I have lived in Durham for years and can't say enough good about it. Not only is the weather an undeniable plus, but Durham is full of things to do: a wonderful farmer's market, good restaurants (check out www.carpedurham.com), bike trails, and the world's largest documentary film festival, Full Frame, every April. You are just a bus ride away from Chapel Hill/Carrboro. Beyond that it's helpful to have a car, and most places are not particularly accessible without one. If you will have a car the wider area provides a lot of additional things to do-- including wonderful Indian restaurants and a first-run Bollywood theatre in Cary. Durham also has an interesting labor/class/racial history, and is an incredibly rich and diverse community of people working on issues surrounding that history.
...All that being said, I love Boston. Cost of living is higher, but there is so much there and great public transportation. Not only do you not need a car, but you wouldn't want one. Boston is on the smaller size of American cities and is suprisingly compact-- and walkable!-- and it's a really beautiful area (both Cape Cod and Western Mass are feasible day trips). Of course Boston is diverse and full of interesting communities, as well.
I'm not sure this is very helpful because I would happily live in Durham or Boston, but for different reasons.