Cities you'd never return to

keano_afc

turnikett1 wrote: »

I thought Belfast had a great nightlife, I had loads of craic there. Though I agree there was a serious tension in the air, did not feel safe walking around the city centre at night! Went looking for a bottle of Buckie during the night time at Falls Rd, thinking I would be on friendly grounds... I was so wrong! We felt sooo uncomfortable.

Great city overall tho

Where do you find this tension? Walking down Sandy Row with your Ireland jersey on? Seriously. My wife was in Queens for 4 years while we were dating so I was up there at least every second weekend. Never had one bad incident, and she was staying in Methodist College which leads on to Sandy Row and some loyalist areas. She made a lot of frieinds in college so we still go up every few months. I've parked my Dublin registered car in East Belfast (in some really dodgy areas as well, Beersbridge Road for example) tons of times as most of her friends live over there and never had a problem.

Belfast is a great city, plenty to do and the nightlife is great. You might have some issues if you go looking for them, like any city. But based on my experience the vast majority of people just want to get on with life and couldnt be arsed causing hassle.

Laois_Man

Paris - expensive and overrated. And after like, one hour, boring too.

Wasn't too fond of Brussels either! Not the friendliest place in my experience

Las Vegas - A good place to see.....but for no more than a couple of days once in your lifetime is enough

turnikett1

keano_afc wrote: »

Where do you find this tension? Walking down Sandy Row with your Ireland jersey on? Seriously. My wife was in Queens for 4 years while we were dating so I was up there at least every second weekend. Never had one bad incident, and she was staying in Methodist College which leads on to Sandy Row and some loyalist areas. She made a lot of frieinds in college so we still go up every few months. I've parked my Dublin registered car in East Belfast (in some really dodgy areas as well, Beersbridge Road for example) tons of times as most of her friends live over there and never had a problem.

Belfast is a great city, plenty to do and the nightlife is great. You might have some issues if you go looking for them, like any city. But based on my experience the vast majority of people just want to get on with life and couldnt be arsed causing hassle.

Not really in the city centre, but going for wanders around the place. I don't wear Irish jerseys or anything of the sort - the only thing that identifies me as not from the North was my accent. Me and my friends 2 got a lot of stares from people and I won't say rude encounters but definitely cold. There was times where I felt very unwelcome and tense. It wasn't the same as walking around rough parts/estates in Limerick or Dublin or whatever, it was a cold uneasy feeling.

Don't get me wrong, I really loved Belfast. I wouldn't mind living there! There was just some parts to the city that felt very uncomfortable to be in.

I remember we went to a shop and asked directions to the city centre, yer man started sniggering and gave us very clear directions. 10 minutes later we had ended up in Sandy Row! There, we got a LOT of stares!

Cookie_Monster

Belfast - there twice and it's just boring and depressing and over policed.
Frankfurt - only because if I'm ever back in Germany I want to go other places as I've been there already.
Paris - no redeeming features and the worst major airport in the world.

DoctaDee

There's so many wide and differing opinions of cities here I'm reminded of the Idiot Abroad series on Sky when Karl picked up the little fella Warwick for season 3. 1st stop was Venice and St. Marks Square, Pilkington was tellin us that the city was more suited to back when we were fish, and the little lad was off buying ice cream and postcards to which Pilkington remarked ... he's treating it like a fcuking holiday. Really your state of mind colours your view of any particular place.

shalalala

munchkin_utd wrote: »

indeed - places like Coventry really should be reduced to rubble (again) and rebuilt from scratch (again) and I cant see myself ever going there ever again

where i am from! Awful. Interesting fact, although it was bombed, a lot of the demolition was done by the government to re build it as what they saw as a modern city. So actually the Germans didn't ruin the place.

Eggy Baby!

jane82 wrote: »

I went to thermopylae once. 300 hundred locals turned up at a narrow passageway coming into the town and all huddled together and wouldnt let us through.
We had to camp there took us months to get in.

Somehow, "the 30 thousand Spartans" just doesn't have the same ring to it...

zl1whqvjs75cdy

Laois_Man wrote: »

Paris - expensive and overrated. And after like, one hour, boring too.

Wasn't too fond of Brussels either! Not the friendliest place in my experience

Las Vegas - A good place to see.....but for no more than a couple of days once in your lifetime is enough

Seriously? Some people are utterly taking the piss in this thread. I'd agree that Paris is very expensive but boring it is not. There is loads to do. The Louvre alone would take up a week.

drumswan

donkeyoaty0099 wrote: »

Seriously? Some people are utterly taking the piss in this thread. I'd agree that Paris is very expensive but boring it is not. There is loads to do. The Louvre alone would take up a week.

Paris hardly compares to Laois now, come on

industrialhorse

I found Las Vegas to be sleazier and tackier than I thought it would be. I'm happy that I got to see it once in my lifetime cos I'll never need to visit the place ever again.

nero123

Venice

Overcrowded and a rip off..

