Following my previous post, these are some of the things I didn’t like in NYC:
- It looks dirtier.
- The subway: it’s quite cheap to get around, but it’s too hot, you have to wait infinities for the next train, it looks dirty and there are almost no escalators (try changing stations with 2 or 3 bags of luggage).
- Arriving at JFK and getting on the subway: the signs are poor, it’s ugly, and it looks a bit deserted – I was expecting something very welcoming and grand, and all I got was a boring subway station, with a couple of people waiting around—I had doubts I was in NYC at first. London does it better.
- People don’t read on the subway: this is not a bad thing, but it’s one of the things that I like in London, and you don’t see it happening in NYC.
- Tipping: I don’t get the concept of compulsory tipping. Just add the gratuity to the bill, because tipping a bad service is just plain wrong.
- You’re all alone: you’re in a tiny island with millions of people around you, and you feel like it’s just you, the others don’t matter to you and you don’t matter to them. I suppose because it feels bigger than London, that sensation is more overwhelming in NYC.
- Baseball: loved having gone to a game, loved to watch how it all works, but it’s just not my game.
- The weather: I like it cold, and don’t love hot Summers. When I was in New York it rained a bit, but it was quite humid and hot. Not for me.
- It’s not pretty. There are a lot of amazing buildings, but it’s not beautiful.
- Did I mention tipping?
The verdict?
I liked New York.
Confession: it wasn’t what I expected. My expectations were (too) high and I was a bit disappointed: New York felt like an assortment of skyscrapers with millions of people living in it.
Truth: I could have experienced the city more, and I plan on going back and do a less touristy visit, and I still want to go there for Christmas someday, but New York dropped many positions in my list of future holidays.
I was afraid I was going to immediately want to move there and love London a bit less, but I ended up coming back to (still) my favourite city in the world: beautiful London.
We can’t all like the same things, right?
Next stop: Paris!
5 replies on “London vs New York – Part 2”
You forgot that in the NYC subway if you enter one platform for the wrong direction in most stations there’s no way for you to move over to the other one. You either have to exit the station and lose your ticket or change at one of the few stations that let you do that. BTW I liked NYC better than London.
I’m sorry to say that Yaili, but I strongly disagree with you. Tipping is something really awesome, it insures you against bad quality of service since servers know they have to do their best to get a tip. Really. In France (because it’s the best example I can give) we don’t tip (I mean, if you are very very very happy, you still can tip), and we have absolutely no serious servers except in fancy restaurants. Most of servers in my country don’t care about you, are unhappy and not really polite, which is a shame. In the US they know that if they don’t do their job well, they won’t be paid, so the service is (quite) always great.
Oh, one thing I forgot one thing yesterday: The subway directions are written in Helvetica. That’s the killer thing 🙂
I think that you should always be nice to your clients. I am, and I’m not expecting any tips.
I’m all for tipping if the service was truly great, not because I have to even when the service is bad, and that’s what happens in NY, and that’s what I don’t like.
I understand that a lot of waiters only get the minimum wage when their tips are added up, so it’s not their fault, but I shouldn’t have to pay if I they were rude, and it happens.
And yes, Helvetica is nice, but I still prefer Johnston 😉
you have to visit new york during Xmas! its just like what you see in the movies.
i live in malaysia now. i miss the US. I don’t miss london – londoners are rather cold bunch.
visit malaysia sometime but you might not like the heat & humidity. you might like the food. there’s always Nando’s here!