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-   -   Rate the north american cities you have been to (http://www.sonicyouth.com/gossip/showthread.php?t=10690)

Tokolosh 02.21.2007 03:44 AM

I've visited Toronto, Montreal and everything in between. Lived in Windsor for 2 years (1977/1979). Never been to the US. New York next.

noumenal 02.21.2007 03:52 AM

I'm probably moving to Madison WI in August. It's supposed to be a really awesome city.

Georgia, my home state (which has a larger land mass than England):

I'm from Atlanta. I love it and hate it.

My family lives in Savannah now. It's great for visiting.

Athens is a cool college town.

Toccoa, GA is a nice rural small town. One of my best friends is from there.

Valdosta is too hot and boring. I spent a summer there.

Macon is OK.

Gainesville, GA = shithole.

Rome and NW GA is full of racists...lol

Clayton is a lovely little mountain town in NE GA where I spent many summers growing up.

Columbus, GA = shithole.

St. Marys is by the FL line on the coast and is beautiful.

sonicl 02.21.2007 05:15 AM

Best North American city I've ever been to: New York

Actually, that's the only North American city I've ever been to.

_slavo_ 02.21.2007 05:55 AM

A good thread for me, a non-American fella who has no bias and can judge by immediate experience.

1. Denver - a clean city with nice people and peaceful suburbs
2. Chicago - great atmosphere
3. Cleveland - quite nice.
4. Washington DC - scary scary. The neigborhood around 9:30 club is terrible. Didn't feel safe walking there at 1pm.
5. Baltimore - oh, what a shithole. I worked in a ghetto. There's this infamous "Inner City" neigborhood that I heard stories of people being shot and raped for their shoes or T-Shirt.

Georgekrz 02.21.2007 10:19 AM

New York City- I live here so might be biased but I love it.

Chicago- if I couldnt live in NYC, this would be my 2nd choice. thought the homeless hassling you for money gets really annoying. actually they are not the shifty tired bums like you see in NYC, these people who follow you down the street asking for money, they want to tell you a story... actually they dont even look homeless, just dudes on way to shoot up some H. seriously.

Philadelphia- ok city I guess, a lot of homeless people but they just lounge, not aggressive for the most part. Has some really cool tourist stuff as far as museums and concerts.

Washington DC- the parts I was at, center of town where the mall is, and that area north by George Washington Univ, it felt safe to walk around in, plus it has all that culture.

havent been to Boston yet, but planning on it.

not in USA, but I would say outside of NYC by far my favorite is London, England, a great place to visit, I love it.

oh btw- Baltimore- I went to the Virgin Festival last year, it was at Pimlico Racetrack(north Baltimore I guess) and that area around it was scary as hell.

demonrail666 02.21.2007 11:15 AM

As a visitor from London:

NYC: Superb. Parts of it are very European but don't be deceived, this city is still VERY American. Friendly (at least to British people, get a feeling they have issues with people from certain other parts of the US.) Great shopping, incredible food and extremely lively social scene.

Columbus Ohio: A mixture of shopping malls and Blair Witch style foresty areas. Seems to have a good social scene owing to the Enormous college campus. Not that great for shopping or eating. The place has a sort of generic feel about it. Not exactly overloaded with character.

Miami: A good city but FAR too hot in the summer to be comfortable. Surprisingly easy to get around and more interesting once you get away from the beach - although there are some seriously shady districts that need avoiding. Has a sort of LA-lite feel to it. Good food in areas like Little Havana. Not so good when it comes to shopping.

Orlando: Obviously dominated by Disney World. The place lacks a real soul and seems to be a network of interconnected malls, hotels and chain diners. Seems to have a bit of a crime problem too.

Ft Lauderdale: It doesn't seem to excell in any area but it's OK. Unlike Miami, this really is a place dominated by the beach. I spent a couple of days there and whilst I'm sure it had more to offer than I saw, I didn't feel any great urge to come back and find out.

SpectralJulianIsNotDead 02.21.2007 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by demonrail666
As a visitor from London:
Columbus Ohio: A mixture of shopping malls and Blair Witch style foresty areas. Seems to have a good social scene owing to the Enormous college campus. Not that great for shopping or eating. The place has a sort of generic feel about it. Not exactly overloaded with character.


Nice to see you had a better experience. A crackhead robbed me and 2 friends at gunpoint in our own hotel room in Columbus. For that reason I am never going back.

Danny Himself 02.21.2007 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpectralJulianIsNotDead
Nice to see you had a better experience. A crackhead robbed me and 2 friends at gunpoint in our own hotel room in Columbus. For that reason I am never going back.


