Appreciating the City

Before moving to New York City, I had never lived in a city before. I grew up in a suburban area outside San Francisco, surrounded by rolling hills of undeveloped land. My college years were spent in Ithaca, New York, another non-city environment. It wasn’t until eight years ago that I experienced city life for the first time.

I currently live in Brooklyn, which really does feel like home after all these years.  My work is here, I met my husband here, my 20’s happened here. I don’t discount that could feel such pride and comfort in any other city, but NYC has become a benchmark against which I compare all others that I visit. No matter what part of the world a city is in, or what cultures permeates its streets, or what issues plague its people, every city has features that make it unique. Every city has something that makes it stand out. Both good and bad.

Although there are so many more we both want to experience, out of the places we have been, the below international cities are memorable for various reasons.

City with the best viewpoint: Athens, Greece.
(view from the Acropolis)

Most polluted city: Santiago, Chile
(those are supposed to be the Andes in the distance. gross)

Annie’s Most Overwhelming City: Kathmandu, Nepal
(its too bad this photo doesnt have any cows in it, but they are out there. everywhere)

Matt’s Most Overwhelming City: Jakarta, Indonesia
(24 hours was enough to stress him out)

City we most wished we saw more of: Bangkok, Thailand
City that surprised us the most: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
(We expected it to be stark, but the culture of Dubai runs deeper than the foundations of the skyscrapers)

Matt’s Most Foreign Feeling City: Chengdu, China
(We were quite a spectacle, especially since Matt is so tall)

Annie’s Most Foreign Feeling City: Zhuhai, China
(no English speakers, and no English signs = confusing)

City with most beautiful surrounds: Queenstown, New Zealand
(The Remarkables, Skippers Canyon, Lake Wakitipu – one would have been enough but it has all three)

Most Beautiful City: Wellington, New Zealand
(photo taken from the park on the hill, looking down at the city, hills, beaches, and lake)

Both Annie and Matt’s most enjoyed city: Buenos Aires, Argentina
(We lived here for a month and loved every second)

The city where Annie and Matt would move if we live outside the US: Hong Kong
(we could work, Matt could eat, we could travel, people would visit)