What's the most walkable place you've ever lived or stayed, and what was your experience like there? Let me know! If you like these rambles and want to hear more about movies, trams, theology, theme parks, and Paddington...check out my Patreon here: www.patreon.com/user?u=1017531
It never occurred to me that Americans can’t just walk places - everywhere I’ve lived in the UK, I’ve never technically needed a car (but have one) and most of the time I don’t use one
Likely you've seen the pictures of Amsterdam in the 70s versus now- used to be 'made for cars' and now nearly fully pedestrianised. A shining example of how it is possible to change from car-central spaces.
Brit here and I think you nailed it, I've been to Disney Florida and Paris and I think they're still enchanting for us, but not for the history or walkability reasons some Americans love it. It's the more fictional stuff that drew me in, seeing the characters walk about and life sized locations I'd seen in movies. Walkability definitely feels like it's something Americans are becoming more aware of, maybe it's just my interests but channels like Not Just Bikes and City Beautiful seem to be growing ever more popular.
I've definitely sensed more people talking about this in the past year than there used to be, which has been super refreshing. Not Just Bikes and City Beautiful are my HEROES
America was made unwalkable on purpose. It prompted the sales of cars and those that didn’t have cars were effectively stranded wherever they were (usually minorities who didn’t have access). I would LOVE having a walkable community. That’s why Americans love college so much as well. It’s basically the only time in our lives we get to have a place where you can walk or take a bus or bike to all the places you need to get to, usually really beautiful and with tons of pathways~ Disney world is cool for that as well
I think you made a good point about idolizing the college experience partially because of its walkability. I graduated from my school in 2017 but have kept working here ever since and love the accessibility to walk around campus. Just tonight my wife and I biked around campus in the evening and it was so fun not having to navigate around cars for the most part
Your point about walking places and getting weird looks is incredibly true. I don't own a car, so I rely heavily on public transit and walking. One day, I wanted to go out to lunch to a nearby restaurant, so I walked. This restaurant is four blocks away, which is not a long distance at all. It's maybe ten minutes on a good day. But when I was talking to others about it afterwards, they were flabbergasted. They couldn't believe that I would just walk to where I needed to go.
I remember Vladimir Nabokov once wrote something about "the European habit of walking when you could drive." It astonished me at the time, because I had never thought of it that way round; I would automatically think that you drive somewhere when you can't *walk* there.
I'm for the Netherlands, and historically speaking it also makes sense that in Europe many things are within walking distance. Most of the ways to get around in Europe in the past was walking, on horseback or horse-drawn carriage. It was not convenient to make long journeys, that's why old villages in Europe are also in a certain travel distance. But also in the old parts of Amsterdam, you see that paths are not built for cars but for smaller means of transport.
You make the US sound like a horror movie. Not the ones with the dark corners and shaows, but the ones with the open, plain field. You see everything but you can't reach nor escape. This video was really insightful and interesting!
After seeing your tweets on the subject of car dependency and the recent Disney ones, I was hoping for a video like this. I can’t drive so I really appreciate living in a small island city where everywhere is within walking distance. It’s far from a Disney wonderland but it means getting places is easy and pleasant and healthy. The things my city can’t offer are reachable by train and I can’t fathom a world without them. I have a friend in California who went to school over here, and she’ll tell people stories in the US and start with “so I was on the train” and there’s always a followup of “why?” when it’s not even something we’d question in England
I spent a semester of uni living in a little Austrian town called Gaming. Maybe it's because it was in the middle of my time in college, or because all the other experiences studying abroad overshadowed it, but I don't think I even noticed that we simply walked anywhere we needed to go (or took a bus or train) until I got back to the States and driving once again became a necessity. Even in the small town I now live in it feels necessary to drive everywhere, even though everything is so close and easily walkable. Just the very design of the town makes it feel to me like walking isn't as much of an option. I think I'd love to again live someplace that's been designed to prioritize pedestrian transportation over vehicular transportation.
As a European who lived in America a few years as a child but most of my life on Europe. Disney felt very fake to me. Oh look they replicated this building style and then all of the crowds so many crowds. It was cool however seeing how they built everything to feel bigger then they are. America also feels unnecessarily big and dependent on cars. One time when my family lived there we had a neighbors party at our place and we where shocked that our neighbors down the street just drove to our house. Even though there is a side walk.
Ok in fairness, if there’s an historic city centre that looks like Disney Land it’s Prague’s 😌 My family and I had a similar reaction because it was the first European city we’d been to aside from London just before (which inevitably got all the Harry Potter comparisons). I think what really enhanced that experience though is we took the train from the airport. Around the airport looks pretty much the way you’d expect in many places around the world, and that area is the last thing you see before the train goes underground. Then when you arrive you suddenly emerge out of the underground station standing in the middle of all these old and beautiful buildings and it’s also completely different to the last environment you were experiencing. It honestly replicates the experience of being suddenly transported into a fantasy land.
I agree. I miss living in Minneapolis because I could walk to work, walk to the salon, walk to Trader Joe’s, and had a park with trails right outside my apartment: that was my backyard! And the places I couldn’t walk to, I could hop on the light rail. The light rail even went straight to the airport. I miss Minneapolis. 😥
Disneyland Paris is pretty well visited…and there are Maaaasany popular European Parks like Port Aventura and Europa Park…So Europeans like Theme Parks…. Most theme park Manufacturers come from Europe like Intamin and Vekoma
I am from Scotland but currently live overseas when I went back home I visited Edinburgh Castle, it didn't impress me too much as I lived next to a castle growing up but there was a lot of Americans memorised and they were saying things like "OMG, it is like a real life Disney World, do you think Cinderella would live in a castle like this", I was a bit shocked how they saw Europe through the eyes of Disney World, I went to Disney Land Paris and was in impressed, the rides sucked, the food sucked and I felt like I was in a movie set everything was so fake.
Having lived in the Netherlands for a while, I've been spoiled by just how good the urban design is there. Car dependency is probably my least favourite American cultural export.
Very insightful commentary. Glad this video was recommended to me. I'd been watching a few clips related to this topic by the channel Not Just Bikes, so I have a fair idea about the extent car dependency shapes our daily lives, but viewing this from the lens of Disneyland and how people subconsciously appreciate how good the public transit is, is something I hadn't really thought about. Keep up the great work!
My family traveled to South Korea a few years ago, and that was definitely the most walkable place I've ever lived, even if it was for a short time. Cars weren't parked on the street, and unless you were closer to the city, buildings were smaller and closer to the ground. Even finding a parking spot wasn't all that bad; the parking garages always had a lot of room and were a WALKABLE distance from where you wanted to go. Plus there were bus stops everywhere!! It all just felt more alive and connected because everything was so much closer together.
