Dhaka has recently been ranked the 2nd least liveable city in the world by The Economist Intelligence Unit (http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/21/us-cities-liveable-idUSTRE71K0NS20110221). Having spent much of the last 14 and a half years there, I beg to disagree. Yes, Dhaka has many problems including rather awful traffic, and no, it does not have a great number of amenities to compensate for its other problems. What it does have are some marvelous neighborhoods, each of which fosters community. In some parts of town almost the only vehicle is rickshaws, pollution-free vehicles with pleasantly jangling bells; some streets are filled with children and youth playing sports and people on foot pedaling wares: true living streets. The fact of so many people in so little space gives rise not just to problems (like bad traffic and lots of noise—for both of which ample solutions exist without reducing density) but also to some great opportunities. The quality of the arts, education, health care, restaurants, and other amenities in a dense city are greater than in a less populated one. I can walk to my office, many shops and restaurants, banks, and a lovely park with a lake, among other places. And then there’s the human museum: the ever-shifting but always lively street scenes that play out. Every day I see a mix of familiar and new faces; people I know and those I fail to recognize greet me. I can watch their interactions and antics. It is endlessly entertaining. Sure, the problems are many, but all the human ingenuity and creativity to solve them is also ever-present. I for one prefer that eclectic, lively mix to a more organized, clean, dull city.