What do you like/dislike about your city/town ?

[Healer Flame]

Ok lets hear real reviews/opinions from real people/locals what they like/dislike the most about their city/town from USA and all around the world.

I am from Melbourne Australia, the most liveable city in the world for many years until recently when it lost its title to Vienna.

Melbourne has many hidden gems, beautiful world class parks, cafe's, restaurant's and people are generally nice.

What i dislike about Melbourne is its geographic location, weather, shops operating times and toooooooo many traffic lights. Its also very expensive, one of the most expensive cities in the world.
I will post more throughout the thread.

So what do you like/dislike about your city/town, please share.
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[Huntn]

Houston- too many people, too hot for my tastes, not particularly pretty, too prone to flooding, with a relative low cost of living.

Minneapolis, Mn- where I lived for 3 decades, nice city, large enough to support the arts and sports franchises, but not the huge rat race that Houston represents, wonderful summers, a beautiful State, but too cold for some people’s tastes in the Winter.

Washington DC- along with surrounding Virginia and Maryland, where I grew up- paradise lost due to development.

My impression is that every nice place in the country is being ruined by never ending development, develop every square foot. Speaking of paradise lost, I lived in San Diego, California for several years which also suffered the PL syndrome and I imagine would have been a most wonderful place to live in the 1950-60s.

 

[Healer Flame]

Houston- too many people, too hot for my tastes, not particularly pretty, too prone to flooding, with a relative low cost of living.

Minneapolis, Mn- where I lived for 3 decades, nice city, large enough to support the arts and sports franchises, but not the huge rat race that Houston represents, wonderful summers, a beautiful State, but too cold for some people’s tastes in the Winter.

Washington DC- along with surrounding Virginia and Maryland, where I grew up- paradise lost due to development.

My impression is that every nice place in the country is being ruined by never ending development, develop every square foot. Speaking of paradise lost, I lived in San Diego, California for several years which also suffered the PL syndrome and I imagine would have been a most wonderful place to live in the 1950-60s.

Thanks Huntn, very informative. My cousin lives in Houston but we hardly keep in touch.

My dream city to visit is NY. Dont know why i've been dreaming about this city for 30 years now.

 

[Huntn]

Thanks Huntn, very informative. My cousin lives in Houston but we hardly keep in touch.

My dream city to visit is NY. Dont know why i've been dreaming about this city for 30 years now.

Is Melbourne a hot climate? I’d have to look that up.


I first visited NYC when I was in elementary school, on a school field trip by train. Growing up in Wash, DC there was a height limit on buildings, so no sky scrapers. Walking out of the train station into a sea of high rises was astonishing. Unfortunately, I now have a serious dislike of such concentrations of humanity. Less is better!

Later, I worked as an airline pilot, we’d land in La Guardia or Kennedy, and when we had a down town hotel, that was a real treat of a taxi ride. We’d have to leave extra early to allow enough time to make it back to the airport in time. Downtown NYC is interesting enough. My favorite thing to do was go running in Central Park.

 

[0388631]

I hate NYC.

 

[Huntn]

I hate NYC.

Why so? The obvious concentration of people and all things associated, or something else that would separate it from other large cities?

 

[Falhófnir]

I currently live just outside a hamlet, not really a lot to say, plenty of space, not so good on amenities and you more/less have to drive to go anywhere. I grew up in a relatively small town on the south coast. It was a fantastic place to live, the highstreet is stuffed full of independent shops with a few chain outlets too. Just about anywhere in the town was walkable, though the bus services were patchy, and there was a not-unreasonable branch line for rail travels further afield. Contrary to popular belief the weather in this part of the world is pretty nice, rarely goes below -5, rarely goes above 30 (celsius). Usually quite a lot of sunny days in the summer, though winters tend to be pretty grey and soggy. I loved being right on the coast, with Bournemouth-Avon beaches quite nearby, the IoW just across the solent. Having Bournemouth nearby is great if you want to do any shopping, or activities like cinema, bowling, sports matches, concerts etc. Not going to lie, think I was pretty privileged to grow up there tbh. One thing I really didn't like was the snottiness of a lot of residents; for some reason people seemed to move there and think it made them a little bit special in particular a lot of people seemed to be really rude to shop staff, bus drivers etc. Particularly the old people (retirees from the London commuter belt, I take it - guess acting like that is just what they come to know in a place like that). Whilst our home here is much bigger than what we had there, in a lot of ways I feel much more confined now than I did before, and certainly a lot more remote from friends.

