Top 5 City Ranking (according to me)

The other day I decided to check out this years Mercer's city ranking for quality of living worldwide. Not surprisingly, Switzerland has 3 cities in the Top 10 (Bern, Zurich and Geneva). I'm sure it's high quality of life in many senses: low criminality, clean streets, efficient transport service (all this thanks to all the taxes we pay) as well as a good salary (which, at least in my case, decreases significantly after-taxes), good bread and cheese and a lot of leisure activities (all these hiking tracks, ski resorts, lakes... definitely make themselves useful).

If considering these points, I should be delighted to be living in Switzerland. And partly I am - even if I don't say that too often. The fact is: Switzerland is awesome to live in - specially when you're married and have kids. But when you are a young single expat, things might get complicated. It's really difficult to meet swiss people (generally, they are a quite closed folk), and the country is not specially recognized for its party-lust (there are some exceptions thou).

So, since I don't really agree 100% with Mercer's list (we have different qualities we value in a City) I decided to post my own ranking in which the quality of life is mainly driven by the openness and friendliness of its people, the quality and variety of food and drinks (being this, restaurants, pubs and bars), the affordability of goods and services and, of course, my own experience.

5. Hong Kong

Great city! 24-hours activity and you will find a party every day (although for non-asians its rather reduced to Lan Kwai Fon area). Restaurants offer food 24:7 and chinese are quite friendly to foreigners - I must have so many pictures with cooks and waitresses! Although you can find different types of restaurant, most of it is classic chinese which, by the way, has nothing to do with the greasy chinese food we know in Europe! Transport is cheap but the rent is very expensive - so you better find a well-paid job to compensate! Besides from the 24:7 attitude of this city, I liked the fact that, after just half an hour drive you can be at a nice beach, and with only a one hour ferry you get to Macau (an asian version of Vegas!). Its flaws? Probably the language (although I must say, cab drivers are really used to foreigners and the way they pronounce chinese street names), the weather and the extremely high pollution.

4. Madrid

It's been said that it's one of the best places to party, probably because of its huge variety on bars and its party hours - it's absolutely normal to go into late hours on a normal basis. Spanish food is great too (ok, that's me speaking, so you might disagree on this), but I do have to admit that the city is still missing variety - it has to catch up on that. However, there's something Madrid has that other big cities envy: it's underground! It's cheap, reliable, works until quite late and will take you anywhere. Probably what I most like about this city is its culture of tapas and siesta (there's too much of Spain in me). This definitely raises life standards, even if you have to deal with low salaries and extremely hot and dry summers.

3. London

I was surprised not to see London among the best cities to live and it really got me wondering if I'm being objective here - probably not. Unaffordable apartments (if you want to live in Zone 1), expensive (and unreliable) public transport, rainy days, pollution... Yeah, seen like this, it doesn't look good at all. But London has something that attracts me: it's perfect for being single. There are infinite possibilities to meet people, bars are packed with happy-hour frequenters every afternoon and you'll always find exactly the type of cuisine your stomach is asking for (there's even a restaurant offering food from Seychelles...).

2. Sydney

I don't know much of Sydney, as I only spent 5 days there (so please correct me if I got wrong impressions), but it seemed to me as a great city to live in. The climate, the sea, the beaches, the parks.. makes it a great place to be all year round. Going out was fun and also very rich in variety. I specially enjoyed its bohemian area - with late-night art expositions, modern stylish people sipping champagne and awesome little shops selling Sydney-styled outfits (which I love, by the way). However, I do think its a city in which you need to earn good money - I heard apartments are extremely expensive and public transport isn't cheap neither, besides from the fact that alcohol is ridiculously over-priced. I guess that, when living in Sydney, you have a healthier life and probably you also get a good salary - The big deal is only to get the right work permit.

1. Buenos Aires

Surprised about my number 1 in the list? I think Buenos Aires wasn't even considered for Mercer's ranking! Buenos Aires is beautiful and people are friendly, talkative and open (I love their accent, btw. its so sexy...). Never before had I seen so cheap drinks - in Palermo Soho there are bohemian bars offered gin tonics for what would equal 2€ a glass. And what to say about its wine, steaks and sweets! Besides from its national food, the variety on foreign cuisine restaurants is also broad enough to satisfy anyone's crave. It's a city full of entrepreneurs, dreamers, artists of all kind and people taking their chances. As happens with most of LatAm countries, its population is well onto the economic and political history and the present situation, and enjoy open discussions about any current issue. To highlight probable its main flaws I would mention the high crime rate (although I felt safe everywhere except in La Boca when I was caught up in the middle of a gang street fight) as well as its still unstable economy. I just hope it improves soon, 'cause I promised myself Buenos Aires as possible next destination (to live).

Which cities would you rank in your top list?