Worth to check out the TH-cam channel called Not Just Bikes. It's mostly about urban planning in the Netherlands is centered around people and not cars, and how this compares to urban planning in North America. It really hits on what it means to be able to walk places and how having different options for transport makes for better living.
@@houston-coley I was wondering if you were gonna mention it in your video haha. I'm Dutch and learned to appreciate my own country so much more because of it. Even London (not fake London) was a hellscape compared to my native country.
The most walkable place I've ever lived in was Luxembourg Not only is it a fairly small city (100k inhabitants) but it still has everything you'd need and expect from a bigger city but is still so compact that most stuff is reachable by foot The free public transportation for everyone in another huge plus and makes getting around very easy
Things get a little complicated in cities like Paris or Berlin. Where even though the whole city is pretty much walkable and available to you via public transport; the size of the city itself makes every ride at least half an hour or even an hour and that is no longer so comfortable in the long term. I lived in Berlin for 5 years and I had to commute around an hour to get to work and I sure wished I had a car. Now I live in a smaller German city where it is much more comfortable to walk around and use public transport.
I never thought about that before but I guess it does make sense, it's so funny to hear Americans in London saying the architecture is so quaint, but I guess it's a world apart from America suberbs!
That makes sense. My parents are rather protective so I wasn't allowed to go out and walk around even though I live in the city where a lot of things are within walking distance. I've just moved to the college dorm 2 months ago and this walking everywhere is definitely bliss for me. What's interesting though is that I'm an exception among most people here. Most people still prefer a car or a motorcycle or at least taking the campus shuttle. I think it's probably our unforgiving weather here in the hot and humid tropics. I would walk into the lecture room either soaked in sweat or rain (because I am a scatterbrain and I keep misplacing my umbrella). And to be honest, most people I know rarely spend a full day at a theme park and always find it weird that my family would spend a couple of days at one each trip. I don't know what to conclude but I just thought it's an interesting contrast lol
Banger video, always wondered why all of my favorite American TH-camrs has a obsession which the place. Makes a lot of scene now. Never know how bad the public transport was in America,hopefully it gets better :)
If you go to Denmark, almost everybody there rides a bicycle. It’s amazing Also, one of the inspirations for Disneyland was Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen; so there you go with that European inspiration
Man, this resonated with me so much that I watched it twice in a row. I've been griping to my wife and kids lately about a lack of community or belonging in the physical place we're in, because anytime we go to do anything, we pile into the car and relocate somewhere else. We don't have opportunities to bump into the people we live around because it's straight from the front door to the car with everyone going to any of who knows how many different distant venues in varying directions, we drive 45 minutes away to work in entirely different communities ... people claim humanity is more connected than ever thanks to technology, yet I've never felt so disconnected.
I’ve been really shocked that outdoor malls are adding so many apartments above their shops (at least where I live in America) since they can be so crowded during events and loud, but you made a great point that everything you would need is just right there, so it’s convenient. I wouldn’t personally want to live that close given the noise at concerts and all that (and as much as I love Disney World, which I’m going to in five days) I wouldn’t want to live in the parks either. Still, my family always stays on property despite the crazy prices because of the convenience of being so close and using their transportation systems. You should see the parking garage at Disneyland. Five floors and they have Cast Members lined up in the morning making you park spot by spot down the line so each spot gets filled. It’s so organized and wonderful. I get the “everything is right there and no car” feeling more at Disneyland since it covers less land and you can easily go back to your hotel if you need to grab something or leave the Disney circle to the regular world. Either way, I love Disney parks.
I was born outside the U.S. but have lived the majority of my life here and I definitely relate. As a child the idea of just walking to school or walking to do errands by myself is something that *never* would have occured to me. Even if this might not be the case in every city and town in the country, that has been the case in the places where I've lived. On the few occasions I walked somewhere without adult supervision as a little kid my heart would pound wildly in my chest out of fear of getting hit by a car.
I've lived in Texas my whole life so the only time I didn't really need a car was in college for the first year I lived on campus, and then I still had to drive on occasion. And I haven't been to Europe yet but I was amazed at how easily walkable central Philadelphia was, I found it easier than NYC
I've never been to Disneyland or World or Europe, and didn't live on my college campus, but you are so right. I wish more places in America were like this! That would be fantastic!
Fascinating! Another great vid. The only reason I’d feel the need to go to Disney land is for the escapism and to see stuff from movies, not because it’s a place where you can walk everywhere because I live in the UK and my village is already full of very close-by, walkable history, places, shops, etc. Only problem with where I live is that there’s only one commercial cinema in my town. No IMAX or even small independent cinemas I could catch a short bus journey to.
Hong Kong. Most places has transits right down the street. Huge variety of restaurants, grocery, stores (big chains, malls, to small indie mom & pop stores) are all in walking distance. Shops stay open later in the night. You can spend your whole life without ever needing to drive yourself. Depending on where you live, you can walk and ride transit to other parts of the city without ever stepping outside of air condition space. You can even ride public transits to most remote villages in the country side. While transit isn't as efficient as Japan, it is still one of the best in the world in terms of reliability.
I lived in Manchester during my time at University and it was incredibly walkable. The city gets so dense as you approach the city centre, that it only makes sense to either walk, bus or get the tram around. Living within close proximity of all these things made me feel like I didn't need a car at all and it was super refreshing to just be able to say "let's walk there" whenever going anywhere. Sure, it would take me 40 mins ish to walk into the city, but it sort of removes you from the hustle and bustle of everyday life
I'm Australian and here we have an extreme clashing of 'heritage', nature and modernity. Our public transport - although flawed - is more or less accessible, if you live in the city or in a town along the coast chances are you will be able to walk to school, your work, the shop or even the cinema. If you live in a rural town then the only shop you will have access to is the local store, public transport is once again almost non-existent and man is one with nature, the outback. I think some Australians also have a fascination with Disney World for a lot of the same reasons Americans do; transportation, walkability, and community that they may not have access to if they live in a more rural township where housing is few and far between and home schooling is prevalent. I found your video really enjoyable and definitely gave me food for thought!
Houston, you'll love the Chanel called 'Not Just Bikes'. It's a TH-cam channel by a Canadian who lives in Amsterdam. He talkes about how North American infrastructure hurts North Americans. In his videos he compares North American infrastructure to Dutch infrastructure.