 

[Healer Flame]

Is Melbourne a hot climate? I’d have to look that up.


I first visited NYC when I was in elementary school, on a school field trip by train. Growing up in Wash, DC there was a height limit on buildings, so no sky scrapers. Walking out of the train station into a sea of high rises was astonishing. Unfortunately, I now have a serious dislike of such concentrations of humanity. Less is better!

Later, I worked as an airline pilot, we’d land in La Guardia or Kennedy, and when we had a down town hotel, that was a real treat of a taxi ride. We’d have to leave extra early to allow enough time to make it back to the airport in time. Downtown NYC is interesting enough. My favorite thing to do was go running in Central Park.

Melbourne's climate is very unpredictable that's why many people get sick.

https://www.we-love-melbourne.net/weather-melbourne.html

In summer it can reach up to 44-45 degree but these extreme days are not common but you'll get them during summer.
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I currently live just outside a hamlet, not really a lot to say, plenty of space, not so good on amenities and you more/less have to drive to go anywhere. I grew up in a town called Lymington (we moved there for schooling purposes) on the south coast of England (near Bournemouth). It was a fantastic place to live, the highstreet is stuffed full of independent shops with a few chain outlets too. Just about anywhere in the town was walkable, though the bus services were patchy, and there was a not-unreasonable branch line for rail travels further afield. Contrary to popular belief the weather in this part of the world is pretty nice, rarely goes below -5, rarely goes above 30 (celsius). Usually quite a lot of sunny days in the summer, though winters tend to be pretty grey and soggy. I loved being right on the coast, with Bournemouth-Avon beaches quite nearby, the IoW just across the solent, the New Forest National park was immediately to the North, which was fantastic for horseback riding (really miss that where we are now, limited to riding along lanes and bridleways). Having Bournemouth nearby is great if you want to do any shopping, or activities like cinema, bowling, sports matches, concerts etc. Not going to lie, think I was pretty privileged to grow up there tbh. One thing I really didn't like was the snottiness of a lot of residents; for some reason people seemed to move there and think it made them a little bit special in particular a lot of people seemed to be really rude to shop staff, bus drivers etc. Particularly the old people (retirees from the London commuter belt, I take it - guess acting like that is just what they come to know in a place like that). Whilst our home here is much bigger than what we had there, in a lot of ways I feel much more confined now than I did before, and certainly a lot more remote from friends.

Sometimes i feel the need to live in small towns away from everything. No phones, Tv, cars....etc...etc... Its good to disconnect sometimes even just for few months.

 

[Gutwrench]

I’m of the opinion the metropolitan area of the Twin Cities is best large-ish city to live in the Midwest (Kansas City, St Louis, Chicago).

However, the winters are too long but the summers are spectacular!

 

[eyoungren]

Phoenix, Arizona: Everything I wanted in a town as a kid. 5 minutes to anywhere. Stores, shops, malls, restaurants and events. Just about anything open 24/7, so getting a hamburger at 2am is possible.

When I first moved here I loved the heat. Now I'm older so it's less attractive to me, but I suppose if I had a car with working A/C and windows that rolled down I wouldn't mind it as much in the summer. It's great to be able to wear shorts in December though. But the heat is coming now. This Wednesday our high will be 85º.

Phoenicians are friendly, something we had to get used to coming from California. I don't care for some of the communities around Phoenix though. Glendale in particular is a backwards town. It used to be a small community that grew large but still operates with a small town mentality.

Banning, Beaumont and Cherry Valley, California: The area I grew up in. I hated it then, I hate it now. Lived there for 18 years and growing up the nearest store or mall was 30-45 minutes away by car down the freeway. Small town, rural ******** politics. Sidewalks rolled up at 5pm (where there were sidewalks). If you wanted something at 2am you had to drive 30-45 minutes away and hope the damn place was open.

Nothing to do, nowhere to go. But hey, old people apparently liked it. I'm not that way though. I don't need 40 acres between me and my neighbor. I don't need to drive dirt roads and commune with the cows in the fields over barbed-wire fences. I absolutely hate and detest rural living.

The kick in the head was when we left that place for Phoenix. All of a sudden people from Orange County moved in, development began and business showed up. I hated the fact that Starbucks, Walmart and Home Depot were a drive when I lived there. But up and leave and all of a sudden those places choose to open there. So, it's changed, but I still hate the place.

The ONLY thing I lament about Cherry Valley is that as a kid I lived across the street from a cherry orchard. We knew the owner so we were able to pick at reduced prices. During the summer I'd come home with a 5 gallon bucket of cherries, my favorite fruit.

