New York Five Years Ago

A VERY LONG DAY IN THE BIG APPLE

Ah, New York City - the city that never sleeps. The last time I was in the bustling metropolis was 5 years ago and it's safe to say that it left a lasting impression on me. It wasn't my first time in New York, I had been several times before that, but it was the first time I attempted what I did on this fateful day. I decided to try walking, yes by foot, as much of Manhattan as I could manage in one single day.

I picked what will seem like an arbitrary point to start my journey. Most people would probably start such a journey from Penn Station, or way up north in the Bronx. I, however, also wanted to grab a new iPhone, having destroyed the one I had in a swimming pool along with some valuable photos, and there was an iconic Apple Store that I wanted to see as well.

My day in Manhattan started outside of the infamous Trump Tower. Say what you will about the man himself, who actually was the president of the United States at the time, but the building is certainly an architectural marvel. From there, I made my way to Central Park. Now, I know what you're thinking - "Central Park? That's just a big patch of grass, right?" Wrong. Central Park is a haven in the midst of the chaos that is New York City. The park was bustling with activity and I was pleasantly surprised to see a group of turtles swimming in one of the ponds. It's not every day that you get to see wildlife in the heart of a city like this. Being from London, we do have a lot of parks here, including ones as large as Central Park with wildlife, but I've never seen turtles in the wild here before.

On a side note, I've since learnt some dark things about the historical past of Central Park. I wish I had known because there are spots there I would have made sure to visit and pay homage. Maybe next visit.

I did most of the walk northwards inside the park, because it was easy and less noisy than going up one of the very long boulevards. At that point I realised how insane what I was doing was. By the time I got to the northern part of the park, about a third of the day was already gone! I also realised that I only effectively got one perspective of possible hundreds of that journey north. Had I taken a boulevard on the east side, I'd have hand a completely different experience. Same for one on the west. New York is very segregated by cultural communities and class.

I took a little break at the big water body at the end of the park. I originally wasn't sure if it was a very wide river, a lake or a reservoir. It gave some breathtaking vistas of the eastern part of the city - Yorkville, I believe. After soaking up some nature, I made my way up to Columbia University. The campus is absolutely stunning and it was fascinating to see the mix of old and new architecture. I could see why so many bright young minds come to study at such a prestigious institution. I have some friends that graduated from that school and have actually been inside before to visit a friend about 15 years prior.

Looking at the time, half of the day was gone and I wasn't even in Harlem proper yet. I really wanted to visit Harlem, but I knew if I had continued up, I'd have to spend the rest of the day there and not get to see the other parts of the city I wanted to see. I decided to return to do Harlem and the Bronx on a different day. I headed back south, this time through the large and noisy streets of Manhattan, alternating between Columbus Ave., Amsterdam Ave, and of course the infamous Broadway. I walked from Manhattanville, where Columbia University is, through Manhattan Valley, Upper West Side, to Hell's Kitchen. That was moving pretty fast at this point taking in as much as I could, but not in the in-depth way I would usually. I knew I'd return at a different date to experience each part slowly at some point.

I said I was moving fast, but I got stopped in my tracks by a very familiar sight - a cathedral style building. It turned out to be The Grace Church of England. I thought to myself that that had to be one of the oldest, if not the oldest, building on the island.

The range of social standards of living through these parts was astonishing to me. Coming from London, we have that here too. Between Kensington and parts of Lambeth, there are huge gaps in opulence. That was quite visible in NYC, perhaps to an even greater extent. The rich are not richer than their British counterparts, they're kind of on par, but the poor are remarkably poorer!

After spending slightly longer in Hell's Kitchen, because of Gordon Ramsey and Dear Devil (long story), I made a quick dash west to Midtown where I spent a little time in the world famous Time Square. This iconic landmark has to be experienced to be believed to be honest. It wasn't my first time there, but it's so overwhelmingly cacophonous that I don't think we have anything like this anywhere in Europe. Maybe in Asia, in Hong Kong, say, can I imagine anything like this existing outside America. Flashing lights and giant screens absolutely everywhere. It truly felt like the centre of the universe, with people from all walks of life coming together to experience this one-of-a-kind atmosphere. In terms of the diversity of the human family, this is the only place that rivals London.

At this point I felt accomplished, and would have happily called it a day, but my day wasn't over yet - I still had one more adventure in store. Thankfully it was mid-summer and the days were very long. It was already evening, but the sun was still relatively high in the sky. I made a dash south and contemplated heading to the World Trade Centre, but I decided to cross the Brooklyn Bridge and explore the borough. The view of the city from the bridge was breathtaking and I couldn't help but feel like I was a part of something bigger than myself. I could see the Statue Of Liberty from Brooklyn Bridge, but it was so far away and disappointingly small. I only knew it was there because I knew to look for it. After grabbing a bite to eat in Brooklyn, finally. When it comes to food, Brooklyn completely wipes the floor with Manhattan. I'll just leave it there.

I made my way back to Manhattan, this time crossing the Manhattan Bridge. And walked through China Town and SOHO. I found it very interesting and wondered if it was just a co-incidence that SOHO and Chinatown also overlap in the same way in London, or that Chelsea in New York was also relatively posh. At this point my legs had almost given out, and it had gotten dark, but I pushed on through Maddison Square Garden, and eventually to Penn Station, where I boarded my train back to Queens where I was staying.

I did return to the Big Apple to see more, including taking the ferry to Staten Island, checking out Wall Street, The World Trade Centre, and more, including almost getting arrested or shot by the over-reactive NYPD, but that would have to be a different post altogether.

Peace & Love,
Adé