I don’t want to seem mean, but Americans have been excoriated (and rightly so) for years for their inappropriate dress while in Europe while we all act as if every European hits these shores looking like James Bond or one of his consorts. That’s most definitely not the case and maybe if more Americans would acknowledge that they could relax a little and lose the inferiority complex.

I’ve travelled extensively worldwide and to my mind, the most chic, appropriately dressed, sexy people are to be found in Buenos Aires. It helps that they are some of the most naturally beautiful people in the world but I find it amazing that at every age they almost always look fabulous. The world would be a much better place if we could all look and dress as the Portenas do.

As for the the inappropriately casual tacky clothing worn by tourists, it’s not just Americans. I have seen plenty of atrocities worn by European tourists. I live in NYC and for years worked in the Wall St area, near the World Trade Center. There were always lots of European tourists about - they were easy to spot since you could hear them speaking German, French, Dutch, etc, consulting their maps and often stopping me to ask for directions. (Now of course there are even more tourists there as people from all over the world flock to see the big hole in the ground). In general, the clothing worn by these Euros was every bit as bad as that sported by Americans in Europe. I’m talking black socks with sandals and shorts (favored by Germans), ill-fitting, off-looking jeans, and fanny packs. Yes, I have seen plenty of Euros (mostly men) sporting fanny packs. The worst would be those tourists of a certain middle age dressed in bizarrely youthful clothing - I’m talking capris (on men), usually accessorized with a man bag and trendy, fussy-looking footwear. The worst was seeing a Scandinavian family on the subway once. The teens, apart from a slight Euro flair, looked like pretty standard issue teen-agers worldwide. Mom was dressed like the teens - the look was too young for her but not too bad. But the dad - ayyyy. He was wearing those aggressively hip eyeglasses that only architects in this country wear, cargo capris (with lots of large pockets, chains, etc) and a football-style jersey. Give me a track-suited, Nike-wearing American any day! And don’t even get me started on the bizarre clothing choices of the Japanese tourists or the many young (local) women I saw in London last year wearing flip-flops with dirty feet!

Being a tourist in a big city in the summer is pretty grueling. You’ll do a lot of walking, the temps may be well above 90 and you’re going to need someplace to put your camera, your purchases, your sweater for the heavily air-conditioned shops. So a backpack or a fanny pack may be necessary. So go ahead, be comfortable. Just spruce up a bit for the nice restaurants and Lincoln Center (the theater is a lost cause - just try not to wear shorts).

Mrs E (from London but always in Italian shoes)

http://www.zappos.com/n/p/p/7228363.html

Here are the Gabors, if anyone wants to give them a shot.