Favorite Major City and why

[KHCast]

So as the name of the topic explains this topic is going to be about your favorite major city in the world. This DOES NOT include video game or fake cities.(so no dimsdale or vice city) Real life cities. I'll start off. So my favorite City I'd say is probably Portland. Which is located in Oregon.

 

It's a very culturally diverse city with something new to do. You never get bored. Aside from the "interesting"(or as us Oregonians say 'weird') people, there are lots of awesome landmarks here. Adidas is a pretty obvious one, and while not exactly in Portland,to a extent, Nike(located in Beaverton), and the Rose garden,home of the Portland Trail Blazers.(there's also a garden called 'the Rose Garden.lol) The community is really active always creating events that end up being pretty fun. And, of course, we have this place:

 

This place has becoming a well known Portland Landmark. Everyone who visits Oregon ends up coming here atleast once.(normally for the box).

 

So that's my favorite city. What's yours?

[JonoD]

Plymouth: United Kingdom.

 

 

A great example of the classic, British maritime town. The leaving spot for the Mayflower on its voyage to America, and home to one of Isambard Kingdom Brunel's great engineering triumphs: The Royal Albert Bridge.

 

 

It's not uncommon to see warships coming and going from Plymouth Docks, and is a regular calling stop for such boats to get maintenance. Excellent for ship spotters.

 

A brilliant firework event happens every year as well, the international firework championships. Basically an event in August where 6 teams of professional pyrotechnic companies go head to head to outdo each other and put on the best display. Records are often broken at this event, including this moment here when they launched (at the time) the most firework rockets in a single go:

 

 

The reason this is my all time best city though is the National Marine Aquarium found on the Plymouth Sound. I'm a scuba diver, and any way to get closer to the fish (even if it's not swimming with them) is great by me, and the aquarium does a great job of it. It's the largest in the country and some of its exhibits are a great sight.

 

I was last in Plymouth nearly 7 years ago, but I still have great memories of it, and long to go back.

[MamboCat]

Prague. Because I live there!

 

Also, this:

 

 

Prague Castle

 

and this:

 

 

Vltava river.

 

Nice historical buildings aside, Prague also has a great beer garden scene:

 

 

Prague in summer is the best, and I would highly recommend it!

 

I also kinda like Birmingham, spent a lot of time there.... but it is kind of ruined by this:

 

 

Which just so happens to have been designed by a Czech architect. Way to ruin the best British city (IMO!), guys... so I guess I moved to yours!

[Vertekins]

It'd have to be Birmingham of course Followed closely by my birthplace, Solihull. Solihull is more 'refined' and it's nature as a very prosperous and rich city is well epitomized in it's appearance and houses and it has the pure awesomeness that is Touchwood shopping center but I'll focus on B'ham.

 

 

^ Birmingham city center at dusk.

 

^ Solihull. The place I was born.

 

Birmingham has a reputation for it's city center being an ugly concrete urban nightmare which I think is now largely undeserved considering we got shot of the old Bullring and built a much nicer one in it's place and we're revamping New Street Station as well as getting a new Library in Centenary Square. Birmingham was pretty much the center of the industrial revolution for cryin' out loud! It was the very heart and soul of the industrial revolution.

 

 

^ Oh sweet wonderful Bullring shopping center. How very awesome you are with your Bull statue outside, your 4-floored Selfridges and Debenhams and your GAME, Disney Store, Swarovski and The Entertainer. When it first opened in 2003, I loved how 'fresh' and 'open' it felt with it's glass roof and colourful glass orbs in it's fencing.

 

I love the city's moderness nowadays. It has a very interesting Chinese Quarter, it's Own Cyber Candy shop which I always buy from (Mtn Dew varieties, Peppermint Crisps, York Peppermint Patties and Japanese sweets FTW!), It's own Forbidden Planet store as well as Nostalgia & Comics and then there's the Flea, Rag and Meat markets   And then there's the wonderful museum and art gallery, Millennium Point, Symphony Hall...

 

 

^ The Museum and Art Gallery. Been visiting this place fairly often since I was a young child. The second floor which was closed for a few years and fairly recently reopened is amazing, showcases various eras of Birmingham's history.

