America's Rudest Cities

[phildinftlaudy]

http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-rudest-cities/3

Of course, Miami ranks number two (I believe we were #1 last year - but NYC has reclaimed the top position) - who would have thunk it?  Miami rude?  Get the F**K outta here...

now, pardon me while i scratch my B**LS while texting on my cell, while driving, cuttin ur ass off in traffic, cursin' out the person in front of me, not using me turn signal, not lettin you in front of me, and not holdin the elevator door for u --- oh, and BTW, I'm bout to steal ur parking space, rip you off in car or home repairs, not say please or thank you and cough, sneeze, and blow smoke in your direction....

Welcome to MIAMI -- don't u just love us 

[Miss Philicia]

No. 11 Philadelphia

Since it was the third-rudest city last year, the City of Brotherly Love appears to be successfully returning to its namesake roots. While these sports-loving folks may still have some East Coast curtness, you can break the ice by asking for a good lunch recommendation: the city ranked in the top five for burgers and street food.

C'mon on up, Wumpette!

[skeebo1969]

   I'm surprised Boston is so low (#5).  I want to live in Savannah, Georgia.  I hear the only problem there is type 2 diabetes.

[Joe K]

http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-rudest-cities/3

Of course, Miami ranks number two (I believe we were #1 last year - but NYC has reclaimed the top position) - who would have thunk it?  Miami rude?  Get the F**K outta here...

now, pardon me while i scratch my B**LS while texting on my cell, while driving, cuttin ur ass off in traffic, cursin' out the person in front of me, not using me turn signal, not lettin you in front of me, and not holdin the elevator door for u --- oh, and BTW, I'm bout to steal ur parking space, rip you off in car or home repairs, not say please or thank you and cough, sneeze, and blow smoke in your direction....

Welcome to MIAMI -- don't u just love us 

And to think, you are one of the "nice" ones. 

Joe

[WillyWump]

Interesting. Every time I've been to NYC I have found the people to be very kind, surprisingly so. Even remember a random lady coming up to me and asking me if I needed help/directions when I was looking forlornly at a map trying to figure out what Subway to take to my hotel. Also remember trying to hail a cab and being schooled on the proper procedure by a random passerby. 

Havent been to Philly or Miami since I was a teen, so cant really comment on those cities. Although If I were to have a bitchy tour guide like MissP to show me the city I am sure it would be bearable so I wouldnt have to do all the shoving and cursing.

IMHO, and Im sorry fellow AMG'ers, DC is the rudest city. Im there at least once a year and everytime I get pissed off by the rudeness on the subways and other places public places.

-Will

[mecch]

All my years in NY I never felt it was especially rude. Pushy yes and in your face, yes. But also very friendly and rather generous.

I don't think public vulgarity or aggressiveness is particularly rude.  I think smart and/or rather rich people, or alternative smart asses, acting badly, selfishly, and or snottily is extremely rude.  That series Portlandia is about an entire class of hideously rude people.   And then there is the rudeness of "trash" youth. Poor kids who you would say have had a bad upbringing.  All those Youtube videos for example of people going ape shit in fast food restaurants.  Did notice this in NY, in London, Manchester, etc.  Vicky Pollard.....

From a distance I'd say most people in most American cities are very nice indeed.

There are some cultures in Europe of public disconnectedness or disinterest in others.  It chills me, as an American. 

Also, despite how hot and warm and encompassing one thinks Latin cultures might be, I've seen hideous public rudeness in Milan and Rome, for example.  By macho dicks or pretentious fashion people especially.

Cannes, like Miami, is very beautiful and flashy and publically rude.  I think the rudest place I've been on earth was the very beautiful French ski resort Courchevel.
St. Tropez is a close second.

Paris is a world onto its own for the snarky attitude people can display in public.   That said, most Parisiens are perfectly nice.  It's just the class of people who enjoy being rude, really know how to do it.   The thing about Paris is that the people being impolite are doing it on purpose!!!! 

Isn't Paris like the world class champion rude city? 

I guess there might be even worse in Eastern Europe, or maybe China???  Maybe where living is cruel, or where there is a different conception entirely of respect or civility.

Here in Europe many people think the Germans and English tourists are vulgar and rude but its seems so accidental to me.   Rudeness is rudeness, but if a bunch of German workers are being pigs or a hoard of English youth are giving American Spring Break a run for its money (and the run will be NAKED) you kind of just look and say so what, what's it to me?

Savannah should probably be a World Heritage Site for being not only beautiful, but really kind.

