Concrete Jungle ... no joke.

As many of you know, My work sent me to New York about two months ago and it was a wonderful experience! I left early Monday morning and flew to New York with some colleagues. From JFK we were planning on taking a town car to the International House (where our students stay during the NY Program) where we were staying. While we were waiting for the town car, it was absolutely mind-blowing how insane the cars are and how busy that airport is! Seriously-- I saw more cars in the first 30 minutes of New York than I have seen in my whole life!! And to top it all off, our car driver had a turban on his head! What a welcome!

On the way to the I-House I got a run down of all the things I should do while I'm in NY. However, because I was so overwhelmed with being away from Ben for a week and NY is SO FULL of people I didn't do half the things I wanted to. That just means I'll have to go back... SOON. Anyway, I met Evon (my old coworker) in New York and she spent the evening with me. The I-House is pretty much right next to Harlem and it is just as ghetto as you imagine. It's like Oak Park (in Sacramento) but BIGGER and TONS more people! It was pretty intimidating at night. After a few days, I was pretty comfortable with it all and did not mind going places alone... Even the outskirts of Harlem. :) 

Evon and I took the Subway from 125th and Broadway downtown to Times Square. It was quite the adventure. I'm glad that Evon had some experience with public transportation. I was pretty intimidated. It was a LOT to take in.

We had tickets to Phantom of the Opera on BROADWAY so we went downtown a little early so that we could get some dinner before the show. We ate at what we expected to be a quick burger place and it ended up being a somewhat fancy place to eat. 

The outskirts of Times Square

Me with the sword that kept my sandwich from exploding.

Evon and I LOVED Phantom of the Opera, but I wont lie -- the show in Vegas had a lot more special effects. The music was wonderful, though. Here's us at phantom... Obviously not an amazing picture of the theater, it was too dark to really see anything.

 

The next day (Tuesday) Evon and I went with some faculty members to check out some new housing options for our interns. The housing was great, but way too expensive at this point.... However, while it was pouring rain in the morning we travelled around town and eventually made it into Brooklyn. It was there that I was introduced to this beautiful view. The twin towers used to stand in the group of buildings behind me. This is probably an incredible sight in the night time. 

Especially with the new memorial in place.

 After our visit to Brooklyn, we took the subway to Grand Central Station and walked around Madison Avenue. It was a great adventure... Note to self: never wear anything but tennis shoes or flip-flops in NY. It's way too intense for anything else.

We then wandered down to the Rockefeller Center area and got to see them setting up for the tree lighting party the next night. It was great. We saw the LEGO store and some other fun stuff (sorry for the random details, I guess they're not really that exciting for anyone but me.. and Evon). moving on....

This LEGO sign is made up of a bajillion little lego men.
It was pretty cool close-up.

On our way home it started raining again...
but we wanted a pic by this awesome fountain.
Not the best pic, but it was pretty cool to see
in real life.

Me and Evon by the skating rink at Rockefeller Center

the next few days Evon was back in D.C. at her internship and I was somewhat on my own. I spent most of my next two days visiting with employers and learning about their internship programs. It was a great experience talking with another Internship Director. It was cool to hear her stories and to realize that I'm doing things the same (and sometimes better) than other Internship Directors. Such a great learning experience.

Cool building on the walk
from Newsweek to the
Subway station in Chelsea

On my tour of the Newsweek Building
(so cool)

The Journalism Institute at NYU

My last day was spent visiting NY1 and NBC Universal. It was such a cool experience. I wish I had a better way to describe it. When you walk through those doors, there is a mass of women trying to get tickets to the Dr. OZ show. It was pretty funny to see, but that is definitely something I'm doing next time I'm there. Also, NY at Christmas time is just magical. 

For anyone who has seen P.S. I love you, you'll recognize these awesome Christmas ornaments that they put in the fountain/water thing. They are huge and so fun to sit by. It's also by the Radio City Music Hall where the Rockettes perform. I want to see them next time I'm in NY, too.

Well, that's all for this trip. After breaking down into tears on the first night of being away from Ben, I magically transformed into a lover of New York. I wont lie, I sometimes day dream about moving there with Ben. Of course, in my dreams

we have unlimited funds and no need for jobs, but that's ok. 

That's why it's a dream. 

I also just love how New York makes you feel when you're there. Aside from the incredibly crowded streets/subway/buildings/food establishments/every thing... It is a really cool place to be and it just makes you feel like you're a big deal. It was such an awesome experience and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity. Thank you, work! It pays to work hard.... Seriously. anyway... Although this place really is a 'concrete jungle' (no joke) it is an amazing place and I can't wait to go back. After you learn the subway system it's much less scary and way more amazing. You can get on that thing and pretty much get ANYWHERE in the city without having to go above ground. And the street performers... WOW. That's another story. Super crazy/cool. And eventhough I was too scared to go out alone at night, the view from the plane was cool enough. I know it's not much... but the camera doesn't do it justice. It was incredible. This is my next trip for Ben and me to take. He's been there for summer installs, but he didn't get to tour it and that's what I want to do. It will be wonderful... 

BUCKET LIST--FOR SURE. 

"No place epitomizes the American experience and the American spirit more than New York City."
Michael Bloomberg