 

Can't forget the cool canals and the boats that travel up and down them When I go abroad for a length of time, I always get homesick for B'ham. Heck, when I travel to other cities in England they just can't compare to the Moderness and feel of B'ham. Harrogate surprised me with it's expanses of greenery and how old-fashioned many of it's shops are compared to B'ham's. I don't like Manchester at all and London's far too busy, crowded and crime-ridden and the Underground scares me

 

The NEC just caps the awesomeness of this place. It's nice living so close to it because it's so easy to get to the shows that are hosted there by train such as Crufts and the Supreme Cat Show. I know that ginormous place very well because my father builds stands there for big events and I often get the chance to look around it and the adjoining Airport.

 

Birmingham isn't really that crowded and I can say that I feel pretty safe when walking around the city center. People are commonly pleasant and there's so much to see here. I don't think I could live anywhere else to be quite honest and I'd be very unwilling to move far away from this city.

[MamboCat]

Ahh, someone who likes the Bullring?!

 

Personally I felt it kind of sucked the life out of the city centre. When I arrived in 2002 there were lots of shops and things going on towards the further end of town, near where the Academy is. At the time they were just building the Bullring. I remember the original one from the 80s, and yes it was kinda blargh, but I think what they built just attracted all the business towards it and the other end of town closed down little by little. I'm not sure what it looks like now but in 2008/early 2009 it was kind of depressing compared to what it used to be like.

 

I suppose a shopping mall is kinda cool, but for a city centre I feel it's overdoing it.

 

Then again, a lot of my favourite places either closed or burned down so that could be part of it...

 

RIP Eddie's Number Eight.

 

Totally agree with feeling safe there, though. Never felt like I had to cling to my bag walking around town.

Edited April 23, 2013 by MamboCat

[Vertekins]

Ahh, someone who likes the Bullring?!

 

Personally I felt it kind of sucked the life out of the city centre. When I arrived in 2002 there were lots of shops and things going on towards the further end of town, near where the Academy is. At the time they were just building the Bullring. I remember the original one from the 80s, and yes it was kinda blargh, but I think what they built just attracted all the business towards it and the other end of town closed down little by little. I'm not sure what it looks like now but in 2008/early 2009 it was kind of depressing compared to what it used to be like.

 

I suppose a shopping mall is kinda cool, but for a city centre I feel it's overdoing it.

 

Then again, a lot of my favourite places either closed or burned down so that could be part of it...

 

RIP Eddie's Number Eight.

 

Totally agree with feeling safe there, though. Never felt like I had to cling to my bag walking around town.

 

The old Bullring was incredibly ugly but I have a lot of fond memories of it when I was a kid and it was still standing. I agree that the new Bullring leeched a lot of attention away from the Pallisades which really does look dated and is in obvious disrepair but I don't think it leeched much attention from the other areas too much. Paradise Forum by the Central Library is cool and is becoming more modern. The outward design of the new Bullring still hasn't grown on me but the inside has with it's moderness and fresh feeling. The purple bridge that leads from it's carpark into Selfridges always creeps me out when I'm walking across it because of the height.

 

Star City is really cool too. It's arcade is so good.

[JezMM]

Gotta go with the city I went to Uni at, the city of Bath in the county of Bath & North-East Somerset, UK.

 

 

 

Even on the greyest days, the city is bright and vibrant thanks to almost every building being made using the signature "Bath Stone", a kind of limestone.  It also has a gorgeous park in the city called Victoria Park, and another large, open hilly one on the outskirts called Prior Park.  I have a rather sentimental attachment to the place as it was one of the first places Mollfie and I visited as a couple, and where I eventually proposed to her.  'u'

 

Since this city is where I started my life as an adult, I remain very fond of it to this day, and love visiting it, even though I now live in my beloved hometown.

 

Which... isn't a city but hell I'll mention it anyway.  Broadstairs in Kent: My favourite place in the whole world.

 

 

I adore living here.  I am a regular customer at the awesome gelato parlour on the seafront, and I get to see these sorta views almost every day.  Q_Q <3

Edited April 24, 2013 by JezMM

[MamboCat]

Ack. Sorry I didn't mean to sound so negative. I actually really like Birmingham, don't get me wrong! I love the University of Birmingham campus, I studied twice there and had a great time.

