World's 10 Most Loved Cities

[Knitemplar]

Tikrit and Port-au-Prince should be on there as well!!

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[castermaild55]

Tokyo
another interesting one

Travelling inevitably leads to comparison. It’s a simple, unfortunate human condition. How do I know a to be good? I compare it to b and c. It’s very hard to switch off. Why not just enjoy a in its own right? Who knows? Like I said, it’s unfortunate.

But it does, at least, give your judgement some grounding. What use would it be to run around in startled wonder at every little thing? A person could soon end up a gibbering fool, not knowing what was good and what was bad. If a, b and c are all simply “awesome” then how can you pick them apart?



Thankfully, Katy and I have visited a fair few of the world’s great cities and have accrued an alphabet of letters with which to compare Tokyo. So having been to London, New York, Rome, Shanghai and the rest, how does it measure up?

The first thing to say is that, unexpectedly, Tokyo is the quietest of the bunch. The cars are near-silent and produce few emissions; there aren’t many smog-belching buses either. No one hits their horn. Street vendors don’t shout. People appreciate barcodes and have better things to do with their time than haggle over the cost of a bottle of water. Even in the sprawling Tsukiji fish market, people are dignified. All things considered, Tokyo is a pretty sedate monster.





Yet it’s loud in other ways. Across its colossal expanse, people aren’t afraid to splash colour across their clothes, hair and faces. There is a positively idiotic number of good looking people per square metre. Some crave attention at any cost. There is an absurd obsession with wearing glasses that carry no frames; thigh high boots and hot pants are extremely popular – not least with the men. There’s another look that puts a very strong emphasis on impossibly large hair and frilly clothes that come in golds and creams. So many folk are trying to stand out from the crowd that they’ve formed a psychedelic mob of their own.





In almost every way it feels completely removed from the rest of Asia; Tokyo feels far removed from Japan itself. Just as London has become its own teeming entity in Britain, and New York feels like its own nation within the United States, so Tokyo demands to be regarded in its own terms.



In some parts of Hokkaido, a kid with a two-foot tall mohawk and pierced eyebrows might be burned as a witch – here they’re just another barman.

The world comes to Tokyo, and in a town so relentlessly cosmopolitan as this, it’s possible to eat natto for breakfast, a hamburger from a street stall for lunch and Michelin-starred French cuisine for dinner. And after that, head to a bar and take your pick of the world’s whiskies. Of course it’s all fabulously expensive, but what does that matter? Everything and everyone is represented. Tokyo wants for nothing.

The city seethes with life at all times of every day, you need only visit Shibuya junction to see this. Or head to any subway station at 6pm. Businessmen fill the carriages like black and grey jellybeans in great jars, and yet the trains make their way seamlessly through eight lanes of traffic, with monorails above those, and metros buried underneath the ground below.


With five Hong Kong’s worth of people breathing the same air, there are naturally some vagrants lurking too. Like all the cities of the world, they’re drawn to the vast parks, to snooze on benches while ducks quack at their feet. If they’re regarded as untidy, though, they’re in the minority. People yelp and squeal about the neatness and order in Singapore, but Tokyo is every bit as clean, and even more functional. There are 35 million reasons for the Capital of the East not to work. But, somehow, it does.

How does it compare to other cities around the world? Make no mistake about it: this place is awesome. I really mean it.



Our time in Tokyo was made possible by:

Guide and fellow twitcher Eriko Bando, or Ellie as she likes to be called. She knows a vast amount about Tokyo and its feathered population (not just the ones in Akihabara) and it was a pleasure to spend time with her.

Mr Iwamura of Chiyoda Sushi who introduced us to the world of standing restaurants, and who showed us that it’s very dangerous to ever claim “this is the best sushi” because you never know what will be served next. If the price was ten times what it is (80 yen per piece) it’d still be a bargain. His branch being so close to the Tsukiji fish market no doubt helps how incredibly fresh it all tastes.

