Pink Slippers will know that if there’s one thing we like to blog about, it’s lists – especially those that confirm my biases. E.g., Massachusetts is the smartest state.
I’m not the only one in the family.
My Chicago cousin Ellen just asserted her bragging rights by pointing out that Chicago was recently chosen the Condé Nast Best Big City (Readers’ Choice) in the U.S., making it a three-peat for the Windy City.
Congratulations, Chicago!
It couldn’t happen to a nicer city. Apparently.
Among the reasons cited for Chicago’s getting the W is the fact that, “no matter where you go, some of the most pleasant people you'll find anywhere.”
My guess is that the Condé Nast Readers’ Choice-makers didn’t make it to every place in the city, as I’m pretty sure there are pockets where the folks can be downright unpleasant. Just sayin’. But also sayin’ that there is really something about Midwest Nice.
My mother hailed from Chicago, so I’m half-Chicago, but it really is one of my favorite cities. Fabulous architecture, a magnificent waterfront, interesting neighborhoods, good walking, terrific museums, great food. Plus it gets props from me for being both a Boston-style crazy-about-sports town, and for its vibrant literary heritage. Oh, yeah, and I have some quite excellent relatives there!
Other than being flat – where do kids go tobogganing in the winter? – and the painful to these ears accent, I could happily live there. (It’s my absolutely favorite city to see on House Hunters on HG-TV.)
Midwest nice was a real thing in this year’s Top Ten, as Minneapolis came in second. The poll was apparently taken prior to Trump’s recent campaign rally, during which Somali refugees (among many, many others) were jeered by the frothing audience, which also got off on “the president’s” orgasm-mimicking reenactment of a conversation between the two FBI agents who were caught out making fun of the Trumpster during the 2016 campaign. So much for nice, and this wasn’t it.
Anyway, I’ve been to Minneapolis a few times on business, and rather liked the city.
Boston came in third in the polling. No mention of nice, even though we are, as far as I’m concerned. What does get mentioned in the Freedom Trail – but not the fact that Boston’s a wonderful walking city in general. It mentions Fenway Park (and “Sweet Caroline”), but not The Public Garden, The Common, The Esplanade, The Greenway, The Emerald Necklace, and any of our other wonderful parks. It mentions “slurping up oysters”, which certainly is a thing – and a thing that I enjoy on occasion – but not what a great town this is for ice cream. Can’t have everything, I guess.
The remaining places that made the Ten Best Big Cities list are:
New Orleans (4)
Washington DC (5)
San Diego (6)
New York (7)
Pittsburgh (8)
Honolulu (9)
San Antonio (10)
Props to these discerning readers for picking a quite a few cold-weather cities!
Other than Honolulu, where I’ve only been in the airport, and Pittsburgh, I’ve been to all the cities on the list, and enjoyed them all. I’m just a city girl at heart, and rarely meet one I don’t like at least something about. Okay. Newark. And I’m spending the weekend in Dallas, which – other than being the home of old friends – doesn’t have all that much to commend itself. (New York City is my all-time, hard-to-beat favorito.)
Pittsburgh’s making the list I find interesting. As a Big City, it’s one-ninth the size of Chicago, and less than half the size of Boston, but it packs a Big City enough punch to make the list.
Folks still call it Steel City, but Pittsburgh’s recent revitalization has brought loads more than new jobs to this post-industrial city. You could spend a whole weekend brewery-hopping—there are at least 20 within city limits—and exploring a dining scene that involves way more than slapping fries on everything (though we recommend that, too). Start your journey in the Strip District, home to some of the city’s best restaurants, like Gaucho Parrilla Argentina and DiAnoia's Eatery, and drop in at the Heinz History Center, where you can return to your childhood via the original set from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. (Source: Condé Nast Traveler)
Well, maybe not my childhood, which was spent in the original Mr. Rogers’ neighborhood (that would be my father’s born-bred-died ‘hood) in Main South Worcester. But I’m a fan of both Mr. Rogerses (even though the original is still the greatest).
One of the reasons I find Pittsburgh an interesting pick is because, for whatever reason – maybe the fact that I’ve had recurring dreams about being at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers – Pittsburgh is on my bucket list. Heinz History Center, here I come!
----------------------------------------------------
A doff of the Pink Slip chapeau to my cousin Ellen for sending this one my way.
No comments:
Post a Comment