COL here is expensive, yes, but salaries are exceptionally high here as well. Maryland (1), Virginia (8) and DC (9) have some of the highest average household incomes in the country, with a combined average just under $60,000, with Maryland topping the list at ≈$70,000.
Yes. The vast majority of crime across the DC metropolitan area is concentrated in small pockets, the lion’s share of which are on the eastern side of the Anacostia River. The remaining 80-85% of the city is virtually crime free.
Fun question. Before I give my opinion I’m reminded of a comment of a school chum in Dublin “it’s not where you live it’s how you live”.
With that in mind, i was born and raised in Dublin. I’ve lived in NY and still have the place on the Upper West Side. I know Dublin, London and NY very well. There is nothing like NY. Tokyo is the closest I’ve seen to it (though I have never been to some of the large Chinese cities or Hong Kong). It’s a vibrant, lively non-stop city. I love it. Except I chose to live in Chicago.
Chicago is a big city with every amenity you could want. From world class restaurants (seriously if you don’t like the food in Chicago then you have made no effort at all. We are a board that fights ignorance after all) to serious theatre. The architecture is breath taking and I still take the boat tour every summer. Great transport and an airport that can take you anywhere. Mostly, however, it’s just the ease of living, we’re in Lincoln Park just north of the city centre. We are .5 miles from the beach. Not a car drive, not the Hamptons but a brief walk to a beach and a harbour. I drive to work every day and it takes me 11 minutes. The city is clean and very safe (I feel safer in Chicago then I do in Dublin or London) and has a great nightlife as well as some of the longest beach front in the US.
I don’t think you can really appreciate how much cleaner it is then NY until you live in both cities. Also, I got sick of all the tourists on NY. It got a little much.
The winter’s suck but they are shite in NY as well. The summer and autumn is just so perfect that I can’t see living anywhere else. Also, it is so very easy to get laid in this city…now that we are having a kid that is no longer an issue for me but it is worth mentioning!
After all the cities I’ve lived in, or visited many times over, I always like San Diego above most of the others. Although I’m told that it’s really changed from what I remember of it. But since my first time in Dallas, that’s been my favorite. On the other hand, the ONLY way I’ll ever be dragged to Austin is if I happen to win the Lottery and have to pick up my winnings in person. It’s the San Francisco of Texas. Detroit, I actually like Detroit, although I couldn’t live there. Even the people who still have jobs can’t live there.
Apart from Disneyland, my main memory of Anaheim is stopping for a cup of coffee at a 7-Eleven one morning and seeing a bunch of shady characters lounging around the side of the building, one of whom – a double for Fat Freddy of the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers – tried unsuccessfully to bum a ride from me.
