I spent a month in downtown major city this summer and I loved it. I could walk to work, walk my kids to summer camp, we all took the subway and walked sometimes back home. They loved it, and I loved it, despite being on a crowded subway or street car. Just the sheer human interaction and people watching made it so much more enjoyable than spending our time in a car isolated from the rest of the world. Yes, I wasn't accustomed to the noise and the ambulance and police sirens, but overall it was amazing and will try to do it next summer as well.