# World capital city (mostly visual) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 10, 2012, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586 "2012-12-10T11:14:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/41 "2012-12-11T11:57:42Z")
**Hong Kong** I thought about adding HK to the list but first of all I wasn’t quite sure about whether it’s technically a city or a region or what. But also, more importantly, it does have significant slum areas. Even in the centre you have buildings like Chungking mansions which…look kinda cool to my eyes, but do detract from its world capitalness. **London** Little surprised by the high standing for London here. Sure, they did a great job on the olympics but I lived there for 4 years and it just felt like a sprawling _village_ to me. I loved it, but it just didn’t have the big city feel. In the OP I did try to steer away from concerns like uncontroversial, English-speaking, good existing ties etc because those will inevitably lead you to London or New York, no matter how impressive and uber some cities in the far east become. ---
**Author:** ![Virgil\_Tibbs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/c4cdca/32.png) [@Virgil\_Tibbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Virgil_Tibbs)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/42 "2012-12-11T12:06:23Z")
Somewhere boring in Switzerland, probably. Anywhere except New York. ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/43 "2012-12-11T12:12:21Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > **Hong Kong** > I thought about adding HK to the list but first of all I wasn’t quite sure about whether it’s technically a city or a region or what. But also, more importantly, it does have significant slum areas. > Even in the centre you have buildings like Chungking mansions which…look kinda cool to my eyes, but do detract from its world capitalness. Yes, there are poorer parts of Hong Kong, but when you include three cities in genuinely impoverished nations it definately deserves to be on the list > [@](#): > > **London** > Little surprised by the high standing for London here. Sure, they did a great job on the olympics but I lived there for 4 years and it just felt like a sprawling _village_ to me. I loved it, but it just didn’t have the big city feel. It’s not really that surprising… This board is mostly yanks and limeys, who both like rooting for their ‘team’. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/44 "2012-12-11T12:33:03Z")
I’m not sure why we’re going with a sleek “modern” look with skyscrapers. Has anyone watched any sci-fi? Star Trek and Star Wars examples: [Vulcan](http://cache.io9.com/assets/images/8/2009/04/city_01.jpg) [Bajor](http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20061219205533/memoryalpha/en/images/a/a9/Dahkur-Bajor2375.jpg) [Cardassia](http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mab2nhqOyT1r16a9r.jpg) [Kashyyyk](http://www.wildwookieeworld.com/kash2.jpg) [Naboo](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Naboo.jpg) If the aliens come from a world like [Coruscant](http://collider.com/wp-content/uploads/coruscant-image-01.jpg), maybe they’d be much more impressed at the green-and-blueness of our planet and enjoy a stay in Costa Rica. Either way, it’s pretty likely that the aliens are going to be pissed with us at some point and blow that capital city clean off the planet, so we should probably pick one that’s easy to evacuate. Or one we don’t care much about. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/45 "2012-12-11T12:38:29Z")
> [@Namkcalb](#): > > Yes, there are poorer parts of Hong Kong, but when you include three cities in genuinely impoverished nations it definately deserves to be on the list In the OP, I said it’s OK for the city to be in a poor country as long as there is not significant slums within the city itself. But I’m curious…which three countries are you considering genuinely impoverished? > [@Antigen](#): > > If the aliens come from a world like Coruscant, maybe they’d be much more impressed at the green-and-blueness of our planet and enjoy a stay in Costa Rica. Maybe, but who knows what they’d like? All I know is: my OP 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/46 "2012-12-11T13:51:06Z")
I like the idea of Dubai. Not because I want it to be there, but because if you want something like Dubai, you might as well build a modern city from scratch just like they did.The only question is, where? ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/47 "2012-12-11T13:58:28Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > **Hong Kong** > I thought about adding HK to the list but first of all I wasn’t quite sure about whether it’s technically a city or a region or what. But also, more importantly, it does have significant slum areas. > Even in the centre you have buildings like Chungking mansions which…look kinda cool to my eyes, but do detract from its world capitalness. Chungking mansions?! They just look a little run down. Seriously, there are waaaaaaay worse places - and many more of them - in New York, Chicago, DC, Paris… > [@](#): > > **London** > Little surprised by the high standing for London here. Sure, they did a great job on the olympics but I lived there for 4 years and it just felt like a sprawling _village_ to me. I loved it, but it just didn’t have the big city feel. That’s because people are ignoring your OP and voting on the overall merits of the city rather than strictly on its hyper-modern visual impressiveness. Plus, as others have said, it’s a hugely American - and then to a lesser extent British - board. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/48 "2012-12-11T14:04:38Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > I voted for Singapore, but really, any of the Asian cities on the list would do. Seriously, capital of The World and NY and London are leading by a large margin? I think people are really unaware where most of The World really is. > > In fact, I’d love to find a map of the “centre of gravity” for world population. Whichever city is closest to that, that’s the one we should go with. > > ETA: In fact, it turns out [there is such a thing](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Center_of_population) - so, what big city is nearest to Kashmir? New Delhi? > > ETA2: It looks like you can do the [same thing for economics](http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2011/04/07/worlds-center-of-economic-gravity-shifts-east/), and that’ll end up even further East soon - I stand by Singapore 1. Er Re The World, have you been on this board long? It’s miracle London is on the list. Provincialism thrives here. 2. That would be Islamabad. And as a proud Islooite I say, no fucking way. 3. Meh, Singapore is run by by humorless bureaucrats. As it is if a world capital is ever selected it will probably have to be far away from major centers of power, otherwise you will piss of most people. Somewhere in the C Asian steppes. I mean you will probably piss off the US still. But, hey even money they will not join anyway. ---
