Seattle

Ever wondered whether caffeine is a viable substitute for sunshine? If so, Seattle is your kind of town. More than any other city in the region, Seattle epitomizes what people know of (and how they feel about) the Pacific Northwest. Even so, it's got a few surprises up its sleeve.

Nevermind that its sunshiny days can be suicidally few - its residents (Chairman Bill, perhaps, excepted) are among the nation's most outgoing and outdoorsy. If you're looking for lifestyle (and who isn't these days?), Seattle has it in spades.

Sure, it had everybody wearing flannel shirts and whistling Nirvana for awhile, but consider also the good things it's given us: you can see the roots of America's microbrewing revolution in the bellies of many a Seattlite, and the city's chilly mornings had the espresso generation brewing long before Starbucks sold its first cup.