sundries: cities edition

[rm]

I am so unprepared for class today it's not even funny. Luckily, this class is inadvertently a bit about "how to talk out of your ass about how clever you are" which I am very good at.

Realistically, I'll do the round-up of character death panel responses tomorrow.

Looking your friends up on Wikipedia is weird. I HAD NO IDEA.

Vatican City hit by gay prostitution scandal.

Someone linked me to this video of a day in the life of NYC in miniature. kathrynrose mentioned when she linked to it that she always imagined New York to be dirty and uncomfortable. It's really not.

The thing about New York, is we can't hide things because there just isn't enough space: you'll see garbage bags piled up high on the curbs and poverty even in the wealthiest areas. But it doesn't smell bad; it's not grimy; the light is really like that.

The other thing about New York is that it's feels like a 19th-century city (if you live on the West Coast, you live in the land of 20th-century cities, and it's different), so when it rains it can be very grim and in the winter the cold can feel like a personal affront. But we've also been building buildings to reflect light and parks to ease the people for ages. We know what we're doing, and we know how to do it and we do it well all in the shadow of a variety of cruelly gilded ages. People are always surprised by how many trees there are here.

New York also isn't dangerous; it's the safest big city in America. And the people aren't rude. And it isn't child abuse to raise a kid here. And yes it's expensive and difficult, but it's easier to find a place here than in Boston or San Francisco, I hear, and the cost of living is certainly cheaper than in Zurich or London.

This is my home. I'm a New Yorker before I'm a citizen of anything else. When I was in Australia, people said I must be arrogant because I'm an American. "No," I said, when I wasn't complaining about their tall poppy syndrome (they are so cruel to their successes), "it's New York. You've got to be as big as it to stick it out sometimes."

That's the NYC PSA. I know kathrynrose didn't say many of the things I've addressed here. But I hear it ALL THE TIME. I didn't really grow up in America, because I grew up here. I am vastly ignorant of what life is like for most people in most of the country -- I know nothing of the life of houses and high schools with campuses and I find suburban supermarkets really REALLY interesting. But this is a good place too. It would have to be, for people to want to tear it down so much.

So soon, it's time for me to spend some time in the UK, first with Patty and then I think on my own (her schedule for the summer is not locked in yet, so it's hard to know). I'll be, at various points, in London, Bristol, and Cardiff, and I have some questions.


- How easy is it to find free wireless or at least wireless I pay for but I can use with my own laptop? How expensive is pay Internet as a rule?

- Being gay in England: on one hand, I get the sense that it's politically much better than here. On the other hand, I get the sense you have more anti-gay violence. What can Patty and I expect? We tend to be pretty demonstrative (in a chaste, way, thank you -- we do have manners) in public.

- Being genderqueer in England: this almost feels like a stupid question; you people gave us David Bowie. On the other hand, I know that in the US I rarely pass for male in a suit, and in parts of Europe I pretty much always do in casual interactions. How will I be perceived/treated in the UK? Will people be hostile or mocking? Will they not give a shit? My beautiful suits are not costume, and I'm sensitive to them being perceived as such. Also, safety issues.

- Being gluten-free. I know the supermarkets are amazing, but how do waitstaff take to being asked questions about food or my needing to make small changes (i.e., "hamburger without the bun; I'm allergic to bread") in order not to die?

- I sort of hate the touristy part of tourist shit, but there's a lot of touristy shit I want to see (i.e., Buckingham Palace). Will I enjoy said touristy shit, or will I want to punch the ill-dressed tourists with the cameras they can't figure out how to work?

- Patty's conference is at the British Museum. I don't understand London neighborhoods for shit. Where parts of town do we want to be looking at lodgings in?

- Because I'm that asshole, I sort of want to have lunch or dinner at the Ivy. Funny and must be done, or not funny and totally stupid?

- Theater! We must see some theater. Sadly, it seems nothing that's going to give me fannnish thrills is on during either of my two trips there (April and July), but do you have any recs anyway?

