Suburbia Is Nice, But I Prefer The City

One of the little known facts about me may be that I didn’t actually grow up in a certain city in Missouri, strictly speaking. I actually grew up in a suburb. In fact, I can’t actually remember if I ever did get to see downtown. My family moved to New Jersey in 1998 anyway, so I only spent six years of my life in Missouri and have now forgotten most of it. One thing I’ve always frequently done while home in New Jersey is to take a day trip up to New York. Short of the shore, which I don’t see the big hype about anyway, there really isn’t anything to do where I live in New Jersey. The mall works for killing a few hours, but it’s hardly an exciting “trip”.

Philly, on the other hand, even with all of its problems is my kind of city. It’s the right size, Drexel’s location is one of the major transit hubs, making it stupidly easy to get around, and there’s always something to do. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve visited the Art Museum and seen the same art, but my membership is still one of my favorite yearly investments. New York has some great museums too (I’m a member at MoMA), but it’s too large of a city for me. One I like to visit, yes, but I wouldn’t want to live in it. Philly I would consider… in a cheap, close enough for SEPTA coverage area. If I had an unlimited budget, I’d take a house in Society Hill or Filter Square. Maybe Rittenhouse, but I do like a little quiet on occasion.

Melbourne is another city I’d consider living in too, even if it is much more expensive that Philly. Sydney was too much like New York. If I were to move to Melbourne, I’d definitely love to be in the St. Kilda area again. Yes, it was more-or-less a party town by night, and that’s not exactly my thing, but it was nice having plenty of transit options, an excellent beach, and a shopping district (granted it was mainly bars) just all right there.

Would I consider Tokyo? I don’t know. I’ve never physically visited Japan. But I’ve liked what I’ve seen in photos and videos. It’s certainly a country I’d like to visit before making any kind of moving decision. Back here in the US, the San Francisco Bay area is another area I’d consider. Half Moon Bay is a beautiful town where I have family already, but it is again an expensive area. I’ve been hearing good things about Portland from some mates I have over there, so I’d like to take a trip over there some day and see what it really is like.

In short, I haven’t found my “perfect” city yet, but I do know which I like and what I’d want out of a city if I were to live there. This is my last term at Drexel before becoming a Senior, so it is a decision I’m going to have to make within a year. Am I ready to make that decision? I don’t know. I know the biggest factor in what ever decision I make is definitely going to be cost.