Eggy Baby!

New York- very overrated city. It surprised me by how old it looks. You can tell in most places the infrastructure hasn't been updated since the 60's. Far too busy and hectic for me, even the parks are teeming with people and distractions. One of the few places that was well-maintained was Times Square and that was filled to the hilt with flashy, soulless advertising. Sinister place. Subway is utter muck in most places- like some sort of sprawling underground junkie city.

Chicago is also very seedy in that 50's noir style way, makes you feel like you're in a gritty pulp novel. Very old decrepit buildings, and the attempt by city planning to modernise the look of the city in the last few years hasn't really worked. Now you have all of these ugly ostentatious abstract monuments all over the place and it looks even more crappy.

I've been in Niagara Falls too (the town near the falls, on the Canadian side), and it is a fairly flashy, soulless place. We crossed over the border into America and I kid you not it looked like a warzone in comparison to the Canadian side- almost totally abandoned, crumbling commercial and residential areas. Very sinister again.

And, of course, Navan- the smallest and least important of all post-Soviet towns

Eggy Baby!

Eggy Baby! wrote: »

New York ... even the parks are teeming with people and distractions.

What exactly were you expecting?

Cienciano

keano_afc wrote: »

Belfast is a great city, plenty to do and the nightlife is great.

I agree that Belfast isn't dodgy at all, i felt perfectly safe there. But nightlife great? Every where stops serving at midnight. That's poxy

Blingy

Montevideo, Uruguay.
The weirdest, oddest place I have ever been. Can't put my finger on any one aspect but just got an awful dark, sinister feeling the whole time I was there. Felt like we were in danger most of the time yet had no obvious reason to feel like that. Have been in much worse places regarding safety however never had this awful feeling before. The underground rememberance to Artigas was awful too. Have never felt like I needed to leave somewhere so badly before.

DoctaDee

Blingy wrote: »

Montevideo, Uruguay.
The weirdest, oddest place I have ever been. Can't put my finger on any one aspect but just got an awful dark, sinister feeling the whole time I was there. Felt like we were in danger most of the time yet had no obvious reason to feel like that. Have been in much worse places regarding safety however never had this awful feeling before. The underground rememberance to Artigas was awful too. Have never felt like I needed to leave somewhere so badly before.

That would be the German influence ..:rolleyes:

buck65

Agadir

Eggy Baby!

Deleted User wrote: »

What exactly were you expecting?

Calm, perhaps? It's not often that you go to a huge, sprawling park and be uncomfortable with the amount of people in it.

NSAman

Eggy Baby! wrote: »

Calm, perhaps? It's not often that you go to a huge, sprawling park and be uncomfortable with the amount of people in it.

Did you even do the basics before going? Like ...errr. google the population and the square milage?

New York is for me one of the most amazing cities in the world. I love it. Rough gritty and people are rude and so damned helpful all at the same time. the food is fantastic, there is ALWAYS something new to see and it changes all the time.

Central Park is packed whenever the weather is good/mediocre and is the main congregation place for NY'ers.

Did you expect it to be like the Pheonix Park on a wet day?

maninasia

Frankfurt, home of the Euro and junkies, living dead occupy it's empty streets at night. Dull, dull, dull.

Beijing (Greyjing) if I could get away with not going back.

Cairo is a massive city with about two traffic lights to it's name, a cacophony of honking horns and horses and carts moving in a random directions 24hrs/day, 7 days a week. The city spills like an overflowing trash heap right up to the pyramids. It seemed stuck in 1972 sometime. When people move in Cairo they take the doors and windows with them. Elevators have no doors. Undercover cops were the friendliest of the locals. The pyramids and museum ROCK though. Supposedly the locals avoid Cairo and hang out in Alexandria.

Sweden can be deathly boring as well.

Laois_Man

donkeyoaty0099 wrote: »

Seriously? Some people are utterly taking the piss in this thread. I'd agree that Paris is very expensive but boring it is not. There is loads to do. The Louvre alone would take up a week.

Yeah...coz the whole week would be taken up in the queue just to get into it!

Eggy Baby!

NSAman wrote: »

Did you even do the basics before going? Like ...errr. google the population and the square milage?

New York is for me one of the most amazing cities in the world. I love it. Rough gritty and people are rude and so damned helpful all at the same time. the food is fantastic, there is ALWAYS something new to see and it changes all the time.

Central Park is packed whenever the weather is good/mediocre and is the main congregation place for NY'ers.

Did you expect it to be like the Pheonix Park on a wet day?

I was 14/15 at the time so I was simply following along with my parents.

The city itself is cruddy, imo....it makes Dublin look like a quaint country B&B in Donegal.