- Random advice for Cardiff (although Graeme Harper sort of planned the whole trip for me at Gally. So, I might be good there)?

- Bristol?!?!?!? I know nothing.

- Other random stuff you want to tell me.

Comments

[gina-r-snape.livejournal.com]

I can recall at least three distinct times, while at Gallifrey, of telling people holding incredulous looks that NYC is one of the safest cities in the country. Why is this still so difficult to believe?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Just the shit on the New Yorkers forum here periodically where people do the "I'm a small, young white girl, where would it be safe for me to live?" speech -- hi, racist. hi, safest big city in America. hi, have faith in your ability to function in society. Drives me mad.

[emily-shore.livejournal.com]

Hmmm. I spent a week in NYC recently and, despite its manifold charms, I have to say that it felt both pretty grimy and pretty 20th-century compared to the other large cities with which I'm familiar. (Boston, London and various European cities.) I suppose it all depends on your perspective. It certainly isn't deserving of the bad reputation it has, though.

But we've also been building buildings to reflect light and parks to ease the people for ages. We know what we're doing, and we know how to do it and we do it well all in the shadow of a variety of cruelly gilded ages.

Is it bad that this makes me smile and think of the epic biography of Robert Moses that I just finished reading?

[emily-shore.livejournal.com]

Patty's conference is at the British Museum. I don't understand London neighborhoods for shit. Where parts of town do we want to be looking at lodgings in?

Bloomsbury.

[miep.livejournal.com]

But New York IS dirty and uncomfortable in the summer. Having been there in all seasons, I would take winter over summer any day.

[rm.livejournal.com]

It's not any dirtier in summer, you're just aware of it because of the heat. It's also much better than it used to be, now that they've switched to natural gas buses, which has really reduced the pollution.

[smirnoffmule.livejournal.com]

I get looked at a bit, but very limited crap for wandering around looking gender-ambiguous in the UK, and I live in a much less cosmopolitan place than London. When I lived in London, I didn't really have a problem apart from the odd weirdo on the bus/tube moment, and I think that's just its own phenomenon. Obviously I can't guarantee you won't get anything, because some people are dicks (and also London is full of people who aren't Londoners, and full of dicks), but that's been my general experience.

Regarding being affectionate with same-sex partners, I have always exercised a certain amount of context awareness, which I'm sure you're used to, and have had some things said and shouted to me. It is probably worth bearing in mind that the liberal slant of our politics and media don't necessarily reflect a country-wide trend. But that said, I have been demonstrative in public without being hassled a lot more times than I have been hassled.

In Bristol, I simply advise you to wander around and listen to people speak all day because they have the best accent on the planet of earth.

[contrarywise]

In Bristol, I simply advise you to wander around and listen to people speak all day because they have the best accent on the planet of earth.

Yesyes! It's one possible origin of the "pirate" accent, which is awesome, IMO.

[kayleigh-jane.livejournal.com]

Random advice for Cardiff:

I pinged you before about the store in St. David's Mall, New Look, with the male shoes in female sizes, so that is tip number one.

Secondly, do go and eat at the Old Library (next to the visitor's centre). They are very friendly, very cheap and the food is fantastic. Let Patty try their fish and chips! Their menu is on their Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?v=wall&gid=251714415243). They're opposite the market, which is all fresh produce, for the gluten-free stuff.

I don't know in which hotel you are staying (I do not recommend the Royal Hotel, it was awful), but the walk from the city centre to the Millenium Centre is very nice. Do take your time to walk around, the architecture is stunning. Check out the Visitor's centre and the National Assembly building. Don't forget the Who exhibition in the Red Dragon centre!

For the touristy things I would recommend a private tour of Cardiff Castle. The guides are very nice and the mansion itself is gorgeous.

Lastly, in Queen's Arcade (on Queen street) there is the Blue Dot Gallery. Very good affordable art, worth a look! Queen street itself is worth a few hours, with all the clothing- and bookstores. I came home with a suitcase full of books after my visit to Waterstone's.

