Tokyo, Los Angeles, or Chicago

[leekohler]

If you come visit and not send me a PM, I'll be very disappointed. I don't know that I can keep up, but I'm willing to give it a shot.

Oh- I usually tear it up when I go to LA. I have lots of friends in the business out there, and they are insane. I have trouble keeping up with them.

 

[mkrishnan]

^^ Now that, I would like to see.

One thing for which I'm very envious of LA is Korean tacos... I really wish we had that here.

 

[mstrze]

It's no different than NYC or any other place this far north.

Beg to differ, but Chicago's mid-continental location leads to colder winters than NYC, which is right along the Atlantic Ocean and enjoys some warming from that position.

(A perfect example of this is the UK which is MUCH farther north than any of the lower 48, but it's location within the Gulf Stream flow in the Atlantic keeps its winters moderate. Lake Michigan helps a tad, but not nearly as much as the Atlantic does.)

Coldest ever in Chicago: -27 in 1985 there is commonly at least a couple of mornings a year where it gets below zero in Chicago.

Coldest ever in New York: -15 way back in 1934. And it is RARE for NYC to drop into the single digits in a typical year.



Of course NYC isn't one of the cities on the OP's list so...meh.

But being a meteorologist, I had to point out the innacuracy of leekohler's statement.

 

[Macky-Mac]

.... It's tough in LA depending where you live. For example, if you live and work in West Hollywood, it's easy to walk everywhere. But if you live in West Hollywood and work in Burbank... while not terrible, still is not fun.....

one of the keys to enjoying living in LA is to live near where you work. I've been here for years and none of the jobs I've had were more than 15 minutes from where I live. I did have a couple of consulting gigs that required frequent visits to the clients offices up in Malibu but those were both less than 30 minutes driving along the Pacific Coast Highway.

 

[codymac]

Tokyo. Best city in the world IMHO.

Agreed: Tokyo, hands down. It's the best city on the planet, IMHO.
(And this is coming from a guy who isn't a big Seafood fan!)

I refrained from voting since there were multiple choices depending on employer but my vote would be one of the Tokyo choices. I'd love to get back for another extended run there - one of my biggest regrets is turning down a permanent position there.

 

[mkrishnan]

one of the keys to enjoying living in LA is to live near where you work. I've been here for years and none of the jobs I've had were more than 15 minutes from where I live. I did have a couple of consulting gigs that required frequent visits to the clients offices up in Malibu but those were both less than 30 minutes driving along the Pacific Coast Highway.

I think us non-LA city folk are used to living 30 minutes walking from work (well, I've been enjoying living 10-30 minutes from work, walking, for the past six years, in FL, IL, and now MI). Or at worst, by city train.

 

[Gregg2]

I'm really torn between:

Flint, MI
Camden, NJ
Gary, IN

Or maybe just moving down south to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

What do you think?

New Orleans or Port au Prince

 

[Macky-Mac]

I think us non-LA city folk are used to living 30 minutes walking from work (well, I've been enjoying living 10-30 minutes from work, walking, for the past six years, in FL, IL, and now MI). Or at worst, by city train.

15 to 30 min is 15 to 30 min whether it's by car, bus, train, bike, scooter, roller skates or on foot

my post was for those who seem to think living in los angeles means having to spend an hour or two on the freeway going to work

 

[neutrino23]

Well, I've lived in Japan for nine years (grew up in Michigan). I spent about four years near Kichijoji, then another two years right in Tokyo (near Yotsuya eki on the Chuo line) and then another three years in Yokohama by Yamate. Now I'm living near San Francisco and visit LA and Chicago on business.

There is a lot to consider.

Probably near the top of the list is to think about what you really want to do and what opportunities you will have. Job satisfaction is very important. It is what you do every day. If your job sucks it is hard to be happy no matter where you live. As you get older I think you want more intellectual challenge from your job as well. There should be a growth path for you.

