Saturday: Homeward Bound

Saturday was supposed to be a day filled with Rockaway Beach, more sun- more fun. However, we woke up to a tropical storm and it was probably to the benefit of us all. We were tired and exhausted. However, we did wait till the rain stopped and went on the subway to go one stop over to a mall nearby. Waiting in the subway, I started getting impatient while sweat was beading on my back. I realized I couldn't wait to be back to a nice cool place such as Washington. The best part about vacation is the ability to realize which things in life are truly blessings. As we made our way back off the subway, through the suffocating air, we turned the corner to the stairs and almost ran into a wall of people. With a quick peek, we learned that it was pouring rain. Cats and dogs. Or maybe in NYC it's called raining taxis and pigeons. Anyhow, we decided to make a run for it and positively soaked our clothes.When we left the mall not too long later the sun had come out and dried up all the rain. (And the itsy bitsy spider... okay, I'm getting sidetracked here.) We went back to shower and drag my heavy suitcase to the airport. Since I am from WA, I brought a plethora of clothes for all weather. Unfortunately there was only one type of weather the whole time which was humid hotness. I tried as much as possible to wear the least as possible in New York- being modest of course. Despite my crankiness for the humidity towards the end my trip was one I'll never forget. I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to stay with people I know very well, and who know the city well. Nivaldo and Rachel rode with me to the end of the subway. We saw a unique wall in the AirTrain station with piano keys. New York art and design is at many different levels and definitely more interesting than in the northwest. It felt so good to know my time spent in New York was well worth it. It also telt so good to feel my plane land just below the Columbia River and have my mom and dad meet me with their loving smiles. Life is good.

Friday: "Top of the Rock"

Friday, Nivaldo and Rachel worked so I slept in a bit and then went to Rachel's work to meet Nivaldo for lunch with Rachel as our server. Before I headed to the subway I took a picture of the apartment I had started calling "home". They live in the basement of this house (you can see the top half of their door to the right of the main house door). After eating my scrumptious "Shrimp Chop Chop" at Rock Center Cafe we headed toward what we thought was the Empire State Building but it ended up being the Chrysler building. The Chrysler building had a beautifully painted and low-lit lobby. We found our way to the Empire State Building even though we had decided to ride to the top of the Rockefeller Center later at night.
Here's a picture with the Empire State Building and below is the front of the Grand Central Station. I was happy to be able to see it because somehow the last time we went through it we didn't come out the front so I hadn't see it yet.
Continuing alongside the honking mess of taxis and thundering slap of sandals, we came across the New York Public Library. I've never been in a castle, but this building feels close to one. They had marble stairs and artifacts from centuries ago. In this room, many students and adults were looking down, studying hard and we had our necks cranked back in old wooden pews looking up. In another room, the walls were lined with portraits of American politicians painted by amazing artists in the 18th century. Although the room was bare and empty of any furniture, it was filled with everyone's awe of the paintings.
To be kind to ourselves, we shared a delicious Chocolate Souffle at Rachel's old restaurant, and then went home to rest our feet and watch some more Friends. We got a little more dolled up to go to the top of the Rockefeller center. It's a different feeling when you get dressed up to go to New York City than in the northwest. Going somewhere on the subway is less private and fun than driving a car but once you get there it's a whole other world. When you step up onto the cracked cement sidewalk, there's nowhere in the northwest that makes you feel so small. So surrounded. Trying to look up at the top of the buildings is almost impossible without falling backwards first. I bet most people take in the sights of the skyscrapers once and then are forced to scurry along with the rest of the crowds for the rest of the duration they're in the city. I was fortunate to ride the elevator up at least 70 floors to see how expansive New York City really is. The room used to walk from one side of the building has multiple lights that usually can sense where people are and follow them but that feature wasn't working while I was there. From the top of this building almost as tall as the Empire State Building, people can enjoy a 360 degree view of the lights. The sites of the Brooklyn Bridge, Empire State Building, Chrysler building, the water, and the relatively dark spot that was Central Park solidified the memories I had created in one week in the city.

