Tourist in New York City: FAO Schwarz

So, it's February. There's the polar vortex going on and I am getting the impression that we are about to enter the next ice age. Or, New York is actually having a "real" winter this year, because last year, when it was cold from November through May, that was not a "real" winter. That was a "light" winter.

As a girl from the desert, I say: Fuck this.

Two Saturdays before Christmas, whenever that was, I ventured out into one of the first--of many--snowstorms of the season to spend my night at FAO Schwarz.

"Go before Christmas," a friend said to me. "See the kids. It's still magical for them, and it'll rub off on you a little."

So I did.

When I first walked inside, I was slightly disappointed that it was not an exact replica of Duncan's Toy Chest from Home Alone 2. I was hoping to find some turtle doves. Although, aside from the screaming and sporadic cries that were kind of jarring in a city that makes you forget children exist, walking into FAO Schwarz was pretty incredible. 

There were so many toys! (Obviously.)

My inner child squealed a little when I saw the life-like baby dolls. They even come with a birth certificate, and an FAO Schwarz employee dresses up as a nurse and invites the children to sit in a rocking chair and hold the dolls.  

There were infinite sets of Legos and impressive Lego sculptures.

Lego Statue of Liberty was the most popular. (Again, obviously.)

She's a popular lady at FAO.

There's a Build-a-Bear:

A rock place:

Party dresses (again, something I would have loved):

This guy:

A totally practical crystal-encrusted Etch A Sketch:

And candy bars the size of an adult forearm:

I have to admit, in the midst of my exploring, I indeed forgot about how much I am not in love with this city, how hard everything is, and how horrible the weather was outside. I was carefree; I was in a toy store. 

The main thing I wanted to see, something I thought was just in Big and wasn't real, was the piano. 

It's real! And I was happy. 

I left FAO Schwarz and walked down Fifth Avenue. I wasn't sure where I was trying to go, but just felt happy and like walking in the snow. 

After walking a few blocks, surrounded by tourists--people who usually annoy me--who were so excited to be in New York, to see Saks and Bergdorf and all the other places I don't care about, I decided to be a happy tourist, too. It seemed more fun than someone who is run down by New York.  So, I went to the Rockefeller Center. 

Although the thick wall of people was overwhelming and stressful, it really is an impressive tree. 

A nice view of the Empire State Building on my way home completed my snowy night as a tourist. 

In the end, my friend was right. It's nice sometimes to be around people who have magic that you've forgotten. Santa is bringing toys; dresses are pretty; baby dolls are cute; New York is exciting. 

  

Saying Goodbye to New York

Oh, New York.

When I arrived thirteen months ago, I was intoxicated with the thought of what my life would become living in this city. I quit my stable job in Austin and left all of the people that I loved, along with a life that I built through iron resolve, all to fulfill a decade-long dream of living in the city of bright lights. And then I was dumped with my suitcases next to a comically-high pile of garbage bags.

Thirteen months later, I am a writer and editor at one of the world's most prestigious museums. I have been on a red carpet, escorted filmmaker Davis Guggenheim to his table at dinner, and seen nearly the entire cast of HBO's Girls on the L train. I know Central Park with the intimacy of a lover; my mistress in this city.

I have tried every day to love this city. And there are times when I can't imagine being anywhere else. Like in the early summer, standing at the East River in Williamsburg at dusk, looking at the monstrosity of Manhattan just across the water. Or while walking through Greenwich Village. Or Central Park in autumn.

But New York, I don't love you.

In the summer, the city is unrelenting with it's stench of sweating garbage and urine. Subway stations become sauna-like with an approaching train as the only source of ventilation. And everyone invades my Central Park. And the summer is so much better than the winter. When everything dies, there is never enough sunlight, and the cold settles into bones for months.

The city is a daily grind. It is pushing, pressing bodies into strangers, avoiding eye contact, hoping that someone on the subway home won't get onto your train and call out, "It's showtime, ladies and gentlemen!"

It's being too tired to make dinner, but too tired to walk to the store. Not wanting to stand in line for fifteen minutes just to enter the Trader Joe's at Union Square. Feeling crippled and isolated when your subway is undergoing construction or maintenance. Realizing that you pay the same rent for a single bedroom in Brooklyn as a two-bedroom cottage in Maui. Recognizing that here, people live to work instead of working to live.

Knowing that you can't say that this place isn't for you. Because you live in New York! You are some contrived definition of fabulous. And everyone around you can tolerate it so why can't you? Knowing that if you let slip, just once, that you are not happy here, then people will be offended. Because acknowledging your own unhappiness, giving it a voice, will open the floodgates for everyone's doubts about their own level of happiness or the scale between happiness and "fabulous."

And for what?

No, New York, I don't love you.

So, in typical Lukin fashion, I'm fleeing.

In the process of saying goodbye, there are things that I want to do. Things that every person who lives in New York believes they have endless time to do. And as winter settles in again, my time in New York is now finite.

Here is what I want to see before I go:

The Lion King
The top of the Empire State Building
Guggenheim Museum
New York Public Library
9/11 Memorial Museum (if it ever opens)
Ellis Island
Battery Park
Wall Street
Coney Island
Botanical Gardens
Prospect Park
Yankee Stadium
FAO Schwartz
Katz's Deli
Frozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity
Show at Radio City Music Hall
Ballet
The best slice of pizza

Brooklyn Bridge Park

"The city is just amazing."

I was sent to Brooklyn Bridge Park, which is located on the Brooklyn side of the Brooklyn Bridge.  I exited the subway onto York Street, and seeing nothing but concrete walls, I was not confident that I was in the right place.  But that's something majestic I'm discovering about New York--there are gems hidden  in the concrete.

