What Cities Have You Been To That Have That Certain "Je ne sais quoi"

[maru2501]

SF obviously. I agree on Austin. It feels like the future in some ways. Charleston SC. Not going to get started with Europe (I'm american). NYC although you can feel the uniqueness fading in some ways - it needs to stand up and save the quirk before it's all gone

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by Razor

Agreed.I suspect the more you visit a particular city , the more that feeling goes away.
What I think also adds to it is the cool little happenstances you stumble on when visiting...Bouts of serendipity I suppose..

I don't know. I've been visiting New Orleans (sometimes for nearly a week, sometimes just overnight) twice a year or so for well over a decade and I still enjoy the place as much as ever. But then I can't get enough fried oysters or creole anything.

[Kingofthehill]

recently, in europe: tbilisi, lisboa, copenhagen, sarajevo.

back home, philly has a slight mysterious, very underrated, can't-put-my-finger-on-it vibe and energy that i absolutely adore. buenos aires and mexico city, imo, also have a similar sense of place; local pride; self-sufficient, inward focus; and underdog energy.

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by Kingofthehill

recently, in europe: tbilisi, lisboa, copenhagen, sarajevo.

back home, philly has a slight mysterious, very underrated, can't-put-my-finger-on-it vibe and energy that i absolutely adore. buenos aires and mexico city, imo, also have a similar sense of place; local pride; self-sufficient, inward focus; and underdog energy.

i agree about philly, not sure how i listed pittsburgh and not philly, not that it was an exhaustive list of mine.

[Razor]

+3 for Philly.

I want to compare it to Montreal and draw that North American historical (age) parallel between the two, but I just can't. That would be two simple. Philly's MO is it's place in historic and important events like Ben Franklin , America's founding fathers, the Declaration signing and the Rocky stairs. All that stuff is part of Philly's persona and is front and centre in that town. That stuff is just not part of Montreal's personality.

The two cities do share their own signature sandwiches though. Maybe having ingrained signature dishes adds to a city's vibe.

Regardless on why Philadelphia has that something ,something vibe in the air..It just does.

[StethJeff]

Bangkok, Berlin, Cartagena, Hamburg, LA, Mexico City, New Orleans, SF, Taipei, Tokyo

The opposite: Singapore

[jens]

Aleppo, Istanbul, Sydney, Melbourne, Mumbai, Kolkata, Osaka, Tokyo, Shanghai, Adelaide, Kagoshima, Kyoto, Yangon, Kochi, Taipei, Thiruvananthapuram

[pdxtex]

Originally Posted by CIA

I feel like Austin is changing, and not necessarily for the better - can't put my finger on what it though.

too many dicks.....same thing happened to portland.

[muppet]

Helsinki, Budapest, Singapore, George Town (Malaysia), Brighton, Tangier, Gothenburg.

[austlar1]

Originally Posted by maru2501

SF obviously. I agree on Austin. It feels like the future in some ways. Charleston SC. Not going to get started with Europe (I'm american). NYC although you can feel the uniqueness fading in some ways - it needs to stand up and save the quirk before it's all gone

I am a 20 year resident of Austin and lived in several other US cities including SF, LA, DC, and NY before settling in Austin. I am hard pressed to figure out what the "Je ne sais quoi" about Austin might be. Austin has some progressive things going for it, especially given its sunbelt situation, but it just is not all that special as far as cities go. I am not sure that visitors to Austin get the Big Picture. They have a good time going to clubs or partying downtown and think that is what makes Austin tick. Others might be impressed by all the new construction downtown, mostly shiny apartment towers that most locals cannot afford, and the new mass market hotels built to house the hordes of visitors and conventioneers. The truth is much less glamorous. Most of us live in suburban type sprawl and spend way too much time on traffic packed freeways. Most of us spend little time downtown. There is a nicely developing system of downtown area parks along the river, but there are so many music festivals and special events held there that local access becomes very problematic. We shop, by default, in soul-less shopping centers and strip malls spread out over the metro. It is a lively city with good food and lots of entertainment for a younger crowd, but overall Austin does not deliver when it comes to cultural offerings. It also lacks major league sports. Austin used to be this kind of happening small city with a strong hippie vibe. It was not pretentious or cutting edge. It felt relaxed and cozy. Most of that is now gone, but there is a hype about that long lost earlier era that lives on in the minds of many visitors and also local residents. I'll probably get run out of town on a rail for posting this, but there you have it.

[ue]

Yeah, Austin seems really overhyped. You'd think it was Portland 2.0 the way people talk about it. Not that it's a bad city, but I'm surprised Denver or Minneapolis don't hold up better in American folklore, or at least they don't, from my perspective. They're well regarded, but don't have the hype of Portland or Austin, but offer more than Austin does.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by ue

Yeah, Austin seems really overhyped. You'd think it was Portland 2.0 the way people talk about it. Not that it's a bad city, but I'm surprised Denver or Minneapolis don't hold up better in American folklore, or at least they don't, from my perspective. They're well regarded, but don't have the hype of Portland or Austin, but offer more than Austin does.

I like Portland and Austin, but don't really "get" the massive hype of either. At least Portland seems to have a ton of interesting commercial strips and independent businesses, and an overall quirky vibe.

Austin, to me, feels very standard Sunbelt, with a glassy, small downtown, very limited urbanity and transit. It's nothing bad, but I think there are at minimum two or three dozen more interesting U.S. cities. I mean, even random burgs like Cincy are, to me, more interesting for exploration.

