europe

Santana Row in San Jose is a newly built vaguely European area. It's only a couple of blocks. It has lots of restaurant and shops and hotels, and sidewalk cafes and benches and people walking.

First time I went I couldn't understand why it felt so familiar. (Maybe I should have paid more attention to the vaguely European ambiance, it kind of is a give-away... ) After a while I figured it out. I felt as if I was back in the little town where I grew up, where people will walk up and down the main street, eating ice cream and looking at each other.
Only difference is of course that the shops lining the street in my parent's town aren't all exclusive. The people drinking coffee and chatting don't all wear expensive clothes. The stores are ordinary, and so are the people.

It irritates me when 'European' is made to equal fancy. Europe isn't fancy. Europe is all sorts of things.

A friend of mine spent a year in Arizona on research scholarship once. As he was planning a trip to San Francisco someone gave him tips on where to visit. His new friend talked about bars and restaurants that were in her mind "European", and therefore interesting. Then she took one more look at my friend, in my mind a tall and handsome Swedish soccer player and political scientist, admittedly favoring baggy jackets and pants. She looked confused. To her he didn't look so good. She changed her mind. "Oh those restaurants and bars, they are the other kind of European."