All of that ended in the early 90s though when it got too expensive for the orchards to carry insurance. Lots and lots of idiots wrecked trees and fell off ladders. So, except for the annual cherry parade, there are no more cherries in Cherry Valley.

 

[Clix Pix]

Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC...... Yes, indeed, "Paradise Lost" in so many respects. The once-beautiful Virginia countryside is being taken over by subdivisions of houses that all look alike, silly "McMansions" and such, or by "Office Parks" and "Business Campuses." Where horses once grazed peacefully and grapes grew in vineyards for making Virginia wines, now unfortunately shopping centers, more and more houses, etc., etc. have taken over.

That said, having grown up first in a small town in Ohio, then a suburb of Chicago, while I think the countryside and rural areas are pretty, I wouldn't want to live there! I definitely appreciate the convenience of having stores, restaurants, gas stations, various essential services close by and within an easy drive. I love being able to jump into the car and drive over to the Apple store when the urge strikes me, or to quickly dash to the nearby grocery store when I realize I'm out of some key ingredient for a meal. However...... this brings into play the one thing I really dislike about this area, and that is the ever-increasing traffic congestion, which makes even a journey of a few miles take much longer than one would expect or like. Weather here is variable, but mostly hot and humid in the summers and cold in the winters, with some years bringing more snow than at other times.

 

[Huntn]

I’m of the opinion the metropolitan area of the Twin Cities is best large-ish city to live in the Midwest (Kansas City, St Louis, Chicago).

However, the winters are too long but the summers are spectacular!

Agreed!

 

[LizKat]

In the western Catskills I dislike the mud season most years. This year with all these Arctic vortex wanderings of extraordinarily colder air, I'm looking forward to seeing some actual mud. I just hope the crocuses will have been sturdy enough to pop up through it and through whatever freezer-burnt grasses may still be out there in the lawn by time Spring finally shows up.

Other than in mud season, the Catskills are great for scenic wonders, fresh air and water, snow for those who ski, and even the occasional half-hearted heat wave ( the mean temperature at night in summer is only 55ºF). Bring your own coats and we supply the A/C by leaving windows open at night...

 

[ducknalddon]

We live in a large village in rural Oxfordshire. If I'm honest it's a bit boring, most of the population is either nearly dead or commuting and working themselves to death. It was a great place to bring up our kids, good schools, safe and healthy environment etc. But now they are grown up I'm itching to leave. It's quite close to London which has an impact on house prices, we could find a much nicer place a bit further out but are tied at the moment because my mother in law lives nearby.

 

[Healer Flame]

We live in a large village in rural Oxfordshire. If I'm honest it's a bit boring, most of the population is either nearly dead or commuting and working themselves to death. It was a great place to bring up our kids, good schools, safe and healthy environment etc. But now they are grown up I'm itching to leave. It's quite close to London which has an impact on house prices, we could find a much nicer place a bit further out but are tied at the moment because my mother in law lives nearby.

Melbourne can be very very boring. 10 years ago it used to be a ghost town after 6 PM in the outer suburbs. Even now days not much action Monday-Wednesday.

 

[Dingster101]

Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC...... Yes, indeed, "Paradise Lost" in so many respects. The once-beautiful Virginia countryside is being taken over by subdivisions of houses that all look alike, silly "McMansions" and such, or by "Office Parks" and "Business Campuses." Where horses once grazed peacefully and grapes grew in vineyards for making Virginia wines, now unfortunately shopping centers, more and more houses, etc., etc. have taken over.

That said, having grown up first in a small town in Ohio, then a suburb of Chicago, while I think the countryside and rural areas are pretty, I wouldn't want to live there! I definitely appreciate the convenience of having stores, restaurants, gas stations, various essential services close by and within an easy drive. I love being able to jump into the car and drive over to the Apple store when the urge strikes me, or to quickly dash to the nearby grocery store when I realize I'm out of some key ingredient for a meal. However...... this brings into play the one thing I really dislike about this area, and that is the ever-increasing traffic congestion, which makes even a journey of a few miles take much longer than one would expect or like. Weather here is variable, but mostly hot and humid in the summers and cold in the winters, with some years bringing more snow than at other times.