[Joe K]

Paris is a world onto its own for the snarky attitude people can display in public.   That said, most Parisiens are perfectly nice.  It's just the class of people who enjoy being rude, really know how to do it.   The thing about Paris is that the people being impolite are doing it on purpose!!!! 

Isn't Paris like the world class champion rude city? 

Funny you mention Paris as rude.  Stephen and I spent two weeks there and as long as we tried to speak French, people went out of their way to be very kind and helpful.  Ironically, the rudest Parisian that we encountered worked for the Paris Tourist Bureau.

[OneTampa]

Well, when I clicked the aggregate map, Tampa was not listed.

Of course here we are courteous, comfy, cuddly, cautious and cool.

 

[Miss Philicia]

Havent been to Philly or Miami since I was a teen, so cant really comment on those cities. Although If I were to have a bitchy tour guide like MissP to show me the city I am sure it would be bearable so I wouldnt have to do all the shoving and cursing.

Oh please, I'd lose you and have you end up in the North Philly Kill Zone.

[Rev. Moon]

http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-rudest-cities/3

Of course, Miami ranks number two (I believe we were #1 last year - but NYC has reclaimed the top position) - who would have thunk it?  Miami rude?  Get the F**K outta here...

now, pardon me while i scratch my B**LS while texting on my cell, while driving, cuttin ur ass off in traffic, cursin' out the person in front of me, not using me turn signal, not lettin you in front of me, and not holdin the elevator door for u --- oh, and BTW, I'm bout to steal ur parking space, rip you off in car or home repairs, not say please or thank you and cough, sneeze, and blow smoke in your direction....

Welcome to MIAMI -- don't u just love us 

We live indeed in the most ridiculously rude city --not in the US, in the world. 

To this day I still can't see what is so supposedly rude about New York.  Ever since I moved from NYC to Miami I have been appalled by the meanness and rudeness of some/many heads down here.  You just get used to it, eventually.

[tednlou2]

Of course, Louisville is the nicest city.  Everyone knows that. 

[spacebarsux]

There are some cultures in Europe of public disconnectedness or disinterest in others.  It chills me, as an American. 

I guess there might be even worse in Eastern Europe, or maybe China???  Maybe where living is cruel, or where there is a different conception entirely of respect or civility.
 

Yeah, like here . Most people in India don’t understand the western notion of ‘personal space’.  It is considered totally ‘ok’ for a complete stranger on a train to strike up a conversation about your marital status (“Why are you not married yet?” with a look of extreme concern and shock LOL) and then proffer their ‘well-meaning advice’  on the virtues of marriage. LOL. Or for an elderly woman to whine about the annoying habits of her daughter-in-law on the bus etc. . Or for a stranger to offer you some of his or her lunch. I don’t find any of this sort of thing bothersome and one develops their own ways of dealing with it- it’s just part and parcel of where you are. But I do know some expats and tourists who find it really annoying and I can see why.

Also, words such as ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are sparingly used in everyday parlance in Indian languages as they are implied in the ‘suffix’ of words (in Indian languages) used to address people with respect. For example: The word ‘You’ when translated in Hindi breaks into 3 different words depending on whether you’re addressing a close friend or family member of roughly your age (most informal), a stranger of roughly your age or younger (semi-formal), or a stranger, family member etc who is much older (most formal). I think this exists in French too- the “tu’ and “vous” divide. So when people, who are not fluent in English, switch over from their native tongue and drop the ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ etc- it may come across as rude, when it isn’t meant to be.

Coming from this, I found the ‘public disconnectedness’ as you call it, in some European cities almost refreshing at times. If you’re on the London tube and someone starts talking too loudly (which is pretty rare anyway) you just bury your head even more in the Daily Mail. LOL. I also quite like the English obsession with ‘please’ and ‘thank you’.

I have only been to NYC, LA and San Francisco in the US. And I found everyone quite friendly.

PS- I wish we’d learnt how to form orderly queues as perfectly as we’d learnt cricket from the Brits. 
 
PPS- Rudest city I’ve ever visited----> Prague. Which is a pity given how nice a place it is.

[Ann]

I've always found the words please and thank you to be amongst the most useful in the English language. Saying "may I please" or "would you please" with a smile when addressing someone behind a counter (or whatever) greases the wheels like nothing else. Good manners cost nothing and it's an easy habit to get into.

