So, apparently, I struggle with maintaining my blog in due time and it’s most likely only going to get worse, so do not expect regular updates of any kind from me.
2019-03-04 NYC
I arrived in New York City in the early morning. Seeing the city’s skyline from the bus was impressive, but nothing compared to my first look skyward after stepping out of the bus terminal near Times Square.
As much as I always said I didn’t care about the city, I had always wanted to go there just to see what it feels like to be surrounded by skyscrapers. And I sure wasn’t disappointed by the feeling that hit me. It’s hard to describe, but it was fascinating and in a way humbling.
Since my host couldn’t welcome me into his house before 2 pm, I set off to explore the city, my 50 lbs of luggage on my back and my camera at the ready.
I walked through the busy streets for a few hours and even strolled through the southernmost part of Central Park for a bit. Walking around with so much weight on my back almost took its toll though - I almost blew out my knee - so I started looking for a place where I could sit down in the sun for a while and rest my legs. I found a nice bench in Union Square Park where I spent the 2 hours people watching before I went to meet my host.
My host’s apartment was just 2 blocks from Times Square. It was super tiny, but decorated very creatively and in such a way that it seemed a lot bigger than it actually was. Enzo was very welcoming and we talked for a long while. I didn’t even leave his place until the next morning. After dinner, Enzo went for a walk and I went to bed, fell asleep almost immediately and slept like a log until the next morning.
2019-03-05 NYC
It was finally time to meet some of my friends from the internet and I was so excited! Theresa, Velms and I met up for brunch at a cute little restaurant called Jack’s Wife Freda in SOHO. I got there early, so I explored China Town before the girls arrived. Walking through China Town was an interesting experience. It was as if I wasn’t even in New York anymore. There was Chinese writing everywhere and the stores, restaurants and houses in general all looked Chinese. It was like being submerged into a whole other culture. What an experience!
I had so much fun with Theresa and Velms. After brunch - we all had super tasty waffles - we went around town together and tried to find a singer that they would see in concert that same night. We didn’t have any luck, of course, but it was still a fun thing to do.
In the evening, I went back to my couchsurfing host, packed up my stuff and had dinner with him before I went uptown to Erin’s place, where I would be staying the rest of my time in NYC.
2019-03-06 NYC
I spent most of the morning just relaxing, looking through the photos I had taken and then writing my blog for Canada. Around noon, I skyped with my best friend (voluntarily, like what??) and afterwards I translated my blog, so I could upload it to my website.
I then went out to explore the city for a while. The weather was friendly, but very cold. I walked through Central Park all the way from the northernmost to the southernmost part and was so relieved when I returned to the shelter of the high rises.
I took the subway to go to the World Trade Center where I visited the 9/11 memorial site before I headed down further south to get a look at the Statue of Liberty. The sun was already starting to set when I got to Battery Park which gave the sky a nice glow. It was still freezing cold and I was very worried about my fingers while taking pictures, but I survived it.
I then took the subway over to Brooklyn, where I only stayed for 5 minutes or so (took 2 great pictures in that time, though) before I realized that it was getting late already, so I headed back to Erin’s place where we had dinner together and watched some movies.
2019-03-07 NYC
I spent the morning editing pictures and then finally went out to get myself an American sim card. I spent over half an hour in the store until they got the sim card to work, but it was worth the hassle. Being able to use your phone to its full capacity makes traveling a lot easier.
After I had gotten my phone all sorted out, I went back to Brooklyn, since it was still early enough. I took the subway to the Brooklyn Bridge, which I then walked across. In Brooklyn, I took a subway to get to Williamsburg. Enzo had told be about that part of town and it sounded interesting. I was not disappointed. It felt and looked like a completely different city.
On my way back to Erin, I got stuck underground on the subway for 15 minutes but that just added to the authentic NY experience.
Erin and I had dinner together before we headed out to meet at a bar with Theresa, Velms, Karel (who I also know from the internet) and Deborah (who I did not know before). Our night out was when I realized that NY might not be that bad after all. It’s also what made leaving the next night not that easy.
I can’t remember the last time I had that much fun going out with several people!
2019-03-08 NYC
My last day in New York I spent with Erin. We slept in, watched a few movies I’d been dying to watch for a long time, went out to grab some food together and also did the laundry. It was a super relaxed day, yet productive and a nice way to end my stay in NYC.
We left her place at around 7 pm because she went to a musical that night, and after saying goodbye, I made my way to Times Square to kill the last couple of hours before I had to head to the bus terminal to catch my bus to Charlotte, NC.
It wasn’t too cold, so I walked around for a while and took some pictures until my bags started to feel heavy and I went to the bus terminal to spend the last hour before my departure there.