Merida in Mexico. It’s not a tourist city, but I was there during a weekend and there were all sort of family events organized at the market, it was really fun and inclusive. We sat down to watch a kids play and got brought into the play as “ghosts” (we’re white) so the kids would run up to us and pretend to be scared (we’d play it up), and at the end everyone gathered around us and thanked us for being sports. The rest of the day was just an immersion in actual Mexican culture and friendliness.

Not what I expected just dropping into the city on the way to see ruins, we stayed an extra couple days just to enjoy it. Maybe it’s gotten more urban and stand-offish, this would have been a decade ago.

When I went to Brussels, Belgium I was shocked to find out there are no fast food restaurants in the entire city, even the airport.

Nice to see them support small businesses.

Seoul. I was barely 18 and got stationed there. I was expecting grass huts and donkey carts based off MASH or other movies I’ve seen.

But I was legitimately shocked. Like you know in movies when someone goes through Tokyo for the first time and they are starting struck, that was me in Seoul.

Paris. I’ve always heard how rude and unfriendly Parisians are towards English speakers but that was not my experience.

Sarajevo in BiH. Fascinating history, great weather and food. Met some lovely people.

People think Buffalo is gritty and cold but it’s so much more than that and actually has amazing food and drink and things to do and shopping and simply spectacular architecture. I’d rather go there than anywhere else in the US anymore. I always have a fantastic time.

Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. In my prejudiced mind, everything east of Germany was still sad, grey, former commie land.
But Ljubljana is one of the nicest cities I’ve been to in Europe.
You could just walk around the canals and at every corner, there’d be a public concert, an open air library with hammocks strung up to lie down and read, a traditional market, an art gallery, etc.

Singapore is a tropical city above ground with an underground city beneath it. Great food, great people, just do not chew gum on the subway.

Amsterdam. I don’t know what I expected, but it was overwhelmingly better in every way than I anticipated. The cycling infrastructure that allowed me to bicycle around was amazing, I felt safe on the road even without a helmet. The public transportation was so convenient and easy, there were some delays, some cancellations, but it was still a highlight of my trip and I was able to use a clean restroom on a public train which blew my mind. The parks are everywhere and beautiful. There are so many “third places” where you can just go and hang out. The shops, the museums, the weed cafes, all top notch. I saw Wu-tang clan and NAS while I was there at the Ziggo-dome, and it was such an amazing experience. Ever since visiting, I’ve wanted to move there.

Hong Kong

I just expected like a flat New York “too tame to be fun” city but was met with mountains, beaches, and so many bizarre but charming events.

Not that I don’t like New York but it has changed a lot. I don’t want to say it lost its personality but I feel like a lot of big cities have become idk… commercialized?

The food in Hong Kong was pretty disappointing tho or maybe I built it up too much in my head. I went to so many restaurants that were recommended to me by either locals or expats and they were all so bland. Which is wild because I didn’t have to go far across the border into China to find amazing dishes.

The whole of Spain. I grew up with a lot of people who loved Europe but had never been to it or really anywhere else. Spain for some reason got a lot of love and attention in my social circles but I didn’t engage with it meaningfully so I didn’t understand it. I started my international travels in “the east” and had a wonderful time. By the time I visited Spain I expected a normal travel experience but definitely not the elevated grandeur my highschool years would have had me believe. I had average expectations.

Then I got there and every meal was bomb. Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona - I couldn’t go wrong I loved the local food. Worse, I loved at least Madrid and Barcelona’s ability to recreate other cuisines too. Some of the best sushi I’ve ever had was in Madrid and I make a point of getting quality sushi where ever I go (including practically gorging myself into a food coma in Japan).

Then I went to an art museum and it moved me, found some artisanal stores, got fresh orange juice at multiple grocers, saw a movie in a decent theater, you know the normal like “show me what it’s like to live uniquely here” stuff. Ya, Madrid stole my heart for what it was and Spain as a whole surprised me.

San Diego, I was expecting a fishy/port city smell and it had none of that.

I went to Phoenix, AZ, completely expecting sand dunes, because it’s a desert. It was then I learned there are different types of desert.

San Antonio. I was going to visit family and honestly was dreading it, but the downtown core is surprisingly pleasant. Extremely walkable, semi easy to get around, and the river walk is honestly pretty nice. (Not nice nice, I’d say it’s like a Vegas lite, everything is a little garish, but not too much).

Getting outside of SA was annoying though, car centric hellhole, endless sprawl, no way to get around. But - downtown is nice.

Fyi going as a tourist is completely different than living in these places. The initial beauty you see in most places quickly fades away by your bills and other responsibilities plus some annoying problem in the city you didn’t noticed until you decided to live there.