From its awe-inspiring skyscrapers, to its endless art scene, to its perfect pizza, there are tons of great reasons to visit New York City. I should know — I’ve lived here my whole life. But to me, the very best reason to take a trip to NYC is to experience its cultural diversity.
Step onto almost any subway, and you’ll be surrounded by people of different races, religions, and social classes. You’ve probably heard of Little Italy and Chinatown, but did you know you can also visit Little India in Queens, Little Poland in Brooklyn, and Little Ireland in the Bronx? It’s estimated that as many as 800 languages are spoken throughout the city’s five boroughs.
Our restaurants, shops, and museums celebrate ethnicities from around the world. Just the other day, I gave a stranger directions in Albanian, ate Vietnamese food with a friend from Venezuela, and bought jewelry from a French designer.
These are just a few things that make me appreciate being born and raised in New York City, but I want to know what you like most about your hometown! Is there a restaurant you love to take your family to? How about a museum that’s as stunning on the outside as it is on the inside? Or a scenic park where you can take in the Earth’s natural beauty?
Local Guides like you come from exciting places all over the globe. So tell us, what’s the best reason to visit your hometown?
Hi @AriMar , lovely short story about why you love your hometown New York. Quite often we do forget that New York isn’t just Manhattan. For example did u know that in Astoria (Queens) there is part where live a lot of people from my country Serbia ?
For me best part of visiting New York, specifically Manhattan, is the fact that you can discover that he is not flat, but as the name said it is island of many hills (Man- island, hattan-hills).
Realizing that in such a short period of time (less than 200 years), New York has become such a magnificent city in which everything is exceptional is the biggest reason for me to visit this megalopolis!
Family - I’ve been living away from my family since I was in high school. It’s safe to say my main reason to go back to my home town is to visit my parents. I usually go back at the end of the year, and if schedule permits, another trip in the middle of the year. My dad’s birthday is 30th of December so that works perfectly. This year I made an effort to go back as well during my mom’s birthday.
Food - Can’t lie, this is another big reason. I’ve been living outside Indonesia since 1998, but Indonesian food still taste the best. I love Western food, but sometimes they can taste a bit bland. I love spicy food and food with strong flavors
Catch up with old friends - I still keep in touch with my childhood and high school friends. I only see them maybe 1-2 times a year, but whenever I do, there’s no sense awkwardness. That’s when you know you’re truly home and feel welcomed.
Keeping up with current news - Living so far away from home, it’s very easy to isolate myself from news and conditions regarding Indonesia. Whenever I go back home, I always try to talk to as many people as possible. One thing that usually come up ‘When are we going to start a business?’ I really love this kind of mentality.
Relax - It’s nice to just take a break, ignore my work emails, and just chill. Maybe travel to some nearby cities to unwind. Priceless.
Thanks for sharing a bit of you with your hometown. I have never been to NY, so it is a great opportunity to discover.
Hi @user_not_found ,
Thanks for tagging me and also for sharing Uzice. It gives me the chance to know you deeper and to discover even more Serbia ;-).
I am pleased to share with you some more about me. I am coming from a a city call Alençon in Normandy France.
I love going there first of all to see my family and my friends. It is also a beautiful city with historical monuments and a lovely place to relax. Unfortunatly, the photos are not very nice (taken in winter seanson). Here are the town hall, the courthouse and the pedestrian streets.
Ronda is a very unusual city. It is located in a strategic enclave, surrounded by mountains and seated on a ravine about a hundred meters deep, known as the “Tagus”. In addition to height, Ronda also has centuries of history.
The unusual mix of height, nature and history gives Ronda spectacular views, as if it were a photographic scenario. No matter how many visitors there are, it impresses you until you feel out of breath.
THE FOOD IN ROUND IS MADE WITH LOVE, PREPARED BY THE SPANISH GRANDMOTHER YOU NEVER HAD.
Ronda has several first class restaurants, some of which offer the best of Andalusian cuisine. So get ready for an explosion of flavors, although keep in mind that Spanish food is not famous for being spicy, it is rather a combination of sweet and salty.
