Chronicling the Seamier Side of Europe's Hottest Cities

European capitals may draw tourists like moths to a candle, but people who arrive in London, Paris or Berlin expecting only flawless cityscapes of ancient monuments and sidewalk cafés not uncommonly end up in a state of disappointed shock. Even beautiful Paris has its bad skyscrapers and beltway from hell, while striking Berlin can still recall a gorgeous smile with half the teeth knocked out and historic London sometimes does a passable impression of Dubai on Thames. That’s not to deny any of these cities their great charm – but it does help to explain the current popularity of websites that record the seamier, more humdrum side of European city life.

Witty celebrations of urban bathos, London’s Walthamstow Unofficial Tourist Board, Berlin’s Notes of Berlin and Paris’ new WTF Belleville all document their home cities' rougher, crankier side, whether it’s by discovering abandoned mattresses that look like celebrities, snapping northeast Paris's furniture pile-ups or documenting Berlin’s remarkable levels of public grumpiness through its signs. Popular with a local crowd, the former two have developed large followings and have recently published their own book and calendars respectively. There’s more to these sites documenting urban grit than just humor, however. Focusing on parts of their hometowns currently undergoing intense gentrification, they are also germane reflections of cities under stress.