[the urban politician]

^ The general issue is the overall hatred of the Midwest that infests American society.

For whatever reason, there is a conscience and concerted effort in America to turn its back on the nation's interior, and elevate inferior cities in Texas or even on the coasts, because you are supposed to despise the Midwest.

This is counter to Europe or Canada, where its greatest cities are far inland.

[isaidso]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ The general issue is the overall hatred of the Midwest that infests American society.

Interestingly, Canadians tend to have a high opinion of the US midwest in addition to the US northeast and US west coast. It's the rest that people have rather unflattering views of.

[The North One]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ The general issue is the overall hatred of the Midwest that infests American society.

For whatever reason, there is a conscience and concerted effort in America to turn its back on the nation's interior, and elevate inferior cities in Texas or even on the coasts, because you are supposed to despise the Midwest.

This is counter to Europe or Canada, where its greatest cities are far inland.

Preach it! No offense to Austonians, but it's the most overrated city in the country right now and it's constantly recommended and put at the top of lists as "greatest places in the U.S. to live" and I can't help but think, really? Are you kidding me? Like I get that it has a good economy and it's cheap but you can get those qualities in pretty much every American suburb in a metro region.

The way people put Texas on a pedestal is strange as well, the landscape and cities are much blander than southern Indiana and yet Californians are moving to the state in droves, do they really not realize that there are better options? Portland makes sense, it has a very charming downtown and lots of lush greenery, but Austin? No thanks.

[Via Chicago]

not to mention, but for all the flack the midwest gets for its winters, do these people actually ENJOY austin summers?

[destroycreate]

I went to Austin a couple of years ago and really liked it, but I could definitely see how it could be limiting...beyond downtown and South Congress (which even that had a ridiculously wide boulevard), there wasn't anything urban about it. I agree, compared to Denver and Portland, it's rather far behind. I think what I loved about the city though was it's energy, it felt very young, hip, and ideal for millennials...it seemed very vibrant which Seattle in comparison doesn't (we have lots of pedestrian activity, but the city admittedly feels solemn). It was so cool to see everybody just dining al fresco, jogging and exercising outside, development happening everywhere, and lots of quirky eateries with interesting decor buzzing with activity.

Off topic, but I will say that Austin has the best looking and most in shape citizens of any US city I've visited! I mean honestly, never have I seen so many ridiculously hot, muscular men seemingly everywhere.

[BG918]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ The general issue is the overall hatred of the Midwest that infests American society.

For whatever reason, there is a conscience and concerted effort in America to turn its back on the nation's interior, and elevate inferior cities in Texas or even on the coasts, because you are supposed to despise the Midwest.

This is counter to Europe or Canada, where its greatest cities are far inland.

Interesting point. I think the cold winter and its industrial past plays a big part. I've heard people say countless times "I would love to live in Minneapolis/Milwaukee/Chicago but it's just too cold..". Or about Pittsburgh, St Louis, Cleveland, etc "those places are too industrial/run down and crime-ridden". In many ways similar to how people in the U.K. view the Midlands and industrial cities like Birmingham and Glasgow.

[The North One]

Originally Posted by BG918

Interesting point. I think the cold winter and its industrial past plays a big part. I've heard people say countless times "I would love to live in Minneapolis/Milwaukee/Chicago but it's just too cold..". Or about Pittsburgh, St Louis, Cleveland, etc "those places are too industrial/run down and crime-ridden". In many ways similar to how people in the U.K. view the Midlands and industrial cities like Birmingham and Glasgow.

And those people likely know nothing about those cities outside of a broadcasted news soundbite. I could paint San Francisco in the same generalized light, the city is too homeless/crackhead ridden, you've got people on the streets getting murdered with machetes. San Diego is filled to brim with bums, I guess they should check that city off their list as well.

[austlar1]

Originally Posted by destroycreate

I went to Austin a couple of years ago and really liked it, but I could definitely see how it could be limiting...beyond downtown and South Congress (which even that had a ridiculously wide boulevard), there wasn't anything urban about it. I agree, compared to Denver and Portland, it's rather far behind. I think what I loved about the city though was it's energy, it felt very young, hip, and ideal for millennials...it seemed very vibrant which Seattle in comparison doesn't (we have lots of pedestrian activity, but the city admittedly feels solemn). It was so cool to see everybody just dining al fresco, jogging and exercising outside, development happening everywhere, and lots of quirky eateries with interesting decor buzzing with activity.

Off topic, but I will say that Austin has the best looking and most in shape citizens of any US city I've visited! I mean honestly, never have I seen so many ridiculously hot, muscular men seemingly everywhere.

Good observations. I think you nailed a lot of the attraction that Austin has for younger folks. Plus there are lots of job opportunities for those with the skills. I felt kind of guilty about my earlier post about Austin. I am not young any longer, and the easy going and laid back Austin that once appealed to me is long gone. I guess I have some resentment about that, and it showed in my post. I took a drive around town yesterday (Easter afternoon) after making that post, and I had to admit that there were a lot of people out and about downtown, up near campus, and on South Congress and South Lamar having a fine time doing all of the things you describe. In my own curmudgeonly way I had to acknowledge that central Austin is slowly emerging as a genuine urban environment where a lot of people live, work, visit, and play. It is an American hybrid place that remains very car centered, but there is increasing pedestrian and bike traffic in the core. Public transit lags behind, and the public is unwilling to pay for rail upgrades or, more significantly, live with the inconveniences associated with improving/expanding rail transit options or updating a freeway system built 40 or 50 years ago when there was 1/3rd the present population in the area.