NY Vs CY
After growing up in the small Mediterranean island of Cyprus, moving to New York proved to be quite the culture shock. If Cyprus is the small intimate Cheers bar where everybody knows your name, New York is the vast wild jungle where nobody gives a f**k who you are, as long as you stay out of the way. As part of my constant travelling back and forth between my two homelands, here are 14 of the major differences between NYC and Cyprus along with authentic corresponding pictures taken by yours truly:
1. February weather forecast: New York has blizzards. Cyprus gets chilly.
2. Bank tellers: In New York the teller sits behind a double-paned bullet-resistant glass barrier window. In Cyprus the teller sits behind a counter. That is all. A counter.
3. Bus routes: New York buses go to the East Village and West Village. Cyprus buses go to actual villages.
4. Not an art project: There are bus stop signs in Cyprus, upon which routes are written in with a sharpie. These routes are permanent.
5. Convenience: Motivated by the need to move as little as possible, Cypriots can actually top up the parking meter wherever they are by sending a text.
6. Aesthetics: Whereas NBC looks like a vibrant media establishment, the reciprocal CyBC has the feel of a minimum security prison.
7. Bad movie title translations: In Cyprus, “The Shawshank Redemption” is officially titled: “Rita Hayworth: Final Exit.” NOT A JOKE.
8. Subtitles for everything: Except “Giggity”.
9. Food identity crisis: The difference is in the taste. More often than not, it is a “nice try.”
10. The main squares: Times Square (patting Eleftheria Square on the head): “Awww, look at you! And who’s this little whittle guy?!”
11. Size over Practicality: Because “Screw it, it’s cuter,” that’s why.
12. Consumer options: I mean, personally, one mall is enough for the whole island.
13. Presidential homage: They don’t say which Kennedy (JFK) and they pointlessly phonetically translated “Avenue”. Oh, and misspelled “Kennedy”.
14. Signage: The fonts are a little different, otherwise it’s the same. The. F***ing. Same. Everywhere.