Living in a place they both love and hate, New Yorkers say the city's beauty and ugliness—reaches far beyond the sets1 of America's most popular TV shows and movies.
New York City is known as America's economic and cultural capital. It's a city where young people want to go, whether to take up a high-paying job on Wall Street, study, or struggle to pay rent while working in the arts.
It's also the setting of some of America's popular TV shows and movies. The best known may be TV series “Sex and the City”. It features four aspiring2 women enjoying the comfortable life of chatting, shopping, clubbing and looking for their Mr. Right3.
However, Dunham, 26, said TV shows only scratch the surface4. “TV shows never get how expensive things are in New York,” she said, adding that she knows a married couple who are in their 30s, have good jobs, and still share a couch because their apartment is so small.
To Dunham, reality in New York means getting a quick lunch at food stands, smelling the stinking5 piles of rubbish every week on trash day and paying tolls to cross bridges and tunnels—things that TV shows rarely capture.
Elish Glick, 23, an artist living in Brooklyn6, said that while New Yorkers can sometimes be unfriendly, it's often because of their nature as driven, ambitious individuals.
“People here are mostly young and single.” Glick said. “I kind of admire it, not settling down. They're here making sacrifices, offering themselves, being creative and providing intelligent input. A lot of people are confident and know what they want.”
25-year-old legal assistant Jin Jing agrees. During her three-month experience as a United Nations intern7, Jin found New Yorkers to be friendly and helpful people. But she also learned that the TV show “Friends”was fantasy8.
“When I went to America, I realized that ‘Friends’ was not real life,” Jin said. “In New York, people have no time for friends. People have no time to hear you talk.”
But Jin said she didn't feel like a stranger, thanks to the diversity9 all around her. “Most of the time, I forgot that I didn't belong there.” She said.
While Dunham admits that life in New York can be both good and bad, special moments help her fall in love with the city all over again.
She once paused to watch dancers and street musicians performing in a subway tunnel and found herself among many other busy New Yorkers attracted by their show.
“People who were clearly in a rush to get home just stopped to watch because these guys were really good,” she said. “From businessmen to mothers—everyone was represented. In that moment we were all together before we went our separate ways.”
生活在一个让人又爱又恨的地方，纽约人普遍认为，即使美国最流行的电视节目和电影也远不能尽现纽约的美与丑。
众所周知，纽约是美国的经济文化中心。年轻人都想来这个城市，或是为了去华尔街找一份高薪工作，或是为了学业，或是为了艺术，过着勉强付得起房租的生活。
纽约同样也是美国一些流行电视节目及电影的取景地。其中最有名的也许要数电视连续剧《欲望都市》。该剧主要讲述四个雄心勃勃的女性如何享受闲聊、购物、社交的舒适生活以及寻找如意郎君的故事。
然而，26岁的邓纳姆却认为电视讲的都是些浮光掠影的东西。她说：“电视节目从来不提纽约物价有多高。”她还说她知道有一对夫妇，30多岁了，都有不错的工作，仍共用一张沙发床，因为他们的公寓实在太小了。
在邓纳姆看来，纽约的现实生活意味着午饭在小吃摊上吃快餐；忍受每周垃圾清理日垃圾堆的臭味；以及缴纳过桥费、过隧道费——而这些是电视节目中很少表现的。
23岁，住在布鲁克林的艺术家埃里希·格里克说，纽约人有时不友好常常是出自天性，他们是些被利益驱使、雄心勃勃的人。
“这儿大多数人都是年轻的单身汉，”格里克说，“我有点羡慕他们那种不安定的生活。他们在这儿牺牲、奉献、投身事业、努力创新、贡献他们的才智。他们当中很多人都非常自信，知道自己在追求什么。”
25岁的法律助理金静也有同感。在联合国实习的3个月里，她发现纽约人友好和善、乐于助人。但同时她也发现电视剧《六人行》都是虚构的。
“去了美国之后，我才发现《六人行》讲述的并不是真实生活。”金说，“在纽约，人们没时间交朋友，没时间听你说话。”
但是金说，由于这里的多元化，她并不觉得自己是异乡人。她说：“大多时候，我都忘记了自己不是本地人。”
邓纳姆承认生活在纽约有好有坏，几件特殊的事情让她重新爱上了这个城市。
有一次，她停下来观看舞者和街头音乐家在地铁隧道里的表演，竟发现其他忙碌的纽约人和她一样被吸引住了。
“那些显然是急着往家里赶的人们驻足观看，因为他们的表演真是太棒了。”她说，“从商人到母亲——几乎各种身份的人都有。那一刻大家连在了一起，然后再各走各的路。”
1. set n. 摄影棚；外景
2. aspiring adj. 积极的, 有抱负的
3. Mr. Right 如意郎君
4. scratch the surface 略知皮毛；肤浅
5. stinking adj. 臭的
6. Brooklyn 布鲁克林（纽约西南部一区）
7. intern n. 实习生
8. fantasy n. 想象
9. diversity n. 多样性
10. anonymity n. 无人知晓