Ronda also has centuries of history. It was founded by the Celts, to be later built and named by the Romans. The Arabs conquered it in the 7th century, transforming it with its customs and architecture. And the Christians, finally, reconquered it in the fifteenth century by reimplantating their culture and Western values. Every corner, every street and every building has a story to tell, a hidden detail or recognizable influence of times gone by.
The best reason that you need to visit my hometown its the experience! No one city like Panama who give you a cosmopolitan mode to enjoy the travel. You should know gastronomy from all the world; have incredible party all the days including carnival on february; visit a variety of themples in many creeds, and you can visit beaches on the Pacific and the Atlantic at the same day!
It’s close to 1am here in Kuala Lumpur & before going to sleep, as usual I gave a last check in to connect homepage.
And, I can’t resist to write this appreciation comment to all the wonderful people who are sharing the incredibly beautiful hometown stories & pictures
Thanks you @AriMar for opening this thread, I promise to come back & edit my comment with details of my lovely hometown too. For those who don’t know, natively I’m from Karachi, Pakistan
I love my home town because there something you got or available that things are not available in other country. First people smile face , rear food and few products manufacturing and service.also a lots of history in this city Old dhaka
Hello everyone, I love to visit my hometown for these reasons
1. Fresh air: Now you’re already wondering if I don’t get enough fresh air in the city. Well, the truth isis my hometown has greater amount of vegetation, so it’s way cooler!
2. Serenity: Trust me when I say that I leave the city and it’s noise behind to simply have some peace of mind in the quietness of my hometown. I feel closer to nature there.
3. Good food: My best dishes are often the native meals! and I miss them in the city owing to the busy lifestyle
4. Good people: What’s more to life than seeing people who are very loving and welcoming? Family and friends!
Summarily, I visit my hometown to get some peace of mind and stay closer to nature!
P. S.: Because where I come from, people often travel down to the hometown to celebrate Christmas, the hometown becomes a bit rowdy, then I’d just prefer to stay back in the city during those periods. Haha.
@AriMar @ The best reason to visit my hometown is because of the food photos above , my people are also welcoming and love meeting tourists and foreigners.
Hi @AriMar ,You asked most interesting yet complicated question
The simplest answer would be my roots. Bonds between Parents, Siblings, Old school mates …
My Personal story is, i left my home 18 years Old and start to live and adulthood in Mumbai slums …its slow start from scratch …
Now after 17 year now i am live and work Qatar …Lived in 4 countries( Mostly Asian-Singapore ,Malaysia ) before i reach here and worked in 26 countries part work…
So i happened to see many cultures and people and start to appreciate what i had back in home …Most importantly my value …its deep rooted and i struggle to teach my kids …cos they have all luxuaries aorund them …
I hope i did make Over sentimental here …
By the way, my hometown is Kerala , which is southern state of India and possibly most greenish place as well …Tourist tag line for this place is “Gods own country”
I am a Photography enthusiastic hence i want to share some snaps with other LG fellow friends who might not hear of my place yet …
In India you can consider each Indian state as contry vary from Food , Culture , Tradation , and dress code …almost everything ( Mindset too
After I was grown, the staying days were minimised. After the death of my parents, I started living in Kuriachira, Thrissur. And the visiting days have come down. Now it is countable in fingers, in each year.
The best reason to visit Alapad is the wetlands.
Thrissur Kole Wetland surface area is 13640 ha. The vast area of Alapad Wetland is beautiful and charming. This is a paddy field for two times in a year. In the rest of the year, the area will be filled with water. We can hire manually functioning small boats to make leisure trips. There may be higher waves if it rains or starts wind in the middle of wetland. The most attractive season is this. We can see the golden painted sunset conneced to the water of wetland.
We can see the migratory birds after the water has almost gone or at the end of the season of paddy cultivation. They are searching for food. It is also a beautiful sight.
The greenery of paddy field is another attraction. Greenness will be changed according to the growth of paddy plant. You will feel the difference of fragrance in the breeze. At the reaping days, you can watch the golden colour of the grains and straw, changing the complete greenery to golden.
The alluring wetland is the first reason to make my trip to my home village.
Uzice; so u will too!
I really love this kind of mentality.
