Last week I got back from a week away in New York with the girlfriend. And I can't wait to go back. It was my girlfriend's first time which meant we visited all the usuals; Liberty, Empire State, Rockefellar etc. Although it was my third time there, it almost felt like my first and I took a somewhat fresh approach to the trip. My first was when I was about 10 and second on a college trip so I would have been about 17. I have travelled a fair bit around America through-out my 21 years and love the country. I love the diversity, the difference of cultures, the openess of (some) people. I love how you can drive for miles without seeing a person or moving your steering wheel, I love how you can be shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of people with glaring lights overheard and trying to be sold something at every opportunity.
I am not naive enough to think that America in it's entirety is wonderful, far from it. Vast aspects of the American society are racist or homophobic, God-fearing and narrow minded. Even the constant repetition of "have a nice day" becomes empty as it comes with no feeling. Most noticeable perhaps is the commercialisation of the country. I can appreciate the gross amount of advertisements all merge into one to form a blurred, corporate image to many people's disgust. Yet many people don't realise how much they sometimes enjoy adverts, Times Square for example, is literally just a bunch of adverts. As an advertising graduate and aspiring creative, I have to believe this.
New York City is a favourite amoung many Brits as it probably the closest culturally to London. What I mainly love about the city is the positivity. The feeling of optimism that you can achieve what you want with enough blood and sweet. This attitude has been passed down through many generations from those that first stepped on Ellis Island, and it has not been lost. The fact that you can also get a pizza at any time of the night for 99cents is also nice.
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