[Travel] New York Oh New York

Being new to New York, I want to note down all my impressions and my perplexities on the beautiful city that I fell in love with watching movies such as The Devil Wears Prada, I Love New York, Sex in The City, etc.

- View from my desk overlooking a rainbow

As of this writing, I have been in NYC for a couple weeks, and I have felt so happy being here. New York is like a giant walking tour. Think for a second, whenever you travel somewhere, you desperately look for a walking tour so you could experience that new town, right?

Well, NYC is like that of a giant elephant of a walking tour! You could get to anywhere just by taking the subway, and walking a little bit from the train station.

NYC is built for pedestrians - with so many shops, so many restaurants. I could walk the same street every day, just to one day find out an undiscovered interesting beautiful store.

What's more, every corner in NYC is mesmerizing with views of tall elegant buildings standing infallibly - contrasting to the dirty and messy streets and subway stations. I used to tell my friends: Look up, and you will see the grandeur of NYC. Look down, and you will see the real NYC :)))))

- View from Top Of the Rock

Everything is so close together in NYC, that you could spend just half a day to explore everything in an entire area, like the Chinatown, East Village, Flushing, or the Central Park.

Always busy, always hustling and bustling - the hypnotized travelers; the dreggy homeless people on the street. Just so beautiful! I couldn't help but being fascinated by NYC day by day.

Second big difference that enthralls myself, is how people, regardless of differences, uniformly take the subway to go to work everyday. The feeling of unity and community makes me feel like I am a part of this culture even though I've only been here for a couple weeks. So much difference from California, where people hop on their cars, drive to the destinations, and the hop off.

- My everyday view from my desk

Before this time, I have visited NYC 4 times, and every time I stayed for more than a week. I always asked myself while walking on the streets under the skyscrapers, looking up from below, "what is it like to look down from up there?"

Thankfully now I can have that experience :))). I am working on the 35th floor now, and I just feel grateful for the opportunity to enjoy this view on a daily basis.

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HALF A YEAR HAS GONE BY SO FAST

My impressions about NYC are still fresh. NYC is so unique. No where could you enjoy a relaxing walk home after an exhausting hangout. No where could you walk home late and still see the bright neon lights just like it were day time. No where could you feel energy like this: the sleeplessness of people. You feel like you don't miss a beat, and it's safe to walk home at night too! At least for me.
And I did have some interesting walks with so many different friends.


Oh yeah, one perk of living in NYC is that your friends just keep visiting NYC, so you don't have to visit them at all. LOL.

- Time Square on my way home at 3:30 AM

Besides, every area is different too. The young energetic but messy downtown. The neatness and peacefulness of uptown.

I am so excited for the holiday season, so I could walk the entire city decorated in Christmas decorations. Maybe I should move uptown, staying home on a snowy evening, listening to tv that sings Christmas song, eating instant ramen noodles and drinking hot chocolate while watching falling snow.

Well, those are my quick impressions for now. I will write about my NYC mini tours in the next posts.

PS: A snap from Brooklyn Bridge as a bonus:

3.31.2018
Goodbye New York. It has been so fun. I got to meet so many people, both new and long-lost friends.
Chance encounters and old friends have connected me to people that have become important in my life right now.
I am sad that I won't be able to walk with friends in this beautiful walking city anymore.

New York, I still love you a  lot, but it is time for the next steps for me.