People around the country who compare cities tend to like Albuquerque. Five new reports are summarized here. These observations indicate a bright future for the metro. All appeared this year. Nationally, readers of these reports will take a closer look at our city. Meanwhile those of us with the good fortune of already living in Albuquerque may find a new treasure.

Men’s Health gave Albuquerque an A minus for residents’ overall health. Only four of the 100 cities reviewed did better. The report, in the May 2010 issue, says, “We calculated the percentage of people who are overweight, the percentage with Type 2 Diabetes, the percentage who haven’t left the couch in a month; the money spent on junk food; and finally, the number of people who ate fast food nine or more times in a month.”

Overall Ranking: 95th of 100. (The lower the rank the better.) ??Overweight: 94th.? Obese: 75th. ?Type 2 Diabetes: 85th.? No Physical Activity: 75th.? Fast-Food Visits: 61st. See www.menshealth.com/mhlists.

“Gourmands can find some undiscovered gems” in smaller cities, reports a surprised sounding Livability.com in the April 2010 issue. Albuquerque, already considered one of America’s Best Places to Live by Livability.com’s editors, came in seventh of the “10 most surprisingly vibrant cities for foodies to flex their taste buds.” Albuquerque’s dining scene marries “traditional New Mexican cuisine with an independent spirit and hunger for diversity.”

Not only do national observers like Albuquerque, it is relatively inexpensive for them to get here. The March 29 issue of Business Travel News (www.nxtbook.com) offers the 2010 Corporate Travel Index. The report averages hotel rates, car rental rates and food costs for 100 cities. There are 13 cities less expensive than Albuquerque and 86 more expensive. Albuquerque ranks between Salt Lake City and Corpus Christi, Texas. The business traveler spends $11.88 for an Albuquerque breakfast, $19.65 for lunch and $42.23 for dinner. The daily total is $84.82.

Albuquerque places 17th among the nation’s top 50 bike friendly cities, says Bicycling Magazine, (www.bicycling.com). The report considers cities with a population of more than 100,000. Essentials include segregated bike lanes, municipal bike racks and bike boulevards. To make the list, “a city must also support a vibrant and diverse bike culture, and it must have smart, savvy bike shops.”

Albuquerque is the best city in which to be an independent movie maker, says MovieMaker magazine (www.moviemaker.com) in the Winter 2010 issue. “Movie making can happen anywhere—as long as there are creative artists willing to make a go of it and a community of supporters happy to nurture their talents,” MovieMaker says.