A bite of the big Apple

If you have watched a handful of Hollywood movies, chances are at least one of those was shot in New York, having characters either living flamboyant lifestyles dressed in fashionable, classy clothing, or, on the other extreme, living in a closet of some apartment because they cannot afford the rent, pursuing their dreams to be musicians, dancers and the like. It seems like this city turns nobody away, whether you are there to make a mark or just look around.

The only concern I had about my trip alone to New York for a weekend was that in two days I would barely scrape the surface of everything the city has to offer. The skyscrapers of Manhattan, the vast central park right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the most populous city in the United States, the amazingly huge number of museums and the iconic statue of liberty were all vying for a place in my itinerary. It was during one of those weekends of recovery from my fracture, when I was at home all by myself and frustrated that I could not get out even if I wanted to, that I ended up booking the flight tickets.

All my plans went down the drain at the very beginning of my trip, while on a bus from the John F Kennedy international airport to Manhattan. I had only heard about the traffic nightmare, but here I was, part of it on a Saturday morning, stuck on one of the tunnels leading to the city bounded by three rivers. It was rather disheartening to see an old couple worried about missing their bus to someplace else, which they did eventually.

Well after 11 in the morning, I finally got on a bus for a sightseeing tour. I had accidentally carried my laptop with me, forgetting that I was not headed to work and put it in my backpack. Am I slowly turning into the workaholic that I never wanted to be? It was only when the officer at the security check pulled it out that I realized I had it with me, which was too late anyway. I sat next to a kind gentleman on the bus who started conversing with me. He is from Denmark, a city named Aarhus. He was touring on the east coast with his wife and daughter who were seated behind us. I exchanged pleasantries with them as well. I eagerly told him all about myself, too excited that someone thought I am actually worth their time. I was at my best (or worst?) shabby self, wearing a thick purple jacket on a nice sunny day in New York, without having showered because I had booked a room for that night alone. My hair, as always, was minding its own business. You would call me ‘presentable’ if you were a saint. Perhaps they were too generous, perhaps the fact that I am a software engineer (they did not have a lot of those where they came from!) piqued their interest, perhaps human beings are nice just the way they are. He told me all about his job, how he is retired and drives a school bus now, meant for special kids. He was really proud of his son who is doing well at studies and even managed to go on a trip to India for a student exchange program. His wife joked about Danish language sounding like people have something hot in their mouth while speaking it. I still remember the genuine smiles they had as they wished me the best and bade farewell as I got off at the stop to go to the National September 11 memorial and museum. The museum did not have as big an impact on me as I would have expected, probably because I remember watching the news when it happened and have not missed any details about the attacks ever since. It housed the concrete remains from the site and pieces of the aircrafts as well.

I hurried to the Brooklyn bridge, walked all the way to Brooklyn and back, just to feel like I was doing something historic. I am not sure if it did turn out to be historic, but it was definitely painful, as my foot was still recovering and there was not much the $130 shoes that I had splurged on to help me recuperate quickly, could do. I ardently wished there was someone by my side to let me take a break and lean on them once in a while. So much for my “solo trip”. It was a relief to be back on the bus again, but I missed the Danish family, having nobody to talk to. I went around the rest of downtown listening to the guide who sounded quite bored himself, listing the salient features of localities, buildings et al as we passed through. The slow-moving traffic was always there, any time of the day.

My feet had enough rest and I sped hurriedly through the crowd at Times Square and the streets nearby, making my way to the empire state building. I had promised the owner of the house I would be staying at that I would be in before 10 PM which was the only reason for my haste. The sheer number of people in the city that day was mind-boggling! I had not been to any place in this country where I felt like a trivial, unnoticeable speck in the herd. I made it to the top of the building and lingered a while taking in the stunning view of NYC in all its night-time glory. I half-heartedly purchased my photograph which I hesitated to pose for, for a whopping $25 because I was not sure if I would have any other pictures of me taken on this trip. I grabbed a quick dinner, took a quick sneak peek into a nearby mall to see what shopping in New York might feel like, and was at the nearest subway station. Yes, the infamous subway at that time of the day. I might just call myself brave I thought, while waiting at the station that looked old and dark, but not dirty. Once I was on the train, I was with many others being ‘brave’, which took the novelty out of that feeling immediately. The subway brought everybody together. We shared space with people we might never see in our social circles (such a pretentious term) otherwise. Maybe that is what terrified people. Or it could be the utter vastness of the largest rapid transit system in the world by number of stations. Let alone newbies, seasoned New Yorkers themselves could find it confusing. I read and I quote, it made NYC “a place where anything was possible”.

I felt like a subway pro the second day when I took it to go on the cruise to statue of liberty. Though I tried my best to be an early bird and be on one of the first boats, I was sure half my day would be over before I proceed to my next destination. The statue of liberty looked imposing. I took a stroll around the island, clicking pictures and asking strangers to click mine. I chose to skip entering the monument and get as close to it as possible, owing to time constraints. The next stop on the cruise was the Ellis island, now home to the immigration museum. Little did I know about the significance of these places in shaping the history of the United States of America. Ellis island is where millions of immigrants who would call it home, entered the USA. I felt like I was welcome here, in spite of everything the president is doing to show us it is otherwise.

A half hour subway ride later, I was walking in another part of Manhattan, towards the Metropolitan museum of modern art (the Met) at fifth avenue, one of the three in New York. I thought it was a compliment that a couple stopped me on the way to ask me directions to some place, because that meant they thought I am a New Yorker. Never had I been to a museum so huge, so majestic. I spent about three hours at the museum, surviving on my lunch which was a chocolate smoothie. I barely covered a single floor in all that time, going through Greek and Roman art, arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas, European, Medieval and Egyptian art. This is heaven for anybody remotely interested in historical artefacts. Even a quick glance at all the sections would take up an entire day. Though I had paid the suggested admission fee of $25, I thought it was worth much more. The Egyptian section is especially intriguing. I had never seen mummies before. There is a real temple from Egypt assembled at the museum, saving us the cost of flight tickets to Egypt.

The traffic gave me a hard time till I left the city for New Jersey to fly back home. I made it just in time. There was something about the city I left behind that would not let me forget it easily. Was it the museums? Was it the crowd? Was it the skyscrapers and the night lights? I might have an answer when I visit again. I am sure I will keep going back time and again, definitely for longer vacations.