Tokyo won last year. For a start, Shanghai appears in the top 10 for the first time. Once known as the Paris of the East, for years it bore a distressing resemblance to a vast, filthy construction site. But that has been changing. A newly opened Grand Theater and the fabulous Shanghai Museum enrich the bustle around a rejuvenated People's Square.
Green issues are now high on Shanghai's agenda too.
And that doesn't include the cost of health care. Bangkok Gov. Bhichit Rattakul and his team have made breathing less of a health hazard on the streets of the Thai capital. Banker Yang Hee Ja says it now takes her 40 minutes by bus to get to her office from her home 40 km away, compared with up to 90 minutes before. And commuting will get even easier when two new subway lines are added to the existing 400-km network next year. Mayor Ko Kun acknowledges that in its single-minded pursuit of growth, Seoul has become a mass of concrete.