**Author:** ![orcenio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orcenio/32/1036_2.png) [@orcenio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orcenio)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/49 "2012-12-11T14:14:04Z")
Hong Kong ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/50 "2012-12-11T14:20:56Z")
I think we should build a whole new city entirely for this purpose. Where to put it, I’m not sure, but it should be somewhere in the complete middle of useless-wasteland nowhere, just to prove that we can. Antarctica, maybe? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/51 "2012-12-11T14:24:54Z")
I’d go for an island. Malta, maybe. Or Tahiti. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/52 "2012-12-11T14:39:39Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > Chungking mansions?! They just look a little run down. Seriously, there are waaaaaaay worse places - and many more of them - in New York, Chicago, DC, Paris… OK, forget Chungking, the main issue is the actual slums. Although, as I alluded I’m still not quite sure about the whole thing of HK being a city and a region. For all I know, the slums are a 20 mile drive out of the city. > [@](#): > > That’s because people are ignoring your OP and voting on the overall merits of the city rather than strictly on its hyper-modern visual impressiveness. Yeah, it’s gone a bit wrong. I think talking about world capital suggests to people questions like “where should the leadership, administrative, etc centre be”? Or “what’s the world’s most _important_ city”? And so on. I should have just asked something like “What’s the world’s #1 super-city?” where people will still disagree on what “super-ness” is, but they will be less likely to be thinking of rich history or whatever. So yeah, my bad, I was unclear. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/53 "2012-12-11T15:40:07Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > OK, forget Chungking, the main issue is the actual slums. > Although, as I alluded I’m still not quite sure about the whole thing of HK being a city and a region. For all I know, the slums are a 20 mile drive out of the city. > > Yeah, it’s gone a bit wrong. I think talking about world capital suggests to people questions like “where should the leadership, administrative, etc centre be”? Or “what’s the world’s most _important_ city”? And so on. > > I should have just asked something like “What’s the world’s #1 super-city?” where people will still disagree on what “super-ness” is, but they will be less likely to be thinking of rich history or whatever. > > So yeah, my bad, I was unclear. Nah, you were clear; people just don’t read. If you’d asked what the “#1 super-city” was I almost guarantee you get the same results. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/54 "2012-12-11T16:28:10Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > So we need to pick a city to be the world’s capital. Our main requirement is that it looks the part; it needs to be spectacularly grand and modern. > And it mustn’t have a shanty town within a stone’s throw of the skyscrapers (perhaps some of the poll options aren’t applicable for this reason…educate me). > > You know, we have some out-of-planeters visiting soon; it’s the first place they’re going to go and we want to impress them. I’m not sure that modernism is the way to go, here. My first thought was for Vienna. I was there once and it struck me as a sort of Disneyfied ideal of a European city; churches and palaces, a few opera houses, the perfectly manicured lawns in the parks, etc. But that was playing into a stereotype I had which the aliens wouldn’t. But those sorts of places are still impressive in a way that skyscrapers aren’t. A steel-and-glass skyscraper goes up in months, with the help of modern machines and techniques. Compare that the Cologne Cathedral, which was started in 1248 and finished in 1880; all carved and fitted into place by hand. The aliens take one look at that and say to themselves “persistent little buggers, ain’t they?” ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/55 "2012-12-11T16:28:29Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I’m going with Miami. [Adequate skyline](http://aerostylaz.deviantart.com/art/Miami-Skyline-I-129781555), but I hear the hookers and blow are out of this world, Well, if we’re going by that criterion, I might just have my own suggestion, heh. As for Hong Kong, they’re having a problem with [hotels tripling their rates when big events are in town](http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1102828/high-hotel-rates-dim-hong-kongs-convention-appeal). NYC is expensive enough. Don’t need that. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/56 "2012-12-11T16:35:33Z")
If you require the world agree on one, then Toronto would be the only contender. American enough to suit them, multicultural enough to please most everyone else, no serious PR issues on the world stage, Canada is widely respected and we’re polite, how can that not be a plus? I don’t think you could single out one Asian city without a shit fight breaking out, ditto Europe, America is never going into buy something ‘foreign’, and the entire rest of the world would refuse to go with any place American, I suspect. Seriously, I didn’t vote because how can Toronto not make the list? ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/57 "2012-12-11T16:50:42Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > If you require the world agree on one, then Toronto would be the only contender. American enough to suit them, multicultural enough to please most everyone else, no serious PR issues on the world stage, Canada is widely respected and we’re polite, how can that not be a plus? > > I don’t think you could single out one Asian city without a shit fight breaking out, ditto Europe, America is never going into buy something ‘foreign’, and the entire rest of the world would refuse to go with any place American, I suspect. > > Seriously, I didn’t vote because how can Toronto not make the list? Speak for yourself. It’s going to be very hard selling a N American location. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/58 "2012-12-11T17:21:23Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Compare that the Cologne Cathedral, which was started in 1248 and finished in 1880; all carved and fitted into place by hand. The aliens take one look at that and say to themselves “persistent little buggers, ain’t they?” That’s what you get what you hire unlicensed contractors ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/59 "2012-12-11T17:23:15Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I think we should build a whole new city entirely for this purpose. Where to put it, I’m not sure, but it should be somewhere in the complete middle of useless-wasteland nowhere, just to prove that we can. Antarctica, maybe? Lebanon, Kansas. It’s the geographic center of the US and there’s plenty of room for expansion. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586/60 "2012-12-11T17:29:56Z")
Seeing as [London has already been capital of a huge chunk of the world already](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/The_British_Empire.png), I think we should choose the most experienced city for the job. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-capital-city-mostly-visual/643586.md?page=4)