First off, hats off to you because you've approached this matter in a way I never saw coming. Truly interesting and very insightful. I confess this made me reflect on my own judgmental sentiments about theme parks and the people who frequent them. I don't usually generalize; yet, depending on the topic, I might become quite stubborn when it comes to thinking about it more empathetically. I should add, though, that there might be another underlying factor explaining many Europeans' disenchantment with Disneyland and similar theme parks: I think people in Europe tend to have more matter-of-fact mindsets and are more "serious-minded" regarding their surroundings because, just like you explained in the video, their past is literally concretized, materialized all over the place. This naturally enhances their self-awareness of socio-cultural attachments to their community and whatnot. Ironically, while they (myself included) might think theme parks and American parkgoers are shallow, the fact that they, in turn, don't see anything special or magical about it could also be, in my opinion, a symptom of shallowness itself. On a more personal note, as I tend to be mostly introverted, I can't bear or handle the extroverted energy usually found in these places. It may seem unfair and insensitive for me to feel this way, but that's just a very personal thing of mine. That's why I'd rather not set foot in these parks to avoid ruining people's good times because of my apparent grumpiness. I actually stumbled upon this video while looking for something to help me better understand my partner, who wants to go to a theme park. I'm confused because she's also an introvert and doesn't follow or like any of the themes or cartoons featured in the park, just like me. Since she has no time for hobbies, a social life, a (healthy) diet, or interactions with people outside her (toxic) workplace, I feel she needs such an overdose of extroversion to compensate for what she's been missing lately.
Strangely, as someone born and raised in England, when I went to the US (Florida and NYC) a lot of it felt like a big fake theme park because it all reminded me of the Hollywood films and TV shows I'd seen growing up, almost like I was on a set. England felt "real" but oddly America felt almost "artificial" because I'd seen it all in movies.
I will say, one of my favorite things to do at Disney on days where the rest of my family is watching sports all day, is to go to the Magic Kingdom, ride a couple rides, then take the monorail to Epcot, ride a couple rides, then take the ferry boat to MGM and ride a couple rides, then take the boat back to Epcot, at which point it's time for fireworks, then last monorail out to the Magic Kingdom to drive back to the hotel!
In my mind, a community without cars would be quite a happy one. Cars offer so much freedom, yet they take away so much of it at the same time. You can't very well explore someplace while in a car. Sure, you can take back roads and such, but you'll never be able to do in a car what you can do on foot. Taking an impromptu detour because you spotted a cute little store is way harder to do if you're driving; and after all, those small, unplanned things are what make life so great. Just like this video, which is really great as usual.
Thank you for the wonderful insight, I doubt I would have ever come across this cultural nugget myself. It certainly helps understand and empathise with folk across the pond!
I’m at university right now and I LOVE being able to walk everywhere so much!! I’ve been trying to figure out where I can live once I graduate to have that same feeling - it’s tough!
😂so true! Love being in the Disney Bubble and not using our car much! Also why I loved college and beach vacations! However there are a huge number of Brits that love and go to DisneyWorld yearly!
Where I live now is probably the most walkable place I’ve ever lived at (mostly quite rural areas before) but it still isn’t very walkable. I can easily walk to the post office, library, police station, township building, laundry mat, coffee stand & pizza shop. There is a grocery store that technically is within walking distance (about 20 min) but (1) it is the most expensive shop in the area and (2) I’d have to cross a pretty busy road to get there. Someone actually got hit and died crossing that road right before we moved there. I’d love to be completely walkable, though. I’d probably do that if I could work remote. Currently drive 30 minutes each way.
I think your point about walkability and better urban design is a really strong one here. University campuses are a similar example in this respect. I've been on an urban design kick recently, thanks to the TH-cam algorithm, and I feel like I understand our cities so much better than I did before. From what you've said you may already be familiar, but if you're not (or for anyone else who sees this), I highly recommend checking out the Not Just Bikes channel here on TH-cam. There are a lot of other great ones, but I think that's a great place for people to start. The earlier point you made about age and culture might have some merit, but I think it's a much weaker point. My reason: I'm from Australia, which in this respect is very similar to America. We have even less old architecture than America does, and a similar (maybe not quite as bad) level of car-dependent suburban sprawl and poor walkability. But when I went to Disneyland in Hong Kong I was thoroughly unimpressed. I had no desire when I was later in Paris to go and visit the Disneyland there. I haven't been to Orlando or wherever the other Disneyland in America is (sorry, I don't quite remember), but if I were to be in the vicinity, I'm quite sure my level of enthusiasm would be similarly low. My experience at Disney theme parks so far has been that they are just...worse than other parks, like Warner Bros Movie World near where I'm from. Anyway, this was a fantastic video. Really enjoyed it.
I’m a huge fan of Not Just Bikes! Thanks for your comment. Sounds like we’ve got a lot in common. I will say - I think the two Disney parks in America, and particularly Disneyland which opened in 1955, have a lot more of that sense of historical significance than the parks in the rest of the world which opened relatively recently by comparison. But that also might be more poignant for me as an American because, as I mentioned, they’re almost part of our cultural mythology.
I always wondered what was it that felt so different about Disney World compared to where I live and I think you hit the nail on the head. Although my family and I have only been there a handful of times, I noticed we would walk so much in the park and rarely ever get tired. When I was a little kid and our family only had one car that my dad would use practically all day for work, my mom, sisters and I often walked everywhere and it was incredibly exhausting. Sometimes, if we wanted to arrive somewhere at a particular time we would have to leave the house hours ahead of time, and on some occasions we wouldn't get back home until really late. I also remember we would sometimes dash across the street just to cross it before the cars started driving again. Thinking back to Disney World, I can now see the reason we weren't exhausted after a day of walking up and down the parks. Everything there is built for people, not for cars, and most things are within walkable distance.
Not that I lived there, but when I visited Moskow two years ago I had those 'disney' vibes crazily. So many historical buildings, AMAZING PT and a christmas-movie like cold snowy october breeze. I was also really impressed by the massive skyscrapers nicely organized in one central district. Now I live in Bangkok and what I see is that the people here tend to flock to the massive shopping malls for the exact same reason: walkable places to eat, shop clothes and groceries and have a drink. Every tourist city in Thailand has a 'walking street' which is purely for night entertainment, and the city of Chiang Mai is super popular because of its central layout making it walkable and bringing peace to its visitors. This 'phenomenon' of people loving to walk is not just in Disneyland or Europe, it's everywhere. The real 'issue' is that when politicians plan a city, they look at what people are using for transportation already, rather than to work towards a future in which people change their habits because policy would finally allow them to.
That's one thing I actually found kind of funny riding spaceship earth this most recent trip we took to Disney. I rode it twice and both times we did something different and each came up as part of the utopia being immensely easy to get to places. Or being up close to all of your friends and being able to travel to family in an afternoon. I kind of laughed with a similar sentiment of, especially living where I do, man it would be nice if we had good public transportation.