 

When I was in Birmingham, Paradise Forum was a really dire place! I hear now it's being rebuilt, with the new library and what not so I hope it gives the other end of town a good face lift.

 

The Bullring's bridge makes me laugh, at least from the outside. Kinda looks like a face with an Ice King-esque nose!

[SkyLlama]

It doesn't count as a major city to anyone outside of this part of the world, but it's the only city I know, Halifax.

 

 

 

Halifax is the capital city of NS and to my knowledge the biggest city in Atlantic Canada with a population of about 350,000. When I was a kid we used to make a yearly trip to the city to shop and do other things.

 

Halifax is quite and old city and has a lot of great history and architecture. The city has a lot of things to do and a lot of different cultures mixed together which is great.

 

Halifax is nice because it's quite green for a city (park wise), easy to drive in and quite compact so getting places takes no time. There are a lot of different things in the city I like and at some point I'd consider moving there if everything worked out that way.

 

The biggest downside is the public transportation is bad and because of the cities small size you'll almost for sure have to leave it meaning owning a car can be a big bonus.

 

I like going to the city and spending time there, but at 300KM away I don't get there more then a few times a year.

 

I'm used to a town of ~3000 so Halifax is gigantic to me.

 

Fun Fact: Halifax suffered one of the largest non-nuclear man made explosions at 2.9 kilotons.

Edited April 24, 2013 by SkyLlama

[Gabz Girl]

I <3 Bath! A beautiful city with an interesting and vast history. Just a shame I live so very far away from it--

 

 I have a rather sentimental attachment to the place as it was one of the first places Mollfie and I visited as a couple, and where I eventually proposed to her.  'u'

 

...Me and Alex went to Victoria Park on our first date. Coincidence~? >w>

 

Ahem, anyway I really like my city of Plymouth too. Sure its city centre is a mixture of ugly, 1950's buildings and modern 21st century ones but go to Barbican and it's beautiful! Lots of nice shops, cafes and restaurants down there. And the best place to get a cheap yet delicious burger...Cap'n Jaspers!

 

 

But honestly, if I had to pick the best city in the whole world...it would be Barcelona.

 

 

 

I've been to Barcelona a couple of times now (most recently last July with my boyfriend) and I have to say, it's one of the most beautiful cities I have visited in a long time. There's the Sagrada Familia, the awesome yet unfinished cathedral by Antoni Gaudi and other Gaudi buildings like La Pedrera and the houses seen here in Parc Guell, all scattered around the city. It gives the city a unique character! There's also the incredible Las Arenas! Originally a bullring, now a huge shopping mall with an amazing viewing platform at the very top with restaurants and even The Rock Museum (as in, rock music XP).

 

 

There are of course other great places to go shopping or eating out like Las Ramblas and Paseig de Gracia. The art scene, especially for illustrators, is great there too! What else can I say? Really, Barcelona is fantastic and I can't wait to go there again someday. ^^

[Kevin]

Gotta go with the city I went to Uni at, the city of Bath in the county of Bath & North-East Somerset, UK.

I love Bath as well and it's probably my favorite city in the UK! I just love its history and architecture!

Anyway, it's hard for me to choose between Vancouver, Amsterdam, and Tokyo (despite never having been to Tokyo before) as my most favorite because they rank highly up there. Since I have visited both Vancouver and Amsterdam, I'll comment on both of them.

Vancouver

 

 

I. Love. Vancouver. When I first went there in 2006, something about it caught my attention and when I got to visit again back in November, I loved it even more! The people are very laid back, Stanley Park is just gorgeous, and the city itself is really nice. I really wish I had the opportunity to stay longer and see more of it.

Amsterdam

 

 

I've only been there once back in 2002, but I really want to go back and visit it again. I loved the architecture and the canals and the people were very nice as well.

[TCB]

New York City. Why? It's my hometown, no other city can contain the memories I had there (both good and bad). Lots of sightseeing areas, Times Square...the cultural diversity of that city is (personally) second to none in the U.S.

