Some people seem to have a hard time accepting the fact that all cities are unique in their own ways. A quick internet search will reveal quite a few online commenters engaged in long, fiery discussions about cities that are supposedly similar to each other. Toronto is often mentioned in these discussions, and sometimes the proposed similarities of Toronto to other cities tend to undermine its uniqueness as a city. But we all know Toronto is one-of-a-kind. Here are 7 Alpha cities around the world that are too frequently compared to Toronto, along with a few individual opinions on what makes each of them similar to it: "When I first went there [Chicago], I couldn't get over some of the similarities. The tall buildings, cool baseball stadiums, lakefront location and similar people and climates are all areas of commonality. I found the food pretty similar; Toronto may have a slight edge with ethnic food, though it has nothing like Alinea. Even the cultural offerings (Aquarium, art museums, sports) are similar." - Maldwyn Jenkins, Online Commenter "The two look similar from above:A dense urban core surrounded by a spider web of suburban dwellers. The official city populations are roughly equal, but when you take into account the surrounding suburbs — theirs, Chicagoland, and ours, Greater Toronto Area — Chicago’s population is 9.7 million compared with 5.5 million in the GTA." - Tim Alamenciakfor The Star "In terms of diversity, London is a close comparison ... In terms of medicine and hospital facilities, it compares to any city with a large number of teaching hospitals. I think it compares to Boston, or London." - Rick Harris, Torontonian "London can be very similar to Toronto sometimes, while other times you just don’t know what’s going on." - Chris McHughfor SWAP UK "Climatically, Toronto in October is the same as London from September to June." - Evan Saskin, Architect Photo cred - omnihotels.com "Toronto is New York, run by the Swiss." - Peter Ustinov, Writer "Toronto is often compared to New York because it's the largest city in Canada and because it's known for its corporate headquarters." - Robynator, Online Commenter "Well, I was only in Toronto briefly, but I was immediately struck by it's resemblance to New York City. It felt huge the way that only New York has felt to me... Toronto feels like a big city. I've only been there once - and that in passing - but it so reminded me of New York City - with it's canyons of glass and steel. It felt enormous, vibrant, hustling and alive. I live in Seattle - which is not exactly small - and Toronto made Seattle feel absolutely puny." - Lord Balfor, Online Commenter "Melbourne, Australia has a very similar feel in terms of neighbourhoods, culture, and energy. It may explain why most Australians you meet in Toronto seem to hail from that particular city." - Connie Tsang, Toronto Photographer "It is said that Melbourne is Toronto's precise equal for world cities. The difference is that Melbourne aims to progress and improve, and, because of this, is now leaving Toronto behind. It's not just about Melbourne-Toronto, but Australia in general has more of a want for progressing and also being all about Australia and its citizens." - NativeTorontonianAI, Online Commenter "Having visited both Montreal and Toronto, I still believe that Melbourne is a better fit with Toronto. Population figures aside, the tram system is very similar to Melbourne and even the look and feel of the place gave me a familiar sense." - Melbourneguy, Online Commenter "In terms of sports, and fan loyalty, we compare to Boston." - Rick Harris, Torontonian On similarities: "Compact downtown, but multiple 'clusters' of tall buildings and satellite centers; main shopping arteries in small-scale buildings often converted from domestic use; quiet, leafy neighborhoods directly adjacent to or within blocks of major avenues; schools and universities as a fundamental part of the urban core and its fabric overall... ...An initial impression of suburban sobriety and quiet conservatism that yields distinctly subversive elements upon closer inspection; a much-used and iconic subway system that frankly could use a bit of work; a notion of somehow being 'British' or 'European' in flavor compared with most other American cities, yet is actually fairly unique." - Ladies Mile, Online Commenter "Auckland’s Sky Tower (completed 1997) comes very close to the CN Tower’s (built 1975) design. There are many similarities but the CN tower holds the record for being the World’s Tallest Freestanding Structure on Land by the World Federation of Great Towers at 553 meters (1,815 feet and 5 inches). The Auckland Sky Tower ranks 12th at 328 meters." - William for meltingPOT "Having visited Auckland I can tell you it’s a lot like Toronto (where I live). It’s a wonderful city to live in but not very exciting to visit." - Ayngelina, Online Commenter "Some similarities [Toronto has] with Auckland included rising immigration, strong jobs growth and a population which envisaged no end to price rises during the boom." - Anne Gibson for the NZ Herald "Toronto most reminds me of Philadelphia ... Similar amounts and quality of arts and culture; similar crippling inferiority complex due to constant self-comparisons with NYC; similar bustling, compact, mixed-use downtown cores (in fairness, Toronto's is about twice the size of Philly's); similar inadequate and underfunded transit systems; similar rundown 19th-century housing stock that gives the cities their distinct look; similar world-class universities just outside the central core (Penn/UofT). Outside downtown both Toronto and Philly sprawl forever over essentially flat landscapes." - CS2000, Online Commenter "Philadelphia has a lot of elements of Queen St." - Brent Thomas, Entrepreneur "Toronto shares more similarity with Philadephia than with New York to be honest." - Boticelli, Online Commenter The people have spoken. And while there may be some nuggets of truth in their statements, Toronto is still one-of-a-kind in the end! What's your verdict? Leave a comment below! Follow us on Snapchat:narcitytoronto
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As far as being insecure in Downtown Boston that is actually quite laughable. You must be a nervous person in general. Please look at the homicide map for Boston from this year (2009 murders in Boston - Boston.com) 1 total murder downtown (Back Bay) and that was the notorious "Craigslist" killer case that happened to a prostitute in an upscale hotel room. Hardly random. 37 total murders this year in a metro area with 4.5million people, hardly a war zone!
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With that debt being factored in you will obviously have a lower net worth, this still does not argue the fact that in a comparable US city to Toronto you will earn more. So if you are responsible with your money and relocate to the US for job reasons you are way ahead of where you were in Canada, my wife and I are living proof. Page 3
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OP: We do have a much better social safety net here, but that comes hand-in-hand with excessive taxes. There is a 13% HST on nearly everything you buy in Ontario, and liquor and cigarettes are very expensive ($35-$40 for 25 bottles of beer, $10-$12 for 25 cigarettes). Gasoline is priced around $1.30 a litre right now, and housing will vary considerably depending on where you decide to live. As for differences between Canadian and American culture, there really is very little. We share a common history, eat the same foods, watch the same shows, listen to the same music, drive the same cars, wear the same clothes, celebrate the same holidays (albeit with slight regional differences), follow the same sports, enjoy the same movies, and read the same books. I have often wondered what it is that some Canadians vehemently argue is so much different between us and our American cousins. FWIW, I have spent a great deal of time travelling throughout both countries and find the core culture basically the same everywhere. Page 8
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In the shared culture part, you forgot to specify that we watch same American shows, eat the same American food (McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's etc), enjoy same American movies, read the same American books, drive the same American/Japanese cars (there are no such thing as Canadian cars); wear the same American clothes (Gap, Banana republic, Guess, Levi's, Victoria's secret etc). You talk as if Canada provides a lot of contents to the US as well, which is misleading. Page 9
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