@dazzle

Chiang Mai has had a deep Buddhist influence running over the last 1,000 years and this can be felt in the helpfulness, patience and generosity of the Thai and long-term transplants you come across. The city has an active community scene (nomads, spiritual seekers, hikers, creatives), several mountains with hiking spots and waterfalls surrounding the city, over 20 water bodies inside the city -- many have cafes and walks around, several public parks, and over 13 national parks with campgrounds w

One of the best cities in Europe. Though location makes a big difference in Istanbul. Besikatas, Nişantaşı, and Karakoy are parts that I enjoyed. They are safe and have nice vibe and energy. Big city, but not too hectic. I've met a lot of friendly Turkish people there and had good conversations. The food is good and relatively cheap. Outside of the good areas you will find lots of scams, people will try you everyday. Though its not violent, you can always just walk away.

It is something important to mention that if you rent a villa longer term, say 1-2 years, the maintenance will be at your expense. By that I mean if you have mold, it's on you to fix it, if your kitchen cabinets fall apart, it's on you, if termites damage the structure of your house, it's on you, if it floods and submerges your living room, it's on you. You either fix it and pay yourself or you move and do not get your rent back. The landlords will never ever pay for any renovations, any repair

7 years ago Lisbon was amazing. Since it became trendy lost what made it unique. I will return when the hype is gone!

Lived in Prague for 8 years. It's a beautiful international European city. Never learned Czech, but was fine. Almost all cafes and restaurants have English menus. Superb food delivery apps (Wolt is the best). All the food you can imagine. Vietnamese food is world-class because of the huge Vietnamese population. If you want hipster bars and cafes, there's plenty of that. If you want old-world-charm there's plenty of that. If you want posh luxury there's some of Europes best restaurants and cockta

Very nice city, but as everyone says, a bit boring after awhile. It's comfortable and feels like the suburbs, with conveniences that you don't always find in SE Asian countries. Luxury shopping malls, excellent hospitals, and infrastructure, are all things that are not as common in other SE Asian countries, (although Bangkok, TH, has good malls and hospitals). KLCC is safe, from a solo female traveler, if you're careful. I stayed in the KLCC area and was advised by other KL nomads, to stay ins

Tokyo has so much to offer and so much to do. It is easily overwhelming. Whereas I usually take my first week to explore a place Tokyo’s sights just kept on going. I remember ending up in a hidden cocktail bar, a mexican rooftop party with 1 meter margaritas, spending a whole day going only to French places(?), visiting a store that only imported 2nd hand hiphop apparel, and throughout it all the best michelin star ramen. It just seemed endless, completely unrelated and incredibly fun. Six wee

I stayed in Poblenou, which is a really chill upcoming area outside of the tourism of Barcelona. Really enjoyed it. Very tranquil. People were relatively friendly compared to most in Europe and there was lots of nice food and coffee places. Also pretty okay gyms. Really enjoyed Barcelona this time! Just make sure you stay outside the tourist areas.

7 years ago Lisbon was amazing. Since it became trendy lost what made it unique. I will return when the hype is gone!

Super safe city, many things to do, good restaurants. Nightlife is great (especially Boho Bar) but it's not for everyone as locals like to stick to tables and don't socialize much. The city is very walkable.

Pros: Friendly people, safe, stable government, efficient and fast public transportation, established foreigner (gaijin) population due many English teachers, many great food options, many festivals (cherry blossom fest), onsens! Cons: Expensive, work til you die at your desk mentality, drunken businessman culture, groping on packed public transit, lack of mental health services so be cautious around the destitute, over sexualization of underage females, high risk if caught with illegal substan