American Views Abroad

 
It's a novelty having shops open on Sundays here. On both the 24th and 31st of last month not only were the local bakeries open for the goodies one has to have --- on the 31st it's jelly doughnuts that people line up for, but our new Turkish fruit and vegetable shop applied for permission to open till noon. Though it was doing good business, the general conversation drifted to just how much Sunday shopping does one want and need. The very well-heeled lady who owns that building (as well as a grand hotel and a chain of restaurants) was convinced that whether we like it or not, the American way of Sunday shopping would soon be taken for granted.

Severely regulated shopping times which became law in the 50s fell several years ago when shops were allowed to be open to 8pm six days a week. This year such laws are now decided locally and shop owners and unions can decide how long to stay open, except for Sunday and holidays. It's a move in the right direction, but does society need 24/7 or is having a day off from commercialism good for the collective soul?

America the Overfull by Paul Theroux in the IHT remembers another time in America:

'I grew up in a country of sudden and consoling lulls, which gave life a kind of pattern and punctuation, unknown now. It was typified by the somnolence of Sundays, when no stores were open. There were empty parts of the day, of the week, of the year; times when there were no people on the sidewalks, no traffic in the streets, no audible human voices, now and then no sound at all. .....Late at night, in most places I knew, there was almost no traffic and driving, a meditative activity, could cast a spell. Behind the wheel, gliding along, I was keenly aware of being an American in America, on a road that was also metaphorical, making my way through life, unhindered, developing ideas, making decisions, liberated by the flight through this darkness and silence. With less pollution, the night sky was different, too --- starrier, more daunting, more beautiful. I have not seen roads or night skies like that for many years.'
www.iht.com/articles/2007/01/02/opinion/edtheroux.php

The last time we enjoyed driving like Theroux describes in America, and on the East Coast no less, was 1982. Imagine leisurely driving down to New York from Boston today. The most enjoyable days of the year in cities here: December 26th, the Mondays after Easter and Whitsun, May 1 and other assorted holidays where there are no shops open. There is far less traffic, less general tension and stress, most of all, less noise. Days for taking walks, sitting in cafes, biking, just taking it easy. The autobahn, of course, is the exception. Driving the autobahn has never been a 'meditative' activity, discipline is the name of the game. The only positive thing to be said about it, besides the fact that it usually is in good condition is that one hardly ever passes others on the right.

Theroux closes his article with thoughts on manners and politeness. He talks about how other societies 'manage to live in overpopulated cities because they have not abandoned their traditional modes of politeness.' An interesting point worth looking into.
- posted by Gloria @ 4:52 PM