RE: NYC is over-rated in many ways
I'd like to see NYC someday, mostly just for the shows.
That being said, I'm perfectly happy in the mid-sized city in flyover country where I live. I have a job in tech, my commute is 10 minutes, we can afford for my wife to stay home with the kids, the city is remarkably clean and you're never more than a few blocks from a city park. Crime is low, schools are good and while the food is surely not as good as what you can get in NYC, we can go out for a great dinner anywhere in town for under $50 (about $15/person for surprisingly good sit-down restaurants is pretty common). We have nearly any type of ethnic restaurant you could want, we have a performance venue that gets amazing acts from around the world and an arena for sports and big concerts.
People like to brag up their big cities, but smaller cities can be better in other ways. It just depends on how you like to live. I hate crowds, so you couldn't pay me to live in a big city.
I completely agree with you. I'm moving to Chiang Mai soon and I believe it falls into a category like you are describing. I hope it has a similar appeal
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The way I look at it, as long as I live close enough to experience the bells and whistles of a big city to travel there from time to time, its the best of both worlds. I'm fortunate enough to live an hour from a city twice as big as the one where I live, so when we do want to see more museums, a better zoo, a wider range of restaurants or go to the Alamo Drafthouse, its just a short drive.
Chiang Mai looks gorgeous btw.