Dear Diary,
The last couple of days have been a dream. I'm in new york as I write this. My first day here was also my first day of snow. At first I hated it. I couldnt wait to go back to california, I thought new york was cold, busy and unfriendly. I missed san francisco. I couldnt wait to go back. But then i started getting used to it and slowly I could start noticing small charming things about the city.
I have mostly been spending time in manhattan close to central park. That's where our hotel is. The night we arrived, we walked around times square, where they drop the ball every year on nye. On day 1, we walked through central park, got bagels for breakfast, visited columbia university, walked around harlem, and then back to the hotel, via 5th avenue, madison and park avenue. Oh the buildings. Upper east side of manhattan is just as beautiful and charming as you see in the shows. We stopped at the metropolitan museum of art. It is such a magical place.
On day 2, we went to downtown manhattan, saw the vessel, walked through the high line, visited chelsea market ( which was the most amaazing ), then visited wall street and new york stock exchange. The little girl standing defiant in front of the giant building was so inspiring. Then we went to ground zero and the 9/11 memorial museum. I would recommend everyone reading to visit that museum. It was a very difficult but a beautiful experience. We were all silent after we exited the place. All the exhibits were so hauntingly beautiful. Rest in peace to all those who died. Then we went to lombardi's, ny's oldest pizzeria.
Sree chettan came to pick me up yesterday night. So today I am having a laid back day with fresh desi food at his family home. I'll travel back to hotel in the evening. Tomorrow, Jo leaves. I need to say goodbye to her. When i get back home, I'll have a new room mate. I cant believe it, but someone is going to replace Jo. And we'll both move on to the next phase of our lives.
I wonder what we'd do for the next 2 days. I wanted to explore a borough of ny that wasnt manhattan. But it's going to be super cold in the next couple days, so outdoorsy travel is not recommended. I want to explore more of the met, and maybe the natural history museum. Maybe i'll stick to that plan.
I like the old world charm of ny. but i also realised how much i had gotten used to california, in a way that it felt like home. Sanfran is home. I will never get tired of defending sanfran over any other city.
This vacation has been great for my much needed recharge. I loved walking in our group, but at some point i started aching for me-time. Then we split up and i walked around myself, travelled in the bus too. It was sweet. At some points, I was shaking myself in disbelief. I was walking around all by myself in manhattan, flanked by the classical and the modern building on both sides, people hurriedly passing by with their ny accents, and it felt soo good. I felt so free.
I am looking forward to going home. After ny, I am sure i can handle the california weather like nothing. I have a lot of work to finish in the following week. It's going to be hectic, but i am going to like the idea of having a routine back in life. The first 2 weeks are going to be online, but its going to be exciting to see my classmates again. I am looking forward to the exams, but also parties, drinks, getting wasted, doing potlucks with my housemates, hanging out and getting to know melanie, my new roommate and everything else. I am also going to try hard to keep true to my new year resolutions.
Here's to another terrific year! happy 2022 everyone!
M