NYC The Last Day: An End to an Incredible Adventure

She woke me like she did every day I was there. Bright, loud, and early. They don't call her the City That Never Sleeps for nothing. By now that didn't bother me as much because she was still pretty good to me while I was there. I had one last must-see item on my list that I hadn't hit yet and was debating on if I should actually go through the long process to see it while I was there. I was debating it hard until a small voice inside told me I was going to regret it if I didn't. So I walked the five blocks to the subway and took it about an hour all the way down to lower Battery Park in lower Manhattan.

Upon arriving in this chill area yet again, I made my way in a direction I hadn't before. I followed the crowd and stood in the line. I weaved and turned until I finally reached the ticket window. I parted with the ticket money and hopped in another line. I slowly made my way towards a giant tent and passed a guy doing his finest to sell selfie-sticks. Once in the tent, I had to pass through security and watched in anguish as impatient Americans and foreigners who spoke little English gave the security guards quite a lot of trouble. After passing this checkpoint, I now was ushered onto a large boat and climbed to the top deck to be out in the open. After what seemed like forever, the boat left the dock and made it's way towards my ultimate destination. I stood on the deck, felt the wind in my face and watched in awe as we became closer and closer to the most popular lady in New York, Lady Liberty. Yup the Statue of Liberty was where I was headed for a view up close and personal.

I'd seen her in movies, tv shows, ads, books, heck my phone background even has her next to the American flag. But as she approached, I was in sheer awe. Standing on that deck and thinking about the immigrants and possibly my ancestors riding a boat across the Atlantic, after months at sea and all the hardships they endured, to see Lady Liberty herself and erupt in cheers as they realized the freedom and the new life they longed for was finally in reach. One of my favorite patriotic songs has a line that goes "There's a lady that stands in a harbor for what we believe." And here I was, up close and personal with this larger-than-life symbol of freedom.

Once I was satisfied with my visit and sick of the crowds of people, I got back on the boat and enjoyed the ride back to the the NYC harbor. The boat did make one stop in between which was Ellis Island, but I didn't get off because I had other plans and the total time for this adventure was about four hours long. Once I made port, I jumped on a subway and headed up north.

I now found myself in a place I had overlooked the whole week. Rockefeller Center. I began by strolling past and admiring Radio City Music Hall (one day I'll see a show there) and pictured crowds of people waiting to get into America's Got Talent. I heard there was a Lego store in the heart of RC so I continued to wander. I passed Rockefeller tower by which a doorman beckoned me to step inside and see the "Top of the Rock." I didn't because I figured what I saw from the Empire State Building would be similar and didn't feel like spending the money.

Rockefeller Center was beautiful. A giant, gold colored statue guarded a large, man-made waterfall. There was a restaurant you could step down into and eat nearby the waterfall. Then, like a lighthouse on the coast, the Lego store appeared before me. I entered and was like a young lad again. There was a giant green dragon made of Lego, a decent sized Lego Porsche, and an entire wall from floor to ceiling filled with thousands of Lego bricks. Childhood nostalgia on overload.

Now it was time to meet up with my friends for more adventures. Tim, Vincent, and I ended up at Sam Lee's apartment which is located right near Juliard. His pad was super nice and we chilled on his rooftop deck for awhile before finally going out.

We grabbed an Uber, but for some strange reason, he decided to go through Times Square. That was a nightmare especially since we were in rush hour. After a couple blocks and 15 min of not really moving, we got out and walked to a subway. Since we were going to be out awhile, we needed a snack to tide us over so we met up with Carol at a place called Wisefish Poke (pronounced pokay). They made salads with raw fish. The flavor and taste was amazing, but it was hardly filling, even for a snack and a tad pricey.

Some of us being exhausted we went to get coffee. I didn't need any so as I waited outside, there was this eerily cool robot woman mural across the street that unfortunately was marred by bad graffiti. After the java was installed, we walked to this beautiful park called the High Line. It used to be a train track that ran above the streets, but instead of letting it rust in peace, they turned it into a beautiful park. There were gardens on either side of you and places to stop and enjoy the view. The further you walked, the more interesting it became. For example, at one point the park ran right through a cafe with artists, DJs, and drinks. At another point we passed a large sign that said "Beware, Nude sunbathers may be past this point." And finally we came across a statue of a sleepwalking man in his underwear that looked extremely life like. Some people had to do double takes to make sure he wasn't real.

We eventually exited the High Line and made our way to a place by the harbor that had a rooftop lounge. We got into the elevator to go up, and the man told Sam that he had to check his golf clubs in at the front and that they don't have mini-golf here. We made our way up and the first level was enclosed, but had a hot tub in the middle of the room with a bar not far from it. We wanted a better view so we went to the top where we were now on the roof, standing on felt, and were able to see the city in an evening setting and the view was spectacular. Being able to see the city from so many different perspectives was indeed a joy and a wonder.

