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Maybe spend some time in the places you're thinking about. The advice you get on a forum like this can be only so helpful. For one thing, you have no idea of the agendas and prejudices people bring to their responses. Of course, asking about places like Boston and Chicago on a New York City forum is--predictably--going to get responses bashing Boston and Chicago. I'd say what it really comes down to is what makes sense for you-- do you need the biggest, most energetic, most dynamic of cities? The one with 200 events to choose from every night of the week? Or would it make sense to compromise on energy and choice to get some of the benefits of a smaller place, the one with only 50 offerings to choose from? Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco all have advantages over New York--less crowding, less traffic, lower costs of housing (maybe not S. F.), lower taxes, easier access to countryside and beaches and other quiet, scenic places outside the city. But New York is New York, nothing quite like it in this country.
The advice you get on a forum like this can be only so helpful. For one thing, you have no idea of the agendas and prejudices people bring to their responses. Of course, asking about places like Boston and Chicago on a New York City forum is--predictably--going to get responses bashing Boston and Chicago.
This x 100. Have you posted on other forums? You should ask about Chicago on a Chicago forum, not a New York City forum.
I went on a tour in New York once and the tour guide couldn't stop talking about how much he loved New York. Later I went on a tour in Chicago and the tour guide was an ex-New Yorker who couldn't stop talking about how much more he loved Chicago than New York.
Take it for what you will.
Quote:
Originally Posted by missionhill
But New York is New York, nothing quite like it in this country.
There's also nothing else quite like San Francisco, or Chicago, or Boston, or New Orleans, or etc. etc. etc. you get the point.
New York is very unique... just like everywhere else. Claiming it's somehow superior to every other city is ridiculous. If you like what New York has to offer, great, you'll love it. If you want something else, go somewhere else. There's nothing inherently better about New York as a city than Boston or San Fran.
New York is way out ahead in both positive and negative categories (and neutral ones too): energy, intensity, density, size, transit, and cost of living.
You can still make some comparisons, though, if you specify what you're talking about. For instance, there is the obvious comparison between New York and L.A. for being huge and having the media and celebs and "Hollywood feel." There is also the obvious architectural comparison with Chicago, and the national-business comparison with Washington, and more cultural comparisons with Boston or Philadelphia. Et cetera. NYC will often come out ahead, but not always.
If a Sunbelt city is your idea of paradise, then have at it. I haven't lived in NYC, only visited (I'm only on here because it's a comparison thread), but I live in a little apartment in Chicago, with a far superior quality of life to what I had in a suburban Sunbelt home. I'm sure that NYC has plenty of its own "issues," but the way you state your complaints leads me to take them with a HUGE grain of salt.
This x 100. Have you posted on other forums? You should ask about Chicago on a Chicago forum, not a New York City forum.
I went on a tour in New York once and the tour guide couldn't stop talking about how much he loved New York. Later I went on a tour in Chicago and the tour guide was an ex-New Yorker who couldn't stop talking about how much more he loved Chicago than New York.
Take it for what you will.
There's also nothing else quite like San Francisco, or Chicago, or Boston, or New Orleans, or etc. etc. etc. you get the point.
New York is very unique... just like everywhere else. Claiming it's somehow superior to every other city is ridiculous. If you like what New York has to offer, great, you'll love it. If you want something else, go somewhere else. There's nothing inherently better about New York as a city than Boston or San Fran.
Cities aren't ppl some cities really are superior to others when you compare them unbiasedly. Just like if I was from Cleveland and I was comparing Cleveland to Chicago I can say yea Cleveland is so much better because I'm from there but if I broke it down without any bias Chicago would kill Cleveland. Same thing with NY everyone has their opinion on what they like but that doesn't make it better. My favorite basketball player ever is Kobe Bryant but I think Michael Jordan was a better player than him.
...My favorite basketball player ever is Kobe Bryant but I think Michael Jordan was a better player than him.
Basketball has points and games and championships. Cities are just places to live.
I do think that NYC is more important than other American cities, for one reason and one reason only: more people live there. As an egalitarian, I think one person equals one person, regardless, so a city of over 8 million is simply more important than a less populated place.
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, I guess everyone has their opinion.