When my daughter was in school her teachers always, without fail, commented on how polite she was, rarely failing to say please and thank you. Most of the teachers wanted to know how we achieved this as parents. The answer is simple - we always said please and thank you to her, pretty much from when she was born. We never, ever had to nag her to do it. It was cute when she was first learning to talk - most of her sentences started with "pease".

Space, thanks for the explanation of how the use of the word please is connected to language and culture. It makes sense.

[mecch]

Funny you mention Paris as rude.  Stephen and I spent two weeks there and as long as we tried to speak French, people went out of their way to be very kind and helpful.  Ironically, the rudest Parisian that we encountered worked for the Paris Tourist Bureau.

Well as I said, it's frequently perceived as rude.  And I also find most people are quite nice, just like in many other cities.  The way we feel rudeness in our home city, or native culture, isn't the same as in another.

Some French relish their haughtiness or disdain, others do it without thinking. If they do it, they do it "well" (meaning its incredibly rude and everyone in the world notices and remembers this about the French). 

Think of DSK's and his peers, on the left, no less, discussing his transgressions in NYC. What's the big deal, just "droit de seigneur".

Either you take French disdain as part of the culture and go with it, or you can be really shocked!

To wit:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/6197921.stm

A dozen or so Japanese tourists a year have to be repatriated from the French capital, after falling prey to what's become known as "Paris syndrome".

That is what some polite Japanese tourists suffer when they discover that Parisians can be rude or the city does not meet their expectations.

The experience can apparently be too stressful for some and they suffer a psychiatric breakdown.

Around a million Japanese travel to France every year.

Shocking reality

Many of the visitors come with a deeply romantic vision of Paris - the cobbled streets, as seen in the film Amelie, the beauty of French women or the high culture and art at the Louvre.

The reality can come as a shock.

An encounter with a rude taxi driver, or a Parisian waiter who shouts at customers who cannot speak fluent French, might be laughed off by those from other Western cultures.

But for the Japanese - used to a more polite and helpful society in which voices are rarely raised in anger - the experience of their dream city turning into a nightmare can simply be too much.

This year alone, the Japanese embassy in Paris has had to repatriate four people with a doctor or nurse on board the plane to help them get over the shock.

Paris street market
An encounter with a rude Parisian can be a shocking experience
They were suffering from "Paris syndrome".

It was a Japanese psychiatrist working in France, Professor Hiroaki Ota, who first identified the syndrome some 20 years ago.

On average, up to 12 Japanese tourists a year fall victim to it, mainly women in their 30s with high expectations of what may be their first trip abroad.

The Japanese embassy has a 24-hour hotline for those suffering from severe culture shock, and can help find hospital treatment for anyone in need.

However, the only permanent cure is to go back to Japan - never to return to Paris.

[spacebarsux]

Space, thanks for the explanation of how the use of the word please is connected to language and culture. It makes sense.

You're welcome. 

And here's a free demo for everyone on how to be polite.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNlOINMuE4M&feature=related

[GSOgymrat]

I asked my partner which city is most rude since he is a flight attendant and has been all over the world. He said Paris because if you don't try to speak French they just ignore you. He said he finds the people of Edinburgh, and Scotland in general, the friendliest. He has several relatives, including his youngest brother, living in Maimi-- "shit hole" were his exact words.

[skeebo1969]

I asked my partner which city is most rude since he is a flight attendant and has been all over the world. He said Paris because if you don't try to speak French they just ignore you. He said he finds the people of Edinburgh, and Scotland in general, the friendliest. He has several relatives, including his youngest brother, living in Maimi-- "shit hole" were his exact words.

I don't know why Miami gets such a bad rap.  The two times I got robbed at gunpoint they let me go with my life.  One black eye and a couple of wallets missing is all.....lol

[denb45]

I have to say that L. A. is the rudest city to live, if your a blue collar bolk like I was, but if you were an A-lister or a movie-star, those individuals all seem to thrive in that hell hole of a city 

[GSOgymrat]

I have to say that L. A. is the rudest city to live, if your a blue collar bolk like I was, but if you were an A-lister or a movie-star, those individuals all seem to thrive in that hell hole of a city 

Having lived there, I didn't think L.A. people were particularly rude except on the highways. Places like L.A. and New York are so large and diverse that it is hard to say. Venice and Santa Monica is such a different vibe compared to Inglewood or East L.A. I do know when I lived in Seattle people were very friendly, neighbors knocked on my door and introduced themselves. I had friends very quickly. When I moved to Los Angeles and said hello to neighbors at my apartment complex they had a suspicious "what do you want" attitude. When I went to school people were generally pleasant but I kept getting this "what can you do for me" or "who do you know" vibe. Many people seemed to think being a full-time graduate student and working at the university computer lab wasn't very ambitious.