Thursday: Ground Zero

This morning **cough-afternoon-cough**, Rachel and I treated ourselves to starbucks and pedicures. While walking through Manhattan, we found a couple interesting statues. We also walked inside a hushed Episcopalian Church built in the late 1700s.


Then we made our way to Ground Zero. The last time I had seen that area was September 11, 2001 while watching it happen on the news. Other than hearing that it's still under construction is about the last time I had heard about it, too. I just finished reading a Karen Kingsbury book where parts take place at Ground Zero, but it still didn't create an impression in my mind. Years after the tragic event happened, I was finally able to get a sense of what it would feel like to be one of the people standing at the intersection of Trinity Place and Liberty Street. I tried to imagine what it would be like to be standing on the hard pavement surrounded by the normal commotion of business workers, vendors, and honking taxis and actually witness the horrific episode. Although, I had never seen the massive twin towers before they fell, I could see the blank space where they didn't fill up the sky as they once had.



















Walking closer, we observed the memorial wall where people had laid things like flowers, bracelets, and letters in memory of the firefighters. Another wall had the names of people who had been in the buildings. A man, selling a booklet of pictures, pointed to a skinny black building and told us that the World Trade Center had been three times the height. I couldn't imagine the trapped people making the decision to jump to their deaths from any height, but especially not that high.

Rachel and I enjoyed dinner at a tasty Italian restaurant, Puttanesca. The New York Sauna a.k.a. the subway and walking everywhere seemed to be overly tiring today. We stocked up on candy, came back to the apartment, and planned an evening in front of the fan and "Friends".

Wednesday: Grand Central & Staten Island

Traveling really allows us to form new perspectives but it also teaches us things from other's viewpoints. After traveling around busy Manhattan the first few days, today we took the ferry past the Statue of Liberty to Staten Island. We stopped in Grand Central Station on the way. It was old, clean, and charming. As our tour bus drove through a residential neighborhood with small houses, our tour guide stated, "Look at the size of those lots!" I smiled hearing that from a gentlemen who's lived in New York for 66 years because I knew that he was exclaiming at how large the lots were compared to other places in the city. He was assuming my perspective; he didn't know I grew up on a 10 acre place with full woods and my own tree fort. I just found it interesting how everyone sees the world from their own little peephole.

A structure I was cuious about the second I saw it from the ferry was explained on he tour. The slender curved walls held the names of the people lost on 9/11 as well as a view to where the Manhattan skyline had lost its Twin Towers.Staten Island is more laid back, green, and spacious than Manhattan (only 5 miles away). Staten Island is home to 450,000 people on a 59 sq. mile island. Whereas Manhattan has 1.6 Million people living in a 23 sq. mile area. On Staten Island, we saw Ft. Wardsworth which was used during the Revolutionary War.

On the ferry ride back, a few people from Ireland were asking about the rain that was supposed to happen this evening. This one guy stood under a light on while saying, "Ooo look guys! Oy got anoyther broyt idea! How bout we just don't go walking and we don't get rained on at'all!" In New York, it is all too common to see and hear people of different nationalities. I love listening to their accents.

Tuesday: Atlantic Ocean

After a ride on a subway and a train, today was well spent on Jones Beach, New York. I dipped my toes (and much more) into the Atlantic Ocean for the first time in my life. The water was refreshingly cool, the sun was wonderfully warm, and the breeze was soothing. Along with that, the sand is whiter and different than in the Pacific Ocean in the Northwest. Rachel and I enjoyed the day reading, relaxing, and eating delicious Cookie Dough Ice Cream waffle cones.

In the evening, we came back to the apartment. I had the best evening of showering, aloe, iced tea, "Friends" show, eating a good chicken dinner and eating even more ice cream. Rachel and I became hot, lazy, and restless toward the end. And that's how I ended up sliding down to the floor and writing this blog on my back with my feet up on the futon. We both got too much sun today. Of course I'm fried to a crisp while she has a beautiful new tan but every minute was worth it because the beach was gorgeous. Tomorrow is a trip to Staten Island to see the Statue of Liberty and I haven't been getting much sleep so to bed I go!

