TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:CNN has released a list of the 10 most-hated cities in the world. Jakarta ranked seventh on the list after Lima, Peru. CNN wrote that by ‘most hated’ the article did not mean to point out the worst cities, but to cities that frequently attract criticism. CNN refers to Jakarta as the ‘Big Durian’—a fruit so pungent that it takes a lot of effort to enjoy it. CNN said that a total of eight million tourists visited Jakarta each year before continuing to other destinations such as Bali, Yogyakarta and Sumatra. Tourists spend an average of 7.84 days in Jakarta. The ‘highlights’ of CNN’s report were Jakarta’s traffic, pollution, poverty and lack of scenery due to the plethora of shopping malls. Below are the 10 most-hated cities according to CNN, ranked from the lowest to highest score: 10. Belize City, Belize Less than a three-hour flight from Dallas, Belize is often referred to as ‘the other Carribean.’ Crime, drugs, dilapidated infrastructure and tricky touts are associated with the city. 9. Cairo, Egypt ‘Not good enough to like, but not bad enough to be avoided,’ is how CNN describes Cairo. Air pollution, reckless drivers, dense population and an unstable political situation are the least appealing aspects of the city. CNN quoted a report from the World Health Organization, which stated that breathing the air in the city is equal to smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. 8. New Delhi, India Hawkers are considered to be the least attractive aspect of the city in addition to scams on the streets. “What you need to do when visiting [Delhi] is to avoid the touts in Delhi,” wrote traveldudes.org. 7. Jakarta, Indonesia Traffic jams, pollution and untidiness are the least appealing aspects of Jakarta. 6. Lima, Peru Lima is the fifth-biggest metropolitan in Latin America. The city is considered safer than Sao Paulo and has better beaches than La Paz. However, in addition to its smog and inconvenience, Lima is regarded as boring. 5. Los Angeles, United States Often dubbed Lots Angry, the megapolitan is home to 90 sub-districts, more than 20 ailing toll roads, innumerable zip codes and almost half a million shopping malls. Earthquakes, racial clashes, boring traffic, smoke reports, and endless sirens are viewed as very undesirable. The only ‘tourist trap’ in the city is Hollywood. 4. Timbuktu, Mali A century ago, world travelers struggled to reach the trans-Saharan trade center. Today, the city is considered remote and unspectacular. A recent British survey revealed that a third of the British population does not believe that Timbuktu exists. 3. Paris, France The city is either seen as ‘the most loved’ or the ‘the most hated’. What people hate about Paris are the stereotypical rude waiters and the residents’ smoking habit in addition to the occasional ‘smooth talk’. “Don’t be so easily flattered when you approach Place du Tertre in Montmartre and someone tells you that you have a beautiful hair,” a respondent reminded. 2. Sydney and Melbourne, Australia There are four million people living across the city center. Yet the high prices of property and occasional forest fires are characteristics of this city. However, one cannot deny that last year Melbourne was viewed as ‘the most hospitable city’ by the The Economist with 97.5 points, whiel Sydney ranked sixth on the list with 96.1 points. 1. Tijuana, Mexico A recent report from Worldfocus revealed the number of tourists visiting the city has dropped by 90 percent in less than ten years. Violence, drug cartels, recession and the recent swine flu are associated with the city. If all other places can recover from a similar situation, CNN estimates that Tijuana would rank better in the list. TRIP B | CNN