text: Yes people are friendly.\nThe streets are heated in the winter because they are hilly like in San Francisco. It keeps them free of ice and snow.\n\nChristened "The Emerald City", Seattle is known as one of the most livable cities in the world and actually receives less annual rainfall (36 inches) than New York and Atlanta. Surrounded by lakes, rivers, Puget Sound, and mountains, Seattle is a recreation enthusiasts' dream. In the summer, water sports are only 10 minutes away and winter sports, such as snow skiing and snowboarding, are only 45 minutes away.\n\nThe greater Seattle area is home to 2.7 million people. Microsoft, Nordstrom and Starbucks coffee are based here. Seattle is also known as the birthplace of the recent crazes for grunge rock and espresso coffee. This area is the home of baseball's Edgar Martinez, glass art's Dale Chihuly, musicians Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Queensryche, An Nancy Wilson of Heart and Kenny G., software giant Bill Gates, maestro Gerard Schwartz, actor Tom Skerritt, writers Ann Rule, Robert Fulghum, and Tom Robbins.