Okay, I am sorry, I didnt know that Starbucks is proliferating at such a rate.
I dont drink coffee, and have been in a Starbucks, anywhere in the world, probably 3 times, so I tend to tune em out.
Still, I maintain that you could make the same complaint about every city in the world- my favorite jewish delis have all closed, in both Pittsburgh and Miami. (I still cry myself to sleep when I remember that the Rascal House is no more) All the great old family owned restaurants in LA have long gone. Seattle has lost it character, to be replaced by Starbucks...
Okay, the original Starbucks in the Market was okay- cute dreadlocked hippie girls used to work there, there were actual bales of tea on the floor, and the wood floor creaked when you walked on it. Nary a corporate logo to be seen.
If you think there are lots of chain conglomerate stores and restaurants in BsAs, you havent been in Phoenix, or Atlanta, or Vegas recently, thats for sure. The Venerable Colonel, as they call him in China, has opened 2000 KFC stores in China.
Even small towns in Italy are chockful of chains. I was in Brescia not that long ago, and every third storefront was a Benneton or chain store.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of american towns where EVERY store and restaurant is some soulless chain. Subway, Starbucks, McDonalds, every corner has 4 of em.
Me, I avoid em all- and most certainly in Buenos Aires. It is perfectly possible, in my neighborhood, to buy everything I need from actual people, who own their own stores and restaurants, and I make a point of doing it.
