In my first class of the Peopling of New York seminar this semester my teacher informed us of how we would be exploring the hyperdiversity of the areas within New York, how we would group up and explore a neighborhood and its people. He urged us to be open to this experience, to come at the city with new eyes. We will ultimately make a video documentary about this neighborhood, but that's later. For now, I took away these new eyes he had given me. My first opportunity to fix them into my skull came yesterday.
I have Fridays off this semester, which is a great time for me to spend a day outside of my studies, relaxing and exploring. I started out small, staying in Manhattan. My friends and I decided to explore a well-known, but foreign area of the city for us. The Lower West Side is dynamic and crazy. If you ever go there, and I urge you to, let me give you some fair warning. You will get lost. Do not fight this, do not Google Map your way out of it. Let it go, and just walk around. You never know what you might find. My friend told me once that the only way to truly learn the Lower West Side is to let yourself get lost in it. This is what we did.
The day started off with a trip to a restaurant. As most of you know, I'm a bit of a foodie. Living in the city, everyone knows about Restaurant Week. We decided to try out a restaurant called Sant Ambroeus, located on the corner of West 4th and Perry. This is a seriously expensive restaurant. Like $25 for an appetizer expensive. The only way we were able to afford this on a college student budget was because my friend had a gift certificate. Even then, I ended up paying $12 for my meal and I believe I'll be eating home for a month. I still think I got away with a triple murder with that price though. However: I cannot stress how important it is to take part in an experience like this, purely because it exists in the city and everyone should have a religiously mind-opening food experience at least once in their lives. This place was funky: there were jewel-toned striped curtains and booths everywhere, modern chandeliers, and jazz-funk music pulsing throughout the tiny place. Here's what I ordered: Insalata di Bulgur (this is a kind of wheat salad with peas, shrimp, and cilantro), Pollo con Curry (chicken curry, which came with grilled chinese cabbage and the best preparation of carrots I have ever had the pleasure of eating), and the eponymous chocolate mousse cake with a custard center, chocolate pieces on top, and small gold-leaf foil. To maximize our eating experience, everyone in my group ordered different dishes and we took turns tasting each others'. I cannot express how incredible the food was; it simply rocked my being, and I think I (and my friends) almost cried a little bit. These pictures will never do it justice, but here you go. (There isn't a picture of the Bulgar Salad, just because I was so hungry I ate it before I could photograph it).
After our religious food experience, we wandered throughout the West Village, making our way to the East side to get my friend's art supplies. We ended going in the complete opposite direction and ended up by the water. That was completely my mistake, but we had such great luck. We ended up walking by this thrift store called Housing Works. They donate most of their profits to AIDS research, homelessness prevention, and other city-wide social and health services. My friends and I all found great steals. I found the combat boots of my dreams for only $20, in my exact size and the color I wanted. It was a match made in heaven. We then proceeded to find a couple of books by a garbage can (of all places, I know). Some were literature, some history, some gender and sexuality politics. They were perfect fits for each of us, which was unbelievably lucky. They were in good condition too! We finally righted our sense of direction and found ourselves walking along Bleecker Street, a stronghold and main throughway of Greenwich Village and the Lower West Side. It's a pretty commercialized street with a whole bunch of big-name stores, but we found a couple of smaller boutiques that sold jewelry, perfume, and independently-made clothing. I even found a place that sold necklaces with typewriter-keys on them! (I'm an English major and a huge nerd, so I need to go back and get myself a semi-colon one for my birthday next week). We finally arrived at the art store, picked up our goods, and proceeded back to the 6 train.
Yesterday was the Centennial celebration of the opening of Grand Central Station. We had decided to go there to join in the festivities and listen to the musicians who were playing in the subways. We heard a great Spanish guitar band and a Jazz-Blues musician! The main atrium had a light show going on and everyone square-danced too! It was great fun, and my friends and I trekked back to the dorms, exhausted but happy after our long day.
Here's the thing: I learned yesterday about the power of serendipity, or letting good things happen to you. I had a really long and stressful week and yesterday was the universe's reward to me. Moreover, I think that if I had stayed in my dorm all day and slept, I wouldn't have reached this serendipity. Going out and exploring was the key to that. So here's the moral of my story: if you work hard and open yourself to new experiences, the universe will reward you for your hard work and dedication, as well as your sense of adventure.
I really hope you go out and explore your area, cause it's truly the best thing I ever did.
Until next time!
Erica
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