A few years ago I was able to revisit the city that I had dreamed of going to. New York City is one of the most magnificent cities that I have ever been to and I will never forget the sights, smells, tastes and sounds that I experienced while I was there. I have plenty of fond memories that I will keep with me until the day I die from this trip. I hope that I can sum up the trip in words as the city that never sleeps is something that should only be experienced in person. One early morning, before the sun had even risen, my family and I got up in the midst of the darkness of the night to set out on a journey to Greenville-Spartanburg Airport for our 5:45 A.M. flight to LaGuardia Airport in New York City. The ride to the airport was a cold, desolate and somewhat creepy ride as we were one of the only cars on the interstate and the darkness almost seemed eerie. Nevertheless, we arrived at Greenville-Spartanburg Airport around 5 A.M. and before I walked into the airport, I was expecting the place to be almost dead. When the automatic sliding doors slid open, the fresh smell of breakfast bagels and coffee filled my nostrils. We were greeted by smiling security workers and absolutely no line at all for airport security. The flight was a very short flight, only a couple of hours actually, which made for a great time to catch up on sleep. When we stepped foot out of the airport, the sights were amazing. We were surrounded by the ever so peaceful, Hudson River. The birds were flying above our heads, the people were yelling, car horns were honking, it was wonderful! One drawback to New York City is the smell. I remember getting out of our taxi in Times Square and it actually smelled like the sewage was above the ground instead of under. We got to our hotel that was located in Times Square, and it was extremely clean. The hotel had the whitest sheets i’ve ever seen, a marble countertop in the bathroom, a 360 degree shower head, and smelled of lilac. My family and I decided that we would go get something to eat and I distinctly remember the aroma, that sometimes overpowered the smell of sewage, of pizza. Pizza was everywhere and I knew that I had to try some of this “New York Style Pizza.” The pizza was ridiculously
Growing up in Manhattan was an epitome of excitement. Back in the day, and also to its founding, New York has always been a beehive of activities. Going down memory lane, I reminisce on trips that we’d take to loads of places around the city for entertainment during weekends and on holidays. Raised by Spanish immigrants, my father was a chef in a small but busy restaurant along Fifth Avenue. Since I can recall, fifth avenue has always had some of the major and well known fashion stores and hotels in the city. This would have
New York City is a very famous place all over the world. A lot of people think that it is the best place to live. However, some people have a different point of view. I think that New York City is a good place to live for two reasons.
New York City, the shining icon of the American dream and the mixing pot of cultures, was but a name I knew when I was young. Nine years ago, I finally set foot on the fabled city when my family immigrated to the United States. The gigantic airport, JFK International, spanned for miles and its terminals stood proudly over the jumbo jets below. That night, nausea from the plane’s descension and the entropic movements of my aunt’s Jeep prevented me from seeing the outside world. I rested my head on my mom’s lap while still imaging what the city was like.
Walking through New York City is wonderful. Manhattan is filled with skyscrapers, bright lights, shops, restaurants and tons people. There are millions of things to do. I could only imagine, with all the excitement that goes on and the crowds of people everywhere, the city would be the worst place to be elderly or disabled and very difficult to maneuver. However despite being blind and deaf Helen Keller manages to give a depth description of the city and her experience there. New York City has a vibe that attracts million.
Although I have very few experiences of New York, what captivates me the most to the Empire State is the memory of my parents challenges in the city. As young newly wedded immigrants without a degree, it was tough settling in the big apple. Nonetheless, my parents worked hard to achieve the American dream. However, their American dream ended in the U.S. after they received their education. They decided to work overseas, and it was a decision that affected my life greatly. I grew up in many urban areas like New York with plenty of diversity to offer, but living as a foreigner enhanced the experience.
The busy streets of New York City, filled with skyscrapers and food carts is the city that I grew up in. As an immigrant, New York City is one of the greatest cities to live and grow in. From it’s unlimited opportunities to the multicultural population, it has created a whole new society consisted of integration amongst different people.
Are you planning to fly into New York City? Well, this is an exhilarating feeling you get, no doubt. It can however get a hard task if you are moving over a long distance. Worse still, it may get difficult when you are with your dog is accompanying you. You may be wondering how you will move from whichever place to this fast lane city while reducing your challenges and yet causing your pet the list trauma, especially in this fast moving city where people are insensitive to the others’ actions. There are however steps that you can take to make your move easy.