So what can we, as Americans, do? 1. Vote for every proposition that funds public transit and/or infrastructure for bikes and pedestrians. 2. Vote AGAINST every proposition that expands roadways and/or free parking. 3. Vote for every proposition for medium-density housing and/or mixed-use development. 4. Vote AGAINST anything that mandates single-family housing. 5. Vote for city council members with the same priorities as above. 6. Whenever possible, walk or ride a bike! The more people do it, the more infrastructure will be built for it, which will encourage more people to do it, which necessitates more infrastructure, which encourages more...you get the idea. Let's get the ball rolling!
I grew up in a Florida suburb where I preferred walking/biking as much as I feasibly could. Unfortunately, pedestrians accidents spiked during my high school years, and I ended up developing a hatred for cars. Now, I live in Jacksonville, FL. It’s a couple hours north of Orlando and also the largest city in Florida. I bike to commute, and that was my choice. Choosing to not drive is an incredibly difficult decision to make in America and exceptionally dangerous to do so in Jacksonville. I’m severely limited to where I can go because the public transport here has significantly deteriorated during Covid times. Aside from NYC, I haven’t been in a city in America where driving isn’t the most reasonable option, except I absolutely loathe New York City. I’m a Florida native. Spent 99% of my life here. Driving is a nightmare, but at least there’s no mountains.
I think that another one of the reasons that Europeans aren’t as into Disneyland as Americans is that Disney parks seem to be some of the only heavily themed parks in the country. In Europe, I would say that a majority of major parks have at least some theming on the rides or have themed areas. Some theme parks are heavily themed - phantasialand in Gemany. The idea of Disney being an immersive theme park experience is not new or different in Europe.
Not going to lie this view is so strange to me, I'll likely never be able to drive but that's never been an issue as I can catch the bus or train to get anywhere I want even cross the country by something other than a plane. Honestly I love that I grew up in Europe with such diverse cultures and a lot history, architecture especially old stuff is something I can't help but love and I do have a similar reaction to a new piece of old architecture but I don't relate it to something like Disney but it's just "oh my gosh this is so beautiful!" or "I wish I could live in a house like that" I also like to think about the craft-manship that went into these older buildings and wonder how long bits took or who was the person who made this.
I think that Disneyland is the kinda place that'll only get more magical to people as time goes on because of its simplicity and accessibility in an increasingly crowded world.
I'm not attracted to Disney theme parks (I don't like crowds, I don't really like roller coasters and, even as a kid, adults milling around dressed as cartoon characters and smiling felt weird to me) but I've got nothing against fans of them and I appreciate the way this video tries to analyze what's attractive about the parks to Americans and isn't like, "oh, those lowbrows!" I really like walking too. As someone who lives in a small town at the moment, I don't really need to travel to do it though.
I miss being in europe. Can't see well enough to drive so I have to navigate trains and busses which is pretty sparse in the U.S. Anywhere less than four miles I walk. People think that I'm crazy
I never got why Americans didn't walk anywhere until I saw their infrastructure.. It's nearly impossible to walk anywhere. Even an avid pedestrian like me wouldn't feel safe walking around there. I live in The Netherlands so it's a culture shock.
I mean, I'm American but my family has lived in the same town since 1798 and the same farm house since 1839 so I don't see things the way the average suburbanite does.
I was introduced to this when i was 3.5 years old. Magic kingdom orlando. Yet as a european i have never been to their paris location. Maybe fitting for a last send off to say goodbye forever and shove your new stuff up your backside... And yes i have a car because public only is during school days where i live...
Very interesting point of view. It sounds understandable. I never thought about that when I was at WDW. But besides that…Europe needs a Disney World. For a lot of reasons. :-)) Greetings from Köln (where you can find another hughe cathedral ;-))
I do get what you are saying... having visited both Walt Disney World and England, in the past. Although, I had visited Alton Towers, while in England, but I felt it was a huge disappointment in comparison to any major US theme/amusement park. But in contrast, while walking around various British villages, even the city of London, they were slightly more Disney-esk, now that I think about it! But, Alton Towers and even Disney, both lacked what I had become mostly accustomed to, as a theme/amusement park... Because I grew up in Ohio... Where we had roller-coasters in mass! Cedar Point, Geauga Lake, and Conneaut Lake Park had quite a lasting impact when it came to rides, which was my main draw to such parks! Disney had several, only spanned across long walks, and blisters on my feet as a child... Alton Towers had maybe two rides!?! While Cedar Point was chock-full of coasters of every kind... the others had coasters, augmented with swimming attractions that broke-up any long waits in lines! Europe may not need the aesthetic of Disney anytime soon, but what they lack heavily is the awesomeness of roller-coasters and water attractions!
As someone from the U.K., I agree that our bigger theme parks tend to have less rides than the average European or American theme park. I know Alton towers, which has 7 thrill rollercoasters, has a problem with building new coasters due to planning permission as the site is incredibly old and historic, which means that the rollercoasters have to fit within the tree line, and there are only a few specific places they can put them, despite the park itself being quite large. From my experience, the bigger theme parks in mainland Europe mainly don’t seem to have this problem.
What's the most walkable place you've ever lived or stayed, and what was your experience like there? Let me know!
If you like these rambles and want to hear more about movies, trams, theology, theme parks, and Paddington...check out my Patreon here: www.patreon.com/user?u=1017531
Singapore!! Plus it's clean like disney 😂
Also I highly recommend the TH-cam channel not just bikes, if you haven't already seen it
Savannah, Georgia!
@@rohanimations I lived in Savannah for 3 months when my dad was shooting a film there! Such a lovely city.
Well, I live in Prague, which is extremely walkable and arguably has one the top transit systems in the world, so, you guessed it - Prague. 🙂
It never occurred to me that Americans can’t just walk places - everywhere I’ve lived in the UK, I’ve never technically needed a car (but have one) and most of the time I don’t use one
Likely you've seen the pictures of Amsterdam in the 70s versus now- used to be 'made for cars' and now nearly fully pedestrianised. A shining example of how it is possible to change from car-central spaces.
Brit here and I think you nailed it, I've been to Disney Florida and Paris and I think they're still enchanting for us, but not for the history or walkability reasons some Americans love it. It's the more fictional stuff that drew me in, seeing the characters walk about and life sized locations I'd seen in movies.
Walkability definitely feels like it's something Americans are becoming more aware of, maybe it's just my interests but channels like Not Just Bikes and City Beautiful seem to be growing ever more popular.
I've definitely sensed more people talking about this in the past year than there used to be, which has been super refreshing. Not Just Bikes and City Beautiful are my HEROES
Designed for people. Good point. I like how you linked beach towns, uni, camp, and other centralized communities.
America was made unwalkable on purpose. It prompted the sales of cars and those that didn’t have cars were effectively stranded wherever they were (usually minorities who didn’t have access). I would LOVE having a walkable community. That’s why Americans love college so much as well. It’s basically the only time in our lives we get to have a place where you can walk or take a bus or bike to all the places you need to get to, usually really beautiful and with tons of pathways~ Disney world is cool for that as well
But at the same time, it kills your feet.
