What do you get when you have a population of over 8.2 million people, the largest mass transit system in the world, 4000 street vendors, 24 hour everything, and fashion addicts on every street ? You get New York City, the center of all advertising, fashion, publishing, and radio broadcasting in the United States. The city that boasts some of the biggest, most amazing museums in the world. The historical city that dates back to 1624. The city that's richest in culture, cuisine, architecture, and arts and entertainment..... The city that never sleeps.
In just three more days I will be on a plane to New York *sigh* Oh how I love that city. I didn't think I was going to be able to pull off a second vacation this year seeing as how I went to Guyana in April, but with the right flight deal, and a shorter amount of vacation time, I found that I would be able to do it (thank GOD because I need a mini-vacation now more than anything). Honestly, the last couple weeks have just been shit for the most part, so taking this vacation couldnt have come at a better time.......And what better way to get away from it all than to go to my favorite city, and spend some time with my beautiful cousin?!
So normally when I go to New York, I spend all my time with my cousin, doing random things in the city but also scratching things off of my To-Do-In-NY list, one by one (the list is ridiculously long as there are never-ending things to do there) But this time around I will actually have two days of taking on the city all by myself, and I'm super excited! See, my cousin couldn't get any additional time off outside her normal Saturday and Sunday off, so I decided that would be a perfect opportunity for me to go galavanting around Manhattan, get lost and stumble upon some cool little places, and just take in the whole experience in a new way (solo). I've been there enough now and I feel that I'm slowly starting to get familiar with a lot of the areas. Mind you, no matter how many times I go, I can never seem to fully comprehend the complexity and frustration that can sometimes be of NY's complicated subway system. So rather than trying to walk around like a tourist with a huge fold-out map of the transit system in front of my face, I think I will just stick to relying on the good ol' locals and asking questions if I get confused. I love NY but I do not want to end up in Harlem. At all.
Like any city, there are good neighborhoods and bad ones. With NY, the bad ones are really bad, and with the good ones, they are really good! If I had to pick my favorite area, I don't think I could do it, to be honest. I love all of them for such different reasons, and I appreciate all the good, the bad, and the ugly.
One of my favorite spots is Greenwich Village. I went there for the first time last year as part of a Sex and The City tour we did, and I fell in love. It was so quaint but trendy, with a bit of upscale mixed with a casual laid-back attitude of the people there. If that makes sense. Apparently lots of celebrities reside there because its not as touristy of an area and its really quiet, but really pretty. It's got a lot of historic character and charm, and is filled with boutiques, theaters, cafes, and the historic Washington Square Park. I'll definitely be going back here again this time around.
I also have a soft spot for Brooklyn. I think there is a lot of misconception about Brooklyn, possibly due to movies on tv or even rap songs. Of course there are parts of Brooklyn where I wouldn't feel safe, but there are other parts of Brooklyn that are simply just awesome! Like Greenwich, it has a bit of that charm to it, but I feel that Brooklyn has more of a 'home' feel. Its the most populous of NY's five boroughs, and has a huge variety of ethnic groups. It used to actually be independent back in the 1800s and I believe that it still has a bit of that exclusive and proud feel to it. There are many neighborhoods within Brooklyn, and each seems to cater to whichever ethnicity dominates that part. For example, there's a Jewish area, a West Indian area, a Greek, Russian, Latin, and Chinese area. And with all these nationalities come all the different events, festivals, cuisines, and organizations. So it's almost like a whole different little world on the opposite side of that Brooklyn Bridge.
Those are only just a couple of my favorite areas that I like to see. But in terms of going to 'see things' in NY, I think the best way is to just wing it! I mean, definitely have your own little list of things you want to do, places you want to see, experiences you may want to try, but just know that the probability of you NOT getting all those things done because you had stumbled across something else along the way, and spontaneously decided to do it, is pretty high. I personally love when that happens - when you have a plan in mind, and you're on your way to go do it but then you come across something else really cool and decide to check it out! That's how I discovered this amazing place in the Flat Iron district called 'Eataly'. After getting home and looking it up online, I found out that it's actually a super popular and well-known spot. Its basically this huge, busy indoor Italian market right in Manhattan, that's full of Italian food, culture, restaurants, cooking classes, and cafes. It was amazing in there, and whether you were into Italian food or culture at all, you couldn't help but become interested and in awe over everything around you there. Super cool place.
I tell ya, there's just so much to do there, and so little time. Would you believe that out of all the times I've gone, I have never once been to a Broadway before? It's not that I didn't have intentions of doing so, it was because although it was in the schedule for that day, something else came up that we ended up doing. So random, so spontaneous, and so much fun.
There really are endless things to do there, and when people ask me why I love New York so much, that's one of the biggest reasons for me. I like being in a place that's not monotonous, but is full of variety and options. I like the diversity of the city, on all levels. I love the architecture, the history, the parks and river, and the fact that everywhere you go, there is always something new to be seen. I love the culture, the arts, the passion that you see on every street corner, whether its the passion that a Wall Street suit has in his billions of dollars, the passion of a young inspired woman trying to make it as a ballet dancer, the passion of a new cafe owner just trying to branch out with the big guys in the business, or the passion that that homeless man under the bridge has as he's playing his sax. Everywhere I go I see a unique beauty in all these different people from all different places in life, and I smile because the one thing they all seem to have in common is the love for the city. Yes, NY can be harsh, but that's what gives it it's edge I think. It has a lot to offer, and it's inspiring, It's also the type of place that creates dreams I believe.....because I see it in peoples eyes all the time. You can wear what you want, and be who you want. You can also do what you want. Really, you can. They even have actual outdoor trapeeze classes, for those who think they may have actually run out of things to do there, ha ha ha!
Really though, it's just a great city, and I'm obviously so excited to go! I've got a couple new things to hopefully cross of my list this time around, including some quick stops to see Hook and Ladder 8, and to see Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn)'s apartment from the oh-so classic Breakfast At Tiffany's. Above all, if you know me, you know that some serious shopping is right at the top of that list. New York fashion makes my heart skip a beat. They're just so stylish! And in between all my sight-seeing, and total randomness that is of NY, I'm just going to breathe deep, smile, and welcome any inspiration that may come my way. It's going to be so much fun and I can't wait to tell you all about it when I get back!
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