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California vs New York- NYC is by far my favorite place in the world. As long as it’s a part of NY state, I will always choose it.
Texas vs Florida- this is extremely tough, because FL is my home state and Texas has the best collection of major cities in the nation. While Dallas/Houston/Austin/San Antonio beat Miami/Orlando/Tampa/Jacksonville pretty easily, I’ll choose Florida, because if both places are gonna hot 8 months out of the year, at least Florida has 5 of the best beaches in the world to chill out at.
As I think I've told you, I'm a city kid (well, not a kid any more), and the cities played a big role in my choices.
California vs.New York: Honestly, this could go either way, based on the cities alone. For all its reputation for sprawl and smog (both deserved), Los Angeles is actually a fascinating, diverse and lively city. I hear San Diego has fantastic beaches, and there's the Hotel Coronado for an oceanside landmark. And Oakland combines grit, determination, one of the greatest R&B bands of the 1970s (Tower of Power) and spectacular views from the ritzy houses on the hills. Pity it's paired with San Francisco, a spectacularly situated city with an interesting climate ("The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco" —Mark Twain) and God-awfully self-satisfied residents.
That last part helps tip the scale in New York's favor. New Yorkers may also go on a bit overmuch about how superior New York is to absolutely every other city in the country (to the consternation of the residents of nearly every other city in the country), but the boasting is grounded in reality to a very large extent. New York may not have the absolute best of everything (you're still going to get better barbecue elsewhere, though you can get decent Q there now), but it has at least good examples of almost everything, and the sheer quantity and variety on offer is matched by no other U.S. city (LA's gaining on it, though, and Houston is a potential sleeper here). New York alone is enough to lift this state over California in urban terms, but its other cities, especially Albany and Buffalo, have charms of their own, and its natural landscape has many attractive features (the Adirondacks, the Finger Lakes, Niagara Falls, the Catskills...). The Long Island beaches may not be as extensive as those in California, but California has no place like Fire Island.
Florida vs. Texas: I think I said somewhere that Houston is Texas' answer to LA, and I stand by that claim, palm trees, freeways full of Mario Andretti wannabes and all. But Texans have an openness and friendliness I find highly appealing, and the various racial and ethnic groups seem to me to mix more freely and casually in Houston than in any other large city I've been in. Texas has no winter to speak of except in the northern Panhandle, and I usually consider this a demerit, but neither does Florida, so it's a wash here. Texas has almost as wide a variety of landscapes as California does, lacking only mountains (except in El Paso), and its cities are very dynamic (though I've only been to four: Dallas, El Paso, Houston and Beaumont).
Texas cities are indeed drive-everywhere places, but I still want to take issue with this statement of Danny K's:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Danny K
Public Transportation is TERRIBLE in Texas. It is not that great in Florida either, but at least most of FL is in closer proximity.
Outside of Miami, whose central-city people mover is most valuable, it seems to me that Florida doesn't really have it over Texas in this department. Dallas has one of the most extensive light metro systems in the country, Houston's bus network got a redesign that made it much more useful (thanks to noted transportation consultant Jarrett Walker, who Philadelphia later hired to get its own redesign off the ground), and El Paso, once home to the only international streetcar line in the country, will get streetcars once again soon. (They can't seem to get their act together in Austin, though the city does have a commuter rail line.) And the Texas Central Railway HSR project looks like it has a better chance of becoming reality than California HSR does right now. (Okay, All Aboard Florida's Brightline is running right now, so there is that, even though it's not HSR.)
Yes, Texas has vaster distances between its cities than Florida does. But I grew up in the American Heartland so can live with that. Pin a Lone Star on my choices.
I mean, it's all over the internet. Or just listen to people in real life.
Haha, still people keep on moving there in droves. I actually wish it was more made fun of when I lived there so people could leave or not move there.
Anyway, Florida is very polarizing. Either love it or hate it, no in between. Sort of like a microcosm of the United States. Florida has become kind of a punching bag for Hollywood, which of course shapes the minds of unintelligent people that can’t produce an original thought and likely don’t have any formal education (Twitter is definitely the embodiment of stupid people on the internet). Its perception hasn’t taken a hit domestically, but like I stated, it hasn’t affected visitation. And perception tends to be cyclical. California has been viewed as the Golden State for ages, and although Hollywood is desperately trying to keep that mantra alive, in real life, people are leaving, fed up with the notion of sanctuary cities, local government’s indifference of crime committed by the largest population of homeless people in the nation, rapidly declining school systems, and more. Yes, the weather is awesome and it’s cool to be glorified by Hollywood, but quality of life in real life is waaayy different if you’re not rich. And I’m not rich. So I prefer Florida and just about every other state to California after seeing the malaise of San Francisco.
