Everyone is bound to have an opinion about Time Out magazine’s latest list of the World’s Best Cities revealed this week. It’s rather like the Oscars: how can one film so different from another (“Barbie” or Oppenheimer”) be judged together?
Time Out’s decision to name New York as this year’s World’s Best City will no doubt be disputed, perhaps even more so by provincial Americans less than enamored with their largest, pulsating metropolis.
Time Out sees the Big Apple as “always adapting, always innovating and always pushing the boundaries.” It’s never asleep. It’s fully awake. Time Out says, “There’s always a good party to go to,” and is “the city people wanted to move to most.”
Perhaps less surprising is the inclusion of Mexico City in sixth place on the list. In the not-too-distant past, regarded as a smog-ridden and unfriendly city best avoiding, this country’s capital has shrugged off its negative image, drawing thousands of visitors to its historic monuments and buildings, art spaces, and, as Time Out highlights, its vibrant gastronomic revolution. “From mushroom cultivation at Tencui, Japanese coffee at Panya, and the best brisket at Ahumados Pelican, the dark kitchens of Roma will surprise you, San Miguel Chapultepec’s artsy offerings will captivate you, breakfast in Condesa will be delicious, and an afternoon in Coyoacán will be unforgettable.”
Time Out also noted that Mexico City scored highly for its overall liveability, with 100 percent of locals naming the city beautiful, 96 percent saying they were happy there and 94 percent saying it’s easy to make friends.
Time Out’s Top 10 Best Cities: 1. New York City 2. Cape Town 3. Berlin 4. London 5. Madrid 6. Mexico City 7. Liverpool 8. Tokyo 9. Rome 10. Porto.