I just got back from NYC. Decided to go there just to spend some time with old friends and to show my 11 year old NYC. My sister and her husband also decided to join us. Because I am so used to going there on business, staying 1 or 2 days, never really venturing out except to work, it was great to have a fresh pair of eyes on the place. Here were some things that my group observed/some things that happened:
The Bad:
1. My wife (without heels on) almost broke an ankle while walking no less than 3 times. The streets are so broken up and uneven.
2. There is a level of soot, dirt and waste caked on everything there that is on another level... much higher in concentration than in Chicago. There is a thin layer of soot and dirt just about everywhere and you can smell it. Whether it is from emissions or industrial waste, etc. I am not sure where it comes from exactly but it was palpable to the swell and touch. It can't be healthy to breath this stuff in every day.
3. At the end of our stay my sister coughed up some black flem/fur like black substance that she swears was the result of inhaling the air in NYC.
4. I made the mistake of driving because we spent one day at a friend's house upstate and I wanted the car to be handy. Huge mistake. While driving in Manhattan it literally took 1 hour to go 1 block. Realizing that this was madness, after driving the 1 block in 1 hour, I quickly turned the car in the opposite direction of where I wanted to go, somehow snaked around a few barricades and made my way to the Holland Tunnel and then to our hotel, parked the car and there the car stayed (aside from the brief trip upstate) until the day we left to return home - some 5 days later.
5. In sections, there are so many people there that they all blend in together. It was amazing while at the same time, annoying. They just became a sea. A sea of noise and humanity. My wife who considers herself a bit of a long legged fashionista, was looking forward to the fabled fashion scene of NYC, could not wear her heels because the streets were a health hazard and she pointed out that no'one there was wearing heels and that, to her surprise, it really did not matter what anyone was wearing... because it was so many people bunched together that they all blended in.
6. When crowds get that big, that thick with humanity, it really is no fun.
7. Tourists have completely taken over certain parts of Manhattan - completely. Not small parts either. Big chunks of Manhattan are dominated by tourists.
8. The trash bags piled up on some streets was truly epic. My wife could not believe it and actually snapped pictures. So along with our wonderful pictures of Lady Liberty, Central Park (which was nice, btw), Times Square, the Brooklyn Bridge... we have pictures of trash bags piled up on the street as high as 7/8 feet.
9. To my surprise, my wife, sister and brother-in-law all said that NYC did not
feel as tall as Chicago while walking around the city. I don't know why they felt that way... maybe it is because low rise Mid-Town divides Manhattan into sections, maybe the lack of setbacks, etc. But for whatever reason they said it did not feel it as tall or as imposing as Chicago.
10.The city is too confined, super loud - always loud noise, people move about like hamsters in a cage with a feverish pace that is cool to see and experience for a day or a week but it is not a place any sane person would want to live in -- UNLESS you have big BIG money. Big money can go a long ways towards eliminating the inconveniences average, every day NYC citizens have to deal with.
The Good:
1. Mixed in with the junk, NYC has some masterpieces of architecture.
2. A lot of the new construction leaves a lot to be desired, some completely miss the mark but some of the new buildings going up are going to be pretty amazing. A mixed bag. Many (not all) of the amazing new buildings going up get lost though for whatever reason... whether lost behind other buildings or lost due to lack of height or the setting obscures them, etc.
3. Some of the old buildings and towers there are amazing (which I am sure everyone already knows) but the "setting" of those buildings and towers was a pleasant surprise. For instance in lower Manhattan, as you walk up a slight incline while leaving the 911 Memorial, there is a street there that angles off at a diagonal... on that street lies 2 old towers with copper tops and there is new, taller new build directly behind it to the left of it... Wow!... is all I can say... I was stunned... plain and simple, I loved it. My wife, sister and brother-in-law didn't really notice it - they were looking more at the new World Trade Transportation Hub - which was nice, but really not anything special to me. But that angled street and that setting... while walking on a incline... it just felt like those buildings (probably no taller than 400/500 feet or so) would go right up into the heavens.
4. Pound for pound, there are more top tier, high quality buildings in NYC than Chicago. Most probably already know this. But arguably there are also more crap buildings in NYC than Chicago. NYC definitely has its fair share of junk buildings. And regarding those spectacular towers, on the negative side, you walk out of those buildings to dirty, soot filled streets, trash bags and various strewn pieces of garbage all around and you walk out of those buildings into a virtual rat race. I imagine it kind of kills the joy of being in an ultra lux building.
5. I think NYC probably beats Chicago as far as skyline shots - there is just more of it. But as for walk around feel of the height of the place, our consensus was that Chicago beats NY. Not sure why that is exactly but Chicago just feels taller. Maybe it is because Manhattan is divided in half with low rise Mid-town separating the two skyscraper areas? Maybe it has something to do with setbacks? Just not sure but (at least according to the people with me on this vacation) Chicago just
feels taller for some reason.
6. NYC is the attraction king... they hype up their attractions through the roof. And they build a lot of attractions and tourists lap it up in huge helpings. Chicago is doing well in this area as well... just not sure if we are getting the word out there as well as NYC.
7. Oddly enough, the old cemeteries in Manhattan were pretty cool. They kind of provide of rest spot from all the madness and the look of them provides an interesting juxtaposition.
8. Times Square is all they say it is in terms of set-up and wow factor. However, one thing I easily noticed was the unhappy, angry look on the faces of people as they were leaving Times Square. It is such a sea of mess and humanity that it is not a happy experience. Once is all anyone needs to see of that place and once may be too many... you will miss nothing and save yourself some aggravation by skipping it.
Summary:
Chicago has great pace and can be fast moving as well, but you get a break in Chicago... and there is more
natural balance in Chicago. You see people walking down the street, you see what they are wearing (my wife likes that one
), and you connect with more people in Chicago. You can breathe, breathe the air, and hear yourself think more in Chicago. All in all, it was a good trip... NYC is a great city and is good for a visit... it is nothing like in the movies... a tourist haven, super loud, too thick with wall to wall people, much dirtier, less landscaping, much more trash than you will ever see in any tv show or movie... definitely not all it is cracked up to be... but I still recommend it for a weekend if you are looking for something different. Going there helped us all to appreciate more what a true jewel we have in Chicago - a place we would much rather live in... and a place that has pretty much everything NYC has except for the negatives.