@faddat original post:
https://steemit.com/travel/@faddat/lived-in-buffalo-chicago-rome-accra-seoul-shanghai-help-me-choose-my-next-city

Where I've Lived

1. Raleigh NC/Durham NC/ Chapel Hill NC (AKA the Triangle)

I lived a long, long time in Raleigh and the Triangle in general due to undergrad and Grad school.
It was mostly a chill place and there a good number of things to do given the size of the area. Like everywhere else reasonable in the USA, you can get anything you want thanks to the magic of Amazon.

Stuff that's good

• low cost of living
• decent internet access
• lots of jobs if you want one in tech
• Nature is nice, good for motorcycling.

Stuff that sucks

• They obsess about which gender uses which bathroom
• Seriously the government is insane, on crack, and on acid at the same time. Full-tilt nutso
• It's either really conservative or kooky-liberal (not libertarian) pretty much all the time. Good luck having a discussion that doesn't involve someone freaking out politically.

Personally, I'd burn the whole area to the ground because I hate the southern American mentality and culture. But that's me, just being upfront. The friends I did manage to find there were awesome though. But many are moving due to the right wing psychotic government. None were native NC people, all were transplants

2. Washington DC

I have friends here and visited a lot, then I moved for 6 months. TLDR: It's way more fun to visit than to live.

Stuff that's good

• There is good food, lots of foodies
• There are lots of museums and parks and such
• You can have sane discussions with people who are very smart and really really care.

Stuff that sucks

• It's expensive
• The museums are telling: culture is a thing you put behind glass and make remarks about to try and look smart.
• A lot of people have their head up their ass.
• If you don't work for the goverment, people have no idea what to do with you because people = their job more often than not. Granted, I had massive gauges and a mohawk when I moved here. Not really this town's target demographic.
• There is a huge kink scene if you are into that.

3. Philadelphia

I Lived in center city for about a year and a half. Made great friends, went to great shows. This is the most underrated city in America.

Stuff that's good

• it's shockingly cheap for a massive city
• The food is amazing
• The people can be dicks but you know where you stand. Your friends and enemies will both be fierce about it. Make sure to just hang out with your friends, and you'll be good.
• Every ethnicity has its own "town" and you can actually get authentic food and culture there and practice languages with native speakers.
• Lots of cool shows, raves, and events.
• The area outside of Philadelphia is gorgeous, I prefer it to NC for motorcycling.

What sucks

• Go into the wrong area at night and you'll get stabbed.
• No seriously bitch, YOU HEAR WHAT I SAID? GIMME YOUR FUCKING WALLET
• Ok, in fairness you're less likely to be robbed than in Saigon ;)
• Public transport is meh compared to the other big cities I've been in/visited worldwide.

On a personal note, I'm not one to get attached to places and the only city I've truly missed is Philly. It really grows on you.

4. Kyiv, Ukraine

Kyiv is a gorgeous city (at least in the center) filled with old architecture, lovely statues and orthodox churches, and gorgeous people. Seriously there is something in the water cause half the population looks like they walked out of a GQ catalog or something.

Stuff that's great

• Seriously, everyone is gorgeous
• So is the architecture downtown, and the statues, and the nature around it.
• Nude beaches
• Cheap. REALLY cheap. Vietnam level cheap.
• Super pleasant in the summer and autumn.
• Solid internet, better than USA usually has.
• I liked the food, which I did not expect.

Stuff that's not great

• At war with Russia. Not so big a deal day to day at this point.
• English speaking is not SUPER common but not terrible either. Still, it can be a struggle.
• Murderously cold in the winter.
• Lots of red tape with government
• Annoying visa rules like the rest of Europe.

On the whole, I really liked Kyiv for the short times I've been there. I'll know more after I spend a few months.

5. Hanoi, Vietnam

I like Vietnam. It's chill and getting a visa forever is trivial. It has a laid back vibe while being completely insane, which is a rare combo. A constant fusion of old and new. Cheap personal fiber optic internet is available. Too bad the speed and quality plummets internationally. At least in Hanoi, I found the people pretty chill though. There is a cultural shift: stuff that's rude at home is not here and vice versa.

Stuff that's good

• Cheap living!
• Cheap eating!
• Cheap transport!
• Gorgeous scenery if you get to the coast.
• If you are foreign dating here is amazing.

Stuff that sucks

• The cops shut most stuff down around 11pm
• Internet dies a lot because of undersea cable damage.
• You are severely restricted in what you can buy here reasonably. You often need to import stuff or fly to bangkok.
• Sex toys are banned.
• If you are dating someone even semi-seriously you will constantly asked when you are getting married. The answer they want is "soon".
• WHEN ARE YOU GETTING MARRIED?
• It's really polluted.
• The coffee is amazing when it's real, it's often fake and just chemicals.

Really, Hanoi is two cultures: the huge expat scene and the locals. They kinda cross, but they really are distinct.

6. Guadelajara, Mexico

I loved Guadelajara. There I said it.

Stuff that's good

• The food!!!!
• The dancing, every night the town square is filled with people doing salsa and bachatta
• Mexican wrestling is something that must be experienced in person. Bonus points if you are drunk.
• It's also cheap
• It's CHILL. Nowhere I've lived has felt so relaxed.

Stuff that sucks

• The food will sometimes make you sick. Learn your street stalls well! Some are traps!
• Flakiness is a cultural norm. Since everyone knows everyone else is flakey, they make lots of extra plans. Which means they have to bail on some of them, and the cycle continues.
• Seriously, if your power/internet goes out, it could be a while till they finally come fix it.
• Drug dealers. "Medicina?"

Where to live?

From my travels and conversations, I have a pretty strong vote for 3 places:

1. Thailand. I've just visited here but I loved it
2. Latin America if you like to dance. Also, spanish is easier to learn
3. Eastern Europe. If you aren't into latin america, this is just as cheap but totally different culturally. It might be a great fit.

Where NOT to live?

The USA. The only advantage is you might get paid well. But, you'll be too busy working all the time to enjoy it.
Ok, I kinda kid. Denver is pretty good, Vegas if you are into that lifestyle, Philadelphia is fun.

Where would YOU live, and why?

I'm planning to move to Kyiv for at least a few months, but I'm open to things after that. I'm really interested in tales of different cities around the world.

What do I like in a city?

• Good internet
• cheap housing
• easy transport
• fun people
• music and art scene
• underground/alt scene