I found Japan a great place to visit but a hard place to live. Lots of fascinating things about it but it was grinding me down. I couldn't take the crowds and the incessant activity. It wasn't that I didn't like it, but somehow after a few years it really go to me. I had a hard time breaking away from it and getting calm inside. I'm amazed how the natives adapt. You've probably seen this sight. A young girl standing out of the way at a street corner in Shibuya or Shinjuku, her head down, calm, oblivious to the hundreds of people walking by, then her friend approaches and calls her name. It is like someone flipped a switch and all of a sudden she is totally ON and bubbling and laughing and talking. Incredible. That and the guys sleeping in train stations or on the steps going up to the train stations. Amazing. Sure doesn't look comfortable to me.

Also, I didn't care for the weather. It is too hot and too humid. But, a great place and really great people.

But if you're comfortable with Tokyo it is a great place.

Between Chicago and LA it depends a lot on the exact location. I think the beach communities in LA are fantastic. I see people walking to restaurants and shops, enjoying the weather and the ocean. Very nice. Traffic can be bad but it tends to happen on certain routes more than others. Again, if you choose your location well it can be very good.

In Chicago the waterfront along lake Michigan seems really nice as well.

Great restaurants in both places. Lots of museums, theaters and such.

Good luck. Hope you choose well.

 

[LethalWolfe]

I think us non-LA city folk are used to living 30 minutes walking from work (well, I've been enjoying living 10-30 minutes from work, walking, for the past six years, in FL, IL, and now MI). Or at worst, by city train.

Um, you can chose to live 30min by foot from your job in LA too (a number of my coworkers live w/in a mile or two of the office, for example). The you must drive everywhere stereotype is more of a cultural choice than a requirement, IMO. Of course for some professions you have to have a car, but before I lived out here I never considered skateboards and in-line skates to be viable modes of transportation! The public transportation is anemic but if you live and work where the trains/subways do run they are inexpensive and good AFAIK.


Lethal

 

[obeygiant]

In terms of food: Tokyo>Chicago>LA

LA's idea of good chinese or thai food is terrible. Although there are few good japanese places in Torrence.

 

[Jaro65]

I am not keen on the cold weather and snow. Basically, I have everything I "need" in Tokyo to make a decent living. But, I "want" to reclaim my American experiences after a few years of hiatus. Thus my current conundrum.

It sounds like you want to be in LA. If so, just do it.

I personally really do not like winters in Chicago and would not consider moving there.

 

[dmr727]

I can't speak for Tokyo, but I've spent enough time in Chicago and lived long enough in LA to say that if you can't find a way to enjoy yourself in either of these cities, you're simply not trying hard enough.

 

[puma1552]

I echo some of the sentiments on Tokyo.

Amazing city, best in the world, as someone else living in Japan--remain as a Tokyoite, especially if you've broken out of English teaching into a real job and have established yourself with a nice condo and a nice ride.

Tokyo is pretty much amazing after having spent a lot of time there if you like crowds; personally for me, the denser the better--I get a boner off of 5,000+ people per square kilometer density, but most others probably would hate that; but by now you know if this works for you or not which it does.

Another thing to consider is indeed the work hours; as a foreigner are you getting to gaijin smash your way out of that or have they assimilated you to the point you sometimes work 60-70 hour weeks and weekends as well? Keep in mind the idea of glass ceilings for foreigners in Japan and how far you can truly advance and whether or not it will meet your wants in 10-20 years. I know in my industry I could never have as much in Japan as I could back home.

But, Tokyo is awesome--amazing night life, biggest city in the world, SMOKING hot women/fashion absolutely everywhere that girls back home couldn't pull off no matter how hard they tried, amazing restaurants (I don't even like Japanese food but they have mastered restaurant ambiance), izakaya, very safe, best public transportation in the world, kind people, etc. etc., the list goes on.

I know nothing of LA but my impression is that sun gets old and boring real quick (as someone who's from Minneapolis originally), and you get a mix of real California Abercrombie surfer douchebags and dreamers (idiots) who don't have a brain in their head but think they will be the next big thing and move out there without a single iota of thought.

Chicago--what a let down, that's all I have to say about that place.