I think you made a good point about idolizing the college experience partially because of its walkability. I graduated from my school in 2017 but have kept working here ever since and love the accessibility to walk around campus. Just tonight my wife and I biked around campus in the evening and it was so fun not having to navigate around cars for the most part
Your point about walking places and getting weird looks is incredibly true. I don't own a car, so I rely heavily on public transit and walking. One day, I wanted to go out to lunch to a nearby restaurant, so I walked. This restaurant is four blocks away, which is not a long distance at all. It's maybe ten minutes on a good day. But when I was talking to others about it afterwards, they were flabbergasted. They couldn't believe that I would just walk to where I needed to go.
I remember Vladimir Nabokov once wrote something about "the European habit of walking when you could drive." It astonished me at the time, because I had never thought of it that way round; I would automatically think that you drive somewhere when you can't *walk* there.
I'm for the Netherlands, and historically speaking it also makes sense that in Europe many things are within walking distance.
Most of the ways to get around in Europe in the past was walking, on horseback or horse-drawn carriage. It was not convenient to make long journeys, that's why old villages in Europe are also in a certain travel distance. But also in the old parts of Amsterdam, you see that paths are not built for cars but for smaller means of transport.
You make the US sound like a horror movie. Not the ones with the dark corners and shaows, but the ones with the open, plain field. You see everything but you can't reach nor escape.
This video was really insightful and interesting!
It’s not that plain unless you live in like Ohio or the middle of the us now that’s a horror show. But the city states are alright
After seeing your tweets on the subject of car dependency and the recent Disney ones, I was hoping for a video like this. I can’t drive so I really appreciate living in a small island city where everywhere is within walking distance. It’s far from a Disney wonderland but it means getting places is easy and pleasant and healthy.
The things my city can’t offer are reachable by train and I can’t fathom a world without them. I have a friend in California who went to school over here, and she’ll tell people stories in the US and start with “so I was on the train” and there’s always a followup of “why?” when it’s not even something we’d question in England
So you’re a Portsmouthian?
I am. I suppose it’s not hard to narrow down.
I spent a semester of uni living in a little Austrian town called Gaming. Maybe it's because it was in the middle of my time in college, or because all the other experiences studying abroad overshadowed it, but I don't think I even noticed that we simply walked anywhere we needed to go (or took a bus or train) until I got back to the States and driving once again became a necessity. Even in the small town I now live in it feels necessary to drive everywhere, even though everything is so close and easily walkable. Just the very design of the town makes it feel to me like walking isn't as much of an option. I think I'd love to again live someplace that's been designed to prioritize pedestrian transportation over vehicular transportation.
As a European who lived in America a few years as a child but most of my life on Europe. Disney felt very fake to me. Oh look they replicated this building style and then all of the crowds so many crowds.
It was cool however seeing how they built everything to feel bigger then they are.
America also feels unnecessarily big and dependent on cars. One time when my family lived there we had a neighbors party at our place and we where shocked that our neighbors down the street just drove to our house. Even though there is a side walk.
I live in a 700 year old fortified house and ride a horse.
America sounds so futuristic.
Ok in fairness, if there’s an historic city centre that looks like Disney Land it’s Prague’s 😌 My family and I had a similar reaction because it was the first European city we’d been to aside from London just before (which inevitably got all the Harry Potter comparisons). I think what really enhanced that experience though is we took the train from the airport. Around the airport looks pretty much the way you’d expect in many places around the world, and that area is the last thing you see before the train goes underground. Then when you arrive you suddenly emerge out of the underground station standing in the middle of all these old and beautiful buildings and it’s also completely different to the last environment you were experiencing. It honestly replicates the experience of being suddenly transported into a fantasy land.
This was exactly my experience! An utterly magical city.
I agree. I miss living in Minneapolis because I could walk to work, walk to the salon, walk to Trader Joe’s, and had a park with trails right outside my apartment: that was my backyard! And the places I couldn’t walk to, I could hop on the light rail. The light rail even went straight to the airport. I miss Minneapolis. 😥
Disneyland Paris is pretty well visited…and there are Maaaasany popular European Parks like Port Aventura and Europa Park…So Europeans like Theme Parks….
Most theme park Manufacturers come from Europe like Intamin and Vekoma
I am from Scotland but currently live overseas when I went back home I visited Edinburgh Castle, it didn't impress me too much as I lived next to a castle growing up but there was a lot of Americans memorised and they were saying things like "OMG, it is like a real life Disney World, do you think Cinderella would live in a castle like this", I was a bit shocked how they saw Europe through the eyes of Disney World, I went to Disney Land Paris and was in impressed, the rides sucked, the food sucked and I felt like I was in a movie set everything was so fake.
Having lived in the Netherlands for a while, I've been spoiled by just how good the urban design is there.
Car dependency is probably my least favourite American cultural export.
Very insightful commentary. Glad this video was recommended to me. I'd been watching a few clips related to this topic by the channel Not Just Bikes, so I have a fair idea about the extent car dependency shapes our daily lives, but viewing this from the lens of Disneyland and how people subconsciously appreciate how good the public transit is, is something I hadn't really thought about. Keep up the great work!
My family traveled to South Korea a few years ago, and that was definitely the most walkable place I've ever lived, even if it was for a short time. Cars weren't parked on the street, and unless you were closer to the city, buildings were smaller and closer to the ground. Even finding a parking spot wasn't all that bad; the parking garages always had a lot of room and were a WALKABLE distance from where you wanted to go. Plus there were bus stops everywhere!! It all just felt more alive and connected because everything was so much closer together.
Worth to check out the TH-cam channel called Not Just Bikes. It's mostly about urban planning in the Netherlands is centered around people and not cars, and how this compares to urban planning in North America. It really hits on what it means to be able to walk places and how having different options for transport makes for better living.
A fellow person of culture! Not Just Bikes is my favorite TH-cam channel by far!
@@houston-coley I was wondering if you were gonna mention it in your video haha. I'm Dutch and learned to appreciate my own country so much more because of it. Even London (not fake London) was a hellscape compared to my native country.
The most walkable place I've ever lived in was Luxembourg
Not only is it a fairly small city (100k inhabitants) but it still has everything you'd need and expect from a bigger city but is still so compact that most stuff is reachable by foot
The free public transportation for everyone in another huge plus and makes getting around very easy
Things get a little complicated in cities like Paris or Berlin. Where even though the whole city is pretty much walkable and available to you via public transport; the size of the city itself makes every ride at least half an hour or even an hour and that is no longer so comfortable in the long term. I lived in Berlin for 5 years and I had to commute around an hour to get to work and I sure wished I had a car. Now I live in a smaller German city where it is much more comfortable to walk around and use public transport.
