We asked our readers to tell us what they love about the capital city. Concord resident Beth Campbell rose to the challenge - we couldn't have said it better ourselves. Thanks, Beth!

What do I love about Concord? Where do I start?

I love the smell of the air in spring. The whole city smells new, and when the lilacs are in bloom, it's truly heavenly. I love turning onto Route 393 and being greeted by a breathtaking view of hills, trees and more shades of green than I knew existed. I love that I can walk down Main Street alone at 10 p.m. and feel safe.

When summer comes, I love, love, love Market Days and the decisions I must make . . . shall it be Indian food or buffalo burgers? French fried sweet potatoes or fried dough? Do they have that shoe in size 11? Market Days is the only time that it takes my husband and me an hour to get from Pleasant Street to the State House - every few steps we see someone we know and have to stop and chat. At harvest time, I love that it only takes 10 minutes to get from the State House to the best, just-picked sweet corn in the world.

I also love that Concord is the capital of New Hampshire, which, every four years, is the center of the universe - politically speaking. For a political junkie like me, January in Concord is like crack, and the year leading up to it is more fun than . . . than . . . well, nothing is more fun than meeting the next president. Unless, it's meeting the next president four or five times.

Which leads to what I love most about Concord - the people. They are a strange bunch for sure. Birkenstocks with wool socks? But, we are becoming a diverse group and, as each new group of newcomers moves in, the community welcomes them. We have our cranks, too, you don't have to look much further than the Monitor online and check out the comment section.

Overall, Concordians are an involved community. The generosity of the residents is above and beyond what I've seen in other places I've lived. Want to draw a crowd? Have a fundraiser for something. I will never forget sitting in a Concord living room listening to a presidential candidate speak his truth while three generations sat on the floor and gravely paid attention. At that moment, I knew that I belonged here.