Monday: Central Park

How to have a healthy day:
Morning breakfast= Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream at the apartment
A well rounded brunch= Grande Iced Vanilla Latte at the starbucks on the way to Nivaldo's work
Lunch= Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream bar while watching a baseball game at Central Park
AN AMAZING DINNER= Pad Kee Mao at Thai Angel Cuisine
A little evening snack= Pizza with cheese stuffed crust and more ice cream at the apartment
Post-little evening snack= Fresh Pineapple


Today, Rachel and I spent all day walking through the city, to Rachel's work (Rock Center Cafe in Rockefeller Center) and Nivaldo's work, Central Park, Chinatown, and more. Now that I think about it, it'd be interesting for me to draw my mental map of New York before I came.

I used to think Central Park was this rectangular shaped park with vintage benches, trees, a couple fancy clocks where old men in black suits read books while children played nearby. Now I know that the park is large and full of life. Trails wind around a pond, sports fields, and huge shaded areas. People lay out in swimsuits, jog, solicitate, live under trees, take work breaks, play on the massive playground, go for rides on a carnival, paint, and walk dogs there. Central Park is similar to being in a big play pen with the sky scrapers surrounding it. There are beautiful rocks, bridges, and charming baseball games.

Rachel and I stopped and watched a game for a while. The player's love for the game came tumbling out with strong New York accents while discussing game plans and shouting encouragement. "Just hit this bawl outta the pawk, Paulie!"

Rach and I shopped around a bit then headed to Chinatown to a wedding shop where she ordered her bridesmaid dresses. After some complications, bad luck, and disapointment we found a dress for me, the Maid of Honor. We both fell in love with the dress we chose.

I love chinatown because of the colorful assortments of exotic fruits spilling out onto the sidewalks. I would have taken a picture of their beautiful assortments but one Chinese guy objected loudly, "NO! NO! NO CAMERAS ALLOWED! SHUT THAT OFF!" ...I'm not trying to be judgemental, but aren't Asians generally the ones who come with stationary cameras around their necks? "OOoo! Take a picture of this potato. How bout from this angle? How about with a fork in it! Ooo take a picture from that side of the table." (That's quoting Rachel imitating Chinese customers at her restaurant) Anyway, besides the one camera-shy Chinese, Chinatown was fun to see.

The lady who helped me with my dress was very helpful and nice. And when we asked her if she knew where a Thai restaurant was her response made us laugh. "Ohhh. Not in this part of town." We didn't mean to insult her but I suppose that is a rude question in a highly cultured Chinese area. Regardless, we went to an amazing Thai place that fed my craving for Pad Kee Mao which made my day. They probably should've charged us for water; they had to refill our glasses of water multiple times due to our day in the hot city.

At night, Rachel and Nivaldo convinced me to play a game I purposely have avoided many years to escape boredom and deep comas. Monopoly. But this game was fun. Monopoly: Electronic Banking Edition. Dealing with Debit Cards and Millions, this game was much more interesting, fun, and how many times can you say you've gotten 2 Million for Passing Go? Nivaldo's not very competitive unless you think that him saying this counts as competitiveness, "Well, why would you play the game if it's not to win?" and "I don't play for fun." He didn't seem to like Rachel and I handing over two of our estates to help him out to just win if winning was all he wanted. He accepted them anyway. And smoked us badly... probably not because of what we gave him but because he actually is just good at the game. It didn't help when he stood up on the futon and gave a victory dance. All that laughter and arguing made for a fun evening and now I must get some sleep.

To enlarge the pictures just click on them! Some are big, some are not... depending on if I resized them or not.

Tomorrow is going to be a hard day laying on the beach. Woowee!

First Impressions: Time Square

3 new things learned on my 1st day in New York:
1. Germaphobic, Claustrophobic, and Thermophobic are three disorders a person cannot have in order to explore New York City.
2. Patience is a key when waiting for airtrains, subways, or in lines.
3. Persistance is also a key or you'd never cross a street when trying to wade through people.

