People, Places: Raison d’être

Brief Chat with a New York Cabbie

I jumped in a random cab on 6^th Avenue and 14^th.  The cab driver was very friendly and asked where I was from almost immediately.  Although, I’m friendly too, so I usually do strike up conversation with the cabbie.  The topics range.  In this case, it turns out my driver grew up in Boston, just a few miles from where I live now. He moved to NYC in the 1970’s.  He said he preferred NYC over Boston ‘because anything is possible.”  Geez, doesn’t everyone says that? I pretty sure he meant that in a practical way such as food 24/7 etc. versus fortune seeking.  I enjoy visiting and exploring, but I never had a desire to live there. I prefer Boston over NYC, and I guess that’s why it’s my home now.

I discover something interesting each time I visit, but I also notice quite a bit of sadness and struggle. I suppose it depend upon where in the city I am.  I usually stay in the mid-town area (garment district) close to my company’s office.  This is not a flashy area of the city. There are remnants of the high-traffic drug area that used to be near the Penn Station.  The cab driver said the street my hotel is on used full of crack addicts, and he used to drive through with his doors locked. Today, it’s cleaned up, lined with brand new hotels and safe enough to walk along in the evening. Well, anyone with a bit of street smarts that is. There are still questionable shops in the area. Frankly, I don’t necessarily mind the grittiness. It’s more interesting than walking past sterile national retail chains that look identical.

Speaking of sterile retail chains, cabby also lamented on the loss of mom and pop shops.  This is where he dropped his guard for a moment to acknowledge that his beloved city has changed over the years and not all for the better.  He hinted that NYC lost some of its edge over the years. The culprit: too many chains and visitors aren’t as bold as they used to be.

I agree with him, but it’s not just NYC.  It’s every city. As rents rise, independent shop owners are usually priced out of the market, so the have to move to an up-and-coming area and the cycle continues.  Unfortunately, the average person prefers to stay in their comfort zone. They want to stick to what they know, and they prefer not to stray too far. He talked about how his passengers used to be more adventurous. Years ago, tourists would ask him to drive to Harlem, when it was still Harlem, and other off-the-beaten path locations. Travelers wanted to see reality and mix with locals not other tourists. Now, it’s just Times Square, Central Park and the usually top 10 places identified in travel books.

Unfortunately, it was a short cab ride, and we didn’t have a chance to talk further.  If it wasn’t late, I would have taken a longer way back to the hotel.

June 15, 2010 - Posted by aburnis | Domestic, New York City