I didn't expect this take to be so wholesome and love how visiting Prague felt like going to Disney World to you, welcome to Europe.
I never thought about that before but I guess it does make sense, it's so funny to hear Americans in London saying the architecture is so quaint, but I guess it's a world apart from America suberbs!
That makes sense. My parents are rather protective so I wasn't allowed to go out and walk around even though I live in the city where a lot of things are within walking distance. I've just moved to the college dorm 2 months ago and this walking everywhere is definitely bliss for me.
What's interesting though is that I'm an exception among most people here. Most people still prefer a car or a motorcycle or at least taking the campus shuttle. I think it's probably our unforgiving weather here in the hot and humid tropics. I would walk into the lecture room either soaked in sweat or rain (because I am a scatterbrain and I keep misplacing my umbrella).
And to be honest, most people I know rarely spend a full day at a theme park and always find it weird that my family would spend a couple of days at one each trip.
I don't know what to conclude but I just thought it's an interesting contrast lol
Banger video, always wondered why all of my favorite American TH-camrs has a obsession which the place. Makes a lot of scene now. Never know how bad the public transport was in America,hopefully it gets better :)
Houston I really hope this video blows up! You have become a really incredible, thoughtful person!
Thank you for the kind words!
If you go to Denmark, almost everybody there rides a bicycle. It’s amazing
Also, one of the inspirations for Disneyland was Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen; so there you go with that European inspiration
Man, this resonated with me so much that I watched it twice in a row. I've been griping to my wife and kids lately about a lack of community or belonging in the physical place we're in, because anytime we go to do anything, we pile into the car and relocate somewhere else. We don't have opportunities to bump into the people we live around because it's straight from the front door to the car with everyone going to any of who knows how many different distant venues in varying directions, we drive 45 minutes away to work in entirely different communities ... people claim humanity is more connected than ever thanks to technology, yet I've never felt so disconnected.
I’ve been really shocked that outdoor malls are adding so many apartments above their shops (at least where I live in America) since they can be so crowded during events and loud, but you made a great point that everything you would need is just right there, so it’s convenient. I wouldn’t personally want to live that close given the noise at concerts and all that (and as much as I love Disney World, which I’m going to in five days) I wouldn’t want to live in the parks either. Still, my family always stays on property despite the crazy prices because of the convenience of being so close and using their transportation systems.
You should see the parking garage at Disneyland. Five floors and they have Cast Members lined up in the morning making you park spot by spot down the line so each spot gets filled. It’s so organized and wonderful. I get the “everything is right there and no car” feeling more at Disneyland since it covers less land and you can easily go back to your hotel if you need to grab something or leave the Disney circle to the regular world. Either way, I love Disney parks.
I was born outside the U.S. but have lived the majority of my life here and I definitely relate. As a child the idea of just walking to school or walking to do errands by myself is something that *never* would have occured to me. Even if this might not be the case in every city and town in the country, that has been the case in the places where I've lived. On the few occasions I walked somewhere without adult supervision as a little kid my heart would pound wildly in my chest out of fear of getting hit by a car.
The more oddly specific and obscure a Houston Coley video is, the faster I click.
I've lived in Texas my whole life so the only time I didn't really need a car was in college for the first year I lived on campus, and then I still had to drive on occasion. And I haven't been to Europe yet but I was amazed at how easily walkable central Philadelphia was, I found it easier than NYC
Disney lands are basically Europe themed parks. So it's normal for European don't feel the mesmerizing effect of it.
I've never been to Disneyland or World or Europe, and didn't live on my college campus, but you are so right. I wish more places in America were like this! That would be fantastic!
Fascinating! Another great vid. The only reason I’d feel the need to go to Disney land is for the escapism and to see stuff from movies, not because it’s a place where you can walk everywhere because I live in the UK and my village is already full of very close-by, walkable history, places, shops, etc. Only problem with where I live is that there’s only one commercial cinema in my town. No IMAX or even small independent cinemas I could catch a short bus journey to.
Hong Kong. Most places has transits right down the street. Huge variety of restaurants, grocery, stores (big chains, malls, to small indie mom & pop stores) are all in walking distance. Shops stay open later in the night. You can spend your whole life without ever needing to drive yourself. Depending on where you live, you can walk and ride transit to other parts of the city without ever stepping outside of air condition space. You can even ride public transits to most remote villages in the country side. While transit isn't as efficient as Japan, it is still one of the best in the world in terms of reliability.
I lived in Manchester during my time at University and it was incredibly walkable. The city gets so dense as you approach the city centre, that it only makes sense to either walk, bus or get the tram around. Living within close proximity of all these things made me feel like I didn't need a car at all and it was super refreshing to just be able to say "let's walk there" whenever going anywhere. Sure, it would take me 40 mins ish to walk into the city, but it sort of removes you from the hustle and bustle of everyday life
I'm Australian and here we have an extreme clashing of 'heritage', nature and modernity. Our public transport - although flawed - is more or less accessible, if you live in the city or in a town along the coast chances are you will be able to walk to school, your work, the shop or even the cinema. If you live in a rural town then the only shop you will have access to is the local store, public transport is once again almost non-existent and man is one with nature, the outback. I think some Australians also have a fascination with Disney World for a lot of the same reasons Americans do; transportation, walkability, and community that they may not have access to if they live in a more rural township where housing is few and far between and home schooling is prevalent. I found your video really enjoyable and definitely gave me food for thought!
love love love this video. been thinking a ton about this as i go to college - really glad you mentioned that!!
The most walkable place I’ve lived is where I live now. When you come visit we will walk! It’s gonna be nice!
That's a really interesting perspective Houston! Never thought of it that way, but it makes a ton of sense. Great video!
Houston, you'll love the Chanel called 'Not Just Bikes'. It's a TH-cam channel by a Canadian who lives in Amsterdam. He talkes about how North American infrastructure hurts North Americans. In his videos he compares North American infrastructure to Dutch infrastructure.
Love that channel!!
Omfg you have improved so much that its crazy. Keep up the good work
First off, hats off to you because you've approached this matter in a way I never saw coming. Truly interesting and very insightful. I confess this made me reflect on my own judgmental sentiments about theme parks and the people who frequent them. I don't usually generalize; yet, depending on the topic, I might become quite stubborn when it comes to thinking about it more empathetically.
I should add, though, that there might be another underlying factor explaining many Europeans' disenchantment with Disneyland and similar theme parks: I think people in Europe tend to have more matter-of-fact mindsets and are more "serious-minded" regarding their surroundings because, just like you explained in the video, their past is literally concretized, materialized all over the place. This naturally enhances their self-awareness of socio-cultural attachments to their community and whatnot. Ironically, while they (myself included) might think theme parks and American parkgoers are shallow, the fact that they, in turn, don't see anything special or magical about it could also be, in my opinion, a symptom of shallowness itself.