Have fun and ask if you have any questions!

[starpaint.livejournal.com]

Amen to the nth power.

I understand that some people are intimidated by the crowds, the lack of personal space, and the casual self-absorption of locals who've learned how to tune things out because our brains would have exploded from over-stimulation otherwise. & it's hard to make sense of that if you're unfamiliar with it, because it's not the way most cities in the U.S. work. So unfriendly, maybe. But dirty? Sure as hell not anymore. And as for unsafe... yeaaaaaah, no. But it's going to be the prevailing image until pop culture catches up with the times. CSI does not count.

[schpahky.livejournal.com]

Will I enjoy said touristy shit, or will I want to punch the ill-dressed tourists with the cameras they can't figure out how to work?

Yes on both counts.

[redstapler.livejournal.com]

Agreed with the commenter who said Bloomsbury.

I stayed at The Harlingford Hotel on a "school" trip to London, and my brother stayed there when he came to visit me later that spring.

It's absolutely lovely, and I still think wistfully of their breakfasts.

[bethynyc.livejournal.com]

I grew up in suburbia/country and I'd take NYC any day of the week. Not that I didn't enjoy growing up where I did--because it was a good childhood. But for actual grown up living, I love it here in NYC.

* No need for a car, unless you really want one, and you aren't trapped if the car is out of gas.
* Many, many, many things to do for every interest, and ranging in price from free to far too expensive for words.
* Sometimes it is so beautiful my heart is in my throat.
* Seeing celebrities on the street or in a store and going "Meh. See them all the time." while squeeing on the inside. (I do that a lot.)
* You can get anything here. Sometimes you have to look, but I have found places to buy mead, Jaffa Cakes, and unfamiliar spices, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

It isn't perfect--I don't think any place can be perfect. But for those who love it, it really is the only place to live.

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

Many folks I know who've visited Cardiff have stayed at Ty Rosa and really enjoyed it. Their website's gone a little bit silly (rainbowy borders, random sheep) of late, so brace yourself.

[pocketmouse]

I don't remember about wifi, since I didn't bring my laptop with me to London, and it was 4 years ago so likely a lot has changed. But there were internet cafes all over the place, and if you go to those, you'll want to shop around a bit, as the rates can vary. For instance, the hotel lobby had £1 for 20 minutes, but the cafe 12 blocks away had £1 for an hour. Also, the library had free internet, though you had to sign up for a temporary library card. They let me use the address of my hotel on the card (which was also what I used for my Oyster card).

I always recommend going to the Globe! It's awesome, and gorgeous. If you do go, as long as you don't have a problem with standing for the length of the play, I recommend you get groundling 'seats,' and stay as close to the stage as you can. The actors will interact with the groundlings a lot, it's an amazing experience. We gave up our seats and went into the pit for the one show we had seats for. If you do sit, sit center, since when I was there they really hadn't figured out how to use the stage in the round.

[delchi.livejournal.com]

The funny thing for me is that the old NYC I had no problems with, the current NYC has no place for me.

[sixteenbynine.livejournal.com]

As a fellow NYCer currently living in exile on Long Island (as I like to say), I applaud your sentiments. I get back there whenever I can, which is once or twice a month.

[laughingacademy.livejournal.com]

And the people aren't rude.

After my parents moved from NYC to Savannah, GA, Mom reported that people Down South were much ruder than the average Noo Yawkuh.

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

I've never had the impression that NYC was dirty. On the other hand, my mom is from Staten Island, and for many years, NYC = Staten Island in my head. So, there you go.

[marchek.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link to the NYC video. It's technically amazing and there's something about this city that is just so comforting and familiar that the video captures. Today has that exact same beautiful sunlight and it makes me smile.

[51stcenturyfox.livejournal.com]

I thought New Yorkers were friendly and nice when I was there. :)

You should come and visit me in suburbia. We can barbeque things on the patio and I will take you to a supermarket.

