department store and one thing is striking.
An awful lot of the voices - and particularly those coming from the people clutching the biggest number of bulging bags - seem to be British.
Stop by other large retailers - Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue or any Gap store - and the same experience is repeated, with the odd French or other European accent thrown in.
While Americans are feeling the pinch of a credit crunch, housing slump and rising fuel prices, it seems their European cousins are ready to make the most of a dollar which has slid to near record lows.
As the Brits happily point out, an exchange rate of over $2 to £1 makes clothes, cosmetics and electronic goods so much cheaper that it seems worth paying for a flight and hotel.
An awful lot of the voices - and particularly those coming from the people clutching the biggest number of bulging bags - seem to be British.
Stop by other large retailers - Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue or any Gap store - and the same experience is repeated, with the odd French or other European accent thrown in.
While Americans are feeling the pinch of a credit crunch, housing slump and rising fuel prices, it seems their European cousins are ready to make the most of a dollar which has slid to near record lows.
As the Brits happily point out, an exchange rate of over $2 to £1 makes clothes, cosmetics and electronic goods so much cheaper that it seems worth paying for a flight and hotel.
