I Heart My City

We want to hear why you heart YOUR city!

It's easy to share the love: Just fill out the questionnaire below (you can copy and paste the list into an email and fill in your answers, along with appropriate links in parentheses) and send your responses to IntelligentTravel@ngs.org, using “I Heart My City” as your subject line.

Feel free to send original photos, videos, digital art, poetry, music – anything that helps show us why you love the place where you live -- along with your responses.

We feature an intro about our I Heart My City guest authors in each post, so please send us a short bio, along with links to your Twitter handle and any personal website or blog you'd like us to share with the world.

We'll be in touch if we'll be running your I Heart on the blog. But in the meantime, scroll down past the questionnaire to check out the "I Heart My City" archives.

**I Heart My City Questionnaire**

______________ is My City

When someone comes to visit me, the first place I take them is ______________.

______________ is the best time to visit my city because ______________.

You can see my city best from ______________.

Locals know to skip ______________ and check out ______________ instead.

______________ is the place to buy authentic, local souvenirs.

In the past, notable people like ______________, ______________, and ______________ have called my city home.

My city’s best museum is ______________ because ______________.

If there’s one thing you should know about getting around my city, it’s ______________.

The best place to spend time outdoors in my city is ______________.

My city really knows how to celebrate ______________ because ______________.

You can tell if someone is from my city if ______________.

For a fancy night out, I ______________.

Just outside my city, you can visit ______________.

My city is known for being ______________, but it’s really ______________.

The best outdoor market in my city is ______________.

______________ is my favorite place to grab breakfast, and ______________ is the spot for late-night eats.

To find out what’s going on at night and on the weekends, read ______________.

My city’s biggest sports event is ______________. Watch it at ______________.

When I’m feeling cash-strapped, I ______________.

To escape the crowds, I ______________.

If my city were a celebrity it’d be ______________ because ______________.

The dish that represents my city best is ______________, and ______________ is my city’s signature drink.

______________ is my favorite building in town because ______________.

The most random thing about my city is ______________.

______________ is the best place to see live music, but if you’re in the mood to dance, check out ______________.

______________ could only happen in my city.

In the spring you should ______________.

In the summer you should ______________.

In the fall you should ______________.

In the winter you should ______________.

If you have kids (or are a kid at heart), you won’t want to miss ______________.

The best book about my city is ______________.

When I think about my city, the song that comes to mind is ______________.

In 140 characters or less, the world should heart my city because _________________________________________________________________.

Avid traveler Clayton Abbey hails from Albuquerque and has lived around the U.S. (including a nine-year stint in NYC) and in southern Mexico. But this husband and father knows where his loyalties lie: “New Mexico is my true love.” Check out a few of his favorite things about Albuquerque, then add your own two cents.

Glasgow native Julia Forrest loves where she lives. “The shopping, nightlife, and the beautiful walkways make this city a great place to live in,” she says. “I couldn’t see myself happier anywhere else!” Here are a few of Julia’s favorite things about Scotland’s largest metropolis.

When travel blogger Kate Voyage isn’t scouring the globe for adventure, this Kiwi turns her attention to the home front. “Christchurch has all the big city conveniences,” she says, “but with fewer traffic jams.” After suffering devastating earthquakes over the past few years, Christchurch is finally on the rebound and it’s easy to see why. Here are a few of Kate’s favorite things about her home town.

As vice chair of the Cambridge Historical Commission, Bruce Irving sees his city as both a hotbed of innovation and a repository of three centuries of history. But after Marathon Monday, everything was put in a new light. Why does Bruce love his city? Because it will always rise again.

Tim Weed may live in Vermont, but his heart belongs to Havana. Having led students and adults on trips to the island nation for more than a decade, Tim has come to feel at home in its dynamic capital. Check out a few of Tim’s favorite things about this striking city, then add your own two cents!

Karla Loncar is part film critic, part lexicographer, but she’s Zagrebian through and through. Born and raised in Croatia’s capital, Karla’s true passion is her city. Whether you’re Balkans-bound or just curious, here’s how to tackle Zagreb like a pro.

Twenty-five-year-old Hanoi native Tranh Ha Nguyen began to realize what she loved about her hometown after spending time abroad. “Hanoi is so youthful and animated,” she says. Now working as a translator, Thanh Ha spends her free time showing visiting friends around the Vietnamese capital. For those of us who can’t personally join her (at least not right now), here are a few of her favorite things about Hanoi.

