Lately, I haven't felt very happy in my city and have been fantasizing about moving. But I realize that the grass is always greener on the other side and hearing about people's experience in their cities would help broaden my perspective.
I am a more or less lifelong resident of the D.C. area, and currently in in D.C. Many of my comments would not hold true for suburban areas.<p>Characteristics I do not love include: inadequate housing supply, racial segregation, the somewhat grey winters, a few weeks of high wet-bulb temperatures each year.<p>Characteristics I love include: the Metro train and bus system, cycling infrastructure, bikeshare program, easily accessible national parks (Rock Creek Park, Great Falls), museums and concert venues, world-class second hand bookstores, the Library of Congress, fun seasonal weather variation, Amtrak access to all cities on the Northeast corridor, the concentration of highly educated people, the concentration of people with a sincere interest in political life.
Toronto:<p>Like:<p>* Great food. Toronto is a very diverse city and I can get food from all around the world<p>* Beautiful summers<p>* Toronto Public Library is excellent<p>Dislike:<p>* I hate the cold<p>* Expensive: Price for food and housing are bonkers (though, this is probably true for everywhere in the world right now)<p>* The city feels like it's crumbling: transit, healthcare, homelessness; everything has gotten worse.<p>* Hard to make friends/date. Everything feels ephemeral and I haven't had luck with making any long term relationships.<p>* Lack of a community feeling