Small Towns? Big Cities?

Back in Taipei, I was more accustomed to living in big cities (of course, it's much more convenient.). But now, after living in the United States for more than 6 months, I like countryside much more than big cities.
Monterey, a small town where you can see people you know every 5 steps. You can rely on your own feet or buses to go almost everywhere in this town (going shopping is another story, though.). Basically, if you are not an outgoing person who absolutely needs to go out every week, I mean really being really out of the town, you don't need a car. How about Redwood City? Well, it's even more convenient. Caltrain or buses are all right at the corner. Living at these two quiet, small town, it's pretty much living like living in the countryside. You can hardly hear anyone after 9:00 in the nighttime. During New Year, Redwood City is more like a dead town, no one was walking on the roads. No restaurants or movie theaters opened during the holiday. Well, it's not the United States that I could think of before I come here.
San Francisco? Of course, the biggest city nearby. A busy city like this should be one of my favorite places. Yet, somehow, I don't like it. It's too crowded, just like Taipei, even worse. The traffic is terrible. The cable cars are exotic and interesting, but they are, in some way, annoying, especially when you yourself are driving on the road and you have to get used to the bumping tracks on the road. But San Francisco has its beauty to some extent. It is different from Taipei.
If you ask me which I like better, big cities or small towns, I would say small towns if I have to drive myself. Well, I don't hate driving. It's just making me uneasy, especially after I've got used to big spaces in small towns.