Born-and-bred Mumbaikar Jasmine Desai is a technology journalist — and, like the subject she covers, her city is constantly changing. Here are a few of her favorite things about the sprawling cityscape she calls home.

Spring is upon us (at least for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere), and we’re embracing it with open arms by highlighting seasonal must-dos from our amazing I Heart My City community.

As a member of the U.S. Coast Guard, traveling is part of the job for Barrett Caldwell. While he spends half the year criss-crossing the globe and soaking up other cultures, he’ll never outgrow his fondness for his hometown, Charleston, South Carolina. Here are a few of his favorite things about this southern charmer.

Karina Vabson is a Tallinn, Estonia native with a thirst for world exploration. So, after living in Spain, Iceland, and Denmark, her home city’s history and architecture called her back to where her journey began. Check out a few of Karina’s favorite things about Tallinn, then add your own two cents.

Matt Endacott was born in Newcastle, Australia exactly one year after a massive trembler triggered the city’s decline. After nearly two decades of post-earthquake stagnation, the city is now bristling with possibility. Here are a few of his favorite things about his hometown.

Lizz Riggs hails from the Southern United States, but there’s no city that stands out to her more than Chicago: “I love the comfort of the food, all of the beautiful and scenic places to run, the welcoming ambiance you can feel in your bones when you step off the plane, and, of course, some of my favorite breweries in America.” Check out her recommendations for the best things to do and see in the Windy City, then add your own.

Martijn Hordijk has lived in Rotterdam for more than three years. In addition to working a job that regularly takes him to Aberdeen, Antwerp, and Paris, he shares insider insight about his home base as a blogger for Spotted by Locals. Here are a few of Martijn’s favorite things about the port city that’s been called “the Gateway to Europe.”

I Heart My City: Kids Edition

It’s time for another special edition of I Heart My City! This time we’re serving up recommendations for the best educational experiences for kids (and kids at heart) in 15 cities around the world from the people who know them best: our ever-inspirational I Heart My City community. They also happen to be fun.

Sofia von Porat is a full-time traveler who shares tips, videos, guides, and inspiration from her adventures abroad on her blog, AsWeTravel.com. Though she’s been all around the globe, something about her hometown keeps calling her back. Here are a few of her favorite things about Gothenburg, Sweden.

Alana Morgan quit her 9-to-5 job in Seattle and moved to Chiang Mai, Thailand to travel and experience the world. Two years later, she’s still living abroad and planning her next move. Here are a few of her favorite things about Bangkok’s “little, nicer, cleaner, smaller, calmer, prettier sister” city.

I Heart My City: Eric’s Budapest

Eric Halsey recently moved from Budapest to Sofia, Bulgaria to round out his degree in Balkan history, but already has made plans to return. He says Budapest is “not a city for a weekend, it’s a city or a lifetime.” Check out a few of Eric’s favorite things about Hungary’s capital city, and see if you agree.

I Heart My City: Laura’s Detroit

Freelance writer and editor Laura Bastian has spent time all over the world — from Hong Kong to Boston — but here are a few of her favorite things about her hometown, Motor City, USA.

When Emily Rasch fell in love with a German exchange student in the U.S., she knew she couldn’t give him up. So, after two years of dating an ocean apart, they decided to move to Munich. That was six years ago. Here are a few of Emily’s favorite things about the city that’s become her second love.

Photographer, writer, and music industry publicist Anne Kristoff says living in Fairbanks, Alaska has made her stronger (“I can now say: 40 below? No problem.”). Here are a few of her favorite things about the “Golden Heart City.”

Longtime expat Persephone Abbott was drawn to Gouda because of its beauty and its location in the Green Heart of Holland. Check out her favorite things about the city made famous by cheese!

After graduating from university in England, life-long pals and country bumpkins Megan Odell and Natalie Fairbrother had only one thing in mind: travel. When a teaching opportunity arose, they kicked off their Wellington boots and headed out to explore the treasures hidden among the high rise buildings of South Korea’s capital city. Check out their recommendations for the best things to see and do in Seoul, then add your own.

Marko Orel has studied abroad in Poland, Italy, and the Czech Republic, but his heart will always belong to Slovenia and its small-but-beautiful capital city, Ljubljana. Check out his guide to making the most of his hometown, then add your two cents.

This week’s dose of local love.