On a more personal note, as I tend to be mostly introverted, I can't bear or handle the extroverted energy usually found in these places. It may seem unfair and insensitive for me to feel this way, but that's just a very personal thing of mine. That's why I'd rather not set foot in these parks to avoid ruining people's good times because of my apparent grumpiness. I actually stumbled upon this video while looking for something to help me better understand my partner, who wants to go to a theme park. I'm confused because she's also an introvert and doesn't follow or like any of the themes or cartoons featured in the park, just like me. Since she has no time for hobbies, a social life, a (healthy) diet, or interactions with people outside her (toxic) workplace, I feel she needs such an overdose of extroversion to compensate for what she's been missing lately.
Strangely, as someone born and raised in England, when I went to the US (Florida and NYC) a lot of it felt like a big fake theme park because it all reminded me of the Hollywood films and TV shows I'd seen growing up, almost like I was on a set. England felt "real" but oddly America felt almost "artificial" because I'd seen it all in movies.
I will say, one of my favorite things to do at Disney on days where the rest of my family is watching sports all day, is to go to the Magic Kingdom, ride a couple rides, then take the monorail to Epcot, ride a couple rides, then take the ferry boat to MGM and ride a couple rides, then take the boat back to Epcot, at which point it's time for fireworks, then last monorail out to the Magic Kingdom to drive back to the hotel!
In my mind, a community without cars would be quite a happy one. Cars offer so much freedom, yet they take away so much of it at the same time. You can't very well explore someplace while in a car. Sure, you can take back roads and such, but you'll never be able to do in a car what you can do on foot. Taking an impromptu detour because you spotted a cute little store is way harder to do if you're driving; and after all, those small, unplanned things are what make life so great. Just like this video, which is really great as usual.
I'd never thought of this before, but it's such an interesting point! A great video as always Houston!
I love the way your brain brains. The most walkable place I’ve lived was also in Europe, but Southern France, for the same reasons you detailed.
Thank you for the wonderful insight, I doubt I would have ever come across this cultural nugget myself. It certainly helps understand and empathise with folk across the pond!
I’m at university right now and I LOVE being able to walk everywhere so much!! I’ve been trying to figure out where I can live once I graduate to have that same feeling - it’s tough!
😂so true! Love being in the Disney Bubble and not using our car much! Also why I loved college and beach vacations! However there are a huge number of Brits that love and go to DisneyWorld yearly!
Where I live now is probably the most walkable place I’ve ever lived at (mostly quite rural areas before) but it still isn’t very walkable. I can easily walk to the post office, library, police station, township building, laundry mat, coffee stand & pizza shop. There is a grocery store that technically is within walking distance (about 20 min) but (1) it is the most expensive shop in the area and (2) I’d have to cross a pretty busy road to get there. Someone actually got hit and died crossing that road right before we moved there.
I’d love to be completely walkable, though. I’d probably do that if I could work remote. Currently drive 30 minutes each way.
I think your point about walkability and better urban design is a really strong one here. University campuses are a similar example in this respect. I've been on an urban design kick recently, thanks to the TH-cam algorithm, and I feel like I understand our cities so much better than I did before. From what you've said you may already be familiar, but if you're not (or for anyone else who sees this), I highly recommend checking out the Not Just Bikes channel here on TH-cam. There are a lot of other great ones, but I think that's a great place for people to start.
The earlier point you made about age and culture might have some merit, but I think it's a much weaker point. My reason: I'm from Australia, which in this respect is very similar to America. We have even less old architecture than America does, and a similar (maybe not quite as bad) level of car-dependent suburban sprawl and poor walkability. But when I went to Disneyland in Hong Kong I was thoroughly unimpressed. I had no desire when I was later in Paris to go and visit the Disneyland there. I haven't been to Orlando or wherever the other Disneyland in America is (sorry, I don't quite remember), but if I were to be in the vicinity, I'm quite sure my level of enthusiasm would be similarly low. My experience at Disney theme parks so far has been that they are just...worse than other parks, like Warner Bros Movie World near where I'm from.
Anyway, this was a fantastic video. Really enjoyed it.
I’m a huge fan of Not Just Bikes! Thanks for your comment. Sounds like we’ve got a lot in common. I will say - I think the two Disney parks in America, and particularly Disneyland which opened in 1955, have a lot more of that sense of historical significance than the parks in the rest of the world which opened relatively recently by comparison. But that also might be more poignant for me as an American because, as I mentioned, they’re almost part of our cultural mythology.
I always wondered what was it that felt so different about Disney World compared to where I live and I think you hit the nail on the head. Although my family and I have only been there a handful of times, I noticed we would walk so much in the park and rarely ever get tired.
When I was a little kid and our family only had one car that my dad would use practically all day for work, my mom, sisters and I often walked everywhere and it was incredibly exhausting. Sometimes, if we wanted to arrive somewhere at a particular time we would have to leave the house hours ahead of time, and on some occasions we wouldn't get back home until really late. I also remember we would sometimes dash across the street just to cross it before the cars started driving again.
Thinking back to Disney World, I can now see the reason we weren't exhausted after a day of walking up and down the parks. Everything there is built for people, not for cars, and most things are within walkable distance.
Not that I lived there, but when I visited Moskow two years ago I had those 'disney' vibes crazily. So many historical buildings, AMAZING PT and a christmas-movie like cold snowy october breeze. I was also really impressed by the massive skyscrapers nicely organized in one central district. Now I live in Bangkok and what I see is that the people here tend to flock to the massive shopping malls for the exact same reason: walkable places to eat, shop clothes and groceries and have a drink. Every tourist city in Thailand has a 'walking street' which is purely for night entertainment, and the city of Chiang Mai is super popular because of its central layout making it walkable and bringing peace to its visitors. This 'phenomenon' of people loving to walk is not just in Disneyland or Europe, it's everywhere. The real 'issue' is that when politicians plan a city, they look at what people are using for transportation already, rather than to work towards a future in which people change their habits because policy would finally allow them to.
That's one thing I actually found kind of funny riding spaceship earth this most recent trip we took to Disney. I rode it twice and both times we did something different and each came up as part of the utopia being immensely easy to get to places. Or being up close to all of your friends and being able to travel to family in an afternoon. I kind of laughed with a similar sentiment of, especially living where I do, man it would be nice if we had good public transportation.
Have you been to Tokyo Disney? that will blow your mind...
Dude, it’s my lifelong dream…🥺🥺
I also realized this is what I like about the Las Vegas Strip too lol. I hate gambling!
I live in Boston, which is pretty walkable by American standards. It's amazing! I wish more cities were walkable
So what can we, as Americans, do?
