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OP, you said you wanted a young city. Pittsburgh is notoriously not young. It's likely to get younger eventually (the problem is that basically a whole generation left the city a while ago), but it's going to be a relatively old city for a while. Shouldn't make your decision based on that alone, but it was one of your concerns.
Yes, but Oakland borders San Francisco and Oakland is FAR more dangerous than Chicago. (and the area of SF and Oakland together is smaller than Chicago). Going from SF to Oakland is a much smaller distance than say, going from Rogers Park (a northern Chicago neighborhood) to far South Chicago.
Overall, I think Toronto would be the best overall bet. It is BY FAR the safest, its cheaper than SF, and its got a great nightlife.
Chicago definitely has a higher violent crime rate than SF (not THAT much higher though: 874/100k for SF, 1178/100k for Chicago, as of 2007), and it definitely has more raw numbers of incidents, seeing as it has three to four times the population of SF...but FAR more dangerous? SF's murder and robbery rates are barely lower than Chicago's (Chicago murder rate: 16/100k, SF murder rate: 14/100k. Chicago robbery rate: 546/100k, SF robbery rate: 514/100k)...Chicago does have an assault rate nearly twice as high though (617/100k for Chicago, 330/100k for SF). rape stats for Chicago are n/a, but SF's rape rate has been pretty low lately, coming in at 17/100k in 2007. As far as big cities go, only NYC had a lower rape rate than SF in '07 (go SF and NYC!). As far as property crime, SF actually has a somewhat higher rate than Chicago (4,471/100k for Chicago, 4,695/100k for SF, as of 2007)...and the Bay Area, SF included, has the same kind of drug and gang problems and other social ills that Chicago, or any other US city has too.
AcroJimmy2 also made a good point about Oakland being right next door too, not to mention other nearby high crime cities, such as Richmond.
I would rule out Pittsburgh just because, even though it is a fantastic city, it is not going to give you the amazing experience that you'll get in world class cities like Toronto, Chicago, or San Francisco. Pittsburgh would still be a great city to visit for a few days during your stay in the US or Canada. I don't know when you turn 21, but if you'll still be 20 for most or all of your time in the US or Canada, I would definitely pick Toronto since the drinking age is 19 there, and it has pretty much everything Chicago and SF have to offer.
If you'll be 21 though, I would pick either Chicago or San Francisco. Personally, I think they offer a little bit more excitement for people in their 20s than Toronto does. Although you will be able to find a small studio for 1000 in SF, you will get a much better and larger place for that price in Chicago. Chicago definitely has the better nightlife, as bars close early in SF (2am) whereas in Chicago, they can be open till 4am, and some as late as 5am on Saturday nights. San Francisco has much nicer weather, and is much better than Chicago for outdoor activities such as surfing, hiking, and even skiing in nearby Tahoe. Both cities are pretty equal when it comes to vibrancy, live music, restaurants, culture, arts, and shopping, and both cities have some awesome and safe neighborhoods for young people. Id say to look at it like this: if weather and outdoor activities are more important to you, pick SF. If nightlife and cost of living is more important to you, pick Chicago. Whatever you choose, whether it be Toronto, Chicago or San Francisco, you will have an awesome experience.
PS. As many are speaking about crime rates, Toronto is definitely overall the safest of the cities. Chicago has more crime than San Francisco, but not THAT much more, and in both cities, it is very easy to avoid it as the crime is generally concentrated to areas that you will probably never need to step foot in, so I wouldn't let crime rates be a big part of your decision as all three cities have very safe neighborhoods to live in.
Eh, SF's murder rate is still lower, and its overall crime rate is nowhere near Chicago's. But on the general point, I agree: stay out of neighborhoods where you have no business being and your chances of coming into harm in either city shrink rather considerably. I mean, we're talking to a girl from Britain here; if you can navigate your average British city without getting your face kicked in, you should be able to handle a manageable city like Chicago.
Aren't British cities MUCH safer than your average US city, let alone Chicago? Not that Chicago isn't safe in its non-hood areas, but vs. UK cities I would think it could come as a bit of a shock to her if she wandered into a bad neighborhood. Am I somehow mistaken?
Aren't British cities MUCH safer than your average US city, let alone Chicago? Not that Chicago isn't safe in its non-hood areas, but vs. UK cities I would think it could come as a bit of a shock to her if she wandered into a bad neighborhood. Am I somehow mistaken?
Britain's violent crime rate is substantially higher than ours is. That fact gets lost in all the attention given to the difference in murder rates. Furthermore, in Chicago, it's usually pretty obvious by appearances where you should and should not be wandering around.
Britain's violent crime rate is substantially higher than ours is. That fact gets lost in all the attention given to the difference in murder rates. Furthermore, in Chicago, it's usually pretty obvious by appearances where you should and should not be wandering around.
Wow, I actually wasn't aware of that. Although I do know what you mean about how we focus more on murder rates here than they do in Europe since ours are idiotically high. But I didn't realize that violent crime in England was that high, that's good to know. I gotcha now.
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