h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

No discussion of shopping malls can be complete without mention of the Mall of America located in Eden Prairie, Minnesota just outside Minneapolis. This mall bills itself (accurately, I believe) as the largest shopping mall in the world. It is as much a symbol of American excess and self indulgence as Disney World or Las Vegas and has actually become a destination of choice for travellers in itself. It has only to become the focus of a child in the "Make A Wish" foundation to take its place with Mount Rushmore and Old Faithful as one of the great American icons.

The importance of anchor stores was brought home to me in Jubail, Saudi Arabia where attempts were made to emulate the American malls. These had no big anchor stores, or worse had supermarkets (for groceries) as anchors, which had entrances only to the outside and did not provide for a stroll past the smaller shops on the way in and out for impulse buying, or convenient stops for non-grocery items. The echoing of one's footsteps in these forlorn malls as one walked alone inside taught me why anchor stores are needed (to draw crowds) and why they should open inside to the lesser shops (to provide foot traffic). Grocery stores do not make good anchors, since the people coming to buy perishable goods are less likely to stop at other shops - there is a different mindset going when folks shop for groceries.

Perhaps it may be worth mentioning that American malls are generally built roughly on a star shape, with an anchor store at the end of each point of the star. So to get from one anchor store to another usually involves going past all the other stores. The star may have 4 or more points.

I'm not certain, but I believe that there is a mall in Edmonton, Alberta, of all places, that is larger yet than the famed Mall of America.

As if it really makes a difference. You could lost in any of them for weeks on end.

Güthwinë.

I agree with all this. Actually, this article was originally just about Landmark Mall, but the focus was changed during the editing process. I understand that Landmark by itself might not deserve a thread to itself, but as is it makes it seem like I think it's the only important mall, which is not the case.

I have to take the blame for the shift in emphasis that this Entry has taken.

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, does boast a pretty impressive mall. At one time patrons could take a submarine ride in an indoor amusement arcade there... or so I'm told.

Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, has what was once held to be the world's biggest mall, Square One.

JTG

Well, I wasn't trying to assess blame in any way, I admit that an audience that has a large percent of Brittish readers and even larger percent of non-DC readers probably wouldn't have given two shakes about Landmark Mall's rise and fall. Maybe my concentration on the DC area isn't quite the way to go (even though I'm thinking through two more articles about "my" city).

No probs. I look forward to reading them. You have to remember, though, that the frame of reference you use has to be meaningful to those who don't know anything about the area.

I had the good fortune to be in DC for the 4th of July, last year. The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, featuring 'Tibet: The Land of Snow', was the main draw; so, unfortunately, I didn't see much of the rest of the city... apart form the monuments on the mall (the other sort), of course.

JTG

Well, actually the national mall is one that I'm working on. Unfortunately there's so much of it that I think each actual site will get a max of like two paragraphs, plus I need to squeeze in general information about the Mall...could actually take awhile now that I think about the scope and scale of the whole thing.

I try to avoid the Mall on the 4th myself, just because so many people don't

That's a good idea for an Entry. The Mall's a very interesting place, probably especially so to a foreigner like myself. There are so many aspects of the place that seem to symbolize America. And, of course, it is such a well-known landmark, thanks to the film industry. You're right though: It could be a mammoth Entry... but one well worth taking on.

We (my wife and I) ended up heading back to our hotel and watching the fireworks on TV, because it had been so hot and humid and the thought of making our way back in the crowds later on was just too much after a long day.

The Vietnam War Memorial is incredibly powerful. We arrived there at the same time as a visiting marching band from California, which treated us to a medley of patriotic tunes and Souza marches. Afterwards, we walked down into the thing; and, by the time we had reached the angle, my wife was sobbing her eyes out... and, to be honest, it wouldn't have taken much to start me too.

At the same time, almost everything on the mall could probably have an entry of its own, so I'm going through this personal debate of whether to start entries on some individual buildings, expanding from their blurb in the National Mall. Seeing as I'm not that far along on the Mall entry, though, that might be too far ahead to think.

There's nothing to stop you doing both. You could do a mall entry, with an overview of the adjacent landmarks, and separate Entries on the specific features later on, if you are of a mind to.

We managed to cover most of the ground between the Lincoln Memorial and the Capitol Building. Did we miss anything on the other side?

Lincoln Memorial to the Capitol is the definition of the Mall, so there is no "other side" unless you maybe mean the underside or something

Nope. I guess we saw it all then. I've seen pictures of the Capitol that looked like they had been taken from the side we didn't see. I wondered if there was more stuff around the back. We didn't get a good look at the Capitol, because there was a lot of staging being rigged and there was such a lot of other stuff going on.

There is a park on the north side of the Mall (across from the Smithsonian, I think, next to the National Art Gallery) with a round pond that is perfect for soaking tired feet in, after a long hot day of yomping around. I don't know what it's called; but mentioning it, if you know the place, would make a good tip for travellers, as would the free, clean washrooms in the Smithsonian as an alternative to portable toilets from hell.

The non-mall side of the Capitol Building leads to the Supreme Court, the Folger's Shakespeare Library, and the Jefferson Office Building. There is a little round pool on my map of the mall, and there's also an ice rink on the mall during the colder times of the year.

I really appreciate the ideas. Could we move the conversation to article A592030 just so any suggestions I get are right there where I can find them to act on them There's not much to the article yet, so don't expect anything exciting, but it'll be more conveniant to find suggestions later there rahter than here.

Good idea.