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THE city
Entry 4 of 9 | show all | print this entry |
The city makes it's own music. It is far from the quiet, peaceful surroundings I'm used to, but it still has beauty. Banshee like squealing in the subway when it stops, random performers with their homespun instruments, horns, traffic, conversations spoke in languages I don't understand...It all weaves together to help invent the atmosphere. I swear half the people up here speak a foreign language.
This morning we were off to try and get tickets to Wicked at the lottery (front row seats cheap) but we were unsuccessful. I think we are going to try on more time, and then just give in and buy the damn tickets full price. Seeing a show on Broadway is at the top of my list of things to do while I am here. We ate from a cart on the street today. Lisa had a hotdog, I ate a hotdog and beef on a stick LOL. It was cheap AND delicious.
After our misfortune, we headed out towards Grand Central Station and the Chrysler Building. Fanastic. We passed the UN, stopped in at the NYC Public Library, and then made our way to China Town. I bought an awesome scarf, but we got out of the area pretty quickly. We're too poor to be tempted by that much shopping...When I say slam packed with shops I am not exaggerating. It was interesting to see all of the little markets with food stands. Sea food by the pound on most street corners, various birds cooked with heads still attached hanging in windows...A couple of streets over we found Little Italy because we were hungry again and we wanted to try some authentic-ish Italian. We settled on a little restaurant that looked the least touristy. It also doubled as a cigar shop. Walking in it almost felt like we were intruding on a private Italian party lol...But they let us stay and eat. It was pretty good too. Lisa didn't like her Calzone because it had too much cheese, but I enjoyed her extra cheese a good bit.
We wandered around trying to get over to the Sea Port, and ended up in the WTC area. We met this really crazy guy named Jose who gave us some free books, free hugs, and his phone number. I guess it's the southern charm. He directed us to the best view of ground zero..the second floor of the Burger King. How else to spend a somber moment of reflection besides hanging out with the king. It was so weird to see people laughing and talking (and eating hotdogs as Lisa pointed out) basically on top of the spot were so many people died.
We eventually headed down to the port to find one of the things I had been adamant we do...See Bodies The Exhibition (www.bodiestheexhibition.com). All I can say is wow..I WISH I could have gotten some pictures. Real human bodies sliced and diced into artistic anatomy lessons. The most stunning portion was the blood vessels...They had injected a chemical to harden and dye the vessels, so they retained their shape. They were displayed in glass cases of water in a dimly lit room and it was simply stunning to see the intricate weaving that occurs...spindle thin vessels balled up like yarn and intwined with larger veins and arteries...Lit red against a dark room...Beautiful and incredible to think all of that is inside of us. There was also a room with fetuses..I am pretty sure I could never have an abortion after seeing just how human a fetus looks after only 9 weeks. It's really amazing to see how well developed their structures are so early on. We left the exhibition and made our way onto the actual port. What a contrast to the city. Massive ships bobbing against the cityscape...it was almost comical. Here I must interject that it was dark and misty...Lots of fog. We stopped and got some cookies, then headed back. We were both dead tired, but Lisa really wanted to see the Brooklyn Bridge. I must say hiking up that bridge was the LAST thing I wanted to do at the time, but it was entirely worth it. The Brooklyn Bridge, at night in the fog was AMAZING. Spooky beautiful. I can't wait to see it in the daylight too. I have never felt so small, but I have never felt so...powerful. As we were leaving the bridge it really dawned on me exactly what I am doing. I am young, poor, but having the time of my life. It's so exhilarating to be here and be experiencing all of this. I wish everyone the chance to leave their bubbles and comfort zones and experience what there is in the world.
Going to try and upload some pictures now!
Latest Comments (2)
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descriptive (reply)
Dec 28, 2008 13:22 EST by 1invisiblegirl
I enjoying reading your entry. With a little work, and a good proofreader, it would be amazing. :-) Seriously, I am proud of your initiative and daring. I am glad that you are enjoying the trip.
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