[denb45]

Having lived there, I didn't think L.A. people were particularly rude except on the highways. Places like L.A. and New York are so large and diverse that it is hard to say. Venice and Santa Monica is such a different vibe compared to Inglewood or East L.A. I do know when I lived in Seattle people were very friendly, neighbors knocked on my door and introduced themselves. I had friends very quickly. When I moved to Los Angeles and said hello to neighbors at my apartment complex they had a suspicious "what do you want" attitude. When I went to school people were generally pleasant but I kept getting this "what can you do for me" or "who do you know" vibe. Many people seemed to think being a full-time graduate student and working at the university computer lab wasn't very ambitious.

I hated L.A. and all of southern Ca. maybe cause I was in the Navy at the time, but after I got out of the service, all I could stand of it was 2 to 3 yrs. I moved back to nor-ca my home of record, I seemed to like that a lot better especially the S.F. Bay Area, now people there seems to be much nicer than L.A. from what I recall 

[phildinftlaudy]

and now, they say Miami is America's 3rd most stressful city:

http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/20/10200982-americas-most-stressful-cities-in-2012

3. Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida
Population: 2,472,015
Divorced: 11.5%
Commute time – minutes: 33.2
Unemployment: 12.5%
Violent crime per 100,000 population: 733.3
Property crime per 100,000 population: 4,678.3
Suicides per 100,000 population: 9.3
Cloudy days annually: 117
Standout factors: Metropolitan Miami is in the 97th percentile for property crime, and 95th percentile for violent crime, but is in the fourth percentile for alcohol consumption.

 

[wolfter]

I don't always trust these results as I don't believe they ever visit all the rude ass cities in the midwest.  The entire state of Wisconsin has some of the rudest people ever.  And Kansas, yes Kansas.  We stayed in Junction City for a week and I made a joke about clicking my heels to go home, and the locals got pissed.  Maybe they all don't smile cause they don't have teeth, but I think they're just rude.

Southern hospitality still reigns and I love the people down yonder.  Especially Atlanta.  I unexpectedly spent a night there a long time ago on my way to Florida.   

Wolfie

[Miss Philicia]

and now, they say Miami is America's 3rd most stressful city:

http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/20/10200982-americas-most-stressful-cities-in-2012

3. Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida
Population: 2,472,015
Divorced: 11.5%
Commute time – minutes: 33.2
Unemployment: 12.5%
Violent crime per 100,000 population: 733.3
Property crime per 100,000 population: 4,678.3
Suicides per 100,000 population: 9.3
Cloudy days annually: 117
Standout factors: Metropolitan Miami is in the 97th percentile for property crime, and 95th percentile for violent crime, but is in the fourth percentile for alcohol consumption.

 

You're soooooo junior league down there -- your murder rate is a paltry 15.4 per 100,000. Killadelphia has 17.6 Violent crime stats are higher as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_cities_by_crime_rate

And if they threw in the figures for Camden, NJ which is right across the Delaware River, and known as the single most dangerous place in the country, our figures would be even worse. Or also included Chester, PA which is directly south of city limits past the airport. Chester' homocide rate per 100,000 is a staggering 64.3 -- the highest in Pennsylvania. But never fear! Camden's rate is 2,333 per 100,000.... yep, you read that right.

I feel safe to say that in terms of total metropolitan area I live in the very most dangerous place in the United States... it's practically third world. The funny thing is that I never hear any guns go off.

But still, we can't hold a candle to New Orleans (Hi Trey!), St. Louis, Baltimore and Detroit.  Oh, and don't forget Washington where you are holding AMG... make sure you bring a gun because that ranks up higher than Filthy too, with 21.9 per 100,000 murders annually.

[skeebo1969]

and now, they say Miami is America's 3rd most stressful city:

http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/20/10200982-americas-most-stressful-cities-in-2012

3. Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida
Population: 2,472,015
Divorced: 11.5%
Commute time – minutes: 33.2
Unemployment: 12.5%
Violent crime per 100,000 population: 733.3
Property crime per 100,000 population: 4,678.3
Suicides per 100,000 population: 9.3
Cloudy days annually: 117
Standout factors: Metropolitan Miami is in the 97th percentile for property crime, and 95th percentile for violent crime, but is in the fourth percentile for alcohol consumption.

