MmePerdu

Franklin Hospital.

wtm003

I thought about posting a similar question. My son goes to school in Boston and is interning in NYC. He's trying to decide where to intern next year and is leaning toward LA mainly because he doesn't like the weather on the east coast. I'd prefer he stays in Boston, NY or goes to SF where he won't need a car. Plus he has no idea what a daily commute in LA will be like.

This is a great thread and plan to pass on many of the comments. Thanks!

For me, I'd choose a year in NYC, for all the reasons htty listed. Next week will be my fourth visit and I've barely scratched the surface.

StuDudley

St Francis

Stu Dudley

StuDudley

>> SF where he won't need a car. Plus he has no idea what a daily commute in LA will be like.

StuDudley

>> I worked with at Levi Strauss

michelhuebeli

NYC. No other city has as many cultural offerings on such a high level as NYC, not even the European giants like Paris and London. I'd go out every night and catch matinees most afternoons, reserving the museums for the mornings...

vincenzo32951

My ranking of cities listed:

SF
New York
Boston
Philadelphia
Austin
LA

I have been to all of them, but spent very little time in Austin, so my ranking of the city is probably unfair. And LA, after several visits, is one of my least favorite places in the world. Thought I'd admit that to give a better picture of my biases.

panecott

I'd spend 4 months each in San Francisco, Chicago and Boston.

happytrailstoyou

I'd spend one month in each of San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, and New York and then spend the other eight months in my favorite city of these four. If I didn't have a favorite of the four, I would then spend a month each in Philadelphia and Austin. If I still didn't have a favorite, I would spend a month in Seattle. If I still didn't have a favorite, I would figure the USA doesn't appeal to me, and I would move on to London, Paris, Rome, Lima, Tokyo, Moscow, etc.

HTtY

StuDudley

I'm guessing that Greg & wtm003 are both doing 1 year internships - or something like that. So multiple destinations wouldn't work.

Stu Dudley

travelgourmet

Plus he has no idea what a daily commute in LA will be like.

It really depends. I have friends in LA that walk to work and some that take public transit. Obviously, a good commute requires living near your work, but that is true anywhere. Heck, I lived 2.5 miles from my office in Boston and when I didn't ride my bike (which was all winter during snowmageddon), it would take 35+ minutes no matter how you did it.

hudsonguz

Boston

StuDudley

>> a good commute requires living near your work, but that is true anywhere

nytraveler

We're happy right here in NY. But wouldn;t mind if someone wanted to pay our mortgage and maintenance for a year.

travelgourmet

I don't think I ever used public transportation or taxis in LA

Times have changed in the 41 years you've been away.

Yes, LA is more car-centric than SF, but if you are mindful of where you live relative to work, commutes need not be a deal-breaker while living there.

IMO, it's a lot easier to find a nice place to live near work in SF, than it is in LA.

With unlimited funds (SF just passed NYC for most expensive rental market), sure, it is easier to find a nice place to live near work in SF. Without unlimited funds, you might find yourself in a hovel far from transit and your job. We don't know if the OP (or wtm003) have unlimited funds. Compounding the issue in SF is that many of the premier companies (where you might earn enough to be choosey about where you live) are in the suburbs and require a commute as potentially painful as those in LA.

suze

#1 San Francisco!!!

But I do very much like Los Angeles too, so I'd be happy to live there for a year as well.

StuDudley

I'm only answering the OPs question - live & work in the same city with housing paid for by someone else.

I know tons of people I worked with in San Francisco and also when I worked in Oakland and Redwood City - that had multi-hour commutes from Livermore or Antioc or Vacaville or elsewhere in the East Bay, or south in Morgan Hill and even north in Marin. But that's not what the OP is inquiring about.

According to the latest "Noe Valley Voice" Newspaper (where we lived), the average rental for a 1 bedroom apt was $3,200 per month in Jan '17. A studio was $2,200/month.* If you are not familiar with the Noe Valley - it's where many of the "techies" want to live because of easy access to Silicon Valley. So the rents are high. Rents are going to be lower in the Inner Sunset (a nice area near Golden Gate Park) and in the Richmond which are farther from Silicon Valley but still has excellent public transportation to downtown SF, good public transportation elsewhere in SF, and located in a neighborhood where you can live without a car for 1 year. I would not want to be anywhere in LA without a car for 1 year.

* This survey is based on a sample of 114 Noe Valley apartment listings appearing on Craiglist.org from Dec 29, 2016 to Jan 5, 2017.

Stu Dudley

Skiergirl

If I could live anywhere in the world, hands down it would be Sydney, Australia. I didn't even take one second to think when I originally read the question. Too bad my profession is not needed there nor could I find a nice Aussie guy to marry me during my many visits there.....a girl can dream!

basingstoke2

From your list I would choose NYC, but it would be in one of the really desirable areas of Manhattan. Having lived the first third of my life there I can assure you that your problem will never be "what is there to do today" but "of all the myriad of things to do today, what would I like to do the most. Only one year will not be enough to explore the city, visit all of its museums, eat in all of its finest restaurants and get your fill of theater, concerts, opera and ballet. And I have yet to talk about parks and iconic neighborhoods.

starrs

NYC