Re: London. I liked Buckingham Palace. It's touristy but fun. The Tate Modern is where I like to go, and when my friends go on the London Eye, I revisit the Saatchi Gallery, which is right up the block.

I usually stay at K-West in Shepherd's Bush because it's close to some things I need to get to for business reasons: http://www.k-west.co.uk/ It's not expensive because it's not really... near touristy stuff, but the bar is nice and so are the rooms.

[kdsorceress.livejournal.com]

Man, I hate the suburbia I grew up in, and never want to go back, but the line You should come and visit me in suburbia. We can barbeque things on the patio and I will take you to a supermarket. made me laugh and laugh and almost feel nostalgic. Thanks.

~Sor

[laurashapiro.livejournal.com]

Lodging near the British Museum: the last time I visited, we stayed at St. Margaret's Hotel (http://www.stmargaretshotel.co.uk/) in Bedford Square, walking distance from the museum. I note the hotel itself is undergoing repairs at this time, but Bedford Square, Russell Square, and Bloomsbury in general are the neighborhoods to look at, and they're quite close to the city center -- a quick and easy tube ride from the West End and other fun places.

Touristy stuff: I have done remarkably little of this, but we did watch the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace and that was fine -- I didn't want to punch anyone. (: You don't want to miss a performance at the Globe -- anyone with theatrical roots must go and gasp. Anything by the RSC is always the highest quality, but in general I find the quality of theater in London amazingly high; I can remember only one bad experience and I generally inhale plays like air when I'm there.

My London travelogue from our last trip is here (http://laurasha.com/london/), should you be interested.

[isil-helyanwe.livejournal.com]

The Globe is awesome, and open all summer long and has £5 standing tickets - the authentic Shakespearean experience of standing through all three hours of Hamlet. National Theatre in the South Bank a) does fabulously cheap front-row tickets to excellent plays, and b) is in such a fantastic part of the city, on the river, with the London Eye, street performers and a view of the City. Oh, and Regent's Park holds an open air theatre every summer of Shakespearean plays - I've never been, but it's supposed to be beautiful.

Re: touristy shit, it'll be interesting to see, but I'd recommend staying away from the changing of the guards, because the people who go to that are always marginally more annoying than any other tourist even. Except possibly Madame Tussauds.

Other things which must be done: pub lunch, Victoria & Albert Museum, British Museum, National Gallery, Tate Britain. Covent Garden and Brick Lane are good places to explore for vintage shopping - Brick Lane's far cooler and less touristy and full of warehouses of second hand period clothes. If you're in Covent Garden, eat at Food For Thought, an awesome underground vegetarian cafe, if you're near Trafalgar Square eat at the Crypt under the church, if you're in the City, eat at The Place Below, under another church.

[lycomingst.livejournal.com]

Lurker here. You might want to check out the Londonist (http://londonist.com/) site for good info about London.

[kdsorceress.livejournal.com]

Being as I've been not just in NYC for the past two days but largely in NYC by myself, without anyone else to guide or any plans but my own, I am incredibly cheered to see both your little PSA, and note that it largely matches up with how I see the world. I've had several mini-conversations with complete strangers, I have neither witnessed nor experienced any crime, the subways haven't exploded, and the books, at least, cost less than back home.

So yeah, I kinda love your city. Just so you know.

~Sor

[marchek.livejournal.com]

Things in London that you might like:

The Museum of Transport - weird suggestion I know, but it's pretty amazing to get to climb into a WWII bus with the netting on the windows

The Imperial War Museum - Your level of interest will depend on what temporary exhibitions are up at the time

Museum of the City of London - it's in the really bizarre Barbican complex, is a hodgepodge of the entire history of the city which is pretty fascinating

Sir John Soane Museum - collecting gone crazy

Highgate Cemetary - my favorite London cemetary

The Victoria & Albert Museum - often has pretty fascinating exhibition as well as a permanent costume gallery.

