> Aside from dining out, what fun is there to be had for young adults anywhere?
As someone who used to live in the rust belt, I found my social life to be vastly improved after moving to Chicago.
It's true you can be lonely in a big city, but the same is true in a small town. The difference is that in a big city, significantly more options exist if you are willing to step out.
After moving to a big city, I was able to connect with more people of like-mind. The diversity of people I meet now is an order of magnitude greater. The Meetup groups are significantly better (I can go to a technical meetup and talk shop with people at my level). If I wanted to hang out with friends, the scope of activities possible are also much wider. If I wanted to learn a skill, take language classes, take evening classes at a world-renowned university, etc., I can and have -- and have met interesting people through these activities. If I wanted to go on a trip with friends, flights are much cheaper out of a hub city. Job opportunities are also much more abundant -- if I decided to change jobs tomorrow, I could do that without moving away.
The intellectual and cultural climate in a dynamic, thriving city is vastly different from that of a single-industry town.
As someone who used to live in the rust belt, I found my social life to be vastly improved after moving to Chicago.
It's true you can be lonely in a big city, but the same is true in a small town. The difference is that in a big city, significantly more options exist if you are willing to step out.
After moving to a big city, I was able to connect with more people of like-mind. The diversity of people I meet now is an order of magnitude greater. The Meetup groups are significantly better (I can go to a technical meetup and talk shop with people at my level). If I wanted to hang out with friends, the scope of activities possible are also much wider. If I wanted to learn a skill, take language classes, take evening classes at a world-renowned university, etc., I can and have -- and have met interesting people through these activities. If I wanted to go on a trip with friends, flights are much cheaper out of a hub city. Job opportunities are also much more abundant -- if I decided to change jobs tomorrow, I could do that without moving away.
The intellectual and cultural climate in a dynamic, thriving city is vastly different from that of a single-industry town.
It's not just dining out.