2 comforting things learned:
1. Other people, including locals, find the airtrain confusing as well.
2. Rachel has her fridge stocked with things I love such as Haagen Daas Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream and a huge bowl of fruit.

1 complete obvious observation:
1. New York is incredibly massive. One day here is like flipping quickly through a text book and trying to remember all the facts.

Rachel and Nivaldo (Junior) were kind enough to ride the subway and airtrain to come pick me up from the airport. On our ride to their small apartment, they aquainted me with the subway system. Although I hadn't been in a subway station before, I knew enough from books and movies what to expect visually. However, the mixture of pee-smell, heat, and the sight of scavenging rats had a larger impact than a novel does. I also was fascinated by the vastness of advertisements and intricate tile artwork in many of the stations.

In fact, many of the details in the city blew me away. The combinations of old and new stood out to me: a wrap-around screen on a two-century-old building, a new porsche zipping past a slow horse drawn carriage, young trendy women marching past elderly tired ladies, etc. While having a philisophical conversation with Junior about faith and religion, we turned a corner and witnessed Time Square. It may not have taken my breathe away, but it definitely stopped all thought processes in order to soak up the image of tall buildings, neon lights, billboards, and bustle.

Rachel met us at Chevy's on Broadway, and then we explored huge stores along that strip as well as 5th Avenue.

After that we got suckered into going to a comedy show. We got a couple laughs. A guy said he read a bumper sticker the other day that said, "If you can't speak our language, get out!"... well how are they expected to do that if they can't read the sticker in the first place?

After we rode the subway back from Manhattan, I finally took a shower. I am grateful for that cleansing of the uncomprehensible amount of germs. Now, with a book to finish and a fan in my room, my first day of vacation is coming to an end. Thank you Lord for all the wonderful opportunities and the chance for more exploring to come.

Anticipation

Yesterday, my last day of Summer Session '08, I wake up to not only a massive list of things to do before my trip but a text message from Rachel.

It said something along the lines of, "Yay! You're finally coming to New York today!!!"

I, wanting to share that same excitement, started panicking. That couldn't be right--could it? I thought I left Saturday. I flew out of bed and checked my itinerary. July 26 at 11.59PM and arriving at -NO DATE?- 8.12AM. I was determined that date was correct, but Rach was determined I was supposed to leave Friday. So Rachel and I text back and forth while I ran to go get my fingerprints taken (teacher legalities) and look for a new shifter knob to replace the one that unexpectadly flew off while driving. It took one or two hours debating whether or not I leave Friday or Saturday. In that time, I was fingerprinted and also amused by the fact I could buy a "44-Caliber" shifter knob with extra storage space for 24.99. We finally resolved I surely leave Saturday. I then proceeded to go to my last class, finish a scholarship, register for classes, clean my car, and not pack.

My cousin/bestfriendthroughanything, Rachel, and I purchased my tickets together before school even started and we knew as soon as I got out of school, I was free to get out of WA. I've always promised myself I'd go to New York before I die. Now, before you start thinking "LUCKY... she gets to accomplish her goal before she dies" I am still in WA and it's quite possible God could have other plans for me between 3:56 PM today and 8:12 AM tomorrow.

Now this morning, was also interesting. I can't say I woke up because I don't actually remember ever getting any good rest. An interesting book entranced me until 2AM and then I rolled around in my comfy comforters until dawn. I felt like a kid the night before Christmas again. I don't know if it was the 7AM trip to the lake to try wakeboarding again or the New York trip I was anticipating. Most likely both.

For those of you who haven't tried wakeboarding, it is definitely a fun experience in itself. First time I tried, I must have had a fondness for staying in the water. I only "got up" twice and drank enough water to hydrate my mom's flowers for a week. But today, I got up every time (Not bragging. Each time did NOT last long) and didn't inhale a single swig!

So now, instead of packing, I am starting this blog to motivate me to pack. It is a bit difficult to start when I'm sad about the possibility of not having a camera. I am hoping to borrow a camera from my brother, Nate, since I so rudely left mine in a torrential downpour. I'm excited to finally experience New York for a week in the presence of my loving cousin and her husband, Nivaldo.