they can't get enough.

tourists, that is.
new york city is their oyster and they are just
slurping it up sans lemon juice or tabasco.

I've lived in the fabulous city of New York for almost 5 years now. I was born in Flushing and raised in the Bronx for a few years before moving on out to the suburbs of New Jersey, so I'd say I have quite a heart for this magnificent city. When people complain about NYC being too noisy or dirty or hectic, I give them the finger (not really, just in my head a little). I can't complain--even the tourists didn't bother me.

Until I moved a block down from Wall Street.

5th Ave? Yea. Central Park? Oh yea. SoHo? Of course. Times Square? Definitely. But WALL STREET? Are you kidding me?! Maybe if you're particularly interested in the NYSE or the history of finance, fine, but let's be real; how many of these tourists, who barely speak English, actually give a flying frisbee about a street teeming with self-absorbed financiers (aka "suits") and self-important security guards? Wall Street is conveniently lined with subway stations that take me wherever I please in Manhattan. However, due to the overwhelming amount of tourists, getting to the subway has become increasingly difficult. Groups of poorly dressed Asians and poorly shaved Europeans loiter in the middle of the street in hopes of finding the perfect pose to make against the NYSE backdrop. I think these people spill over from the WTC site, not knowing where else to go. Please just stay there; there's really not much to see down here.

Recently, I learned that those tourist double-decker bus things start their journey through NYC somewhere near my apartment as well. They are almost as bad as the tourists on Wall Street. After a long day at work, I do not need a bus full of people staring down at me (sometimes even snapping pictures), blocking my path home.

I am genuinely curious as to what the tourguide says into his little microphone thing to the people on the bus.

Tourguide: "Here, we have...a street...with offices...and a lot of Halal food carts...where people make millions of trillions of dollars a day through what is called investment banking."
Tourists: "oOOOoOoooooOOooo~~~~~~ *snaps pictures*"

Give me a break.

So there it is, my one qualm about New York City. Not tourists in general, but tourists on Wall Street. Okay wait, I lied about the "one" qualm. I have another--pidgeons. I effing hate pidgeons. Almost as much as mice, rats, and miniature greyhounds. But that's a story for another post.

Cheers,

Cheryl