This past weekend I traveled to the Bean and spent some much-needed quality time with my beloved lady friends. Yes, it is a pain to get there and yes, it is a long trip, but for me it’s always worth it. Beantown will always be near and dear to my heart. It’s where good times have been had! It’s where I went to college. It’s where I met the majority of my friends. It’s where my husband proposed and it’s where I truly “grew up” or rather, became an adult.

Boston was the perfect stepping stone. Prior to college, I never pictured myself living the city life…in any city for that matter. While being a youngster in the burbs, urban areas just plain intimated me. Sure, I’d enjoy a visit or two, but I never understood how city dwellers actually did it. Probably because it was foreign to me. I had a house, a yard, a car and I didn’t know of anyone who had it any differently.

So, when I began the exciting process of college applications I did not consider a college located in a city. No-sir-eee! I envisioned little coed me studying in New England with ivy cascading up my time-worn dorm and halls. I committed to a university in New Hampshire and quickly realized that this was not what I had wanted at all. Miserable as I was, one good thing did come out of that somber year: my occasional excursions to Boston. I had an epiphany: I enjoyed city life, I could be a part of city life and gosh darn-it I wanted to be a part of city life! I was hooked! I transferred to Northeastern University the following fall and never looked back.

For moi, Boston was a pair of pull-ups and now in New York I’m potty trained. Now, simmer down and don’t get all crazy on me! I’m not saying one is better than the other. I’m just illustrating (quite eloquently) my evolution. These two first-class cities are too often pinpointed against each other. It’s a heated topic (especially during baseball season), but I’ve come to the conclusion that frankly, the two cannot be compared. It’s the old apples to oranges adage, or in this case apples to beans! They have completely different characteristics, atmospheres, and happenings. It’s absolutely a personal preference or as another old adage simply states; it lies in the eyes of the beholder.