#9. Live in a small town or in a big city?
People seldom agree with each other even in such trivial issues as preference between a big city and a small town. It's a little bit haste to say that it is better to live in a big city than in a small town, or vice versa.
Living in a big city has several benefits. First, there're more job opportunities readily available in big cities than in a small town. Moreover, not merely are there more job positions in big cities and the qualities of the position are much higher as well. In addition, the pay is more decent. Second, children are supposed to be able to receive an education with a higher quality compared with their counterparts who live in a small town. For families, children's education is always put in the first place. Finally, living in a big city usually has a superior living standard to that in a small town. There are more commodities and services in city markets; there are more public utilities available in big cities; there are even much more television channels in big cities.
However, living in a small town also has some advantages. People who live in a small town often have a much comfortable life style. Most of them do not have to suffer high working stress. Although the average pay is much less than that of big cities, the price of daily necessities, such as vegetables or meat, is usually less expensive. Instead of suffering loneliness which is prevalent in big cities, children might grow up more healthily because of harmonious relationship among residents in small town. People in a small town do not have to get up so early in the morning because there has been no traffic jam, and nobody drive so fast in a small town as to cause car accidents. They might have fewer channels in television, but they have more friends readily available to chat or entertain with.
According to my current situation, although I am longing for the cozy atmosphere and relationship among neighbors and friends which almost only exist in small cities, I have chosen to live in one of the biggest cities in my country—Beijing, since I have found a pretty good job here, and a decent pay. I think I would prefer living in a small town when I get retired one day.
9. 住在小城镇还是大城市？
人们很难达成一致，即使是在更喜欢大城市还是小城镇这样无足轻重的问题上亦如此。要是说生活在大城市里比生活在小城镇里好显得有点武断，反之亦然。
生活在大城市里有几种好处。首先，大城市比小城镇有更多容易得到的工作机会。而且，大城市里不仅工作的岗位多，职位的质量也比小城镇里的高。另外，薪水也更高。第二，与小城镇的儿童相比，大城市的儿童能接受更高质量的教育。对于家庭来说，孩子的教育总是放在第一位的。最后，大城市里比小城市有着更高的生活水平。在大城市的市场里有更多的日用品和服务；还有更多的公共设施以及更多的电视频道。
然而，生活在小城镇里也有好处。生活在小城镇里的人通常会有一种更舒适的生活方式。他们中的大多数人不必受工作压力的折磨。尽管平均工资比大城市里少得多，可是日常必需品，如蔬菜和肉，也要便宜得多。没有大城市里普遍流行的孤独症，孩子们可以更健康地成长，因为小城镇居民之间的关系更融洽。小城镇的居民不需要起那么早，因为没有交通堵塞，也没有人开车快得会导致交通事故。他们能看到的电视频道可能不多，但是他们身边随时可以一起聊天或是娱乐的朋友却更多。
根据我现在的情况，尽管我渴望几乎只存在于小城镇中的温暖舒适的气氛和和睦的邻里朋友关系，我还是选择了生活在我们国家最大的城市之一——北京，因为我在这里找到了一份不错的工作，还有可观的工资。但我想退休之后我还是愿意生活在小城镇中。
- trivial ［ˈtriviəl］ adj. 琐细的，微不足道的
- vice versa 反之亦然
- counterpart ［ˈkauntəpa:t］ n. 对应物
- superior ［səˈpiriə］ adj. 较高的，较好的
- public utility 公用设施
- harmonious ［ha:ˈməuniəs］adj. 和谐的，和睦的
- traffic jam 交通堵塞
- long for 渴望