The luxurious Daiichi Hotel which surely gave us the world’s biggest bed to sleep in. We needed a GPS device just to find each other in that thing. They kindly put us up for two nights, meaning we could tuck into two of their superb breakfasts and genuinely get a chance to relax after enormous days walking around Tokyo’s infinite streets.

Everyone at Tentsu Saikan for giving us a great meal, but especially chef Hitosi Yamanobe. He is the latest person to baffle us with tales of his heroism in the aftermath of the tsunami. With the ground still shaking, he drove to Miyagi to start cooking for the survivors and fellow volunteers. For the last seven months, he’s being going back as often as he can. Being able to share a beer with him in his own restaurant was a goddamn privilege.

It’d be wrong to say that we’ve missed hamburgers over the last month, but even if we’d been eating them every day, the fare served up at Roti Roppongi would be outstanding. Mammoth portions, succulent meats and a wine list to die for, it’s no wonder it’s survived 10 years in this cut-throat part of town. Best of all, it’s not got a smaller sister restaurant, Pike Place, newly opened in, Shiba-Koen where punters can grab a coffee and watch the world go by the Tokyo Tower.

The Rihga Royal Hotel, into which we stumbled after another hard day’s walking. Tucked away in a lovely, quiet part of town, it’s got great views, enormous fluffy towels and chocolate cereal for breakfast. Chocolate cereal!

http://travelvolunteerblog.net/2011/...mega-city-one/

[derechaconservadora]

is interesting to note that santiago and lima have somethings in common but one is on the good list and the other on the evil list.

well im not against the list, cause i hate/love paris so much, so i can understand that is on both.

[Guaporense]

How about?

The world's ten most stupid lists.

1. CNN's World's 10 most loved cities list
2. ....

[CNB30]

Originally Posted by pal7

According to CNN

1. Tokyo, Japan

2. Shanghai, China

3. Santiago, Chile

4. San Francisco, USA

5. Petra, Jordan

6. Paris, France

7. New York, USA

8. Montreal, Canada

9. Cape Town, South Africa

10. Barcelona, Spain

http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/li...page=0%252C1,1

UHHHHHHH NYC #1

[CNB30]

Originally Posted by CNB30

UHHHHHHH NYC #1

1 NYC

2 Paris

3 London

4 Tokyo

5 San Francisco

6 Rio

7 Hong kong/ Beijing (tie)

8 Rome

9 Barcelona

10 Montreal

[master-chivas]

Originally Posted by WeimieLvr

and Canadian, don't forget. Country music is very popular in Canada.

pffff. In Alberta mostly... maybe Saskatchewan and a little bit in BC. But that's it... go to Ontario or Quebec or Manitoba and no one gives a shit about Shania Twain (or however her name is spelled)

[WeimieLvr]

Originally Posted by master-chivas

pffff. In Alberta mostly... maybe Saskatchewan and a little bit in BC. But that's it... go to Ontario or Quebec or Manitoba and no one gives a shit about Shania Twain (or however her name is spelled)

I'm pretty sure Alberta, BC, and Saskatchewan are part of Canada...or do they not count in your mind?

You simply don't know what you're talking about here...country music is very popular all over the U.S. and Canada. Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not liked - I'm not a country music fan but I can admit that others like it.

After a simple online search, there are several upcoming sold-out concerts in Toronto and Montreal by artists like K.D. Lang and Taylor Swift, so people there DO give a shit about country music. Shania Twain is the second best-selling artist in Canada (behind Celine Dion) and over the years has sold out many venues in her home province of Ontario and all over Canada. She is very popular there.