Diemos

Zurich

Balmed Out

maninasia wrote: »

Cairo is a massive city with about two traffic lights to it's name, a cacophony of honking horns and horses and carts moving in a random directions 24hrs/day, 7 days a week. The city spills like an overflowing trash heap right up to the pyramids. It seemed stuck in 1972 sometime. When people move in Cairo they take the doors and windows with them. Elevators have no doors. Undercover cops were the friendliest of the locals. The pyramids and museum ROCK though. Supposedly the locals avoid Cairo and hang out in Alexandria.

spent 2 weeks there about 15 yrs ago (pre sept 11-might have changed somewhat since).

Of anywhere ive been its the one that some day I will definately go back to. Its as foreign as ive ever felt in every sense - smell, sights, sounds, culture etc. I would say that its best to do a few days then go south, a few days then east, a few days then west as it can be overwhelming especially if your not used to very big crowded cities.

Dont remember seeing any horses or carts, certainly not a lot of them. Lot of very old models of ford cars built in more modern times beeping with no side mirrors and a lot of traffic and accidents.

Its a 3rd world city bigger then any european or american city but its far more developed then many. It has plenty of modern shopping areas, an underground, parklands and plenty of affluent neighborhoods.

The people are extremely friendly and willing to go to extraordinary lengths to help tourists refusing any compensation but yes there are a lot of hecklers (not as bad as india) but a smile and a joke and they leave you alone. I would go so far as to say that no where in the world have I encountered such friendly people.

The place has so much to see from khan al kaneli bazaar, the amazing mosques, the city of the dead, the citadel, the nile, coptic churches and theres a lot of museums not just the ancient egypt one.

I think it has more interesting sights then new york or rome. Its just such a fascinating city with so much history from ancient egypt to islamic culture, the mamlucks, colonial europe etc.

edit I forgot the juice bars and the food which can be fantastic

furryhead

Johannesburg

Frank Lee Midere

Laois_Man wrote: »

Paris - expensive and overrated. And after like, one hour, boring too.

This thread has jumped the shark.

Daveysil15

Has Manilla been mentioned yet?

Oops69

Daveysil15 wrote: »

Has Manilla been mentioned yet?

No , I think everyone knows it's a ****e hole already without needing to be told by someone whohas had the misfortune of visiting it ,am I right ?:D
Sorry Filipino nurses out there , but you probably agree anway.

losthorizon

Every City is interesting for so many different reasons. And if you cant keep yourself interested in them more than a couple days then the problem doesn't relate to the city. It relates to you.

Get a good guidebook, do at least some research and look stuff up on the internet. Theres tonnes of stuff in every city.

Electric Sheep

Eggy Baby! wrote: »

I was 14/15 at the time so I was simply following along with my parents.

The city itself is cruddy, imo....it makes Dublin look like a quaint country B&B in Donegal.

Most people do not expect or indeed want a city to look like a B & B in Donegal.

FlusterCluck

Have to agree that Zurich is a boring place. In fact most Swiss cities are. Basle is another dull kip. I was very underwhelmed with Prague, and I found Berlin to be quote soulless. I put it down to the possibility that I might just not really like inland cities. Luxembourg City .... a more boring place you will struggle to find. And in the US there are so many crap-holes, Ithaca, Albany, Syracuse, Cleveland, Akron, Baltimore, Indianapolis, Raleigh, Bridgeport, Nashville.

Cincinatti should be dynamited.

FlusterCluck

Have to agree that Zurich is a boring place. In fact most Swiss cities are. Basle is another dull kip. I was very underwhelmed with Prague, and I found Berlin to be quite soulless. I put it down to the possibility that I might just not really like inland cities. Luxembourg City .... a more boring place you will struggle to find. And in the US there are so many crap-holes, Ithaca, Albany, Syracuse, Cleveland, Akron, Baltimore, Indianapolis, Raleigh, Bridgeport, Nashville.

Cincinatti should be dynamited.

FlusterCluck

Sorry for the double post.

MonstaMash

Sunglasses Ron wrote: »

This post has 7 thanks.

Add you, and eight people agree.


Are there really 8 people here who have been to Sierra Leone?

Apparently so, although I personally can't vouch for the other seven :rolleyes:

bnt

furryhead wrote: »

Johannesburg

Jo'burg isn't a single city in the way that e.g. Dublin or London is. It's more like Los Angeles, several diverse cities in one geographic area. I haven't been there since 1991, but even then Soweto (south-west of the centre) was almost on a different planet to Sandton (a posh suburb to the north). Since then I see that Sandton has become even more affluent, it's now hosting a good chunk of South Africa's financial sector.

The central area of Hillbrow used to be fairly middle class and bohemian, but went badly downhill in the last 20 years. It used to be where the fashionable record and guitar shops were, and quite safe for clubbing at night. Not any more. As for Soweto, well, if you've seen the film District Nine, you've seen an exaggerated version of what it's like (minus the aliens).