 

Does this include Liberty City and Opa Locka? 

[phildinftlaudy]

Does this include Liberty City and Opa Locka?

I think so Thomas - even though the figure than gets artificially lowered because of the inclusion of areas such as Miami Beach, Key Biscayne, Bal Harbour --- if just Liberty City was looked at, the rate would blow most other cities out of the water.... they have a killing there almost everyday.

That's the thing about Miami - the "rich" low crime areas give an overall perspective that the city has a low crime index compared to other cities.  One only has to live in North Miami where I am to here and see constant police sirens and cars racing down the road and occasionally hear the gun shots. 

Heck, I was robbed at gun point about 4 years ago right outside of where I now live (and it was only 8 in the evening) Two weeks later, the guys who robbed me, robbed the BK next store at 4 in the afternoon and shot the manager execution style.  They were finally caught - one killed himself in jail while awaiting trial, the other was sentenced to life w/o parole.

[Miss Philicia]

And you expect me to visit you when you live in the local equivalent of North Philly? ... don't think so!

[phildinftlaudy]

And you expect me to visit you when you live in the local equivalent of North Philly? ... don't think so!

You would be perfectly safe - they LOVE me where I live       (and I do have a couple of bullet proof vests we can wear, should we choose to venture out) - Also, the bookstore is so conveniently located, just 10 blocks down the road 

[hope_for_a_cure]

the local equivalent of North Philly? ... don't think so!

WOW... North Philadelphia looks a bit rougher than Chester does. 

[Miss Philicia]

WOW... North Philadelphia looks a bit rougher than Chester does. 

But heroin is so widely available up there -- kind of like an open air bazaar.

Would you prefer a visit to Camden?

[denb45]

I haven't used Heroin since 1979/80 

[hope_for_a_cure]

Camden or Newark would be nice on a warm and sunny midsummer day....... NOT! 

[skeebo1969]

I think so Thomas - even though the figure than gets artificially lowered because of the inclusion of areas such as Miami Beach, Key Biscayne, Bal Harbour --- if just Liberty City was looked at, the rate would blow most other cities out of the water.... they have a killing there almost everyday.

If you take the likes of Liberty City, Opa Locka, and the bad part of Coconut Grove out it would probably make Miami's crime rate figure go down tremendously as well.  Miami is weird in some ways though, there is a small nook in El Portal where being one street over means the difference between 1 minute and 2 hour police response times.  I grew up and lived in what's considered the Northern most part of Miami, about a mile from Dade-Broward County line.  It use to be nice there (think back to 89) when most of the residents grew up, raised families, and died there.  It's not like that anymore, more of a transient city now.   I've met people up here from Florida and they moved for the same reasons my wife and I did.  There just isn't many jobs down that way.   My wife's brother has been out of work now for 3 months and has become so depressed over it we're all worried about him.  He actually started seeing a therapist, which for him is a very big step.

[Hellraiser]

But still, we can't hold a candle to New Orleans (Hi Trey!)

I was gonna say something but you beat me to it.  I was under the impression that New Orleans was Number 1 for this statistic but by the way you describe Camden it sounds worse.  I actually knew someone who got murdered in the Quarter.  Although, I haven't really made it public but I moved a little while ago.

[Miss Philicia]

I was gonna say something but you beat me to it.  I was under the impression that New Orleans was Number 1 for this statistic but by the way you describe Camden it sounds worse.  I actually knew someone who got murdered in the Quarter.  Although, I haven't really made it public but I moved a little while ago.

Camden is only 77,000 people. When they say NO is #1, or Saint Louis, it's in the grouping of large cities. Camden is such a mess they've had three mayors involved in drug dealing corruption, and now all city functions and schools are run directly by the state. What's amazing is that this place is literally directly across the river from Society Hill, the most elite of neighborhoods in the historic section of Philadelphia.

I always think of New Orleans as being larger than it actually is. A population of 343,000 is like when I lived in Richmond, VA (another very violent city, though it didn't get really violent until right after I moved away fortunately).

[Hellraiser]

New Orleans actually is extremely spread out.  You have Kenner, Metairie, Chalmette, lying on the outskirts, also post katrina a lot of the population just never came back.  So I'd imagine the population in say 2004 was a lot higher.

[mecch]

NO is a major city, for its historical importance, its cultural importance, its place in the imagination.  Like SF.  Both rather small. And of course NO lost so much population recently.

There are all these new fangled metropolises these days.