1. Vote for every proposition that funds public transit and/or infrastructure for bikes and pedestrians.
2. Vote AGAINST every proposition that expands roadways and/or free parking.
3. Vote for every proposition for medium-density housing and/or mixed-use development.
4. Vote AGAINST anything that mandates single-family housing.
5. Vote for city council members with the same priorities as above.
6. Whenever possible, walk or ride a bike! The more people do it, the more infrastructure will be built for it, which will encourage more people to do it, which necessitates more infrastructure, which encourages more...you get the idea. Let's get the ball rolling!
Thanks for this comment!!
Really an amazing video, i live in portugal and we have a lot of public tranportation but i still would prefer that we had more
I grew up in a Florida suburb where I preferred walking/biking as much as I feasibly could. Unfortunately, pedestrians accidents spiked during my high school years, and I ended up developing a hatred for cars.
Now, I live in Jacksonville, FL. It’s a couple hours north of Orlando and also the largest city in Florida. I bike to commute, and that was my choice. Choosing to not drive is an incredibly difficult decision to make in America and exceptionally dangerous to do so in Jacksonville. I’m severely limited to where I can go because the public transport here has significantly deteriorated during Covid times. Aside from NYC, I haven’t been in a city in America where driving isn’t the most reasonable option, except I absolutely loathe New York City.
I’m a Florida native. Spent 99% of my life here. Driving is a nightmare, but at least there’s no mountains.
Downtown Escondido. It's a magical place.
This was an extremely interesting video.
Fun fact: There's a church in Cracow nicknamed "Disneyland" since it looks like the Disney castle.
Why are you making me feel grateful for The TTC? Toronto's transit system has what you crave, but it sucks!
I think that another one of the reasons that Europeans aren’t as into Disneyland as Americans is that Disney parks seem to be some of the only heavily themed parks in the country. In Europe, I would say that a majority of major parks have at least some theming on the rides or have themed areas. Some theme parks are heavily themed - phantasialand in Gemany. The idea of Disney being an immersive theme park experience is not new or different in Europe.
Yess! I too have become obsessed with car dependency too! Never really associated that with Disney parks, but you are very right.
Not going to lie this view is so strange to me, I'll likely never be able to drive but that's never been an issue as I can catch the bus or train to get anywhere I want even cross the country by something other than a plane.
Honestly I love that I grew up in Europe with such diverse cultures and a lot history, architecture especially old stuff is something I can't help but love and I do have a similar reaction to a new piece of old architecture but I don't relate it to something like Disney but it's just "oh my gosh this is so beautiful!" or "I wish I could live in a house like that" I also like to think about the craft-manship that went into these older buildings and wonder how long bits took or who was the person who made this.
Great video as always dude :D
I think that Disneyland is the kinda place that'll only get more magical to people as time goes on because of its simplicity and accessibility in an increasingly crowded world.
I'm not attracted to Disney theme parks (I don't like crowds, I don't really like roller coasters and, even as a kid, adults milling around dressed as cartoon characters and smiling felt weird to me) but I've got nothing against fans of them and I appreciate the way this video tries to analyze what's attractive about the parks to Americans and isn't like, "oh, those lowbrows!" I really like walking too. As someone who lives in a small town at the moment, I don't really need to travel to do it though.
I miss being in europe. Can't see well enough to drive so I have to navigate trains and busses which is pretty sparse in the U.S. Anywhere less than four miles I walk. People think that I'm crazy
I’m 27 I live in Belgium and I don’t have a drivers license.
I never got why Americans didn't walk anywhere until I saw their infrastructure.. It's nearly impossible to walk anywhere.
Even an avid pedestrian like me wouldn't feel safe walking around there. I live in The Netherlands so it's a culture shock.
I mean, I'm American but my family has lived in the same town since 1798 and the same farm house since 1839 so I don't see things the way the average suburbanite does.
in short, disneyworld is americans trying to be European
i think everyone in the us needs to see this
underrated AF
I’m British and I’ve lived in Italy, I’ve never needed a car, I’m only thinking about getting a license now
same applies to Disneyland in Asia (Most Asians view it as some fake fantasy amusement park)
I was introduced to this when i was 3.5 years old.
Magic kingdom orlando.
Yet as a european i have never been to their paris location.
Maybe fitting for a last send off to say goodbye forever and shove your new stuff up your backside...
And yes i have a car because public only is during school days where i live...
I think the word you’re looking for is solarpunk
I didn't know you got married. Congratulations to you both!
Very interesting point of view. It sounds understandable. I never thought about that when I was at WDW.
But besides that…Europe needs a Disney World. For a lot of reasons. :-))
Greetings from Köln (where you can find another hughe cathedral ;-))
Mainly because disney does the copy and paste game for everything
That's obviously Xexizy not much of a point of blurring the username lmao
I don't know kid.. I'be been to Disney World a bunch of times and there were always Europeans there having a blast. 😒
I do get what you are saying... having visited both Walt Disney World and England, in the past. Although, I had visited Alton Towers, while in England, but I felt it was a huge disappointment in comparison to any major US theme/amusement park. But in contrast, while walking around various British villages, even the city of London, they were slightly more Disney-esk, now that I think about it! But, Alton Towers and even Disney, both lacked what I had become mostly accustomed to, as a theme/amusement park... Because I grew up in Ohio... Where we had roller-coasters in mass! Cedar Point, Geauga Lake, and Conneaut Lake Park had quite a lasting impact when it came to rides, which was my main draw to such parks! Disney had several, only spanned across long walks, and blisters on my feet as a child... Alton Towers had maybe two rides!?! While Cedar Point was chock-full of coasters of every kind... the others had coasters, augmented with swimming attractions that broke-up any long waits in lines! Europe may not need the aesthetic of Disney anytime soon, but what they lack heavily is the awesomeness of roller-coasters and water attractions!
As someone from the U.K., I agree that our bigger theme parks tend to have less rides than the average European or American theme park. I know Alton towers, which has 7 thrill rollercoasters, has a problem with building new coasters due to planning permission as the site is incredibly old and historic, which means that the rollercoasters have to fit within the tree line, and there are only a few specific places they can put them, despite the park itself being quite large. From my experience, the bigger theme parks in mainland Europe mainly don’t seem to have this problem.
Ski towns are the same way
omg Jerma's younger brother
Next time you're in Europe, let me know, I'll bring you to Neuschwanstein Castle to show the actual castle of Snow White 🙂
Wife? I think I remember this channel since he was in middle school or maybe high school.
I put this on r/f*ckcars thanks for the karma
Bruh...
American tries to speak for Europeans. Hilarious.
My wife is Czech and I live in Europe 🤨💁🏻♂️
You say the word "enchanted" a lot.
Admittedly, I’m pretty enchanted by it