You’re in NOVA. I’m in Southside Va (Mecklenburg County). Rural living. Left Rockville in Nov. Miss the Metro and I actually miss out on Xfinity by virtue of the town line. Suffering with satellite internet and nowhere to go. Nearest mall is an hour away. But no mortgage

 

[samiwas]

Atlanta, Georgia. I live just a couple of miles outside of Midtown. I love that I can get generally anything within 20 minutes, particularly stuff for the kid. I love that Atlanta has a great mix of urban city and rural country feelings right inside town. One minute, you can be on a multi-lane arterial road driving through office buildings; and a few minutes later, be on a small, winding, tree-lined road with beautiful houses. It's like that all over town. Love that I can get to whitewater rafting or kayaking in just over an hour, a cabin in the mountains in about two hours, up in the NC mountains in about three hours, and two either the Gulf coast or the Atlantic coast in about five hours. I love that the film industry has exploded here and provided me with a very nice paycheck. And I love that it almost never snows.
I do not like the terrible highway and road network. It has hardly been upgraded at all in the last 30 years as the population has tripled. Hate that the public transit has barely been touched in 30 years. Luckily, I can avoid most of the traffic. Really...it's hard to get anything done here due to the multiple counties all covering a small area.

 

[Clix Pix]

You’re in NOVA. I’m in Southside Va (Mecklenburg County). Rural living. Left Rockville in Nov. Miss the Metro and I actually miss out on Xfinity by virtue of the town line. Suffering with satellite internet and nowhere to go. Nearest mall is an hour away. But no mortgage

I didn't realize there is a Mecklenburg County in Virginia! I always associate that with North Carolina (the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area). Yes, the southern part of Virginia is vastly different than Northern VA (NOVA) -- almost like two different states altogether! In NOVA we are more closely associated with everything urban, suburban, etc. and of course anything going on in Our Nation's Capitol (Washington, DC) just down the road a piece and across the river..... Of course this affects the state's political preferences distribution, too. Not to mention that we have more in common with our suburban neighbors across the river as well, in Maryland, than we do with people living in the southern, more rural parts of our own state. From time to time I've thought about moving from NOVA and the overall DC/VA/MD area altogether, but I know that I would not be happy in a more rural environment, even though the cost of living may be less in so many ways and traffic congestion a mere memory, the pace of living much more relaxed....... Even though I do a lot of shopping via Amazon nowadays and can order things from other online vendors as well, there is still something about being able to get in the car and drive a few miles to a local mall (even in heavy traffic) and actually see and touch the merchandise, ask questions, etc., etc......

I also greatly appreciate my excellent cable internet and TV service available here, and that's something I would definitely find hard to give up and swap for satellite services instead. Truth is, over the years I have been spoiled by urban/suburban living; I have to be able to easily access the grocery store, the gas station, the library, a couple of bookstores, the Apple store, MicroCenter and a few good local restaurants..... (Wow, can you tell where my priorities are?!) Even if I don't leave my house for several days I know that all of those are still out there within easy reach when I want and need them...... Oh, and yes, there is a pharmacy quite close by but more importantly, the region's very good healthcare system with one of its major tertiary-care hospitals is very convenient to me as well. When thinking of all these benefits to living here it is hard at times to remember the not-so-great aspects of being in the very busy suburbs with the high cost of living, the traffic, etc., etc.

 

[AngerDanger]

Don’t actually know where exactly I am, but I’ve been here all my life. It’s very rocky and musty, leading me to think it’s a cave of some sort.

The internet is really good for a cave, and there’s always a warm fire crackling behind me. Sometimes the others and I like to make shadow puppets.

What I dislike about the cave is that they won’t let me leave. Seriously, it’s like I’m a prisoner. But to be honest, I don’t know if I’d want to leave even if I could; in a way, this is all I know. It’s my reality.

 

[Healer Flame]

Wow with almost 300 000 000 population the USA must've thousands small and bigger villages and towns. A must visit for any tourist.

 

[ZStech]

Ok lets hear real reviews/opinions from real people/locals what they like/dislike the most about their city/town from USA and all around the world.

I am from Melbourne Australia, the most liveable city in the world for many years until recently when it lost its title to Vienna.

Melbourne has many hidden gems, beautiful world class parks, cafe's, restaurant's and people are generally nice.

What i dislike about Melbourne is its geographic location, weather, shops operating times and toooooooo many traffic lights. Its also very expensive, one of the most expensive cities in the world.
I will post more throughout the thread.

So what do you like/dislike about your city/town, please share.
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Hey, guys. I'm from Ukraine and I live in Vinnytsia. Honestly I don't like to be stay here for a long time and I'm glad to sit here and read sother's opinions. Thanks.

 

[decafjava]

Don’t actually know where exactly I am, but I’ve been here all my life. It’s very rocky and musty, leading me to think it’s a cave of some sort.

