The “Water Cooler” is a feature on Claycord.com where we ask you a question or provide a topic, and you talk about it.
The “Water Cooler” will be up Monday-Friday at noon.
Today’s question:
QUESTION: What’s your favorite “big city” in the United States, and why?
Talk about it….
22 comments
Twenty years ago I could have answered that question. Now, not so much. They are all bad. I like the San Diego zoo though.
It has be New York City. I moved there in January of 1969. I had lived in Westport Ct for almost 2 years as an au pair. I had gone back to Denmark for 3 month, and when I returned I moved to NYC. A few of my girl friends that I had met in Westport had already moved there. At first I didn’t like it, I missed Westport, NY was crowded, noisy and very hot in the summer. I often wen to Westport on the weekends. However, after about 6 months or so I got used to it, and started to enjoy it. The night life, the musuems, and making new friends in addition to those I knew from Westport, a couple of guys I had dated in Westport were also in New York, and we had remained friends. In 1970 I met my ex husband, some months later he got transferred to New Orleans, and I moved there with him. I never grew to like New Orleans the food was great, but the weather hot and humid almost year round, when after one and a half years my ex were transferred back to NYC. I couldn’t wait to stay back. We lived there until August of 1974, when he was transferred to Milwaukee, (by then we were married) after a few months there he was San Francisco, which I was happy about. I love San Francisco, although I don’t go into the City as much as I use to, but New York has a special place in my heart. I was young and single, it was the late sixties I had the time of my life. Other San Francisco and NYC Boston is a very nice city as well, although too cold in the winter.
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NYC is a $4ithole.
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Well it wasn’t when I lived there in the late sixties and early seventies. Especially the 2 years after I moved from Westport. It was jumping, lots of place to go out at night, wonderful museums. Central Park both the 5th Dimension and the cast from Hair gave free concerts there on a Sunday. When the 5th Dimension played the air was so thick with marijuana who could just inhale and get high. There were crimes of course and you had to be careful. However, there were always people out late at night. I would take the bus from 78 street and 2nd Avenue late at night and the bus were full of people. I lived on 3rd Avenue and 36th street.
San Francisco will always be my favorite because I grew up there. I certainly do not like the politics, but that doesn’t mean I will lose my love for the city that I will always call home. It still has a lot of nice neighborhoods, and I have fond memories of roaming all over the city as a kid, and discovering unusual places that are unique only to San Francisco. I was fortunate to have lived there at a time when there was so much to do for free. There was never a charge to visit the zoo, and most museums were free. I could ride all over the city by bus for 15 cents, and never had to wait much more than 10 minutes for the next bus.
I also like San Diego, Reno, and Portland. San Louis Obispo, and Monterey, are nice, but they aren’t big cities.
Dawg, I too love San Francisco I use to go in there almost every Friday night (lived in Foster City) and meet friends at the Royal Exchange and other places. I especially like the places that were a little different, North Beach had some nice cafe’s and spots, such as Mario Bohemian Cigar Store, (it is not a cigar store) The Tivoli Savoy, some of the place the beatniks use to hang around in, in the fifties. Talking about Beatniks City Light Bookstore, it was open very late. When my friends were visiting from Denmark, after we had dinner at an itatlian restaurant in North Beach I took them to City Lights, they were surprised to fine such and intellectual store in the City open at night. I wanted to show them that their sterotype of Americans, as being light weigth and not very intellectual was just that. They were very impressed. Besides that Perry’s on Union Street was/is a favorite. Also places south of Market, Hamburger Mary’s and some I forgot the name of. San Francisco had a lot to offer in the eighties and nineties. Also nice museums, DeYoung, Museum of Modern Are the one in the Presidio.
never a fan of “BIG CITY”. Have spent time in many and is my personal observation that most have become armpits: San Francisco, New York City, Portland (OR), Los Angeles: to name a few. But….. If I had to “Pick One” (get it?) , I would say San Diego….
Weather, things that are interesting to me, and not as much of an armpit is why…..
Seattle. Sister lived near Volunteer Park. Every morning I’d set out for a couple of hours. Bumped into Jimmy Hendricks, the statue of course. The gardens in the area were so beautiful. Cute little bohemian down town to the district.
Not any more.
@DOREMI….Who the hell is Jimmy Hendricks?
Good call NYTEMUVR. I thought something was wrong. Jimi Hendrix. Haha.
