When I’ve gone to Philadelphia, New York City, Chattanooga, and the District of Columbia, the weather has always determined how I felt my trip went. Large cities are bustling, expeditious metropolises where all types and kinds of culture and energies collide into harmonies of work, creativity, and life. With that being said, they’re a lot to take in all at once. So here is how I felt my experiences changed along the marginal lines of my perception of the cities in their different seasonal climates.

New York in the winter when it wasn’t too cold or windy was pleasant and exciting. The walking didn’t feel too harsh or fatiguing and the city seemed bright and full of life and beauty. We went to more places since the weather was lovely and didn’t have to worry too much about freezing to the sidewalks.

New York in a colder and windier time of winter, however, was not very jovial to me. It felt like everything in the city was cold and damp. Just walking down the street made my teeth chatter and you walk a great distance in cities, so I wasn’t in the best mood when I had to shiver for the many grids of blocks upon blocks.

Philadelphia in the summer was hot and tiring. There are a lot of people strewn throughout the streets in the summertime as well, but besides the occasional sweat, the frenzy of city life in Philadelphia summers is wonderful. The city felt beautiful with the luscious green streets crowding the depths of parks and the atmosphere of the city is always bright in the summer. Walking on the hotter days would make my feet ache, but besides that I still couldn’t complain really because it was nice to get out of the house and watch the life moving and ever-changing around you. (Rocky “The Italian Stallion” Balboa jogging up the famous steps in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art)

Philadelphia in the late fall/ early winter felt dry and chilly. It was still beautiful, but the parks were full of wire trees and empty fountains. The pleasant summer crowd had flown off for the winters and returned to their lives, but the nice part about that is there are less tourists, but sadly the week I was there was the week after Christmas, so there were still some, but not as many in the parks. I liked the slightly more quiet city of the winter for the way it led to more thought, and I enjoyed that. But then it wouldn’t stop raining. Freezing cold rain, and cities when it rains icily, is not fun. Your shoes get wet from walking and the city smells don’t always like the acidity of the rain. Wet socks and walking can really place a damper on your general mood and feeling of a city.

Chattanooga in the summer is hot, hot, hot. Since it is toward the bottom of Tennessee, leaving the house in the summer is tiring and not much fun to be outside in. Chattanooga in the winter is warm (in comparison to up North in the winter) and enjoyable to go for a walk in. It is much more enjoyable, in my opinion, in the winter.

In Washington D.C. it never was as cold as up home in the winter and I enjoyed it. The summer heat of it though was not much fun. As long as I was inside, though, it was fun with the Smithsonian museums, but D.C. is a pretty friendly place weather-wise  year round.