I Love New York

It has been more than a decade since my last visit to the Big Apple. My vivid memories then were sailing to Liberty Island, going up to the Liberty torch to get a view of Manhattan and New Jersey and, of course, seeing the towering double structures of the World Trade Center. And if my memory serves me well, I think I have seen the Broadway staging of Grease at that time.

Well, this time around I decided to relive those moments with a little more on the side. Thus, as a fitting start to my annual American sojourn, I decided to share my daily New York re-experience with my journal entries (yes, I might have edited a few to make sure these are fit for publication):

Day 1 (Sunday). Arrival. I arrived at 1130 in the evening in JFK airport. I thought my cousin was picking me up at the airport but I forgot this is New York so I took an NYC yellow cab just as Carrie Bradshaw would. It was already past midnight when I reached the apartment on the Upper Eastside, Manhattan. And after 19 hours of travel, I immediately retired for the night.

Day 2. First day. My official first day began with a walk in the park, Central Park that is. Strolling along the park’s 5th Avenue side, my father, brother and I stopped by the Guggenhiem and immediately looked for a hotdog vendor for those famous street-dogs in a bun. As we reached the southern tip of park, the glorious sight of the famous Plaza Hotel came into view. Right across, along the bustling 5th Avenue is the newly installed Apple store and gallery. Well, as we are on the ‘Avenue,’ the attractions are endless. And shopping is definitely one of them! We ended the day meeting a cousin in the famous Bryant Park. My cousin then treated us to an exotic dinner at the posh Meat Packing District along 14th Street.

Day 3. Downtown. The best way to experience NYC is to join New Yorkers in their daily grind. I’m talking about the subway and whole lot of walking. So for Day 3, we headed downtown to the Financial District, Wall Street and WTC’s Ground Zero. But before that, we dropped by the Brooklyn Bridge and the City Hall. Further down is the Battery Park that also serves as port for Staten and the Liberty Islands. Unfortunately it was already late afternoon and we missed the last scheduled tour. We then just ended the afternoon enjoying the sights as the sun set over the Statue of Liberty. Dinner was at the very first pizza parlor in New York (so it claims), Lombardi’s. Honestly, it didn’t matter to me if it was the second or third. The food was wonderful!

Day 4. Idol Day. This day was detailed for the American Idols. We watched season eight’s top 10 Summer Concert Tour at the Nassau County Coliseum in Long Island.

Day 5. Catching up. It was meet and great fellow-Liloanons-now-based-in-the-Big Apple day. While my dad was catching up with his contemporaries over lunch in China Town, I searched for Broadway tickets. I would have settled for any show as long as I can watch one but luck was not on my side this time because all were sold-out for that day. Instead, I called on my cousin Adonis Pilapil and caught up with him for dinner and wine at an elegant Italian resto in New Rochelle.

Day 6. Friends and around. Of course, I had to set one day for my friends. Sandra Razon, who is now an accessories designer in one of the major design houses in New York, took the day off to tour me around. Coincidentally, Cebuano designer and a good friend Charlie Manatad was also in town to show me a grand time. Let’s just say, we made a ‘Splash’ (this is the edited part. You can google it. Keyword is in quote) that evening!

Day 7. Last day. For my last few hours, I went back downtown Seaport to check out a street fair in Water Street. I only had one goal for my few hours in the city that never sleeps: to buy my ‘I    NY’ shirt.