The internet is really good for a cave, and there’s always a warm fire crackling behind me. Sometimes the others and I like to make shadow puppets.

What I dislike about the cave is that they won’t let me leave. Seriously, it’s like I’m a prisoner. But to be honest, I don’t know if I’d want to leave even if I could; in a way, this is all I know. It’s my reality.

I know someone who'd like to interview you about your uhhh cave "home", strange guy talking about philosopher kings and always goes around in a toga.

Anyhow, the two places I know best are Vancouver and Geneva. I lived 19 years in Vancouver and now 23 (!) years in Geneva.

I can say both have spectacular scenery - both have mountains while Vancouver has the Pacific and Geneva the Geneva Lake (properly called Leman as in French lac Leman). Vancouver has the edge in nightlife and a variety of restaurants especially in price range, on the other hand Geneva is smaller and is much more livable in avoiding big city ills.

Both are pricey or have become so. Geneva is one of the most expensive cities in the world, only partially offset by the higher wages here (especially over the past ten years) and Switzerland unlike most of its neighbours has a private medical insurance system similar to the US. Vancouver has aslo become expensive, particularly in regards to housing which has seen many people move out into the Lower Mainland suburbs and towns of Abbotsford, Mission and Chilliwack and such.

 

[Healer Flame]

I know someone who'd like to interview you about your uhhh cave "home", strange guy talking about philosopher kings and always goes around in a toga.

Anyhow, the two places I know best are Vancouver and Geneva. I lived 19 years in Vancouver and now 23 (!) years in Geneva.

I can say both have spectacular scenery - both have mountains while Vancouver has the Pacific and Geneva the Geneva Lake (properly called Leman as in French lac Leman). Vancouver has the edge in nightlife and a variety of restaurants especially in price range, on the other hand Geneva is smaller and is much more livable in avoiding big city ills.

Both are pricey or have become so. Geneva is one of the most expensive cities in the world, only partially offset by the higher wages here ...

Same reason why Australia is expensive too. Minimum wages here are around $18/hour

[doublepost=1551705410][/doublepost]Same reason why Australia is expensive too. Minimum wages here are around $18/hour

 

[Ujaraq]

I live in a very small village in Denmark. We don't have any stores, but I love that here is peace and quiet. I have lived there since 2001 and this is the place I have lived the longest in my life.
I work as a Db2 DBA, which can be stressful, so I appreciate that it's quiet where I live when I am free from work.
Denmark is a small country with approx. 5.8 million inhabitants. I guess it's the same size as a small state in the US.

 

[Huntn]

[doublepost=1551705410][/doublepost]Same reason why Australia is expensive too. Minimum wages here are around $18/hour

It looks like you may be too new to get into PRSI, but this would be an excellent society based discussion in itself. As we are in the Community forum, I won’t pursue it.
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I know someone who'd like to interview you about your uhhh cave "home", strange guy talking about philosopher kings and always goes around in a toga.

Anyhow, the two places I know best are Vancouver and Geneva. I lived 19 years in Vancouver and now 23 (!) years in Geneva.

I can say both have spectacular scenery - both have mountains while Vancouver has the Pacific and Geneva the Geneva Lake (properly called Leman as in French lac Leman). Vancouver has the edge in nightlife and a variety of restaurants especially in price range, on the other hand Geneva is smaller and is much more livable in avoiding big city ills.

Both are pricey or have become so. Geneva is one of the most expensive cities in the world, only partially offset by the higher wages here (especially over the past ten years) and Switzerland unlike most of its neighbours has a private medical insurance system similar to the US. Vancouver has aslo become expensive, particularly in regards to housing which has seen many people move out into the Lower Mainland suburbs and towns of Abbotsford, Mission and Chilliwack and such.

I loved visiting Vancouver. My impression it’s the most valuable real estate in Canada due to a combination of scenery and climate.
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I live in a very small village in Denmark. We don't have any stores, but I love that here is peace and quiet. I have lived there since 2001 and this is the place I have lived the longest in my life.
I work as a Db2 DBA, which can be stressful, so I appreciate that it's quiet where I live when I am free from work.
Denmark is a small country with approx. 5.8 million inhabitants. I guess it's the same size as a small state in the US.

That is about the size of Houston, Texas, where I live.

I’ve always wanted to live out in the sticks (a praise for living out in the country) to enjoy the pastoral environment. The most spiritual I have ever felt has been in the natural environment, where I look upon my surroundings in wonder. Unfortunately I don't think that is in my future, to live there, not just visit, at least in this life.