Though this had happened before in the countryside, in the cities people were on the move, coming into contact with new room-sharers.

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Perrow, who serves as the ASP surfers' representative and speaks on behalf of the Top 32 ranked men and women, said a move entirely to the cities won't happen on his watch even after New York and San Francisco joined the event calendar last year.

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And he went on to lay out some of the terms that it seems the opposition has laid out -- stop attacks on civilians, move the troops out of the cities, allow humanitarian aid deliveries, et cetera.

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Others disagree, but even those who think there is still a pool of workers on the farm acknowledge that not many of them want to move to the cities, where conditions can be bad and pay low.

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Many in Iraq also are trying to move on, amid the constant fear of suicide attacks in their ruined cities.

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Cities whose public officials have focused on their education and training systems are attractive to growth sector companies on the move.

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Those looking to live on a budget should move to Latin America, which accounts for a quarter of the cheapest 30 cities.

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Trade is booming in the remote province of Xinjiang in China as cities turn their backs on years of isolation and encourage foreign traders to move in.

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