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dolorosa_12) wrote2022-09-22 08:48 pm
dolorosa_12) wrote2022-09-22 08:48 pm
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Origin points
A few days ago, I got back from a wonderful weeklong trip to New York. I'm still feeling a bit exhausted and frazzled (travelling across London after a sleepless overnight flight with disastrous public transport on the day of the Queen's state funeral was not on my to do list, that's for sure), but if I don't write about the trip now, I'm never going to do so.
I've been to New York in the past, but not in adulthood and not for more than twenty years, so it was a very different experience this time around. I was there with Matthias and my mum, and we were staying in Brooklyn, which ended up being a good location in terms of getting around. All of us had already done the standard touristy things on previous trips, so we felt no need to repeat any of that, and instead had the kind of holiday that all of us prefer — wandering around new-to-us places, visiting cafes, restaurants, galleries and museums, and just generally drinking in life in a different environment.
I particularly enjoyed all the long walks and wandering. The place we were staying in Brooklyn was close enough that it was an easy walk over the bridge to Manhattan, and on one day Matthias and I walked for ages along the river, and on another we walked the length of the the High Line. Both places offered fantastic vantage points, as well as excellent opportunities for people watching. I was impressed at how both must improve residents' quality of life (in terms of free outdoor green spaces for exercise, meeting friends, walking dogs, eating, etc) but somewhat shocked that both were created and maintained by private donations and non-profit organisations rather than by local government.
We didn't go to a huge number of exhibitions, but the two we did see were excellent — the Tenement Museum (which I had last visited in 1999 and which had changed a lot), which focuses on the experiences of immigrants and refugees to New York, and a sort of grab-bag 'treasures of the library' exhibition at the New York Public Library.
Food is always a big part of travel for me, and we were definitely well served in terms of meals eaten out (and thanks to everyone here who helped me with advice about tipping, card payments etc before trip). I was particularly delighted to be able to eat at places I've long followed on social media —![[instagram.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/profile_icons/instagram.png)
edithsbk, and russanddaughters. It was also wonderful to discover completely new places, especially the amazing falansai, where Matthias and I took Mum out to dinner in thanks for covering the costs of our accommodation.
The main reason we were there, though, was for the wedding ofcoriburford, an Australian friend of mine who has lived in New York almost as long as I've lived in the UK. My mum and hers have been really good friends since they met as part of the Australian immigrant community in New York in the 1980s; both returned to Australia prior to becoming/once they became parents, and Cori and her sister have always been like extra cousins to my sister and me — we grew up together, went on family holidays together, and shared a lot as children. Her wedding was great fun, and it was nice to see her so happy and settled in New York. As someone who had to move to the other side of the world to feel happy and comfortable in my own skin, it always delights me to see others who did the same.
For various reasons, this is likely to be the last time I ever go to the United States, so it was good to have had such a wonderful holiday there!
I've been to New York in the past, but not in adulthood and not for more than twenty years, so it was a very different experience this time around. I was there with Matthias and my mum, and we were staying in Brooklyn, which ended up being a good location in terms of getting around. All of us had already done the standard touristy things on previous trips, so we felt no need to repeat any of that, and instead had the kind of holiday that all of us prefer — wandering around new-to-us places, visiting cafes, restaurants, galleries and museums, and just generally drinking in life in a different environment.
I particularly enjoyed all the long walks and wandering. The place we were staying in Brooklyn was close enough that it was an easy walk over the bridge to Manhattan, and on one day Matthias and I walked for ages along the river, and on another we walked the length of the the High Line. Both places offered fantastic vantage points, as well as excellent opportunities for people watching. I was impressed at how both must improve residents' quality of life (in terms of free outdoor green spaces for exercise, meeting friends, walking dogs, eating, etc) but somewhat shocked that both were created and maintained by private donations and non-profit organisations rather than by local government.
We didn't go to a huge number of exhibitions, but the two we did see were excellent — the Tenement Museum (which I had last visited in 1999 and which had changed a lot), which focuses on the experiences of immigrants and refugees to New York, and a sort of grab-bag 'treasures of the library' exhibition at the New York Public Library.
Food is always a big part of travel for me, and we were definitely well served in terms of meals eaten out (and thanks to everyone here who helped me with advice about tipping, card payments etc before trip). I was particularly delighted to be able to eat at places I've long followed on social media —
edithsbk, and russanddaughters. It was also wonderful to discover completely new places, especially the amazing falansai, where Matthias and I took Mum out to dinner in thanks for covering the costs of our accommodation. The main reason we were there, though, was for the wedding of
coriburford, an Australian friend of mine who has lived in New York almost as long as I've lived in the UK. My mum and hers have been really good friends since they met as part of the Australian immigrant community in New York in the 1980s; both returned to Australia prior to becoming/once they became parents, and Cori and her sister have always been like extra cousins to my sister and me — we grew up together, went on family holidays together, and shared a lot as children. Her wedding was great fun, and it was nice to see her so happy and settled in New York. As someone who had to move to the other side of the world to feel happy and comfortable in my own skin, it always delights me to see others who did the same. For various reasons, this is likely to be the last time I ever go to the United States, so it was good to have had such a wonderful holiday there!