Haven't you ever gone on vacation just to say "I wish I could live here?"
Well, we've got news for you: someone does. And just like wherever you live, where they live has Its own issues and problems.
And those people are willing to share what their lives are like with us, so that we can stop wondering.
u/just_be_respectful asked:
Here were some of those answers.
Viva
I live in Las Vegas. Listen. What happens in Vegas stays on the internet and also in the stories of every local who saw you do it. Don't do stupid stuff.
Came to say this. Many also think that there aren't any rules/laws in Vegas. Sorry but you can ruin your vacation very quickly. I know of one guy who didn't make it out of the airport before he was arrested.
Crowded Misery
Not all of New York City is as crowded as the touristy areas. The vast majority of us aren't navigating through Times Square as part of our daily commutes (but mad sympathy to those who actually have to).
Japanese Culture Is Not For Fetishizing
Tokyo here. I could name a few, but the one that always gets me is the misconception that people are going to accept (or even respond politely to) outrageous weebishness. If you roll up in Shibuya with a Naruto headband and a Hello Kitty backpack, trying to communicate through a handful of anime catchphrases while creepily leering at schoolgirls, people are rightly going to give you a wide berth.
The Most Expensive State
I only lived there for a little while, but it's a common misconception that Hawaii is a great place to live. Don't get me wrong - it might be the most beautiful place on earth and there are many, many exceptional things about living there. But it's terribly expensive just to grocery shop, let alone try to buy a house. Many people just live with their parents and grandparents because no one can afford to move out. So many houses and apartments/condos are bought as vacation properties, which drives up the price. Then, houses/apartments in residential neighborhoods have a revolving door of vacationers coming in and out, which is disruptive to normal life. (People on vacation care very little about how much noise they're making, etc.) It's a catch-22 because so much of Hawaii's money comes from tourism, but tourism is making it impossible for locals to buy homes.
An Australia Mood
Australia is big, varied, and safe. There are dangers here, but your biggest risk is yourself. Just read the signs (not a metaphor - there's signs about every danger everywhere) and use common sense.
Honestly, I've seen Americans and Canadians, who have been near grizzlies, freak out over a lizard. Just relax man, it's nice here.
I Have A Life Independently Of My City
I lived in Amsterdam for five years. I realized pretty quick for the rest of my life saying you lived in Amsterdam means people assume you're really into weed, illicit drugs, crazy parties, hookers, or a combination of all that. In actuality, most of my going out was for drinks with colleagues, I don't like pot, and only ever went to the red light district when someone visiting me was curious enough to see it.
LA Is A Very Different City
Los Angeles, specifically Hollywood. Literally everything about it is underwhelming. The Walk of Fame is cool for 2 seconds, Grauman's Chinese Theatre is smaller than you'd think, the Hollywood sign is just a big sign, and no, you're not going to run into a celebrities walking around. All the while it's incredibly crowded, smells terrible, and you have to dodge costumed street performers in droves.
New South Wales
Australian here.
Sydney and stuff are expensive. But the one thing that people underestimate about our country is the sheer size of it, people go to the hotspots like Uluru, GBR, Sydney and Melbourne but they forget that it is a country nearly the size of USA. It's not small and you will meet people who have never left their state before.
Yet They Still Vote Republican
Alaska. Where to begin?? It's not always dark. In fact, in the summer it's quite light. Hence some difficulty viewing northern lights in summer months. Ditto cold — we do have summer. In Fairbanks we regularly hit 80° in the summer, sometimes hotter. But also our state is HUGE. So what's true of Fairbanks isn't necessarily true of Anchorage. Or Juneau. In fact southeast (Juneau, Ketchikan, etc - the cruise ship circuit) is almost like a separate state. They're more like Seattle than the rest of AK.
People don't ride around all day on dog sleds. We don't live in igloos. We are Americans. Our Indigenous cultures are diverse and are not all Eskimo. Oh, and most of us can't see Russia from our back yards.
A City Ahead And Behind
I live in Seoul but moved here from the UK, so I'd probably say it's how everyone expects it to be super high-tech, convenient, and modern because South Korea managed to get that reputation due to having (at the time) crazy fast internet. The super high-tech/convenient stuff (in my opinion) would be:
- Constant wifi, even in the subways.
- Almost every PC Bang (essentially gaming cafes) I've been to allows you to order food and drink FROM your computer and people will bring it over for you. I thought it was really interesting that they had their system for ordering food and drink without leaving your chair.
- In the 5 or so years I've lived here, I've never lived in or been in apartment that still uses physical keys. Usually it's an electronic number lock and you will usually get a card that unlocks it as well.
The less than modern / inconvenient things would be:
- Doing almost anything online requires you to have a phone contract that's bound to the ID card you're legally required to carry at all times.
- Banks charge fees for EVERYTHING. Even my own bank charge me like 50c to withdraw cash.
- Online banking usually requires you to use third party security software, which is starting to get better but still an issue. I literally just use my phone to do all my banking because it's soo much easier.
- Korea websites usually look like a 2005 forum, like the whole website is made using tables.
- If you live in an older part of Seoul or in a less modern city in general, you'll probably have terrible sewage systems that require you to put used tissue in a bin, rather than flushing it down the toilet.
