4 ms·

We never had these problems before the disneyfication of Manhattan. This city wasn't designed to be a tourist destination. Manhattan was already over burdened b

We never had these problems before the disneyfication of Manhattan. This city wasn't designed to be a tourist destination. Manhattan was already over burdened by sucking in most of the other boroughs' residents and the bridge and tunnel crown in for work. Add to that the hordes (literally) of tourists who walk around as if this working city is a park or a shopping mall and you get what we have now. [p.s. For years I heard the old saw about "loving Paris and hating the French" and wondered as a (yep) tourist why do the Parisians hate us so much? :) Since the past decade I have nothing but sympathy for Londoners and Parisians. Now I get it.]

bogomipz 10y ago
Oh please, Manhattan has always been a tourist destination. That is not new. The Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, Grand Central, The Statue of Liberty, Central Park, 5th Ave, Rock Center. The high concentration of tourist sites predates the "Disney-fication" of Times Square which was too seedy for many years to be a tourist destination. That old trope about French hating Americans is a bad stereotype. As a long time visitor I can tell you this is simply not true. People in London, Paris and New York get annoyed by inconsiderate people whether they be local inconsiderate people or inconsiderate people from abroad. And there is no shortage of inconsiderate residents in any of those places.
- eternalban 10y ago
  > The Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, Grand Central, The Statue of Liberty, Central Park, 5th Ave, Rock Center. Exactly. Designated tourist areas. The rest of the island was ours.
JBReefer 10y ago
That's funny, I thought I would hate Parisians, but they were incredibly kind and warm. You just have to talk to them the way you speak to New Yorkers: to the point, and about the city or food. New Yorkers have the same reputation for the same reasons: we're busy and you're the 500th person to ask me how to get to Times Square. If you ask me about the best place to get food in Flushing or how the subway was built? Love to help out. Parisians seem the same. I guess that's your point about tourists, but they just need to be more respectful I guess.
- baybal2 10y ago
  It does not seem dense to me. Just a great lack or rationality in city management. There are downtowns around the world that are denser than lower Manhattan, but are still better.
pyrale 10y ago
> This city wasn't designed to be a tourist destination. No city was. The problem is, everyone still wants vacations.

bogomipz 10y ago

Oh please, Manhattan has always been a tourist destination. That is not new. The Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, Grand Central, The Statue of Liberty, Central Park, 5th Ave, Rock Center. The high concentration of tourist sites predates the "Disney-fication" of Times Square which was too seedy for many years to be a tourist destination. That old trope about French hating Americans is a bad stereotype. As a long time visitor I can tell you this is simply not true. People in London, Paris and New York get annoyed by inconsiderate people whether they be local inconsiderate people or inconsiderate people from abroad. And there is no shortage of inconsiderate residents in any of those places.

eternalban 10y ago
> The Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, Grand Central, The Statue of Liberty, Central Park, 5th Ave, Rock Center. Exactly. Designated tourist areas. The rest of the island was ours.

JBReefer 10y ago

That's funny, I thought I would hate Parisians, but they were incredibly kind and warm. You just have to talk to them the way you speak to New Yorkers: to the point, and about the city or food. New Yorkers have the same reputation for the same reasons: we're busy and you're the 500th person to ask me how to get to Times Square. If you ask me about the best place to get food in Flushing or how the subway was built? Love to help out. Parisians seem the same. I guess that's your point about tourists, but they just need to be more respectful I guess.

baybal2 10y ago
It does not seem dense to me. Just a great lack or rationality in city management. There are downtowns around the world that are denser than lower Manhattan, but are still better.

pyrale 10y ago

> This city wasn't designed to be a tourist destination. No city was. The problem is, everyone still wants vacations.