But to each his or her own. I loved living in San Diego but absolutely hated LA and SF. I also loved living in Orlando and Tampa but hated Miami. Different strokes for different folks.
Anyway, the vitriol I levied against California was unfair. It really is a great place. Sadly, the people have ruined it, just like Florida. I don’t see either place getting better as they each get more and more populated. People suck. This is why we can’t have nice things.
In an honest assessment without bias, I will say that these are the things I personally value the most in a city: affordable housing, vibrant walkable areas, public transportation, year-round warm weather, clean streets, minimal homelessness, a lack of gang graffiti, and a nice skyline.
I’m not trying to start anything because I honestly did enjoy speaking candidly with you yesterday, but San Francisco and Los Angeles are the dirtiest American cities I’ve ever traveled to. I was really turned off by the amount of garbage casually thrown all over, all the homeless people basically keeping me from enjoying the sights, and the crazy amount of graffiti that city leaders don’t care about. Really dampened my vacation. Most major cities are not like this, not even New York. Sure, there’s bags of trash piled up on every sidewalk but it seems like residents take pride in their city. Chicago, Miami, Dallas etc are pretty clean. I don’t understand why LA and SF are so damn nasty, and then expensive on top of that. Really is an anomaly.
The reason people make fun of Florida is the Sunshine State Law. Simple as that. You really think Florida has more crazy people than other states in the south? Or a state like California that has double its population? Of course not. Someone intelligent would know better. State law just grants anyone easy access to any criminal story, change a few words around to generate clicks, and voila, you have a wacky story to tell. I’ve seen some literal absurd stories come out of every state, California included, that don’t get attention because it’s not Florida Man. But most Floridians laugh at that stuff too. It’s a joke, it doesn’t bother those of us who actually live here, because it’s far removed from reality.
Fair enough, I lashed out as well. The California bashing seems far uglier than other places and its getting tiresome. Its just weird to call out the state for its problems when Florida, Texas have a million issues of their own. Anyway, back on topic.
California vs New York- The largest cities in California are not at all a match for NYC. All of California’s problems are getting worse, while New York City continues to be a world leader in nearly every industry. San Diego and Sacramento are two of the best cities on the west coast. LA and San Francisco used to be great before all of the sidewalk poop. In any case, the weather can’t save it. New York wins here.
Texas vs Florida- I choose Florida. I personally don’t get the infatuation with Texas. It seems like a regular state without any specifically defining characteristics. Austin is easily the best city, but after that, Houston and Dallas were just okay. I didn’t notice anything particularly special. I enjoyed living in Florida though. Miami and Tampa’s beaches were breathtaking and Orlando was simultaneously of the most fun and most underrated cities I’ve ever ventured into. Florida wins here.
Haha, still people keep on moving there in droves. I actually wish it was more made fun of when I lived there so people could leave or not move there.
Anyway, Florida is very polarizing. Either love it or hate it, no in between. Sort of like a microcosm of the United States. Florida has become kind of a punching bag for Hollywood, which of course shapes the minds of unintelligent people that can’t produce an original thought and likely don’t have any formal education (Twitter is definitely the embodiment of stupid people on the internet). Its perception hasn’t taken a hit domestically, but like I stated, it hasn’t affected visitation. And perception tends to be cyclical. California has been viewed as the Golden State for ages, and although Hollywood is desperately trying to keep that mantra alive, in real life, people are leaving, fed up with the notion of sanctuary cities, local government’s indifference of crime committed by the largest population of homeless people in the nation, rapidly declining school systems, and more. Yes, the weather is awesome and it’s cool to be glorified by Hollywood, but quality of life in real life is waaayy different if you’re not rich. And I’m not rich. So I prefer Florida and just about every other state to California after seeing the malaise of San Francisco.
But to each his or her own. I loved living in San Diego but absolutely hated LA and SF. I also loved living in Orlando and Tampa but hated Miami. Different strokes for different folks.
