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Do visitors to the USA come with preconceptions? Of course! What kind of impression does New York make on a tourist, and how does this address those preconceptions?

Xenophobia phobia

Shortly before leaving for the US I had read an article documenting the difficulties a colleague was having with the US immigration authorities. I had seen newscasts concerning the extra security measures in place, watched and read opinions that suggested a paranoia towards anything "un-American". I certainly had no love for US foreign policy at face-value, and like many had begun to wonder who was going to protect us from this UN-defying superpower the seemed bent on world domination. "America the intolerant xenophobe" was high on my list of preconceptions.

I have travelled a lot and can honestly say that the Immigration officer who greeted us at JFK gave us the warmest reception I've had in any country. He was smiling and chatty, asking relevant questions in a non-interrogative manner. But the question must be asked: would we have had the same experience if we had, for example, looked Arabic?

Once inside the fortress, the security checks we encountered at points of interest (Liberty Is ferry, Empire State etc.) where reasonable, professional, and efficiently conducted. These were not in themselves evidence of xenophobia, but rather a reasonable precaution in the light of growing anti-American sentiment. We were made to feel quite welcome. I'm pleased to say that the attitudes and congeniality of the Americans we encountered seems to bear little relationship to the Government claiming to represent them (although it would be naive to suggest that NYC represented the entire USA). Some people at least are prepared to speak for themselves:

Protesters (WTC site)

I guess my conclusion is that the People and the State are not the same thing. For as long as I've been aware of such things, anti-American sentiment has been growing in the world. This isn't because other countries envy US wealth or power, it's perhaps because they resent the way it is used to steamroll others into serving US interests. I'm sure it's been said before, but I do hope the people of America wake up soon and reflect on how the world sees their country—and more importantly, why.

"Bigger Apple"

The Big Apple. Super-size fries. Three point five litre engine. Eighty stories. Eight time zones. Size 40 (US) trousers... This was a preconception that was simply reinforced by our visit: everything is "big". We were served portions of food we couldn't possibly eat. Not only is this biologically unnecessary, leftovers are wasteful of food resources. The cars are likewise ridiculously big: does this signal disregard for the environment? There were, however, some encouraging signs of an attitude change in some circles. The Parks service drove Toyota Prius petrol/electric hybrids, and the NYPD had a few of these:

Eco-friendly NYPD (Upper East Side)

Cultural experience

Once again TV and general knowledge portrayed America as a cultural "melting pot". I guess I had expected a variety of phenotypes speaking in roughly the same American accent. Just as Her Majesty's English is thin on the ground in London, however, we heard little "American" as we wondered the streets. When English was spoken it often wasn't the speakers native tongue. This was especially evident in Chinatown as you might expect, but the Asian influence was so stark you could readily forget which continent you were visiting:

Mott St south of Canal St (Chinatown)

But perhaps the most striking and unexpected cultural experience was at B&H Photo (420 9th Avenue). This large photography store was staffed almost exclusively by young Jewish men as indicated by the bi-temporal locks of hair and black skullcap. This experience made me question where there was such a thing as equal opportunities employment law in the US. If so, it clearly wasn't applied here.

In-your-face nationalism

Flag worship was another American pastime portrayed in the media. The flag certainly was everywhere: flying from buildings, draping from ceilings, plastered on cars, buses, subway trains, etc:

Flying the flag (Empire State)

It's not that some pride is a bad thing; the danger is where it leads... believing in something blindly, rather than for what it really stands for. Other countries are of course not allowed to express much national pride (Germany, Japan for example). Even now, 50 years after the cessation of hostilities you have to fill in an arrival card during the inbound flight confirming that you had no part in Nazi genocide activities during WWII. Is it relevant to ask this today? Why single out the Germans? Imagine the outcry if the new Iraq government instigated a similar arrival declaration asking Americans (only) to confirm they played no part in the murder of innocent men, women and children during the recent invasion... Or if Vietnam did the same.

Be proud, yes, but don't believe you are better.

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