HeadPig

Prague, Paris, Athens. 3 ***holes

playedalive

Amsterdam. Although it was an interesting place to visit, I did not feel safe in the city at all. The Red Light District attracts a lot of rough people and druggies imo.

Grayson

playedalive wrote: »

Amsterdam. Although it was an interesting place to visit, I did not feel safe in the city at all. The Red Light District attracts a lot of rough people and druggies imo.

It's probably been said, but that's only a small part of the city. Kinda like templebar. the rest of the city is actually beautiful.

playedalive

Grayson wrote: »

It's probably been said, but that's only a small part of the city. Kinda like templebar. the rest of the city is actually beautiful.

Point taken. I think I was just unlucky where I was staying (near the RLD ) but I did like walking around different spots of the city. I just didn't feel safe where I was.

Olive8585

Why is Athens so bad? I've started to think about going there recently but keep reading that it's a sh1thole.

Daveysil15

playedalive wrote: »

Amsterdam. Although it was an interesting place to visit, I did not feel safe in the city at all. The Red Light District attracts a lot of rough people and druggies imo.

I found the roughies and druggies tend to leave you alone once you don't make eye contact. I got a lot more hassle in Prague tbh. A lot of black guys trying to sell you some charlie. Even when you walk into a bar the feckers would be waiting outside for you.

evolving_doors

Calcutta... Like some post-apocolyptic hell hole from mad max.
Once the brits pulled out that was it...

P_Cash

Rome

NSAman

Olive8585 wrote: »

Why is Athens so bad? I've started to think about going there recently but keep reading that it's a sh1thole.

Athens would have been one of the most beautiful cities in the world, only for the planning decisions of past governments and the greed of the Greeks themselves. The old buildings are simply amazing and the city must have looked beautiful in the 50s. Alas now it is overbuilt, dirty and full of grafitti. Service levels are non-existant and it is damned expensive. Over half the city is closed and what is open even if brand new, normally ends up covered in painted slogans.

Alas my vast experience of Athens leaves me cold. The only thing good about Athens is the weather. The islands are better, but it also depends on where you are going. Shame, could be heaven on earth, if it were not for the Greeks...(Cue abuse)..;)

MadYaker

It's sad to see so many people saying Paris. If you stay away from the tourist traps and don't go at the peak of tourist season its an amazing city. I've been about 10 times and I'll still go back for a few days most years.

Los Angeles is a dump. Or at least the parts of it we saw were. It was cool to see the walk of fame and all the other stuff in Hollywood like Universal Studios etc and we got some great Mexican food but I don't think id go back. I'm glad I went once though.

cloudatlas

Olive8585 wrote: »

Why is Athens so bad? I've started to think about going there recently but keep reading that it's a sh1thole.

There are grotty areas and the pollution can be stifling if you're living there but from a tourist point of view it's an interesting experience. The food and drink is delicious. The Acropolis is stunning during the day when you can visit the site and at night when it's lit up. There is also a new museum attached to the site. There are a lot of other interesting museums art, archaeological, byzantine. At night you can walk through the plaka old quarter and soak up the atmosphere. There are also a lot of hills that you can trek up for lovely views if the weather isn't too hot. The flea market has beautiful jewelry and knock off football shirts. If all this isn't your cup of tea you can just sit in a taverna and drink Hellas Beer, Mythos, retsina, raki and enjoy the sights and sounds and listen to the people bitch about the economic crisis and the government which is a favorite Irish past-time.

tobybinns

playedalive wrote: »

Amsterdam. Although it was an interesting place to visit, I did not feel safe in the city at all. The Red Light District attracts a lot of rough people and druggies imo.

I never had any issues when I went last year.

losthorizon

I quite liked Amsterdam. Not so keen on the Hague . Rotterdam was ok but my favourite was Arnhem.

Would like to go to Belguim though - it seems much more interesting. Only ever been to Spa there and passed through the German speaking areas of that country.

Ive always had favourable thoughts about most places Ive gone to except Greece and thats because I got sick.

tobybinns

losthorizon wrote: »

I quite liked Amsterdam. Not so keen on the Hague . Rotterdam was ok but my favourite was Arnhem.

Would like to go to Belguim though - it seems much more interesting. Only ever been to Spa there and passed through the German speaking areas of that country.

Ive always had favourable thoughts about most places Ive gone to except Greece and thats because I got sick.

If you go to Belgium, you gotta visit Oostend! It is paradise with it's lovely city scenery and beautiful beach! :cool:

losthorizon

tobybinns wrote: »

If you go to Belgium, you gotta visit Oostend! It is paradise with it's lovely city scenery and beautiful beach! :cool:

Dont like Oostenders!

was thinking more about Liege and the WW1 Battlefields etc. Oh and the Beer.