Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the circulation of tourists in Times Square has been minimal these holidays.
This situation is impacting street vendors like Alejandro Moreno, who has been selling nuts on the street for three years.
“Difficult, difficult everything because it was the month that we, really, we made, let’s say savings. And now, no, we only survive,” explains Moreno.
To stay afloat, Alejandro is now working twice as much as he used to in previous years.
“So it’s hard, what I worked before was six hours. Now I work 12 hours to try to compensate for one thing with another,” the street vendor details.
He estimates that this year-end season, sales are just 25% of what they have been in previous years.
This is why Charley Chaldric, who also sells in this area, how much he has had to lower his prices to sell his merchandise.
“I feel bad, because I know that people have almost nothing. I don’t know what will happen,” says Chaldric.
To make matters worse, this Thursday merchants will not be able to go to Times Square, as they normally do on December 31.
This is because the entire area will be closed for the New Year’s Eve celebration, which this time will be totally virtual.
Marcos Antonio Balaguer, who has worked as a street vendor for more than 20 years, explains that to avoid problems with the police that day he will not even try to approach the area.
“It’s ugly, it’s ugly. Now it’s quite a different situation than it was before. We rest, then we hit them hard in the next few days,” Balaguer describes.
Popular Times Square characters are also being affected.
One of them is Rosa Pérez, who makes a living by dressing up as Minnie Mouse.
Pérez says that on days like this, next to the new year, he used to earn around $ 500 dollars, now it does not exceed about $ 150.
“Well, I feel a little worried. But you have to keep fighting in life and what falls is good, like God’s blessing,” says Pérez.
However, not all of these workers are as optimistic as Rosa.
Toni Zárate, who disguises himself as the Grinch, shared that after working as a Times Square character for 11 years, he is looking for another job to completely leave this trade.
“In factories or construction or whatever comes our way. And we’re going to go to work because we can’t live off this; we can’t live off this anymore,” concludes Zárate.
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