Chris_arnade

My write-up on the recent LA bus stop fiasco

Again. There is nothing in this I disagree with. But there is a lot of assumptions on what I have wrote over my last 12 years based on not reading what I wrote.

If you read Dignity, and come to the same conclusion. Fine. But this thread is based on a Wiki page.

Congrats on Living in a different Eco strata. That is well done! (no snark intended. Genuine congrats)

"rather than centering the voices of the people he claims to "inhabit their tiny slice of the world"

I wrote a book center the voices of marginalized people I spent up to 10 years with during my time documenting addiction in the US. It's called Dignity. I don't expect you to read it, but perhaps if you did, your criticisms would be different.

This project, walking around the world and sending dispatches, is different. While I talk to plenty of people during my trips, its a more macro based approach.

While I appreciate your takes, I will say your making some pretty huge assumptions based on one article. Such is life!

Take care and be well

No. The intent was go to Dyker heights, Hunts point, Jackson Heights, Sunset Park, Jamaica, Crown Heights. Not just Upper East Side or Times Square.

Nowhere do I talk about Real or Fake or whatever. Everyplace is as real as any other place. Its about who you want to meet. How fancy you want stuff to be. How packaged.

Guess you missed this line

"That doesn’t mean entirely ignoring places like NYC, Istanbul, Seoul, or Tokyo. Some cities are so important they can’t be missed, and every city is a confederation of very different neighborhoods. NYC is as much Dyker Heights as it is Upper East Side.

That makes where you stay in a city more important than the city itself. "

I lived in NYC for 20 years and wrote a book about the Bronx.

Wow. So many comments. I wish I could respond to all, but life.

Thanks again and always enjoy when a post of mine makes it to Hacker news. I appreciate the feedback, and actually listen to it, and when wrong, try to adjust.

Thanks again!

Thanks! Will do. I also went to Hanoi so I could explore the towns around the Chinese border. That didn't go so well. But was interesting.

Thanks again

Ha. Yeah. Maybe next time.

"and went to places to actually work there, for 6 months, or a year, or more" -- yeah if you have the ability to do that (job, family, etc) that is a great way to live IMO.

You mention the local linux groups. My brother, who does something similar to you, uses the local Ping Pong clubs. He is a top rated player, and its enough of a niche sport, but one that is everywhere, that its a great international community

I don't write off entire cities. I do make choices with limited time. As I write,

"That doesn’t mean entirely ignoring places like NYC, Istanbul, Seoul, or Tokyo. Some cities are so important they can’t be missed, and every city is a confederation of very different neighborhoods. NYC is as much Dyker Heights as it is Upper East Side.

That makes where you stay in a city more important than the city itself. "

I wasn't attempting to suggest Hanoi is the Indianapolis of Vietnam. I was Just using a stretched example to go to the less obvious place. Maybe I'm wrong, but the vibes I got here in my world is Hanoi is the less obvious place compared to Saigon.

I make a living telling people where I went.

This article is based on lots of request of those people asking me for an article like this.

Thanks so much. Really appreciate that.

That's a substack thing that I'm completely unaware of and I think powerless to do anything about.

I wrote the article. So you can yell at me here. Thanks again for all the interesting comments. Hacker news is the best. One of the few places I read the comments and learn.

Yeah. And. I liked Indianapolis. Great Mexican food. Nice Twin Peaks.

No! Some are indeed. Especially in Airport. But almost every country has, if you look for them, places with zero commission.

Also, a lot of places around the world (where I go, especially street food type places) don't accept cards.

Taking local money out of bank machines is a huge rip off. Huge fees and bad exchange rates

Had a great time in Montreal in February. Great time in Hanoi in July!

So I guess compared to you I really am a contrarian.

Thank you so much.

And this will sound a little weird, but these type of forums (like reddit, with nested comments and listing of stories) I have a hard time reading. There is something about the layout that scrambles my brain & overwhelms me.

I want to like them, it is just hard for me to follow.

Thanks for posting this and all the comments. To those who thought I should have walked into the wealthier parts of Bucharest, that isn't really my thing. I try to treat each city I walk the same. Which is to just walk across town and usually end up in parts that many people live in, but few visit.

Chris Arnade (the author of this piece and a guy who likes to walk a lot)