As I walked out of the airport into new territory, I could immediately feel the change in atmosphere. The air once chilled from morning dew, had turned into radiating heat from the cement and metal structures in the evening sun. As I looked out in my jeans and tee-shirt, I felt out of place. I was surrounded by the 8.55 million people who populate New York City. Each person with their own style and demeanour. As I walked down streets in search of the correct subway stop with my church group, everyone could tell that we were tourists. We were lugging our impossibly heavy suitcases through the streets, down the unforgiving stairs, and onto the crowded subway. After walking up and down what felt like hundreds of steps and changed subway trains
New York City is the centerpoint of thousands of films and pieces of literature, a city whose charm can be felt through words or pictures. Lights, brighter than life itself, blend with a cacophony of car horns and shouts to create an addictive mix of chaos. The glamour and sparkle of New York City is dramaticized to be an all encompassing feeling of wonder that one keeps with them for the rest of their lives. In the spring of this past year, the band program I participated in was given the once in a lifetime chance to perform in New York. Being obsessed with the city since I was a child, I gladly leapt at the opportunity. However, actually navigating the fabled concrete jungle makes one realize that New York City is not the shining beacon of wonder and amazement that it is thought to be.
Walking down the Manhattan streets, it’s almost customary to smell the smoke of exhaust from thousands of cars. The smoke coming from Subway stations underneath the roads can get to your nostrils quicker than it can be seen. It almost makes you feel like if you are a big giant walking along houses under your feet that have smoke coming out of their chimneys. At the same time the smell of hotdogs stands, salted pretzel stands make you aware of their presence as your smell sensors go crazy, and start telling your brain to get some. You can try your best but the smell from Italian pizzerias will sure pull you in for a slice or two even if you are not a pizza lover. Then you have the fresh smell of different fruits coming from the fruit stands on the streets, reminding you that New York City even has choices for everyone even for healthy conscious ones.
Sitting in the cab, on the way from JFK, I caught my first glimpse of Manhattan. I had been calm the entire flight, in fact, I had been excited to come to New York. But sitting alone in that yellow cab made me think of everything that could go wrong in my first year. I imagined myself as a friendless failure, someone who just sat in his room all day, too afraid to embrace the city outside. But it never happened. And in less than a year, New York become like a second home. I began to feel utterly comfortable wandering its streets in the middle of the night, desperately searching for an ice-cream shop that was still open. I felt like I belonged. And so, when I returned this fall, there was no sense of apprehension at all – I felt completely normal.
While considering spending a holiday or a weekend with the family in a beautiful city, New York City should be at the top of the list. A considerable number of people get puzzled by the tall buildings, well structured highways and the well light streets when they visit for the same time. When planning a tour to New York City, one might wonder how a human being could have possibly built such tall buildings. The virtue that New York City is one of the largest cities in the world makes a person think that it is a paradise. In most cases, it is highly likely that a person who has never been to New York City could easily get lost due to the size of the city. The expansiveness of the city has generated economic gains.
The sounds of the city penetrated the walls of the cab as we drove through the streets of Manhattan. I could hardly wait to partake in the action that was happening outside. The buildings themselves were an amazing site to behold. The buildings took on personalities of their own. Each building was bigger and more graceful than the next. When lights were added to the mix it was a dazzling combination. The city itself felt like a great big hug, and I felt overwhelmed by its power. The city allowed me to become part of it just like many others many years ago who immigrated to this awesome city. As I was looking out of the cab I finally got to see in person the sight of all sights; Times Square. The main juncture of
New York City is the place that I want to visit, revisit, and visit again. Out there on the streets, I feel free. When coming from Atlanta to New York City thirty thousand feet in the air, which is grimy but comfortable, it is an experience unlike I have ever felt before. Crossing over the Hudson River and coming into the packed full station is reminiscent of having some kind of travel machine bringing you from earth to space in a flash. When I visited, I felt I could do anything and everything in the cities' grips. Living in America is a fantastic privilege; living in New York City is something even better. As you stagger up those stairs to the city streets and you capture that first breath of city air, you declare to yourself, this is Freedom!
When you mention New York to anyone, they automatically think about Times Square. This beautiful place with skyscrapers, Central Park, and a unique transportation system. However, if you were to ask me what I think about New York; I believe the skyscrapers block the sun, Central park is just a regular park for dogs, and the subway trains rarely run consistently especially in the mornings. I have lived in New York for 18 years, and I have yet to understand what everyone likes about the “ Big Red Apple.”