Empire state of mind

MANILA, Philippines - To Instaquote, “Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.”

Owing to multiple viewings of the Woody Allen classic Annie Hall and ruinous sessions of the wonderfully perfect rom-com Serendipity, one cannot blame me for having a terribly romanticized notion of New York. For someone who has hurtled between Europe, South America and Asia, I was painfully wary of the United States and had no desire to visit until recently. “New York is not America. It’s its own world,” explained many knowing locals. True enough, all of my preconceived notions of being a well-traveled citizen of the world were completely erased once I stepped foot on this city’s icy pavement.

It turns out New York is like a modernday novella protagonist: charismatic, spontaneous and romantic but also a little demented and definitely temperamental and neurotic. What the movies (and, okay, I admit, six seasons of SATC) didn’t tell me was that somewhere in between the beautiful brownstones that stand cheek-to-cheek and the skyscrapers that together comprise an Excel bar chart gone contemporarily but stunningly awry, there is a hypertensive hamster in a wheel energy, a casual druggie culture that shocked my childhood-hardwired Iwas Droga chastity, and an attention-deficiency-driven socializing schedule that makes this city deserve its monicker of never sleeping. 

Walking along 23rd St., your eyes will scan the gradual and then sharp incline of the skyline, the Flatiron building marking the midpoint of this architectural timeline. For a fully-blooded tropical girl like me, winter is kryptonite. I was never enamored with the American dream and yet there was an unmistakable allure about NYC that shoved me into suiting up in triple thermals and layering into a yak-inspired silhouette to see what all the fuss is really about.

It was comforting to know that some things I know to be true were indeed so. New York is the world’s audition stage where the finest and brightest enter and vie for a spot. Competition is tough and if there ever was a literal hunger games for fashion or finance, the arena is clearly within New York’s coordinates. Many have come to try their luck, only to come home, tail between their legs. And yet there are success stories that inspire, Filipinos who work in McKinsey, in a PR agency, in real estate, and you realize that as cliché as it sounds, Liza Minnelli was right, “If I could make it there, I could make it anywhere.” There is a culture here of winning at all costs, of working to the last drop, and God help you if you walk slow (like me). Everyone here is on a rush, run a quick look on the subway, and people seem to make up one multi-headed unit, each one knowing where to go, eyes fixed at some point and legs scissoring away to some destination.

The competitive pulse may be undeniable but this city proved that it has a huge heart. Every mention that I am from the Philippines incites a hand on the chest and sincere concern over the survivors of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan, to them). What was initially culture shock and disorientation was soon replaced when I decided to make “New York moments” and when I was told by a loved one that NYC was just like my ancestral home Hong Kong but on crack. 

While all of my romantic mental drawings of this city were destroyed, to be replaced with the gritty, sensorial assault that was reality, I have come away from New York enriched and hopefully a little bit grown up. Pre-New York, the only knife I have ever confidently wielded in my life is a butter knife and from being someone who cannot even crack an egg, I have since learned how to julienne and dice. I was awakened to my painfully sheltered life and, ripped from my brother-is-a-cook comfort zone, I had no choice but to learn, excavate my Martha (Stewart) beneath the Margaret (Thatcher), expertly operate a home-based but professional espresso machine, and how enriching it turned out. 

With New York, it was a lot like finding out that your dream guy is not perfect but finding the silver linings in the madness anyway. And although I still think there is no place like home and here I would borrow Hotdog’s lyrics to Manila, New York, in all of its imperfectly beautiful glory, is a lover you can neither leave nor forget.

Here is a Filipino-friendly cheat sheet (or my hard-earned report card, depending on how you look at it) of the New York scene:

•Brooklyn is the new IT

Gone are the days of uptown snobbery. Developed by the creative, anti-establishment community, Brooklyn houses a full spectrum of life — from photographers and models to a Hasidic Jew community. Williamsburg is the new, cool place to be and a charming cross section of restaurants, shops and creative spaces have turned this former unremarkable into the hottest property in NYC.  Get on the East River Ferry for a captivating journey.

•World cuisine and The Cult of the Weekend brunch

New York is so much more than Shake Shack. And despite being teased that it was so Asian, the subzero temperature is enough to awaken your inner ramen monster. It was no surprise that when I needed to find out which restaurants to visit, I need not consult Yelp but Filipino friends. New York carries all of the cuisines that you might think of and here are the top of the charts: Momofuku for the best pork (or mushroom) buns; Ippudo or Hide-chan for the best ramen, try the red dragon ramen of the latter; Ilili for the most inspiring Mediterranean food, with the best brussel sprouts dish I’ve ever had in my life; Dos Caminos for couture Mexican food and Kunjip for Korean bibimbap happiness. During the weekends, brunch here is a religion and Café Mogador and Five Leaves are fully booked but worth the wait. Order the Moroccan eggs for a spicy hearty start to a Saturday. 

•Window shopping

The address is well-known: Fifth Avenue. Frame it against the most wonderful, or most consumerist depending on your Scrooge factor, time of the year, and you get a New York pilgrimage loved even by Metrocard-carrying locals. From Bergdorf Goodman’s holiday on holiday (or holiday inception) fashion spectacle that translates monthly specials like Valentine’s Day and Fourth of July into a life-sized, icicle-fringed, couture-starring diorama to Barneys’ collaboration with Jay-Z for an interactive ride on his sleek spaceship sleigh and finally, Saks Fifth Avenue’s 3D video show and the #SaksYeti, it’s the time of the year when New York’s finest retailers outdo each other for your attention. So Instagram away.

•Walk this way

Keep your peg leg in Manila. New York is a cardio workout and unless you wish to spend a fortune on taxis and car services (which I did), grab a Metrocard, buy a pedometer and get competitive. With all of the city’s distractions, 10,000 steps a day is a breeze.

•Have your New York moment

Whatever your persuasion, New York has the goods. Be it staring at Van Gogh’s “Starry Night,” or a winding walk in Central Park, or a poetically interactive session of La Fuerza Bruta, there are many mental photographs worth taking in this city. For me, it was during Thanksgiving. Nursing an nth glass of wine after a full shebang of turkey, mashed potato, vegetables, and pastries, someone asked the guests to name the country they were from. One by one, going around the table, you heard countries like Ecuador, Greece, Germany, France and of course, Philippines. Only one person was from the US and wasn’t even fully American. New York is a microcosm of the world and despite it being such a low-key and informal gathering, how wonderful to be a Philippine representative in this happy and tipsy United Nations.