years and job creation is nill ?Please explain your reasoning.
Atlanta has NO WHERE near the amount of blight or poverty as Detroit or Camden.I have been to both cities and lived not far from Camden for a while so i have seen first hand how bad it is.
Atlanta has slums just like Detroit or Flint: example. It would be impressive if you could rid of the slums, I don't care about the number of international headquarters or millionaires living there. Detroit also has some international headquarters despite many areas resembling a war zone.
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How so it it then Las vegas which is still recvering from the recession have a "better" reputation?
There is not nearly as much urban decay in Las Vegas.
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And how does New Orleans also get grouped with those cities also when the city is one of the fastest major growing city in the U.S. and its economy is booming?
New Orleans went through anarchy after Katrina happened. Like people defending their houses with machine guns. There is lots of urban decay and slums out there and it has horrible crime rates, even the tourist areas are getting dangerous.
There are other cities just as bad like Miami, lots of ghetto's and urban decay: example.
Things change.New Orleans and many other American. I ties are safer than they have been in decades.Its clear you watch too much T.V. to know the reality of how things really are.
There is no place in Atlanta where even the cops don't go.
Atlanta was the first city and one of few that have NO more public housing or low income subsidized housing like Detroit and Camden has in abundance.
Have you been to the Bronx in NYC? Or Anacostia in D.C.? Chicago South Side?North Philly?
I have lived in one of Atlanta's worst neighborhoods and I NOT once got robbed,shot at or attacked.I owned properties as an investment and I made money off both of them because its the last actually bad neighborhood in Atlanta as people have been moving back into the city.
Dying cities dont have growing populations so lets just be honest.You have never been to Atlanta or New Orleans have you?
Atlanta has slums just like Detroit or Flint: example. It would be impressive if you could rid of the slums, I don't care about the number of international headquarters or millionaires living there. Detroit also has some international headquarters despite many areas resembling a war zone.
There is not nearly as much urban decay in Las Vegas.
New Orleans went through anarchy after Katrina happened. Like people defending their houses with machine guns. There is lots of urban decay and slums out there and it has horrible crime rates, even the tourist areas are getting dangerous.
There are other cities just as bad like Miami, lots of ghetto's and urban decay: example.
Detroit has a 38% poverty rate Atlanta,Dallas,Chicago,and Houston are all about the same around 22-24% yet somehow you say Atlanta has more "slums? Sorry but you have no evidennce or facts to back your claim.Just your perception which ihas no merit.
LA has had dome of the worst riots in the history of the U.S and has the worst gang violence outside another one of your shining examples of Utopia,Chicago.
Detroit has a 38% poverty rate Atlanta,Dallas,Chicago,and Houston are all about the same around 22-24% yet somehow you say Atlanta has more "slums? Sorry but you have no evidennce or facts to back your claim.Just your perception which ihas no merit.
LA has had dome of the worst riots in the history of the U.S and has the worst gang violence outside another one of your shining examples of Utopia,Chicago.
He didn't say that. All of those have worse neighborhoods than anything in the Netherlands, which is his point of comparison.
Los Angeles obviously
First impression where you get there : where's the city ?
Not much to see, only a few spots here and there (hollywood, santa monica, venice beach, beverly hills)
Cool vibe but at the end of the day visiting L.A is like visiting a collection of very small villages surrounded by suburban wasteland.
I never understood this line of reasoning. LA feels absolutely massive to me. The "suburbs" as you put it, don't feel very suburban. No green space and empty lots like in other cities, just wall to wall apartments and strip malls and other development and it never seems to end. When driving on the freeway you're completely surrounded by development whereas in many other cities all you can see is trees.
It's certainly not just international visitors, I've talked to international visitors and tons of domestic tourists and people here for conventions when I'm out at bars, etc. It's amazing how many of them had this low expectation of Chicago, and almost always people are blown away when they get here and see how wonderful much of the city is, especially the downtown area. I kinda like it, as normally there are 50 times as many people who are very surprised and have it exceed their expectations than people who are let down or expecting more.
To be honest, I've always found Chicago a bit underwhelming.
Speaking as an 'international tourist' (I'm European) I have visited 7 out of those 10 cities (ended up living near one of them: SF) and I can't say I found any of them disappointing - I think it depends on what your expectations are before you go.
I really liked each of SF, NYC, DC, Chicago, Philadelphia and Seattle visiting as a tourist. Loved NYC.
Out of all the cities listed I think Washington DC is the most under-rated. You never hear anyone recommending DC as a tourist destination. But I loved it. Loved the architecture and fantastic museums. I was far more impressed than I expected to be.
LA was probably the biggest surprise. I expected LA to be urban sprawl but I didn't appreciate quite how big it would be. I found the size of the multi-width freeways quite daunting. So although I can't say I was disappointed it was probably my least favourite city to visit as a tourist.
I've changed my mind since living in America though. Now I quite like LA.
Sorry if that doesn't really answer your question but I thought I'd add my perspective.
I never understood this line of reasoning. LA feels absolutely massive to me. The "suburbs" as you put it, don't feel very suburban. No green space and empty lots like in other cities, just wall to wall apartments and strip malls and other development and it never seems to end. When driving on the freeway you're completely surrounded by development whereas in many other cities all you can see is trees.
The fact that development never seem to end is not in contradiction with the fact that L.A feels like a massive, mostly uninteresting suburb
And I don't know why you're talking about trees, but if you put trees on every parking lot in L.A it would be I think the greenest city on Earth
So many unnecessary parking lots everywhere even in Downtown no wonder the city is so big
Certainly Detroit is not in the same destination league as the other cities in the poll, but it does have some appeal, both for what's there and, more importantly, as a way to gain an appreciation of what an urban death spiral looks like (and to see glimmers of recovery). As a tourist it's easy to be attracted to the top tier locations. The next couple of tiers down, while not as glamorous, are interesting in their own ways (and less expensive).
Case in point: I had never been to Cleveland, and had "the mistake by the lake" and the image of the river on fire as my reference points. On a whim, and because of a really low fare, I spent 3 days there last September. Visited places great (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame) and small ("A Christmas Story" house) and had lots of interesting conversations with the locals. It was a great visit, and the catalyst for putting "less obvious" cities like Detroit and Buffalo on my list for next year.
I think your criteria is perhaps more personal and unique to you and perhaps a few others. Think about it for a second; who travels a distance to see a place for it's decay?
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which are loosing population for years and job creation is nill ?Please explain your reasoning.
