It's best to be upfront about these things. A colleague of mine at the Times, James Harding, recently praised London as "the coolest city on earth." "The world loves a long weekend in New York," he wrote, "but these days prefers to make its home in London." He cited London's pre-eminence as a modern financial centre, and it is impossible to deny the figures that support this: in 2001, the US accounted for 57 per cent of all stock market flotations over $1bn; by 2006, that figure had fallen to 16 per cent—and risen from 33 to 63 per cent in Europe. Hoorah for London! As a New Yorker at the Times, I was unsurprised to be asked to join in the chorus of praise, in print, and I was happy to do so. I've lived in London for 15 years, and every word of what I wrote was true. I love London. I love St Paul's, Borough market and the tunnel under the river to Greenwich. I love getting on a train and being in Paris a few hours later. I love the sense I have of a city that's culturally unjudgemental; yes, there is fashion in culture but fashion is not all, the way you sometimes feel it is in New York.
But then I try to take the tube, and I am not so sure. London is a remarkable city, a wonderful city; and all cities, one way or another, can be tough to live in. But Harding's praise was echoed, a few days later in the Times, by a telling comment from Gerard Baker: "To many residents… life in London may be a struggle against rising crime and a crowded tube and overpriced housing, but from an international perspective, it is truly the world's pre-eminent urban locale."
An international perspective is all very well and good, but it's not much use when you're trying to get on a train. I appreciate my colleague's point of view, but that "to many residents…" makes me wonder what city life is meant to be about. Yes, New York is an expensive city to live in—and this is true now too for what Manhattanites were, once upon a time, wont to call "the outer boroughs." But being there—as resident or visitor—is, in many ways, a whole lot easier, and more pleasant, than being in London much of the time.
Everything, of course, is cheaper in New York, but that's an old story and not the one that really interests me. Quality of life, as it's called, comes in part from what you have to pay for things; but not wholly and, I think, not mainly. I'm sorry, but when I first came to Britain I was told that the thing about the British was that they were polite. Forgive me: is the vomiting in the street thing a part of the politeness, or am I missing something? How is it that Londoners go to Paris and complain about the surliness of the French? Well, takes one to know one, I guess. Don't get me wrong. I live here. I'm happy here. I just wish people would be a little nicer sometimes. You can't attach figures to this kind of thing; it's just a sense one has. But I feel welcome in New York in a way that I never do in London. London doesn't need you; New York does. And this is nothing to do with what happened to New York on 9/11. Following the attacks, it's true, there was a queer period when New York really did feel like a very small town. But the idea that New Yorkers were grouchy before and, now that all the terrorist fuss has died down, are grouchy again is a fallacy. I don't mind being told to have a nice day. Usually, whoever is saying it really seems to mean it. How bad can that be?
I feel safer in New York. I see cops on the streets, walking, not driving around in their cars. Most of my London friends have been mugged at one time or another in the past year or so; this is not true of my friends in New York. From the 1970s, when I was first aware of New York as a city, as a place with a character, I have seen it transformed—revived, you might say, made cleaner and safer and better. Central park was not a beautiful place when I was a girl, not really; it is now. I feel as if, in the years I've lived here, I have seen London go the other way; it's hard to say why. Do Londoners love their city? They have a kind of gruff affection for it, but that's different from pride or love. Of course, there are downsides to all the neatening-up that's gone on in New York—Times Square just feels like Disneyland now, and that's pretty strange. But then you can't have everything.
In truth, comparisons are invidious; there is no "capital of the world." But let's not be too hard on New York. Take the A train and see for yourself.
