concrete jungle review + excuses
As I write this I am on a plane Orlando à San Diego. Long story short, I was way too busy to write anything in New York, then I got sick as we went to Philadelphia, got worse as we entered DC, then got better as we arrived into New Orleans and was all ready to start writing BUT I managed to lose my adapter for my laptop in the airport before our Louisiana adventures even began because I was suffering my usual airport stress, and didn’t buy one until a few hours ago at the airport in Orlando, and that’s more or less why I haven’t written anything.
I will begin with New York. My goodness, I don’t even know where to start. We somehow ended up accidentally booking ourselves into accommodation on the fringes of Harlem, which is the one place you’re meant to avoid. That was an experience and a half. It was good though because it gave us an insight into a different New York as opposed to the flashy lights and consumerism of Times Square, for example. The bonus of interesting hostels that are essentially run by gangsters is that you meet really interesting people. Experiences that stretch you and push your limits are always the most worthwhile. Four of us girls were in a tiny room, kind of like Harry Potter’s cupboard under the stairs. It was small, but it was cosy. We had quality sleepover times including learning lyrics to Jay Z and Beyonce songs, discussions about Calvin Klein underwear, and being serenaded to sleep with an emotional rendition of “Drunk in Love”.
Moving on from our homey but questionable accommodation, New York was incredible. The first day we were there we arrived in the late afternoon, so we ventured across to Central Park and bought your typical deep fried American goodness and enjoyed the sun. We walked around, and saw so many baseball games. I for one was definitely still in a daze about actually being in New York. It was like walking around in a book, just didn’t quite feel real. Central Park is as beautiful as you can imagine. A highlight of our afternoon meanderings was definitely spotting our first ever racoon rummaging around in a bin. It was all very overwhelming so we went to bed early, as the next few days were going to be full days exploring the concrete jungle.
Over our time in New York we rode bikes in Central Park, climbed Empire State, walked past the UN and Rockefeller, caught a ferry and saw the Statue of Liberty, walked around Soho, ate in Chinatown, explored Times Square and Grand Central Station, ate a lot of street vendor food, walked across Brooklyn Bridge, caught the subway numerous times, saw the Ground Zero memorial, and so much more. Abig s/o to my friend Russ who was in New York at the same time and took us to the front of a secret recording studio not many people know about, but where major music groups have recorded. We would never have known about it without him! Going into detail about every single adventure we had would take way too long, plus I feel like it’d be a little boring of me to describe the tourist sites as everyone already knows more or less what they are, so instead I’ll just write down some of my favourite and most memorable moments from New York.
Definitely a great moment was Sami, our fearless leader, going into a supermarket with the intention of buying body wash and deodorant, and leaving with baby shampoo because he thought it said it was body shampoo. Sami was not just our fearless leader, but our protector. Along with Russ he also did a lot of navigating for us. One time I directed us all to Empire State, I was very proud because I think we also used the subway, but then we ended up deciding to go up it another day. Thanks, team. I had another chance to prove myself by navigating everyone to China town from New York University, however apparently I hollered out instructions at unnecessary times and was silent when people actually needed to know what direction to go. I blame the fact that I really needed a restroom – we all have our weaknesses. All the walking had myself and Leandra (my travel partner) hobbling at the back of the group like the grandmas we are as we both have old back injuries. Side note – we’ve actually done very well travelling together despite our weakness! Probably the low point was me trying to put on my large travel backpack at New Orleans airport and writhing around on the floor initially unable to lift myself up. I got there in the end, and my muscles are definitely increasing.
Anyway, my most magical moment in New York was definitely being on top of Empire State at dusk. It’s one of the most beautiful times of the day for me, and I can’t really describe how it felt to see New York in all its splendour laid out before me, Central Park standing out from the mess of buildings and distant lights from cars. Another one of my favourite moments was also this park behind New York library, it was also dusk when we saw it and it was amazing because it was like a place I would want to live in in a dream. It was this green park filled with chairs and tables surrounded by beautiful old buildings, they also had table tennis matches going on and people from all different walks of life were playing together. It’s the kind of place I’d spend the afternoon with a cup of tea, some dark chocolate and an excellent book. Talking about great moments, the first time walking into Times Square was unreal. So many bright lights, so many people. It was just weird, but I loved it. Cycling in Central Park was also an amazing experience – it was a Saturday so everyone in New York was soaking up the sunshine!
Overall New York was invigorating but also overwhelming. It was confronting seeing the poor/rich divide, going from the flashiness of Times Square to people begging in the subway. Towards the end we were all exhausted, my cold was starting to kick in, and Leandra and I said our last farewells to our friends from university. One last subway ride, and we were off to Philadelphia. Leandra and Rosie take USA, no woman left behind, the dynamic duo, the time had come.
