Ok, so it's old news, but I just have to share it. You might not have seen it yet - I hadn't - and this is simply too big to ignore. According to the July/August 2008 issue of Monocle (an international affairs digest), both Minneapolis and Paris are included in the list of
top 25 most livable cities in the world. Yes, that's right, not one but two of the cities I lived in this year are, in fact, livable. What does "livable" mean to Monocle, you ask? For starters, they like cities with strong art and culture scenes, access to healthcare helps, low crime is a plus, growth is good, and education is a must. Paris, which ranks in at number 10, also gets points for a "shift in attitude," and feeling "less uptight," while Minneapolis, which claims the 19th spot, has a culinary reputation that is "on the rise." Though admittedly not the most objective observer of this report, I tend to agree.
Unless my red-dotted blog visitor map is telling tales, Parisian Spring readers come from all over the world. Did your city make the list?
Ok, so it's old news, but I just have to share it. You might not have seen it yet - I hadn't - and this is simply too big to ignore. According to the July/August 2008 issue of Monocle (an international affairs digest), both Minneapolis and Paris are included in the list of top 25 most livable cities in the world. Yes, that's right, not one but two of the cities I lived in this year are, in fact, livable. What does "livable" mean to Monocle, you ask? For starters, they like cities with strong art and culture scenes, access to healthcare helps, low crime is a plus, growth is good, and education is a must. Paris, which ranks in at number 10, also gets points for a "shift in attitude," and feeling "less uptight," while Minneapolis, which claims the 19th spot, has a culinary reputation that is "on the rise." Though admittedly not the most objective observer of this report, I tend to agree.
Unless my red-dotted blog visitor map is telling tales, Parisian Spring readers come from all over the world. Did your city make the list?
5 comments:
Nope, not for me.
My old home Toronto got shut out, even though fellow Canadian cities Montreal and Vancouver made the list. At least Calgary isn't there...
And my new home London is not included, which doesn't surprise me. London isn't known for great living conditions, but you know what, I like it anyway...
Even my current temporary home of Phoenix isn't there. *Sigh* I never get to go to the good places... ;)
Greg
Just to say hi :)
I'm from Hong Kong. None of the Chinese cities are on the list, and I'm definitely not surprised. "Hong Kong is not a livable city" seems to be one of the most commonly used phrases of my peers.
Greg: Rough luck not getting any of your cities on the list. I've been to London and liked it too, so I'm with you on that!
Pat: Thanks for joining in the conversation! I've heard the same thing about Hong Kong. Who knows, there might come a day when we'll finally see a Chinese city on the list!
Hong Kong is not a liveable city? Hmmm..
I lived in Munich and Zürich for longer periods of time. But I always return to Barcelona when ever I can - unfortunately only for short visits, though I would love to stay for longer. Maybe one day...
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