Big Brother is Watching

When I was in New York, I took a couple of photos of the subway stations and trains as I knew that there would be a ban on photography in the subway soon. But I didn't know that the ban had already become effective. One day we hopped on a number 6 train, which looked like a brand new one with lights on a map indicating where the train is at any given time. There was also a recorded voice and an LCD screen showing the name of the upcoming station--finally, something modern for the NYC subway system, something that the Japanese subway, for example, has had for ages.

But these are not all. Soon came a "high-tech" surprise. As I was admiring the modern features of this train and taking some snapshots, a voice came through the loudspeaker, aiming at me: "Photography is not allowed in the subway. Put that camera away immediately." The lady and man across from me immediately reacted and said to me: "Oh, now we know we are being watched!" This is something new even to the New Yorkers.

Well, this meant the end of my subway picture taking. At the next station, a policeman came onboard, which made me wonder for a few seconds. I thought, well, the ban does not concern journalists and I had a press card with me. So I wasn't really scared they would do anything to me. After all, do I look like a terrorist? Still, This kind of police-state control gives me the chills. I have discussed this with a friend who lives in the city and she supports the ban as a security measure. But I think it is too paranoid. It is killing the creative licence of people more than it kills terrorism.

On another occassion, when we were entering the Metropolitan, we also went through a security line and had our bags examined. It seems like Big Brother is increasingly watching you in the Land of Freedom.

New York, New York

Christmas and New Year in New York. It was a romantic dream, which came true to a certain extend, but cut short when we caught a terrible flu before the New Year and were confined to bed for the rest of the stay. The nice memories of the days we spent roaming the city are thus marred by the pain that followed. It can be said that this was the worst flu I've ever had in my life, totally drained of energy on top of having fever and chill spells, burning throat and coughs that made me vomit. But so much about that.

I did get a few wishes fulfilled: got a haircut by my Chinatown hairdresser and bought a Canon digital SLR camera at probably the world's largest camera equipment retail store, B&H Photo and Video. Hubby fulfilled his wish to see the impressionist collection at teh Metropolitan Museum. And of course, he got to eat the infamous Peking pork chop in Flushing--and not just once. Besides fulfilling these carnal desires, I also got to meet a couple of good friends, which was really nice.

Having been away from the States for 3.5 years, I did have some romantic ideas about living in America again. While I was very happy to be among friendly people again, I also realized that I should appreciate my life in Sweden more. Sure it can be boring here, but life is a lot more peaceful here and working conditions less harsh. Above all, there is the five-week vacation whereas my friends in the States complain about being squeezed dry by their employers. Surely there is more money to go around in New York, yet everything is so much more expensive than I remember, and the shop-till-you-drop culture is really superfluous. The one big thing that I truly appreciate about New York, though, is its diversity. It pleased me to see the myriad of different faces in the streets of New York--and the explosion of energy they create.

That's my observations in a nutshell. Of course, I would have liked to be in New York without the sickness, so I could breathe it in the way I did when I was living there. At best, this trip was like a failed orgasm, too much anticipation, too little reward.