Yet La has record tourism every year now, so it's not affecting visitation either. Not sure about sf or sd. And as I said before, Hollywood makes Miami seem more glamorous than it is, or Nyc not as gritty and cleaner. So its not like Hollywood only does it for LA. On the flip side of that, there's been tons of movies showing the city's gritty side that many movie fans are so aware of, they expect more crime issues on a visit.
Yet La has record tourism every year now, so it's not affecting visitation either. Not sure about sf or sd. And as I said before, Hollywood makes Miami seem more glamorous than it is, or Nyc not as gritty and cleaner. So its not like Hollywood only does it for LA. On the flip side of that, there's been tons of movies showing the city's gritty side that many movie fans are so aware of, they expect more crime issues on a visit.
Yep! Miami is not as glamorous as it’s made to seem in real life or on Instagram. LA isn’t either. It’s incredibly gritty in any place not rich or upscale. Even Hollywood itself is made to seem clean and sparkling but man, it’s actually pretty darn dirty and has a bunch of homeless people. Not throwing shade, but this is what has contributed to cities like Miami, LA and SF, and to a degree Honolulu being viewed in such a positive light. In reality, living there is MUCH different than visiting. Neither city is my cup of tea to live. Beachy-type cities in general are more romanticized than reality.
NYC is pretty clean for its size. It’s gritty too but it’s a lot cleaner than SF and LA. Even so, SF and LA are still attracting lots of visitors, like you said. These cities are still growing too, not as fast as they used to or in line with other large cities, but they’re still gaining.
Well, I don’t want to derail this thread so I won’t say anything further about California or Florida that isn’t on topic.
It depends. The Hollywood neighborhood itself isn't considered glamorous in TV and movies and is usually referenced as gritty and gross like real life.. Maybe in the hills its more glamorous on tv, but thats pretty accurate in real life in my experience. What movie shows the Hollywood neighborhood being this sexy place?
The Hollywood name confuses people. It's usually refers to the entertainment industry, which includes Santa Monica, Burbank, Culver City, Playa Vista, Studio City, West Melrose, West Hollywood, Universal City, the Grove, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Calabassss. Alot of these places have the vibe/image you do see on TV and in the movies. I go to Studio City a lot, and the restaurants and bars are EXACTLY like they show in media. The Hollywood neighborhood itself is mostly a gritty tourist trap, although there more hotels and plans to make it more tourist friendly in the future.
Nyc is often described as more dirty in real life, because the movies clean it up.
It depends. The Hollywood neighborhood itself isn't considered glamorous in TV and movies and is usually referenced as gritty and gross like real life.. Maybe in the hills its more glamorous on tv, but thats pretty accurate in real life in my experience. What movie shows the Hollywood neighborhood being this sexy place?
The Hollywood name confuses people. It's usually refers to the entertainment industry, which includes Santa Monica, Burbank, Culver City, Playa Vista, Studio City, West Melrose, West Hollywood, Universal City, the Grove, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Calabassss. Alot of these places have the vibe/image you do see on TV and in the movies. I go to Studio City a lot, and the restaurants and bars are EXACTLY like they show in media. The Hollywood neighborhood itself is mostly a gritty tourist trap, although there more hotels and plans to make it more tourist friendly in the future.
Nyc is often described as more dirty in real life, because the movies clean it up.
But yea, it's not the topic.
I never said Hollywood is depicted as sexy. I said clean and sparking. Like for example the Hollywood Walk of Fame is made to look much nicer, cleaner, and better than it is. The whole area is pretty dumpy and the WOF itself is nothing special at all in person.
As far as NYC, yeah it’s pretty dirty but much cleaner than LA and especially SF. But yeah I think the film industry’s depiction of almost every city is wrought with inaccuracies. Basically, like someone else said, Hollywood uses caricatures to describe cities and states, and these often shape the opinions of people who haven’t been there or haven’t gotten a ton of exposure. Before I lived in LA, I was really excited to be there because I envisioned beautiful, clean, tree-lined streets everywhere, meeting celebrities randomly all the time, and an electric, sunny place to brag about and show out-of-towers around. Then I moved there and realized real life was COMPLETELY different than the dream people are sold. SF was even worse. It’s shockingly dirty. So damn sad because it would be so beautiful if people took care of it.
That’s why when Hollywood makes fun of Florida as this crazy state, I just laugh and shake my head. It’s just like any other large and overly-populated state.
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