Whoa.

I also forgot this one:

Vancouver, BC: **
My hotel was in east vancouver and i was harrassed daily by homeless guys and prostitutes.

jon boy 02.21.2007 01:10 PM

new york
LA
las vegas
san francisco
denver
buffalo
salt lake city
chicago

been to lots of small towns but am not going to list them all here.

hat and beard 02.21.2007 02:12 PM

San Francisco - Oooh, what a beautiful city. I love everything about it. Perfect weather, unique local culture, great music. I plan on living there someday.
Chicago - Lived there for five years of my childhood. Never a dull moment in Chicago.
Seattle - Would be perfect if it would ever stop raining.
Vancouver - Ugly city, good location.
Denver - ditto
Austin - My home for the last 2 years. I love it and I hate, but mostly I hate it.
Phoenix - Born there. Way too fucking hot. Nevertheless I enjoy the desert.
Houston - Lived there 10 years. There is absolutely no reason for anybody ever to visit Houston.
Dallas - Lived there 3 years. Hated every second of it.
Orlando - No thanks.
Jacksonville - Worst city in the US of A hands down. I think we should just give Florida back to the Spanish.

fishmonkey 02.21.2007 02:38 PM

not very northern or anything but ..
i have been in NYC and i fuckin loved it
and i've been in Atlantic City and i fuckin hated it with a passion.

jennthebenn 02.21.2007 03:06 PM

hagerstown--my home base. racist and backwards and redeemable only via
the mexican restaurant, the used book store, and the fact my mom lives here.

washington dc--the areas that are nice feature the distasteful elements
of the 21st century "yuppie" (i know there has to be a newer handle to
describe these well-paid, well-fed, up-to-date cubicles with legs, i just
can't think of it at the moment), the areas that are shit feature the
distasteful elements of man since time immemorial. has a place called
wonder chicken, and yet another establishment named senor chicken.

baltimore--the inner harbor is very nice, fells point quite a sight, but
venture beyond at your own risk. once received a subpoena based on
being a passenger in a cab. home to rats the size of sub rolls.

philadelphia--fuck you. fuckin' overrated cheesesteaks, your fuckin'
scummy streets and scummier people. my stomach churns rancid poisons
every time i think of you, worst city in america.

pittsburgh--love the topography.

montreal--the layout of the area i visited reminded me of--horrors!--
philagoddamndelphia, but the people were nicer. and instead of
cheesesteaks, it is the hockey team that's overrated. SNAP.

chicago--so working class i wanted to go around smacking people on the
back and bellowing, "how 'bout them cubs? have you put on a little
weight? you haven't? well what the fuck's wrong with you, then? c'mon,
let's have a hot dog that outweighs our own heads!"

milwaukee--i don't care where you go, it will be gray. alternately
impassive and imposing...the city that's never sober.

boston--i stayed most of the time indoors. i felt a serious inferiority
complex going on with that city.

nyc--first, fuck queens. seriously. get drunk before you try and navigate
it, because it'll just make you feel that way regardless. manhattan is more
my style. great stuff on the lower east side, just lots happening at all
ends of the cultural spectrum.

los angeles--i once spent midnight to 3 am lost on the streets my first time
there. while i admire the city's dedication to kinko's and subway, i must
wonder at the snobby attitude that exists towards public transport, i really
must.

seattle--my favorite city. i wanted naomi to adopt us and train us as her
unholy ninjas of the night. great bus system, COFFEE EVERYWHERE,
impeccable culinary options...ah, seattle! we were no doubt spoiled by the
fact it didn't rain a single drop while we were there. beautiful weather the
entire time.

portland--nice city; props to any place that has a mexican restuarant
attached to a strip club. seemed smaller than i anticipated.

hodgenville--the hometown of my parents, located in kentucky. quiet,
neat, but limited in consumption opportunities.

ocean city/fenwick island/rehobeth beach--i tend to lump these all
together because my summer weekends are frequently orgies involving all
3. putt putt and jerk chicken, baby. the area where patrick's parents
maintain a beach house is calm and gorgeous, and a hop skip and a jump
from a discount liquor store. that equals out to quality times.

raleigh--like so many shitty areas in pennsylvania, except it's in north carolina-who cares?

atlanta--coke world! aquarium! impressive architecture!

hoboken--if you walk down the street alongside famed club maxwells, you will
not notice much of anything at first. about halfway down the sidewalk,
you will get hit with an inexplicable (OR IS IT?) stink. it lasts the rest of
your walk to the end of the block, odor subsiding with every few steps. if
you were to, once you first get hit with this smell, take a step back to
where you were before, you would no longer get a whiff of it. step
forward--stink. step back--no stink. that's right--you have just stepped
into a world-famous new jersey malodorous portal!