Who thinks of Phoenix as a major American city and yet it is.

Also there is the question of metropolitan area versus actual city population, which depends on incorporation. In that conception, Detroit is still huge.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_of_United_States_Metropolitan_Statistical_Areas

Inspired in part by this thread, I google mapped Detroit recently and its harrowing to see this pock marked urban landscape of decay and abandonment, every bit as bad as all the horror photos we see now and then in the Media.

[Miss Philicia]

San Francisco is small because it's borders are confined to a peninsula. If you take into account the entire bay region, it's a large metropolitan area. What I mean is that city borders are fake entities -- if NYC had never consolidated five boroughs it would be smallish, as you'd just know it as Manhattan (population 1.5 million, or the same as Philadelphia)

New Orleans is famous culturally, and it's geographically important in terms of shipping, but other than that the metropolitan area is the size of rather unimportant city.. the same size as Richmond, VA, also historically important but not of much interest in a global economy, which is all that matters in today's world.

New Orleans actually is extremely spread out.  You have Kenner, Metairie, Chalmette, lying on the outskirts, also post katrina a lot of the population just never came back.  So I'd imagine the population in say 2004 was a lot higher.

Like any older city, population decline has been going on longer than one hurricane -- look up the entry on NO's demographic history on wikipedia. The highest it's ever been was the 1960 census with 627,525. Basically NO has suffered a rate of depopulation akin to Detroit. It's true that Katrina made the situation all the more miserable, with 100,000 more people leaving and all at once, but the shrinking city had been going on for 50 years.

Philadelphia has had a similar population decline, but not 50% -- more like 25% over 50 years. And it's easy to explain at least for here, because we produced the bulk of war material for both WW1 and 2, since there were tons of factories already here, and two of the largest shipyards in the country, and the meeting point of rail lines from north, south, and midwest. There's an entire PBS feature about this issue if you ever see it on TV. As of the last census our population had stopped going down and had actually increased by +0.6%

[phildinftlaudy]

Great....

Now Miami has received the title of "America's Most Miserable City."

http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/americas-most-miserable-cities-2012.html

Tell me again why I live here?

Maybe because it is 74 outside right now and tomorrow's high is supposed to be 80; maybe because of the beaches; the clubs; the palm trees; the close proximity to the Bahamas, the cruise ships, Key West....

So, as I make my way through rush hour traffic tonight and the rude drivers back to my over-priced apartment, and then out for some over-priced dinner and drinks, I shall try - yes, I shall try, to remember the above.

[Rev. Moon]

Tell me again why I live here?

Girl, please.  You know you're gonna get responses such as: because you're addicted to Cuban and Haitian schlong.

[Miss Philicia]

Key West? Seriously?

[phildinftlaudy]

Girl, please.  You know you're gonna get responses such as: because you're addicted to Cuban and Haitian schlong.

Oh yeah.... I almost forgot

[phildinftlaudy]

Key West? Seriously?

There are two good gay bars there - one with a pool in the back that I swam nude in before - much to the "may" of the other customers and the "dismay" of my "partner."  There is also "Sloppy Joes" http://www.sloppyjoes.com/      and some great jet skiiing.

(BTW, one day I have to learn how to put the link underneath a word)

[Miss Philicia]

Two whole gay bars? How thrilling.

... and 8 Disney cruise ships

Oh, and everyone knows that the Turks & Caicos > Bahamas

[phildinftlaudy]

Two whole gay bars? How thrilling.

... and 8 Disney cruise ships

Oh, and everyone knows that the Turks & Caicos > Bahamas

I actually preferred Cozumel -- had a great time at Señor Frogs

and the ads say that "it is better in the Bahamas"  although it is usually "bigger" in Jamaica 

[Miss Philicia]

Honey, you live in the tropics. Why are you taking vacations to other parts of the tropics? Mebbe you should branch out one season and go skiing in Gstadd. Or maybe horseback riding along the Baltic in Poland?

Señor Frogs? Really? That name on a sign should be your first hint to "just say no"!

edit: omg, I even googled that and learned it's a chain. There's even one in Myrtle Beach. I can only imagine the clientele.

[Queen Tokelove]

What? People think New Yorkers are nice? I have been here going on 3 years. If you find someone nice, it must be in Manhattan and they're being nice cause they want you to spend your damn money on some bullshit. To me, the people here are very rude and take pride in being rude as hell. I give them this they don't discriminate even if you are disabled. These mofo over here need sensitivity training!!!!!