Posted on 08/08/2014 7:22:46 AM PDT by C19fan
This year’s list of friendliest (and unfriendliest) cities in the U.S., as chosen by Condé Nast Traveler readers, boasted a lot of Southern hospitality and big-city chilliness, but what do you get when you widen the list to include the whole world? The results may surprise you.
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
I’m not from Charleston, but as a Southerner I can tell you it isn’t the simple fact of your Northern pedigree that we dislike. What we have no use for are those Yankees who come down here with an attitude of contemptuous condescension for the South.
Nothing personal—strictly business!
gawd I hate these lists
Friendliest people I came across were in Kansas. Traveled there frequently when my daughter and Son-in-Law were stationed at Ft. Riley (”Big Red One”). We stayed at family housing on the fort, as well as hotels in Manhattan and Junction City. Always met nice people.
There’s Charleston, then there’s the rest of South Carolina. Kind of like NYC & upstate New York.
Old joke: Why are Charlestonians like the Chinese? Because they eat rice, worship their ancestors, & speak an untelligible language.
We’re not the richest state but there’s lots to see & do. All those miles of coastline, for starters.
Northerners don’t have accents. Southerners have accents.
Jo'berg wasn't bad...not unfriendly just a lot of rampant crime and everything is behind gates with armed guards. :)
Paris wasn't at all. The US - I've found the east coast, specifically Connecticut and Massachusetts to be rude and pretentious.
I think they need to define how they measure "friendly" beyond "where you felt most welcome." Both "southern hospitality" and "minnesota nice" may have you feeling welcome on the initial impression. Look a little deeper and it's easy to see it's an easy way to be nice to your face and not so nice once you turn around and walk away.
I really disliked the Bahamas, especially Nassau. The food sucks and the locals are best described as apathetic. However, I was not worried about crime.
Paris was very friendly (15 years ago) probably because I speak HS-level French and understand their customs (e.g., don’t ask for extra salt or the sauce on the side). The food was terrific.
London is a very friendly place, particularly the pubs. Maybe the Guinness helps. The food still sucks except for the Indian restaurants.
Yes, I get that. I haven't had any trouble getting along with people in other southern cities and towns - treat people with respect and you'll get it in return. But Charleston, SC is very different, which is why it surprised me to see it on the above list.
I’m Canadian and I distrust yankees too. In all fairness though, not all the Americans living in the north are yankees. There are many true constitution loving Americans there too.
Fair enough. I’ve never been there.
That’s because they don’t want you bringing your unfriendly Yankee ways down there.
Old joke: Why are Charlestonians like the Chinese? Because they eat rice, worship their ancestors, & speak an untelligible language.
We’re not the richest state but there’s lots to see & do. All those miles of coastline, for starters.
LOL, yes, I think the rest of SC is great, as far as I've seen.
Re NYC - been there a few times and encountered only two unfriendly people: (1) the tour guide at the NYSE, and (2) a guy who looked like an unemployed, middle-aged gangster who objected strenuously to my taking his picture :)
3/5 French. No wonder my great-grandfather bugged out of that country.
I just got done living in Paris, France for 3 months.
My observations are completely contrary to the ongoing, false stereotypes, about France.
The first week I was there, I was shocked that I nearly starved to death, because the food was so bad. The french have the best ingredients in the world, don’t get me wrong. The problem begins when you give these fine ingredients to a french chef. I ended up cooking everything my self, from scratch. Try finding a decent jar of Marinara sauce in Paris or some cheddar cheese. Good luck with that. And a plate of steaming, smelly snails just makes me want to run, fast...
And for the rudeness of the French people. I know about 10 words in French and the whole time I was there, I met the nicest people, everywhere. It was astounding. If I looked lost, people would just come up to me and attempt to help. I had one very attractive girl, go out of her way to take me to the train station I needed to get to. People who say the French are rude are full of it. The fact is that the French didn’t grow up in a Disney/Hollywood culture like Americans have, so they don’t go around smiling at each other like we do and that is the real issue.
LOL
"In all fairness though, not all the Americans living in the north are yankees. There are many true constitution loving Americans there too."
Oh, I know. Like I said, it's not the "Northern-ness" itself that we mind; it's the attitude. Conservative Yankees who don't put on that superior air are welcome.
For a large city, I was stunned at how friendly Denver was (that was 25 years ago).
The Southerners are jealous of Yankee weather? Or vice versa?
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