SpectralJulianIsNotDead 02.21.2007 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davenotdead
New Orleans is horse shit...thats what it smells like...and the food is over-rated...and so many hobos and scary-looking people, I think my little brothers and I almost got jumped...still not sure what scared the guys off, as it looked like they were going to cut us off around this corner or something...


Sure there are hobos everywhere, (one almost pissed on me), but they aren't scary hobos. Not like hobos in really super destitute areas. And they don't bother you much.

Not all of the restaurants were really good- but I later went to a cajun restaurant in buffalo for my sister's college graduation dinner and I had the worst fucking jambalaya ever. Was crap compared to the real thing.

And plus I hate some Alligator Sausage. Damn that was good.

SynthethicalY 02.21.2007 04:26 PM

Las Vegas-Such a bore, it really is.
Arizona- Nothing Special but a vas desert.
L.A.-My hometown, nothing really. Yes We don't care about transportation. But that is changing gradually.

hat and beard 02.21.2007 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jennthebenn

chicago--so working class i wanted to go around smacking people on the
back and bellowing, "how 'bout them cubs? have you put on a little
weight? you haven't? well what the fuck's wrong with you, then? c'mon,
let's have a hot dog that outweighs our own heads!"


That's the best description of Chicago I have ever read. Well done.

Danny Himself 02.21.2007 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jennthebenn
philadelphia--fuck you. fuckin' overrated cheesesteaks, your fuckin'
scummy streets and scummier people. my stomach churns rancid poisons
every time i think of you, worst city in america.

seattle--my favorite city. i wanted naomi to adopt us and train us as her
unholy ninjas of the night. great bus system, COFFEE EVERYWHERE,
impeccable culinary options...ah, seattle! we were no doubt spoiled by the
fact it didn't rain a single drop while we were there. beautiful weather the
entire time.



I second both of these. I didn't experience any rain in Seattle either. I only went to Philly to see Independence Hall and its not really that impressive.

Pax Americana 02.21.2007 06:38 PM

Portland - Awesome, In fact, I'd totally move to Portland.

NYC - How could you not love NYC?

Toronto - Clean, nice people, pretty much anywhere I've been in Canada is great.

Tampa - Meh...

Orlando - Meh...

Chicago - Didn't spend much time there, so I can't really judge

Buffalo - I'm from Buffalo... it sucks.

Rochester - Basically Buffalo.

Las Vegas - Had a good time, wouldn't want to live there.

Pittsburgh - Kinda dirty, where I was at least. I wasn't there long though.

Philadelphia - Cool buildings, south street was fun. Some parts of the city are pretty run down and shitty though.

EyeballGrowth 02.21.2007 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by youthoftomorrow
i'm gonna see Lightning Bolt with some friends down there in April.

i'd like to hear any interesting stories/tips you may have.


Boise is the strangest city I have ever been too. It's populated but doesn't seem to be. Lots of the old sears stores and stuff still haven't been changed and still have the original logos, it also has the only football stadium in the US with blue astroturf, and the whole city is flat but surrounded by mountains. And all the roads seem like they lead you away from the city. Definately not a bad place, just very odd. That place just screams weird

ahhavalon 02.21.2007 10:13 PM

I still stick with where I live now, Seattle. I always find something to do here, and it's pretty cool, because it's a big city without being too "big city-like". The summers here are really nice, we've got bumbershoot, and for the most part, people are really friendly. I've been to a lot of other places, and I can't see myself living anywhere else at the moment.

davenotdead 02.21.2007 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpectralJulianIsNotDead
Sure there are hobos everywhere, (one almost pissed on me), but they aren't scary hobos. Not like hobos in really super destitute areas. And they don't bother you much.

Not all of the restaurants were really good- but I later went to a cajun restaurant in buffalo for my sister's college graduation dinner and I had the worst fucking jambalaya ever. Was crap compared to the real thing.

And plus I hate some Alligator Sausage. Damn that was good.


yeah, on second thought, i kinda liked some of the hobos...there was one guy who would just say "Im Superman" when you walked by...and if you looked, he'd strike a pose...he was cool...and this restaurant called "Mother's" was actually pretty good....still don't like the city though...


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