Why Big Cities Are All They're Cracked Up To Be

Big cities receive a lot of criticism. It’s not hard to see why. Overpopulation and overcrowded streets can put even the most patient of people on the defensive, and very quickly. The entire experience of traveling can be stressful and expensive. The general likelihood of meeting someone less than pleasant is much higher than in less populated areas. This is a statistical truth. We all know that pollution and the general toxification of cities can sometimes be hard to take in.

It’s also been shown that through viewing CCTV footage of public streets, social scientists could accurately determine within 10,000 people the population of a city. How could they do this? By assessing how fast people walked, and how quick the conversations they held were. Obviously, faster meant a more populated environment.

Pexels

Also, it’s not hard to see that cities are rather artificial. The idea of a megacity has only been around for the last century. Even then it was considered something almost completely alien. Now, skyscrapers reach to the sky. Apartment buildings are seemingly compressed into one another. Thousands of people can live within a single mile of one another. It's even hard to get to know your closest neighbors.

However, even with all this strangeness, ruling out the prospect of living in or visiting a city can be a sad state of affairs. Sometimes, big cities are all they’re really cracked up to be. There are many reasons as to why this is the case, but we hope to explore this subject through the lens of a prospective traveler. After all, the functional and useful advice is more practical compared to simply adjusting your attitude without cause.

Without further ado:

^{Source: Pixabay}

All Night

It’s very likely that the first thing you’ll notice when visiting a big city is that you can always experience endless entertainment all day and all night long. For example, these entertainment ideas in New York are largely situated around the clock. If you have the time, living a nocturnal life and experiencing the mirror of city life can be wonderful when needing to experiencing the interesting activities of the night.

Hidden theatre shows, comedy clubs, nightclubs, and bars will often keep last calling times, but sometimes this simply transitions to the morning run events. There are reasons that megacities are often named as the cities that never sleeps. There’s almost no reason to slow down. This is why cities are absolutely the best locations for stag parties, general celebrations, exploring culturally, and directing yourself towards the crowd you are most interested in. If you’re looking for activity and plenty of it, then heading to a city will ensure that something is always provided for you.

^{Source: Pixabay}

Food

If you’re hoping to experience all the night has to offer, then you’ll need to do it on a full stomach. Luckily, there is absolutely nowhere better than a city to fill you with some amazing cuisine. This is the absolute beauty of a city, that many different cultures come and present their own take on the cultural cuisine they have to offer. Often, many of these restaurants will be located on the same streets. There is a real beauty in this, and it can make your taste buds natural born explorers.

The best part about this is that often, the most expensive restaurants aren’t the places you would consider the be the best places for a hearty meal. The competition in cities has led different establishments to truly refine their recipes and their prices. Street food vendors have also taken over lately, meaning that the development of some real down to Earth cuisine is as simple as walking out on the street.

If you’re a fan of some of the most hilarious cooking shows, you’ll realize that cities are often packed with excellent efforts in novelty food. For example, large cultural celebrations around huge challenge meals or hot food can be found if you look hard enough. There is always a small food interest to be catered for, no matter your taste or interest.

Food tours are absolutely the best when scheduled in a city. Be sure to check your local reviewer's guide and plan a chart through the perimeter and then the center of the city. What better way to experience the life and local insights of an environment than to explore its microcosm cultures through your taste buds? It’s the tastiest method of doing things at the very least.

The Seattle Skyline

Niche

The best part of the overpopulation of cities is that every niche can be catered for. Do you enjoy a certain card game, and wish to participate in tournaments? There’s likely a place for you. Do you enjoy comic conventions but cannot afford Comic-Con? There’s absolutely going to be a fan-run event for your best experience. If you’re a film student, it’s likely that the city you visit has a wonderful cultural board dedicated to preserving the best films of the area. The board will be showcasing them in public buildings once in a while. Music, comedy, nightclub scenes, everything can be catered for in a city, so it’s absolutely worth finding this.

People often get burned out in cities. This can be for a variety of reasons, but it could very strongly be the fact that meeting your niche can be difficult. However, with the right social media and google searches, there will always be something around the corner. It’s likely that even your most favorite underground artist will one day tour in the city that you currently occupy or live near, so be sure to keep checking. In an environment like this, there are always people you can possibly relate to. Finding them can be a great first start.

San Francisco city was hidden by the fog

History

Cities do not occur out of the blue. A city is formed over a long period of time as more and more people emigrate to the financial center. Some also prefer the locational convenience or the general bond of communities that grow around a certain area. This means that cities, no matter what you think of them, will always carry a degree of interesting historical insight. A simple walk around will show you many things that you might not have noticed before. You will discover new statues, public art displays, and the general expressiveness of the people around you. Some cities such as Dubai are seemingly constructed and artificial. However, it still has its own story that might be interesting to learn and discover.

This means that cities are not only cultures of hedonism and brilliant showcases. They are also places of deep cultural understanding, and developing yourself in this story will grant you a wealth of excellent insight. If you’re hoping to enrich yourself then visiting listed buildings and environments that have stories to tell could be an excellent use of your time. From there, heading to a theatre show or an orchestra could be the perfect way to cap off the entire visit, making it feel more than worthwhile.

Buenos Aires

In Conclusion

Cities are some of the most wonderful places on Earth. While yes, they are the dominant hive of our species, they aren’t all bad and overly polluted. Some of the densest cultural understanding, expressiveness and historical interest are situated in these locations. Learning the history of your own local city could better understand your place in the environment you currently reside. Be sure to experience this, because who knows what rabbit holes you might lead down? While traveling to the tropical vistas abroad can be a wonderful time, sometimes seeing the structures right in front of you can also be very instructive to a wonderful vacation.

DO YOU LIVE IN A BIG CITY?

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." - Mark Twain

^{All photos are taken and articles are written by Adonis Villanueva of Always Wanderlust unless otherwise stated.}

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