I would answer Seattle too but in the 1970s. Then I could drive to downtown and park a block or two on the street to go to a store on the weekend. I briefly did some temporary office jobs downtown too but took the express bus from the University District to there. I last visited Seattle in 2007 and downtown reminded me of Blade Runner. Crowded, many more tall buildings and lots of traffic. I lived in Seattle pretty much of the time from 1965 through 1982.
Well Folks and other Claycord readers.
I successfully avoided the bad areas of Seattle in the 90’s. Mansions, rhododendrons, azaleas, greenery, pocket community gardens. Hills, perfect weather for walking. I found the light rain easy to tolerate. Plus, it wasn’t cold.
Recently the city had trouble with the Chaz Chop crap. A year later the homeless replicated San Francisco.
I tromped San Francisco in the 70-80’s. Also a fabulous city. Museums, high fashion, hills, views. Turn a corner and experience a different neighborhood. The entrance to China Town let you know a foreign country lay beyond. Secret gardens were a fun discovery.
Adventurous sight seeing can be found. Seward, Alaska was fun too. A very small and remote fishing town. A downtown complete with tiny library. 13 bars and 13 churches. Haha. Also a hike from sea level to above the tree line can be had start to finish in a few hours. Don’t be fooled, that last 100 yards will have you crawling.
I found the coolest village of colorfully painted adobe huts at the north end of Stinson Beach. It was surreal. I tried to find it again, no go. Like I said, trippy. Don’t forget to body surf in the chilly shark infested waters. Whoohoo!
DOREMI
Honestly every big American city has bad spots and honestly they are pretty easy to spot and avoid.
You mention Seward which is fun but I really liked exploring and watching the seaplanes come and go in Ketchikan. My dad had a co-worker at Boeing that was an Alaskan native that had a seaplane to so he could go back to Alaska a few times a year. I was alway fun to go with “Uncle Tuti” on touch and goes on Lake Washington.
I think one thing I found amazing was how in Rome, Florence, Venice and Athens a person can wander around late at night and not be bothered. Personal crime is almost non-existant in those cities. My firend and I were righting postcards from a taverna in the Plaka in Athens at 2:30am and it was quiet except for other in tavernas. Now that is the life, to be safe any hour of the day
Doremi
Seatte will always be my favorite. I’m a native of the Emerald City. People from Seattle have a lot of pride to this day telling others they are from Seattle. Always has been a bit gritty and far more rebellious than San Francisco, Seattle natives don’t care what others think and we don’t take crap from anyone.
I lived in Seattle for two years in the sixties. There were no pro ball teams then so everything was University of Washington Huskies. Most of the people seemed like they came there from Minnesota. It smelled and drizzled all of the time. Horrible place.
None of them these days.
We are not usually fans of big cities, however, our favorite and one we really enjoy is Charleston SC. It’s a beautiful city, especially in spring when everything is in bloom (there are flowers everywhere). It’s also a great “foodie town.” We enjoyed visiting NYC a couple of times about 5 years ago, but it has gone downhill since and we won’t go back until it turns around. I always enjoy Washington DC and have been there dozens of times. Boston and Seattle are also great cities. If the horizon is spread beyond our shores, other favorites are Florence, Rome, Venice, Cambridge, Como and Amsterdam. We’re really looking forward to exploring Milan and Bologna in the near future.
San Diego. I’m not fond of big cities, but if I were going to choose 1 I liked, it would be San Diego. The weather is pretty much perfect. The harbor is pretty. It’s not overly crowded and noisy and dirty. One can find peaceful and quiet and natural places in the city. Balboa Park is beautiful. The zoo is nice. The museums are nice. It’s scenic. It has interesting history.
… used to be SF … now I won’t even go there
@Domo
+1
San Diego. It’s my hometown, and I’ve lived there as a kid and an adult. Our kids were born there too.
A piece of me will always love San Francisco (Chinatown in particular), my favorite city will always be the Emerald City, Seattle. I’m a Seattle native and the lakes, birdges, views of Mt Rainier, well nothing beats it. People from the east and midwest always think San Francisco is so “Liberal, free thinking, hippie, Bohenian” but in reality Seatlle is more of those things than San Fransco. It’s the gateway for Pacific rim business, home off Gypsy Rose Lee, Frances Farmer and the great Jimi Hendrix. And what other city takes and old natural gas processing plant that was closed for almost 30 years and makes it a park and uses some of old pipe for play structures. Glass Works Park in Wallingford is really cool. I might be a bit biased as I live in Wallingford.
A peice of me will always love San Fransisco (I love Chinatown and have family history there), there is a school in SF named after my great great aunt, but my real love will always be Seattle