Yesterday I talked about how much I love to explore outside, close to nature while hiking, how I like to get away from it all and absorb myself in the great outdoors.
And while that remains true, today I’m going to talk about the opposite: urban exploration.
I’ve decided that I’m happiest in a mid-sized urban setting, somewhere not too big and not too small. I love living somewhere big enough to have options, but small enough to not feel overwhelming. I’m very much a Goldilocks kind of girl — not too big, not too small, but just right.
Why do I love urban settings? Let me count the ways.
- Lots of local options. I travel to a lot of rural locations for my work, and while it’s fun to go to the local watering hole, there tends to only be a few (sometimes just one!) to choose from. I appreciate having more than a dozen local coffee houses to choose from.
- Ethnic food. This one might not matter to people who don’t like to travel, but as someone who has tasted and appreciated many different types of food, I like knowing that whether I’m in the mood for Venezuelan or Ethiopian, I can find a global market right outside my door.
- Walkability. When a city center has been planned well, you should be able to do
The Highline in New York City, one of my favorite urban green spaces of all time. All photos © Kaitlin Throgmorton Photography 2014. everything you could want to do within a reasonably walkable space, and I love being able to do that. Unfortunately, we don’t currently live somewhere where this is always possible, but I’ve visited incredibly walkable cities, and I look forward to a day when I might live in one.
- Metropolitan greenspaces. I am often impressed by the amount of effort that goes into creating green space in urban areas. Maybe that’s why I tend to appreciate parks that are plopped right in the middle of a city so much; they’re so intentional, and I like the way they often blend urban and rural. If I could have that blend always, I’d take it.
Booked & Ready 
I love cities . . . and I really love NYC. The Highline is one of my favorite parts of the city, too. I’ve been there during the summer when everything’s in bloom, and also in March when it was cold and not-so-much in bloom, yet it was still wonderful because of the amazing views.
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Have you been recently? I know they finished another phase, and I’m eager to see it! The Highline is just so cool to me — such a fascinating blend of old and new, with cool artifacts juxtaposed next to greenery. That place kind of makes me want to live in NYC, although I think NYC is just too big for me.
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I’d love to live in NYC for maybe just a little while, particularly from about May-October. I was there last in March 2014…I want to say we got on the Highline around 30th st (or ave) and walked down toward Chelsea, so quite a ways. Is the new phase on the north end? i think the whole idea is genius and I especially love the stained glass squares in the covered part–where they have the tables and food in the summer. Oh, man, you got me missing the city! 😉
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I think so, I can’t quite remember where the new phase is. I follow their updates on Facebook, and I know they opened a new section not long after we left in May 2014. We walked about the same section you did, it sounds like. And I love NYC, but I just don’t know what I’d think of it if I lived there. It’s such a novely to visit, and I don’t want to spoil that. 🙂
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