Subway Series

Hundreds of couples were seen celebrating their love as I walked passed the extravagant Italian restaurants throughout the North End on the eve of Valentine's Day. Whether one considers such a scene nauseating or uplifting, there is no doubt that Boston is a great place to spark a romance. Although every major city is filled with romantics, Boston happens to be a "college town." If you take a large population of single youths and pour them into a metropolis, the odds of a match being made are heavily increased. But just because a potential match is formed, does not mean that a permanent relationship has been divinely granted unto the two lovers—a relationship requires effort, love, and all that mumbo jumbo. But most importantly, it calls for a romantic setting.

A relationship is, in fact, like its own motion picture. A successful film never fails to have a dedicated cast, an engaging storyline, and an alluring setting. The question of which city is the best setting for brewing romance is a complicated one. New York City provides the pizzazz needed to add the element of unpredictability, and Boston offers a unique serenity and tradition that builds the core foundation of a relationship's longevity.

New York City is in itself a hub of acceptance and diversity, which alleviates the societal pressures a traditional city like Boston imposes on a couple in love. There are many popular locations in New York that contribute to its status as a city of romance—Central Park, the ice skating rink at Rockefeller Center, the several botanical gardens, and for those with big wallets, Tiffany's. And then there are the everyday, non-touristy locations, like the local Whole Foods, where you never know who you might stumble upon and connect with.

The fast-paced New York lifestyle also contributes to its reputation, for the good and the bad. A large percentage of the city's population is made up of working men and women who excel in their professional fields and may not be looking to enter a serious relationship. Many consider New York City to be a temporary home as they nurse their careers to new heights. Supposedly, there are 200,000 more single men than single women in the Big Apple, further fueling the male's ego as the dominant "chooser." The fast life embodies itself in relationships, as they are prone to kicking off immediately but ending up as a fleeting fling. After all, there is a reason why the hit comedy-drama was coined Sex and the City. Many New Yorkers have developed a habit of using each other to get what they want, especially in relationships.

And then we have Boston—the city that attracts all those who want to settle down and depart the hectic lives they once led. With the Common, public gardens, and Charles River, Boston provides its citizens with the most natural romantic settings. I cannot say that the most exciting and adventurous relationships are formed in Boston, but the ones that do last have a nostalgic, fairytale-like quality about them.

In recent years, the city of Boston has been the leader of "technological romance." Facebook, originally set up as a dating scene for college students, has its roots in Boston, along with other rising dating websites. Dating is becoming more complicated nowadays, especially with the rise of the Internet. Recently, two Harvard graduates set up a site called coffeemeetsbagel.com. Its users receive a match every day at noon, and if they dare go on a date, they are showered with complimentary gifts. I am not sure if it is fair to generalize and say that one city is a better romance setting than the other, but it is important to highlight that in the end the Harvard grads did not launch their website services in Boston, but in New York.