I left my heart in...

SF, of course. NYC is great but every time I come back, it only makes me more sure that SF is home. If I had had a high school boyfriend and was happily married, I would say visiting NYC is like seeing your first high school boyfriend after you've married the love of your life. You feel nostalgic, happy thoughts when you think about NY/first boyfriend, and it's pleasant to catch up, but at the end of the day, seeing NY/first boyfriend just makes you realize how right SF/your husband is. Ok, maybe a really bad and irrelevant analogy.

In any case, NY is brilliant, raw, alive, frenetic. I feel like NY embodies both the best and worst of human nature, the best and worst of everything that is America, the best and worst of city life, the best and worst of capitalism, the best and worst of...just about everything. And while experiencing the best (theater, food, arts, etc.) is thrilling, for me at least, it doesn't offset the negative aspects of NY. The dirtiness, the crowds, the relentless pace of work/money-making, the ridiculous cost of living (not that it's not possible to live in NY with a reasonable income, but to truly enjoy the best of everything NY has to offer, you must have access to an endless amount of cash). And why do so many NYers walk around with a perpetual look of slight annoyance/distaste on their faces? They always look troubled or slightly unhappy, ill at ease.

I used to say that in NY, it's possible to reach unprecedented highs. But that's really only because most of the time you are living in a perpetual state of aggravated annoyance. The weather, the people, the traffic...Winters are so miserably cold and summers are so miserably hot and humid. I remember when I lived here and experienced a rare, glorious day of perfect 70 degree sunshine and slight breeze I would literally skip down the street in elation. You're SOOO happy, life is so good, you can't stop beaming.

In Cali, nice 70 degree days are so common that you never feel a bubbling of elation when you wake up and the sun is out. You get so used to good weather than you feel grumpy, and quite literally wronged when the weather is crappy. In contrast, when I lived in NY and the weather was rainy or snowy or muggy, I didn't feel grumpy or wronged....just "oh well, have to grin and bear it." NYers are definitely the best in the world at grinning and bearing it. Or maybe just bearing it, since they don't really grin that often.

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My favorite cities:

1. Barcelona - the joie de vivre, the mix of old world and modern architecture, the art, the fantastic cuisine, the laid back attitudes, the sheer joy and love of life.

2. Paris - the romance, the art, the picturesque Seine River, the lovely architecture.

3. San Francisco - the beauty, the character, the liberalness, the mix of yuppy, earthy, hippy, foodie, and urban; the vibe, the access to ocean, mountains, vineyards; the feeling of home. I feel most myself and most at home in SF.

4. Antigua, Guatemala - the quaintness, the romance, the subtle loveliness that slowly makes its way into your heart and doesn't let go.

5. Antibes, France - the quaintness, the romance, the overwhelming loveliness that quickly makes its way into your heart and doesn't let go. Oh, and the Frenchness.

6. Vancouver - the food, the cleanness, the glass architecture, the clean air, access to ocean and mountains.

7. Miami - the unashamed and unabashed love of all that is sexy.

8. Seoul - everything I love and hate about myself, everything and I love and hate about my people...it's all embodied by Seoul. 

9. Istanbul - the architecture, the meeting of Europe and the Middle East, the history, tradition meets modernity.

10. Buda + Pest - the kavehaz culture, the architecture, the sheer loveliness.

I haven't spent enough time in Tokyo for it to make it on the list but I suspect it will make my top 5 soon.