Life's a Journey not a Destination: My New York Minute

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

My New York Minute

May 2005
This is something that started as an Email I sent home which I have refined a bit.
01.01.2006
My New York Minute There they were, the Chinese lady reprimanding her daughter in Mandarin, the three Arab women with their head scarves having a serious discussion, the lone Korean man with the worried look on his face, the two Indian guys gawking at the two chic New York girls, the Italian mother-in law patronizing her African-American daughter in law and spoiling her grand child, the huge African-American lady next to me laughing loudly to herself for no particular reason, the elderly White women next to her trying to avoid eye contact and acting as though that laughing to yourself is the most normal behavior, the European guy with his pink and brown striped shirt staring bemused at his green shoes , the two Spanish women discussing nail polish, the two Mariachi's strumming on their guitars for some loose change, many others of different races and colors that I could not figure out minding their own business, and 'me'. That was New York City and hey that was just one subway car in the Metro. New York just blew me away - the diversity, the skyscrapers, the food, and of course the fact that it never sleeps. The amazing number of different restaurants they have there, Ethiopian, Moroccan, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Italian, Indian, Organic, Kosher, Lebanese etc, - and one for every budget. I was able to sample a few of them - had bagels with a schmear (NY style) for breakfast, NY Steak for Lunch, a kabob in pita bread from a Lebanese joint for dinner, the next day - Hot dogs at Nathan's, Pizza at Lombardi's and a NY style cheese cake for tea. Another thing that struck me in NYC is the street artists. Whether you are waiting for a subway or in a line there is one to entertain you. While waiting in line for the statue of liberty there was the Jamaican on his steel drum, the man in the clown costume who had a verse for every country, the violinist who could play your country's national anthem and the elastic man (did the most unbelievable yogic postures). In the subway stations you have mariachis, violinists, guitarists and even a 5 member dance troupe to entertain you.To start at the very beginning I reached NYC at 5:30 am. and it was a bit too early to go the hostel where I had booked my stay (staying in Manhattan for an affordable price required a lot of planning as the affordable places were booked for months in advance), so I went to the Brooklyn bridge (at least went looking for it and ended up at the Manhattan bridge). After which I went to Central Park, and walked around the different parts of the Park like the Mall, the Ramble (a small wooded patch), the Bethesda fountain (were you can see the dogs playing in the fountains), two of the many ponds they have in the Park, the great lawn, and strawberry fields (a small memorial to John Lennon).Any way after the Central Park experience I went back to the hostel (run by some Swiss dude), left my bags and went straight to the statute of liberty. After a long queue and an extensive security check I finally got on the ferry and went to the statue. After walking around the statue and taking photos from every imaginable angle, I took the ferry back to NY with a stop at Ellis island. The views of the Manhattan skyline on the way back were really breathtaking. After which I just walked down gawking at NYSE and other skyscrapers on Wall St and in the Financial district.After a brief stop at the hostel to have a wash, I headed out to the Grand Central Terminal and the buildings around it (there is no end to the sky scrapers in this city). I then headed to the Empire state building in time for sunset. After another 1 hour wait in queue I made it to the 86th floor a few minutes after sunset (sunset was at 8:05 pm. in summer). Though it was a little hazy and overcast, when the lights started coming on in the buildings the view was awesome. Stayed up there for some time before dashing across Manhattan in a yellow cab (a little like our autos) to the Cafe Wha? in Greenwich Village. Cafe Wha? is the pub where Bob Dylan first played and on the evening I was there they had a stand up comedian and a Band that played reggae, rock, and blues. After that I headed to Times square at 12:30 am. and was there till about 2 am. - and the action there showed no signs of stopping. The pavements were filled with street artists, portrait painters, caricaturists, people hawking souvenirs and posters, psychics, palm readers, and even a satanic church having a open air sermon. It was like day time there. And the endless neon lights and signs also added to making the whole area as bright as daylight.The next morning I took the subway to Coney Island. It is a beach in Brooklyn with a Boardwalk and some amusement rides. I just relaxed on the beach for some time. It is also home to a ride called the cyclone which is a roller coaster ride built in 1927 and the old wooden structure has been more or less the same since then. The rickety and almost primitive cars go at the speed of 100 kmph, and it was quite a scary ride. Headed back to Manhattan and went straight to Chinatown (Canal st), where they sell cheap 20$ Rolexes and 'I Love NYC' T-shirts. I picked up cool T-shirts which illustrate the NY 'attitude' on them (one of them, after I came home, I found was made in India!!). Then I walked down to Little Italy and had a thin crust pizza made at Lombardi (America's first Pizzeria still serving genuine coal oven pizzas the way they did when they opened). My trip was coming to an end but I still had a little time to kill so I walked down to some more parts of midtown Manhattan and saw some big skyscrapers like the Rockefeller center and Radio City music hall before I headed back to the hostel and then to the greyhound bus stand.Phew!! That was long but I have tried my best to explain in words what was the most unique and interesting experience here.
Recommended Reading:
Let's Go New York City – for independent travelers on a budget.Lonely Planet New York City – Arguably the best travelers guide.
PS: I just went back to Times Square in New York City and contrary to what I have heard from a lot of people I had a great time. Certainly on my list of must do things.