Sunday, August 8, 2010

A New York View

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This, to me, is a quintessential New York sidewalk scene. Perhaps if I had shot it looking through the fire escape that sits outside my living room window, it would be even more so, but then I would have interrupted the beautiful view.

My quiet (relatively), tree-lined street is why I love where I live. The trees, the front stoops, the fire escapes, they make me feel as though I am walking through a movie set as I walk though New York. It all has a tendency to feel a bit surreal. At least it did.

This is the end of my third week in New York and I noticed yesterday that, even if just ever so slightly, New York is starting to feel a little less like a movie set and a bit more like home. It happened in the simplest of ways.

I was heading out to meet a friend from out of town. I had a place to be and a set time to be there (a rare occurrence for me these days). I arrived at my subway station only to learn that the train I needed was not running this weekend. No bother. I came back up to the street, and without even a glance at my subway map, walked one crosstown block to the next line over. Then, when I reached the end of my train ride, I came back up to street level and started walking to my destination. No pause to try and sense which way was North, no reaching for the iPhone to use the direction of the one-way streets to orient myself, I just walked. I walked and I reached my destination five minutes before I was supposed to be there.

It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless and one that made me feel I may just get to know this movie set (err city) after all.

12 comments:

Jacqueline Meldrum said...

It looks like a movie set to me, but I love it. Wish I was there :)

Deena Mehta said...

Hi Jessica,
Glad you like it here in NYC! I've been here 8 years and I still rely on Hopstop.com (and http://travel.mtanyct.info/serviceadvisory/ ) to get me where I'm going on the weekends.

Camille said...

Congratulations! Mastering public transportation is a huge step!

carter @ the kitchenette said...

Jessica - Just read your story from a few posts ago about what you're actually doing in NYC. Can I just say... I am so, freaking, wow, impressed to the max. It takes real courage to make such a huge change in life, and I am both ridiculously impressed by your awesomeness, and also ridiculously jealous. You.are.amazing.

Adding you to my Google reader so that I can live vicariously through you =)

Bianca said...

I dream of that type of view daily!

Joyti said...

I never think of NY as being a place with trees. Its a beautiful street though. :)

Velva said...

I love the New York life. Cheers to your victory.

Brandy said...

I went from just north of LA to Lyon, France. The subways there are much smaller, and I think it took me much more than 3 weeks to figure out the few subway and bus lines there! Good for you!

I understand the beauty of the city.

Glad you're enjoying it!

i am... said...

Now I really miss New York City!

Tammee W. said...

Hey Jessica, just a note to let you know that I'm glad that you made it to NY and to culinary school. I was in your writing class in Santa Monica and I used your website and your pickle recipe for one of my articles in that class. I also introduced my best fried to your site and she had the children in the preschool she owns make the pickles ( they loved them). I wish you all the best.

ajlounyinjurylaw said...

Love the red brick building on behind the green of the trees.

Anonymous said...

Wish I was there.Love`
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