27-year-old travel enthusiast Dara Clark has some helpful advice for anyone looking to get the most out of their next vacation: avoid the tourists traps and make a beeline for the first random, shitty street you see.
“I don’t want to see the areas with historical value that have been curated to be accessible and interesting to the public,” Dara told reporters. “That’s not where the locals hangout! I want to see the dingiest, dirtiest, most worthless little street the city has to offer.”
Sources say Dara has been insistent on using this approach on every trip she takes.
“I went on a trip to Los Angeles with her last year,” said Dara’s friend, Kacey. “She didn’t want to go to Griffith Park, or the Getty Museum, or even the beach! Instead, she just wanted to wander around the streets of Fullerton? I don’t think that’s what anyone pictures when they think of LA.”
Dara countered by saying this is exactly why it’s the best way to see the city.
“That’s literally the whole point!” Dara said. “By spending our time doing things a longtime resident might do on their most unmemorable day, we found an entirely new way to see the city!”
Reporters noted that Dara seemed to be using very loose definitions of “see” and “city.”
Dara says some quintessential things she tries to see in every city include: a random convenience store, a dumpster alley, and a restaurant that’s not exactly good, but the locals still frequent “because it’s like right there.”
Still, sources close to Dara say her methodology has put them in quite a few uncomfortable situations.
“One time, when we were on vacation in Florence, she approached a stranger and asked if we could just hang out in their apartment for a little,” said Dara’s sister, Jade. “It was so weird. We lingered there so long we didn’t get to see the Duomo, or visit the Galleria dell’Accademia, or try gelato! We just watched Jeopardy in Italian on some old woman’s couch while her little dog growled at us for the better part of three hours.”
At press time, Dara had begun planning her next trip: Montreal! Specifically, 25 miles north of the city.
“It’s such a low key spot, there’s absolutely nothing to do or see! I’ll definitely be the first tourist to ever spend 14 days there.”