[master-chivas]

OMG don't get so frustrated!!!... of course there are country singers all over Canada and the world just as Rap, Opera, Salsa, Rock or whatever... but country music IS more popular in Alberta that's why i said M-O-S-T-L-Y... meaning, it's still there in other provinces but its more popular in Alberta, where MOST of the Canadian cowboys are...

damn... whatever

[WeimieLvr]

Originally Posted by master-chivas

OMG don't get so frustrated!!!... of course there are country singers all over Canada and the world just as Rap, Opera, Salsa, Rock or whatever... but country music IS more popular in Alberta that's why i said M-O-S-T-L-Y... meaning, it's still there in other provinces but its more popular in Alberta, where MOST of the Canadian cowboys are...

damn... whatever

Not sure why you think I'm frustrated...just replying to your previous comment. You acted like what I said was ridiculous, but it's not - quite the contrary. But I agree...whatever.

[panchogutz]

Can Cun- Acapulco-Monterrey-Guadalajara-Mexico city? one of them may be number 11

[sebvill]

Originally Posted by derechaconservadora

is interesting to note that santiago and lima have somethings in common but one is on the good list and the other on the evil list.

well im not against the list, cause i hate/love paris so much, so i can understand that is on both.

You are a freak.

[master-chivas]

Originally Posted by panchogutz

Can Cun- Acapulco-Monterrey-Guadalajara-Mexico city? one of them may be number 11

A webo el DF... nomas no hay comparacion...

[isaidso]

Originally Posted by master-chivas

pffff. In Alberta mostly... maybe Saskatchewan and a little bit in BC. But that's it... go to Ontario or Quebec or Manitoba and no one gives a shit about Shania Twain (or however her name is spelled)

Country music has its roots in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI, and Ontario, but has national appeal. I'm not sure about Quebec, but I'd guess Shania Twain is as famous in that province as elsewhere in Canada.

Originally Posted by master-chivas

meaning, it's still there in other provinces but its more popular in Alberta, where MOST of the Canadian cowboys are...

You're right that Alberta's a big ranching province with rodeo and cowboy culture. Country music is strongly associated with that, but it's a mistake to assume that provinces where ranching doesn't exist don't have deep ties to country music. As I mentioned above, country music's roots are actually in eastern Canada.

Anne Murray, Hank Snow, Wilf Carter, Don Messer, Marg Osborne, etc. are all from Nova Scotia. Stompin' Tom Connors is from New Brunswick, while Shania Twain is from Ontario.

It's only recently that many of the country stars are coming from places like Alberta and Saskatchewan.

[WeimieLvr]

Originally Posted by isaidso

Country music has its roots in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, PEI, and Ontario, but has national appeal. I'm not sure about Quebec, but I'd guess Shania Twain is as famous in that province as elsewhere in Canada.



You're right that Alberta's a big ranching province with rodeo and cowboy culture. Country music is strongly associated with that, but it's a mistake to assume that provinces where ranching doesn't exist don't have deep ties to country music. As I mentioned above, country music's roots are actually in eastern Canada.

Anne Murray, Hank Snow, Wilf Carter, Don Messer, Marg Osborne, etc. are all from Nova Scotia. Stompin' Tom Connors is from New Brunswick, while Shania Twain is from Ontario.

It's only recently that many of the country stars are coming from places like Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Thank you for a much more knowledgable response than I could muster up.

[gooseberry]

What the hell is this thread about?

[fuckencio]

why is santiago there? XDDD

[tijuano en el df]

Originally Posted by Dimethyltryptamine

the 10 most hated is even worse.

1. Tijuana, Mexico
2. Sydney/Melbourne, Australia
3. Paris, France
4. Timbuktu, Mali
5. Los Angeles, USA
6. Lima, Peru
7. Jakarta, Indonesia
8. New Delhi, India
9. Cairo, Egypt
10. Belize City, Belize

http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/li...-cities-861160

I thought Tijuana was the "happiest place on earth"

[Taller, Better]

Originally Posted by gooseberry

What the hell is this thread about?

Clearly it is City vs City and is not allowed on SSC.
And, on top of that, it was a silly list to start with!