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Given the sudden emphasis on this forum being placed upon Richmond, Virginia I felt as if now would be as good of a time as ever to see who would rise victorious in a fierce Internet poll---Scranton, PA, the city that was so over-hyped by me back in 2007 that you all felt like vomiting, or Richmond, VA, the city that is now being so over-hyped by Richmonder that I feel like vomiting?! LOL!
Both Richmond and Scranton are A-okay to CHIP72, based on the limited time I've spent in Richmond and relatively limited time I've spent in Scranton.
If I had to choose one, I think I'd give a slight edge to Richmond just because it's bigger. Richmond also isn't hardcore South either IMO and it is pretty close to Washington (and also the Hampton Roads cities), so I think I could live there. Scranton is a bit further from New York and Philadelphia than I'd like, but I could probably live there too.
Incidentally, The Diamond in Richmond and Lackawanna County Stadium just outside of Scranton look A LOT alike, though LCS is nicer because it's newer (though perhaps not better to watch a game - the upper deck seats at The Diamond are really close to the field). I thought of LCS immediately the first time I ever laid eyes on The Diamond.
Just as an aside, the Lackawanna County Multi-Purpose Stadium (what a mouthful!) was renamed PNC Field a couple of years ago when the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons (Phillies' AAA affiliate) moved to Allentown and the New York Yankees' AAA affiliate moved to Scranton from Columbus.
Scranton doesn't capitalize enough upon its two-hour driving distance to both New York City and Philadelphia, in my humble opinion. The one thing I'll miss most about NEPA when I relocate will be being able to wake up and spontaneously decide to head to Broadway to see a show or to grab a cheese steak at Pat's or Geno's in Philly and be home for the evening news. I'll also miss our architecture. Outside of Arlington and Alexandria, NoVA is largely the poster child for the very same urban sprawl I find to be so abhorrent.
I forgot about the LCS renaming to PNC Field. Still, that facility will always be Lackawanna County Stadium to me.
As for the urban sprawl issue, I think the DC area generally-speaking HAS been overrun by urban sprawl (based on what I've seen when I've lived here), but there are some nice or very nice true towns in northern Virginia. Leesburg is a very nice-looking town, Fredericksburg is a fine-looking town, and old-town Manassas (near where the train station is located) is pretty good too (and keeping with the title of the thread, I thought Richmond looked fine as a city - the core of the city and its nearby neighborhoods definitely aren't sprawling suburbia). Of course, all of those places are at least 30 miles from DC. Alexandria (or more accurately Old Town Alexandria) is in an entirely different category - much larger than any of the aforementioned places (except Richmond of course) and probably nicer than all of them except maybe Leesburg. Some other parts of Alexandria - like the areas just west/northwest of Old Town on the other side of the train tracks and the Del Ray neighborhood a little further north and also west of the train tracks (the latter of which I haven't personally checked out yet but have heard good things about) are good too.
I realize I'm changing the subject, but though politically you'll be a better fit in the DC area than in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, ScranBarre, you may find the area less appealing because people generally aren't as friendly and tend to be more superficial than they are in NE PA. I'm just trying to give you a heads up to be prepared for the adjustment.
I forgot about the LCS renaming to PNC Field. Still, that facility will always be Lackawanna County Stadium to me.
As for the urban sprawl issue, I think the DC area generally-speaking HAS been overrun by urban sprawl (based on what I've seen when I've lived here), but there are some nice or very nice true towns in northern Virginia. Leesburg is a very nice-looking town, Fredericksburg is a fine-looking town, and old-town Manassas (near where the train station is located) is pretty good too (and keeping with the title of the thread, I thought Richmond looked fine as a city - the core of the city and its nearby neighborhoods definitely aren't sprawling suburbia). Of course, all of those places are at least 30 miles from DC. Alexandria (or more accurately Old Town Alexandria) is in an entirely different category - much larger than any of the aforementioned places (except Richmond of course) and probably nicer than all of them except maybe Leesburg. Some other parts of Alexandria - like the areas just west/northwest of Old Town on the other side of the train tracks and the Del Ray neighborhood a little further north and also west of the train tracks (the latter of which I haven't personally checked out yet but have heard good things about) are good too.
I realize I'm changing the subject, but though politically you'll be a better fit in the DC area than in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, ScranBarre, you may find the area less appealing because people generally aren't as friendly and tend to be more superficial than they are in NE PA. I'm just trying to give you a heads up to be prepared for the adjustment.
Thanks very much for your insight here. Since you have lived in both Harrisburg and Metro DC and are familiar with the Scranton area I really do value what you have to say. I'm well aware of the fact that people tend to put up stricter social barriers in NoVA than to which I'm accustomed up here in NEPA. At work I can easily strike up random conversations with complete strangers, many of whom routinely tell me much, much more information about themselves than I probably ought to be hearing for a first-time encounter! All it takes is a smile from me and a "How are ya?" to get people to open the social floodgates. The people here though despite their friendliness are also very pessimistic about the region's future. With a new medical school, rebounding downtown, growing national recognition, and a metropolitan population that has grown for the past several years after many decades of steep decline following the collapse of the mining industry I find it hard to be so downright negative about the Electric City's impending renaissance. We're by no means perfect, but living amongst so many folks who are so "jaded" has really soured me.
I may find that I hate NoVA. I may also be pleasantly surprised. In any event at age twenty-two I'm still blessed to have many years ahead of me to learn from my mistakes and treasure my life experiences. I already know I do NOT want to make NoVA my permanent home, but fortunately Pittsburgh has always beckoned to me, and my potential new employer does indeed have the opportunity for me to transfer there after a few years if I so choose.
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LOL! 
