Which city was more impressive than you thought it would be, Which was worse than you thought? (appointed, to live)
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First I'll start with the worst. I thought Jacksonville was going to be a nice city. It was so dull, boring, lifeless. For a city of 700,000, there downtown was awful. I've seen cities with fifty thousand have a nicer downtown. There was no one walking around. Public transport sucked. The weather was so humid, (that I knew about though). It just did not impress me at all.
The city that exceeded my expectations would have to be NY. From my first time there many years ago, I still say wow when I go there. As much as you see it in films or whatever, there is still no other city in the world that makes me giddy with amazement as NY does. NY truly is worth the hype.
Location: Concrete jungle where dreams are made of.
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St. Louis--a lot more deserted than I expected. Thought it would be busier and more crowded. Hardly saw many people downtown. I also thought it was hilarious how they hail buses lol. Never saw/heard of such a thing
I went to Portland, OR last April. It was a lot nicer than I expected. Pretty clean and pretty with the Cascades.
I agree with you about NY, but of course I'm biased since I grew up here
I liked Albequerque a lot more than I expected, but I was only in the area immediately around UMN, so maybe I didn't see enough of it to pass judgement haha.
Fort Worth was a city that I expected to hate but I actually had a great time there. I had no idea they would actually have a Downtown nightlife (much better than Downtown Dallas). I never been disappointed by a city that I have visited. I can always find a way to enjoy every city I go to. It may take a little effort on my part to find the areas where the entertainment is but I always find them.
Pittsburgh. Not just me, but others I have talked to who went there for the first time had the same experience. Guess we were expecting it to live up to its 20th century reputation. I kind of like gritty cities anyway (my hometown is Rust Belt), but it was better than I expected.
My answer never changes from similar thread to similar thread:
positive - Cincinnati - The first time I ever went to Cincinnati for a reason other than passing through was a year after the riots. I was expecting the city to be a rotting dump like much of Detroit. I was surprised. Cincinnati has to be one of the prettiest inland cities in America. The view from Mt. Adams is amazing. The architecture downtown is better than most cities. OTR even had some areas I thought looked decent. Hyde Park was another surprise. Cincinnati is the only city I have ever been to that was a complete surprise to me. Probably because my expectations were so low and had always judged it by what you see along I-75.
negative - St. Louis - STL never ceases to disappoint me.
Last edited by Toxic Toast; 12-02-2008 at 08:25 PM..
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Pittsburgh. Not just me, but others I have talked to who went there for the first time had the same experience. Guess we were expecting it to live up to its 20th century reputation. I kind of like gritty cities anyway (my hometown is Rust Belt), but it was better than I expected.
It definately looks clean for a rust belt city I'll give you that. It also has a very nice looking downtown, and nice surrounding hills. However coming from someone who lived there, there really isn't anything there. The nightlife is dead. Downtown shuts down at five oclock. There are no jobs. There are no restaurants. For a city of its size, it really is one of the worst cities for restaurants. Trust me if you would have stayed long enough for the aesthetic view to wear off, you would see that there isn't much to do or see there. No offense Yinzers, just that Pittsburgh is not that great...
[SIZE=5]andrew61[/SIZE]
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More impressive: Charlotte
I heard that from someone else years ago, from someone who has traveled all over the country before I had. I personally have never been there but like I said, I have heard nothing but good things about it. I am surprised that it doesn't get enough postivity on here.
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