I live in a city where there is a lot of “culture.” It’s a pretty big city, for the U.S. Yet the cost of living is very affordable. It probably costs twice as much to own a house in NYC or San Francisco as it does for the same size house here. Our dollars go much further, and we don’t have to sacrifice much. We have fewer 24 hour a day restaurants, and not quite the variety that NYC has, but I actually like that.
I never did anything in NYC because there was too much to choose from. In Philly, it’s easier to choose and easier to get there. In fact, to me this town has a small-town feel with big city amenities. What more could you want? Ok, wild space and mountains and fields and forests are not exactly a city thing.