 

The food, the skyline, the yearly events....yeah.

 

Spoiler tag'd for large imagery.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 24, 2013 by TheChaosBlue

[-Mark-]

I'm gonna go with the obvious/ boring route and say London.

 

Mostly because I happen to live here and thus all my stuff is here. Also, it's bloody convenient; almost everything I could ever need is within a 20-minute walk. It's one of the few places where you can live practically without driving. 

[Bisylizzie]

I have relatively fond memories of Bath and Bristol, too... Been a while since I've last been to either, though.

 

But, trying to give a different answer than some other people, a not quite so impressive city compared, but one I still quite like...

 

Also, contains lots of waffley-waffle. xD Just random things I thought might be interesting to add. ^^

 

Lincoln. Not, not THAT Lincoln.

 

THIS Lincoln.

 

 

You've got the pretty iconic (and big!) Lincoln Cathedral. You can see it from a fair ways off (went to Tattershall Castle, and from the top, I could see the Cathedral off in the distance. As well as some of the taller buildings in Boston, but Lincoln is further away and stuff... Also, bigger. xD)

 

Some of it feels like a mish-mash between different styles.

 

And who can forget, Steep Hill? (Yes, this is the actual name of the street. It's a popular tourist street, and is, as the name implies, steep. At least, as you go nearer the "top" of it.)

 

This river(The Witham, for those who are interested. Begins near Grantham, goes through Lincolnshire and "ends" at the Grand Sluice in Boston(That's the point it joins the Haven.) That sculpture is called Empowerment(largest sculpture in Lincolnshire) even "splits" Lincoln into two parts, uphill and downhill. Uphill is the more historic area, that's where the cathedral and the castle(Yup, there's a castle too!) are, amongst other buildings. Downhill is the primarily shopping area. This divide, is apparently, pretty unique and helps set Lincoln apart from other cities.

 

I mean, I can't fully explain it, but... I like taking a trip to Lincoln every once in a while. There's some fairly nice historical bits, as I mentioned before, it's a fairly big "touristy" place. Some of the history and stuff behind it is quite interesting (like I mentioned the uphill/downhill divide above).

[Spazdaxx]

Sunny, seaside San Francisco!

EveryCityEscapeScreenshotEver.jpg

Not because SEGA of America is stationed there or that City Escape/Mission Street, and the SA2 level map, are based on the area. But because of the culturally rich atmosphere and the wonky city design! Every time I am there, I discover something fresh and new I would have never have imagined before.

 

The city is home to the Boudin Sourdough Factory and the Ghirardelli Cholcolate Factory (which makes my favorite chocolate bar in the world, sea-salt chocolate!)

[Kiah]

I've been to quite a few major cities, but when it comes to my favorite, I have to go with the major city that is close to home for me: Washington, D.C.

 

 

Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. This city is full of life, as well as full of history. Tourists can have a field day visiting/site-seeing some of the many attractions that D.C offers including:

 

The White House 

  

The Lincoln Memorial 

 

The Washington Monument 

 

The United States Capitol

 

The Smithsonian Insititution 

 

Chinatown is stunning, especially at night

 

There is so much to do in D.C. at anytime of the day. Aside from site-seeing, shopping, eating out you can visit one of many museums that D.C. has. You you can watch a Washington Nationals' baseball game at Nationals Park: 

 

 

One of the biggest draws that Washington, D.C brings is the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Hundreds of thousands of people from around the world come here to admire the beauty of these trees. I've been a couple of times and here are some photos that I've taken: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cherry Blossom Festival provides some breathtaking views of Washington, D.C. This area of the city provides some balance as it isn't all buildings, streets, and massive crowds of people, but full of nature and absolute beauty.  This specific area is the main reason why Washington, D.C is my favorite city, although having a ton of things to do around here along with its rich history helps its cause as well.

[MamboCat]

So yeah, an explosion happened in Prague today.

 

No-one was killed but 40 or so were injured, but everyone just seems to be getting on with stuff. I seem to remember a refinery fire in Britain taking up most of the day's news! Apparently it was a gas leak, nothing like a bomb!

 

Prague is totally safe, honest! There's just a lot of old buildings!