After wandering down a few streets, I caught a glimpse of the bridge and stumbled upon a stunning view.

Although it was only the early afternoon, I arrived in time to watch a beautiful sunset across the lower Manhattan skyline.

The park is made up of seating areas and walkways centered around the view.  There were not many people, which made a rare and calming environment.  I walked around the park, took pictures, listened to water lapping on rocks, and enjoyed the quietness of it all.

While there, I introduced myself to two men sitting with a tripod and camera. 

Elliott and Travis

Elliott and Travis are in their mid-to-late twenties and have been living in New York for a year and a half and two years respectively.  Travis moved to the city for work, and a desire to live in New York brought Elliott. 

Elliott is a photographer and was at Brooklyn Bridge Park on assignment to take time-lapse photos of the sunset.  His friend Travis works across the street and brought coffee.  For fun, Elliott explained that he likes walking around, seeing life in the city, and taking pictures of people. 

As a life goal, Elliott wants to go to 30 countries before he turns 30 years old.  He is 29 now with 26 countries visited, and has plans to travel to four new countries in the next year, before his thirtieth birthday.  Travis added that Elliott gave him his cat, and that their cats are brothers. 

When asked what keeps them in New York, Elliott responded, "The city is just amazing."  He motioned to the view in front of us and said, "Because of this kind of thing."

Elliott's ficker: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mondayne

Travis's favorite restaurant:

Lot 2

687 6th Avenue, Brooklyn

"Absolute best burger of all time.  And I don't say that lightly."

Elliott's favorite restaurant:

Do or Dine

1108 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn

New York's Hidden Treasure (an awesome place that not many people know about)

Prosperity Dumpling 

46 Eldridge Street in Chinatown
They have pork and chive dumplings that are offered five for one dollar. 

Secret Stop on the 6 train Downtown

If one stays on the train, apparently there is a secret stop at the abandoned City Hall Station.

This week, Elliott and Travis send me to Inwood, the only untouched wilderness in Manhattan.

Brooklyn

"I can get everything I want two blocks from my apartment."

Before moving, I knew one person in New York.  She makes one more than I knew when I moved to Austin, and knowing someone has made my transition into New York a lot easier than it could have been.  Last week, one of her friends invited us to a pre-Thanksgiving, post-Halloween costume party in Brooklyn.

After stepping off the subway and wandering onto Franklin Street in Brooklyn, I knew I was in "my place."  I'm not sure if it's the resemblance to Austin or the significant decrease in pedestrian traffic, but I sincerely like Brooklyn.

I also liked that I was walking down the street with a turkey strapped to my head, and no one seemed to think it was out of the ordinary.

I met several nice people at the party, including two who agreed to share their New York story.

Christine and Luke

(in sugar skull masks hand-painted by Christine)

Christine and Luke are in their early twenties and have been living in New York for five years. Originally from New Jersey and Pennsylvania respectively, they moved to New York for college. 

When asked in which borough they spent the majority of their time, Luke asked if I meant living and working or having fun. 

"Both," I said. 

"I live and work in Manhattan," he said, "but I come to Brooklyn to have fun."  As a newcomer to the city, this surprised and intrigued me.  And secretly made me happy that I felt at home when I first saw Brooklyn. 

For fun, they like to going out with people, going to bars, and they frequent Williamsburg, Carroll Gardens, and Prospect Heights in Brooklyn. 

When asked what keeps them in New York, Luke responded, "I love this city. It's got everything I want.  I can get everything I want two blocks from my apartment."

Favorite restaurant:

Although Christine and Luke agreed on many things, they each expressed a favorite restaurant.

Christine:

The Smith

East Village Location

55 Third Avenue

Luke:

Oren's Daily Roast

Multiple Locations

"Best coffee in Manhattan"

New York's Hidden Treasure: 

Red Hook Pier

According to Christine, the view is amazing and it is calm and peaceful.  It is not accessible by the subway, which presents an added challenge, but it can be reached by bus. 

At the moment, the pier has damage from Hurricane Sandy.

This week, Christine and Luke send me to Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Brooklyn side of the Brooklyn Bridge. 

The Empire State of Mind

When I arrived in New York a week ago, I had the same sinking feeling and gnawing thought I have every time I move some place new: what the hell did I do?  My plane landed in what I can only assume was a blizzard, although most people who have actually lived in a cold climate would probably call it "mild snow."

New York has always been the place that I yearned to see, that remained elusive to me.  And thus it was surreal to be on a bridge, these dark, massive buildings looming around me, and to see the city for the first time through fogged, snowy windows.  I was dropped off on the side of the road with my bags--too heavy for me to move or carry alone--beside a pile of garbage breaching four feet.

"I'm really in New York."

New York makes the sixth city that I have called home in the last seven years, and as always, I wonder if it will ever feel as much like home as the last one.  I have come from Austin, and it will be a challenge for New York to provide a better experience.  Austin gave me strength in a way I could not have known I was lacking.  It also gave me music and some of the best people I have ever known.

The morning after I arrived, I walked down Fifth or Madison or Lexington Avenue.  I stood at a crosswalk in my Vans sneakers next to luxurious patent black heels and designer handbags as I listened to "Empire State of Mind."

"These streets will make you feel brand new."  Quite a promise.

I vowed to make Austin feel like mine, and I will attempt the same with New York.  I want to know this city and the multitude of untold stories swirling around the subway stations and street corners.

People of New York: I want to meet you.

This is my proposition:

I will go to a new place in New York each week and meet a stranger.  I will ask if they will talk to me and share their story, and I will document it here.

Hello, New York.