The Globe Theatre

I consistently liked all of the theatre productions that I saw at the Young Vic but that was back in 1998.

I never went to Buckingham Palace when I was living there so I can't speak on it.

[realtsunamigirl.livejournal.com]

HUGE agreement with the Victoria and Albert recommendation.

Probably my favorite museum of all time and I think you would really be intrigued. They have textile rooms full of long flat drawers that you are encouraged to pull out so that you can examine the pieces more closely AND they provide desks and chairs so that you can do so in depth and at your leisure. It's full of odd little bits and pieces, in unexpected places. I idly lifted an unlabeled piece of cloth covering a display case only to reveal with possibly the oldest intact garment known to man; a linen tunic taken from King Tut's tomb. It was just sitting there, in a corner. It's like wandering through a treasure chest for anyone interested in textile history. And the rest of the stuff is amazing too, I just happen to be a clothing history geek:-)

It's also only four stops away from the BM via the tube...

[meirion.livejournal.com]

Any Wetherspoons pub will have free wifi, as will many other pubs (although you might have to ask for the key at the bar). Even the flea-pit guest house I stayed in for my first fortnight in Oxford had free wifi!

[lonebear.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that video link. Stunning work.

[penguineggs.livejournal.com]

The Bristol Old Vic has got a new creative director; be worth checking out what's on there, too. current programme .

My sister was at University in Bristol and I thought it was one of the wettest cities in the UK - since I come from Lancashire, which built an entire industry (cotton spinning) on its damp climate, so if you have a Lancastrian going, "Golly, this town is wet" then it probably is (Jane Austen makes the same joke about Bath, which is only about 30 minutes from Bristol by train - another place which is gorgeous and a short train trip away from Brizzell is Bradford-upon-Avon, which is worth it for the 14th and 15th century wool-merchants houses and the fantastic gastro-pubs). As a result, you may want to make alternative plans on the basis of if wet/if dry and take an umbrella in any event.

Clifton Suspension Bridge is fascinating and there's the Bristol Slave Trade Walk ( details here ) in the unlikely event that it isn't raining. There's a covered market with a very good second-hand book stall - in fact, going to the Tourist Information Centre and asking them to direct you to the nearest second hand bookshops is a good way to get poorer very quickly.

[ladyaelfwynn.livejournal.com]

As one who some would consider, "a dainty Southern lass", I love NYC and am in no way terrified of it any more. I don't mind traveling there on my own. There's lots to do, I don't have to drive, and I love the small grocery stores everywhere.

Before I'd ever visited, I was terrified of NYC but that was more because it was one of the iconicly big cities and I didn't know anyone there than anything else. I'm from rural SE Virginia, where Richmond, Va. counts as a big city and NYC was epic in it's proportions.

Lodgings in London near the British Museum, try the Arran House. I think my college used to use it for their studies abroad program. My year was the first one we had our own house (at the corner of Chenies and Gower St.)

You could check to see if the cafeteria in the basement of Infectious Disease is still there, there food was pretty good and cheap, 20 years ago. There was a chip shop on Tottingham Ct. Rd. called Dionysis, that I don't know if it's still there or not, but I remember it being decent or you know it could've been because it was close. The nearest Tube stop is Goodge St. but you're easy walking distance to several train stations. This is also the general neighborhood of Grimauld Place.

There was also a Tesco not too far, over on Tottenham Ct. (There's a dear, nearly forgotten WWI memorial at the corner of Chenies and Tottenham Ct. across from the Goodge St. tube stop.)

If I were to visit only one place in London, I'd go to Sir John Soane's Musuem. It's several floors, packed floor to ceiling with ancient weird stuff. We're talking fossils, to skeletons, to bits of architecture, sarcophagi, three Canelettos, and Hogarth's The Rake's Progress. It's nearly overwhelming but a real treasure.

I've never been to either Cardiff or Bristol, so have fun! Safe Journey!