# Big cities and the 'nightlife' **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 19, 2011, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-cities-and-the-nightlife/582487 "2011-05-19T19:16:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-cities-and-the-nightlife/582487/21 "2011-05-20T15:01:42Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > In large cities it’s also generally easier to get home from these nights out without having to drive. Ironically, it’s also easier to find yourself out until 5am. ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-cities-and-the-nightlife/582487/22 "2011-05-20T16:05:43Z")
> [@kushiel](#): > > Not that it matters, but in the OP I’m the geek, my brother just asked what there was to do when he came to visit. Two different things going on there. Ah. My response was based on “my brother, the geek”. Looks like I wasn’t the only one… > [@cjepson](#): > > " > By the way, the OP is a bit confusing. Are you living in a big city and your brother is wondering what people who live in big cities do, or does your brother live in a big city and is wondering what there is to do when he visits you? ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2011, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-cities-and-the-nightlife/582487/23 "2011-05-20T16:52:23Z")
> [@kushiel](#): > > I just brought the topic up now because my brother (from a very small city) is coming to visit me and I realized that we do the same things they do in the small city - you just have more bars and movie theatres to choose from. Not quite. If theater, opera, music, etc. aren’t your thing you might not get why some people flock to huge cities, but even for those people who aren’t into that there is a ton to do here, not all of it the same generic movie/dinner/bar kind of scene. Yeah, there are more movie theaters in NYC than in Smalltown, USA. That isn’t the awesome part though. The awesome part is that in NYC not only do you have regular theaters but you also have theaters that show nothing but [independent films](http://www.ifccenter.com/), nothing but [foreign films](http://www.theparistheatre.com/), theaters that are [home to huge film festivals](http://www.tribecacinemas.com/) known across the globe, etc. Yeah, there are more restaurants in NYC than in Smalltown, USA. That isn’t the awesome part though. Food is food pretty much everywhere, but if you want a transcendent dining experience we have [those](http://www.thecentralparkboathouse.com/) [in](http://www.21club.com/web/onyc/21_club.jsp) [spades](http://www.le-bernardin.com/). If you want something a little different you can have [Tibetan](http://www.menupages.com/restaurants/cafe-tibet/menu) food, [Ethiopian](http://www.menupages.com/restaurants/awash/menu) food, [raw vegan](http://supervegan.com/r.php?id=419), or [Scandinavian](http://www.aquavit.org/restaurant/newyork/index.asp) food as fast as the train can take you there. Want something delicious with a lot of atmosphere? Try Max Brenner’s or perhaps grab a bite at [Vynl](http://www.vynl-nyc.com/). For those of us who are geeks the museums, libraries, and other organizations give lectures on all sorts of stuff. There is even a thing called [nerd nite](http://nyc.nerdnite.com/) where they have trivia, lectures, and games for the intellectually inclined. Last time I was there I heard about nuclear fusion and (separately, of course) advancement in sexual robotics and participated in a trivia contest against 150 other people. We have [Intelligence Squared](http://www.intelligencesquared.com/) debates regularly available to those people who are interested. There are nature tours through Central Park and historical walking tours through the city so you can see where Alexander Hamilton is buried or where Arthur Miller lived when he wrote some of his best work. If you are in a city of any size you probably have access to lots of similar things. I suggest getting on the internet and searching around for stuff to do in your area. ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2011, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-cities-and-the-nightlife/582487/24 "2011-05-21T09:37:02Z")
Where else can you get a tattoo at 3 am? Before the stupor of the booze wears off? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-cities-and-the-nightlife/582487.md?page=1)