Dallas

Dallas crackles with the energy of commerce. With its concentration of technology companies, corporate headquarters and wholesale trade markets, the nation's eighth-largest city is a metropolis devoted to business. Residents seem to enjoy spending money with the same passion with which they earn it. The result is a mercantile mecca: The metropolitan area affords shopping opportunities that rival those in New York City. The city of Dallas, along with Fort Worth, its neighbor across the Trinity River, anchors a vast area of north-central Texas known as the "Metroplex." It's a fast-growing region that's become an oasis for entrepreneurs and a fertile ground for young singles and families alike. Dallas itself is a pleasant mix of the Old South and the New Economy. The new urban high-rises are balanced by comfortable family suburbs just minutes away from downtown. People are generally congenial and welcoming, and as with other Texans, Dallasites are proud of their ability to do things "big."