City v. Suburb
15 Mar
As I was walking to a cafe this afternoon to do some work (and loving it). I started to think about how when I lived in the suburbs, I had to drive to get everywhere and I started thinking about the differences between a city and a suburb. Here’s what I came up with so far.
| City | Suburb |
| You can walk, take the bus, ride your bike, or drive. | You have to drive most places. |
| There are lots of different types of people. | There are pretty homogenous groups of people. |
| There are lots of different types of housing that look very different. | There are houses mostly and in each neighborhood, they look similar. |
| There are different types of restaurants and stores that are small and locally owned. | There are mostly chain restaurants and stores. |
| It is very hard to find parking and most parking is outdoors. | Parking abounds and you usually have a garage at home. |
| I don’t feel safe at night. | I feel safe all the time. |
| It’s cramped. | There’s ample space. |
| It can be dirty. | It’s relatively clean. |
| It can be noisy. | It’s mostly quiet. |
| There are small parks in walking distance. | There are bigger parks that you can drive to. |
| All things cultural are in the city (museums, theaters, concert halls, art galleries, etc.). | There are organized family events. |
| Airports are closer. | Airports are farther, usually. |
There are things I miss about my old house… space, a garage, a quiet deck. I also miss the safety. I miss my group of friends, the comfort and familiarity of similarity. Right now though, today (and tomorrow I’m sure since it’s warming up), I am loving the city. Even the dirty, cramped noisiness is nice. It’s less contrived than a suburb. It’s a beautiful bricolage of people, buildings, and eras past and present. I love to walk around and notice the different architectures of the buildings and watch the hum of the buses, crosswalks and cyclists. A city feels more alive and I feel like it has something to teach me.
What else am I missing though…
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