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Cities and Ambition

paulgraham.com

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Re: Cities and Ambition

#141

Post by pfedor »

izaidi wrote: post #111
danw wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I must admit the descriptions you give for Amsterdam, London, Barcelona sound off to me. I think you have to live or spend a lot of time somewhere before you can understand it's 'message', if it has one

What would you say those cities' messages are? (I'm especially interested in Amsterdam because I'm thinking about moving there.)

I lived in Amsterdam for half a year ten years ago. It's very walkable and beautiful. You walk the streets and people smile at you. It's a happy place. I think the message is something like, "Be happy."

Also, I believe it's the only country in Europe except for the UK where everyone speaks good English. In most big cities in Europe you will eventually find someone who speaks English, but in Amsterdam the odds that it will be the first person you approach are no worse than in London or California.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#142

Post by dimitry »

edw519 wrote: post #138
jimbokun wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Pittsburgh: You should be nice." Being a native Western Pennsylvania, and living more of my adult life in Pittsburgh than anywhere else, I'll take that as a compliment :). I moved to NYC with my wife right after we were married, and loved every minute of it. But decided to return here to raise our kids after they were born. An interesting thing about Pittsburgh is the number of large non-profits of every kind, espec…

I've met nice people everywhere I've lived. Somehow, and I'm not sure why, it seems just a little bit easier to meet nice people in Pittsburgh. Whether it's the checkout line in a supermarket, in a restaurant or bar, or just hanging out, people generally seem friendly and engaging. (The day after a Steeler's loss, of course, all bets are off.)

Agreed. After ~9 years in Pittsburgh, I can definitely confirm the 'nice' factor ;)

Perhaps it's even more noticeable because I live in SF now, especially in the Marina filled with mostly pretentious folks.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#143

Post by maxklein »

cglee wrote: post #128
maxklein wrote: post #14

Duuude, Mister Graham, I've never even heard of this Cambridge, and I seriously doubt it is the intellectual capital of the world. And you know what - you are not qualified to judge. You've not been to Urumuqi, Jenin, Port Harcourt or Bahia, how can you make a judgement based on having been in two cities? And furthermore, I take offense at the suggestion that American universities produce the best students. In genera…

This is probably the first time I've ever seen anyone reference my birth-city in a blog post or comment (Urumqi). And I can confirm it's not a startup or intellectual hub, but the Uyghur lamb-kabobs are killer.

I've been to Urumuqi. Nice place. The Urumuqi men have a reputation for selling marijuana together with their meat though.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#144

Post by maxklein »

idmkid wrote: post #47
maxklein wrote: post #14

Duuude, Mister Graham, I've never even heard of this Cambridge, and I seriously doubt it is the intellectual capital of the world. And you know what - you are not qualified to judge. You've not been to Urumuqi, Jenin, Port Harcourt or Bahia, how can you make a judgement based on having been in two cities? And furthermore, I take offense at the suggestion that American universities produce the best students. In genera…

black bums, lower class korean immigrants... I appreciate German attitudes of precision but with that mentality no wonder you lack immigrant capital.

I use race for dramatic effect. It underscores the societal and cultural differences between the one group of people and the other. I'm sorry to not conform to your American way of never mentioning anything related to race or ethnicity.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#147

Post by davidw »

pfedor wrote: post #141
izaidi wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What would you say those cities' messages are? (I'm especially interested in Amsterdam because I'm thinking about moving there.)

I lived in Amsterdam for half a year ten years ago. It's very walkable and beautiful. You walk the streets and people smile at you. It's a happy place. I think the message is something like, "Be happy." Also, I believe it's the only country in Europe except for the UK where everyone speaks good English. In most big cities in Europe you will eventually find someone who speaks English, but in Amsterdam the odds that it…

I remember dialing a wrong number in Amsterdam a number of years ago, and the woman responded, in nearly perfect English, without missing a beat. I was impressed.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#148

Post by ntoshev »

martythemaniak wrote: post #102
coglethorpe wrote: post #39

I've noticed messages as well: Gary, IN: Lock the doors. Do not stop. Macon, GA: You know, Atlanta is just up the road, right? Elko, NV: The only winners are the house and the mine owners. Milwaukee, WI: Fourth place is just fine, given enough beer. Clearly, I need to hang out in better cities.

Sofia, BG: You should be involved in some kind of shady dealings.

It is a very clear signal indeed, thank you for summarizing it well.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#149

Post by motoko »

imp wrote: post #137
motoko wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Places I've lived: Mountain View, CA: We're not the Barrio (any more). Toledo, OH: We're close to Detroit. Bowling Green, OH: Attend a real university with your real high school friends! Columbus, OH: Love Ohio State football (and basketball, if the season's wrong).

Cleveland, OH: You gotta be tough.

My sister, who drives a car worth about $100, had her car window smashed picked clean of her collection of burned CDs in downtown Cleveland.

Re: Cities and Ambition

#150

Post by davidw »

coglethorpe wrote: post #39

I've noticed messages as well: Gary, IN: Lock the doors. Do not stop. Macon, GA: You know, Atlanta is just up the road, right? Elko, NV: The only winners are the house and the mine owners. Milwaukee, WI: Fourth place is just fine, given enough beer. Clearly, I need to hang out in better cities.

Eugene, Oregon: Hey man, just, you know, hang out and get mellow.

Portland, Oregon: Be alternative just like everyone else.

San Francisco: We're so hip and important.

Padova, Italy: That was a long, hard work week, let's have a drink in the piazza and get a pizza afterwards.

Innsbruck, Austria: ... something in the Tirolean dialect that I completely failed to grasp, involving skiing ...

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