New York City: Garbage & Rats Walking Tour History Stories

4.99

(127 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

The first thing that hit me was the smell — not bad, just this faint, musty trace of old fish and concrete as we stood on Wall Street. Our guide, Marissa, had this way of talking that made you forget you were surrounded by bankers and tourists; she pointed at the bricks under our feet and said, “You know, this used to be a garbage dump.” I honestly didn’t expect to start a day trip in New York City learning about landfill right where people now trade millions. The wind off the river carried something sharp — maybe history, maybe just the city itself.

We walked up South Street and I caught myself staring at the old Fulton Fish Market sign, faded but still there. Marissa told us about rat fights at Sportsman’s Hall (yes, actual rats fighting dogs for sport — I thought she was joking). She laughed when I wrinkled my nose. “You get used to it,” she said. There was this weird mix of disgust and fascination in the group as she explained how rats thrive on our leftovers — like they’re just another part of New York’s rhythm. Someone pointed out a flash of gray in an alley and everyone leaned in, hoping for a sighting, but it was gone too fast.

DeLury Square felt almost peaceful compared to the rest — trees overhead, a few locals reading newspapers. We talked about the 1968 garbage strike and John DeLury’s fight for sanitation workers’ rights. It got quiet for a second when Marissa described how trash piled up higher than cars back then; I could almost smell it if I tried (not that I wanted to). Ryder Alley was narrow and shadowy — easy to imagine rats scurrying along those old stones. Someone asked about metaphorical rats in politics and Marissa just grinned: “Plenty of those here too.”

The last stretch took us up Ann Street, past where that infamous rat attack happened in ‘79 (she didn’t spare details), then into Theatre Alley with its echoey footsteps and finally City Hall Park. By then I’d stopped thinking about rats as just pests — they’re kind of survivors, like New Yorkers themselves. Sometimes I still think about that odd feeling of respect mixed with revulsion. Anyway, if you want a side of NYC you won’t get from any postcard… well, you’ll find it here.