Moving on, we made our way to our ultimate destination at Chelsea Piers. This place was a bunch of entertainment complexes built right on the pier near the harbor. Our first stop was the driving range to whack some golf balls. The range was pretty interesting due to the fact that it had four levels of people whacking balls and the green was an extended pier enclosed by a large net to keep the balls from flying in the harbor. Sam Chen met up with us at this point and game 5 of the 2016 NBA finals was starting so Sam Chen, Tim, Carol, and I made our way to the bowling alley right next door to watch our beloved Cleveland Cavaliers put the hurt on Golden State. We talked, we laughed, we ate, and watched the Cavs put on a clinic. At halftime, we decided to do a little bowling and at this point, Vincent and Sam Lee joined us. We got two games in and cheered as the Cavs took care of business.

I was told multiple times while I was there that I had to try the food stand chicken and rice. Seeing as most of our group hadn't eaten since Wisefish Poke, we left the piers and walked to a food truck. As we walked, with the night air blowing and the city lit up like fireworks on the 4th of July, I reminisced in my mind of how amazing and memorable this adventure truly was. It was about 12:30am when we got to the food cart. I wasn't super hungry so I didn't order anything, but was encouraged to try some. Now I love anything spicy or hot and there was some hot sauce in the dish. I took a bite of the chicken and rice dabbed in the sauce and as I was putting it in my mouth, Carol tried to warn me, but it was too late. She was watching me intently to see my reaction and warned me it was hot. I told her that hot is my forte and she started laughing as my faced turned dark red and my eyes began to water. Holy cow Batman! That sauce was extremely hot! After a few minutes, I couldn't feel my tongue anymore and had to finish off the lettuce in the bowl for some relief. Other than that, the food was delicious.

Finally, we called it a night, said our goodbyes, and I grabbed a subway all the way back to Northern Manhattan for one more night's sleep before I left NYC in the morning.

Final thoughts: Experiencing the NYC up close and personal was eye opening and amazing. All the people everywhere, living completely different lives, yet all mingled and meshed in the concrete zoo. People did what they had to. I saw a guy perform amazing dance moves on a moving subway. I saw a brother/sister group singing with amazing pitch and harmony in a subway terminal (Infinity's Song, check em out on youtube). I saw many people come and go off the subway begging for money. I even paid $2 for two pieces of candy a guy was selling for charity and as we were parting ways, he told me I looked like Matt Damon (and that's not the first time that's happened). No matter where you turn, there was always something new and exciting to explore. And unlike Cleveland, you still had to learn to cope in a large city. Navigating, dealing with people, what to see and how to see it, and on and on. This trip was definitely worth the time, money, and effort put in. There's still so much more to experience and I hope to return one day. Until next time.

NYC Day 5: The Explorer and the Socialite

I had no plans entering today because of all the festivities the day before and the fact that I left it open to do whatever all the other guys wanted. Well the early morning wake-up sucked and I knew everyone else would be out cold until at least noon, so I decided to go explore the north half of Central Park.

I went straight for the North Woods and once I got there, I wondered why I didn't do so sooner. There were all kinds of trails and paths that weren't paved and the cool thing was is that the North Woods is so dense that all the annoying city noise can't penetrate it. I now regret not taking a picture and asking people to guess where I was just to see their reactions when I would reveal that was central Manhattan. Those woods held a lot of cool secrets too. The highest point in CP was here and located at the very top was a small, old fort. Known as Blockhouse No 1 or The Blockhouse. It was built in the early 1800s and was done so in case of a British invasion during the war of 1812. But this fort never saw battle and today would be a child's dream to play in. It's too bad the gate was locked otherwise I would've explored it more.

After letting loose my inner child, I made my way through the rest of the north and passed by a rock with a face carved into it. I wandered through more of CP's gardens and straight to a pond with a beautiful view. The wind was blowing nicely and the breeze felt good. After admiring the view and getting lost in my thoughts, I was going to leave CP, but realized I had one more stop to make. I walked and walked and walked until my destination skewed the sun. The massive obelisk was transported to NYC from Alexandria, Egypt. It's littered in hieroglyphics and amazing to see something that was constructed in ancient Egypt right before my eyes.

My hunger got the better of me and I was really craving a smoothie (it was in the upper 80s). I ventured about five blocks until I found a smoothie place. They were tiny, but their selection looked good. I went for the one with Hawaiian in the name. It was a good choice at first...but once I tasted it, I realized there was ginger in it. Big mistake. I can't stand ginger in smoothies especially on a hot day. I finished half of it then pitched it because I couldn't take anymore. I saw a McDonald's nearby and my sweet tea craving kicked in. I ordered one and some food. Unfortunately, the sweet tea was awful because it was loaded with so much sugar I tasted more of that then the tea.

Finally Tim Chai texted me and I decided to meet him for lunch at Ippudo. I beat him there and nearly missed it because this one you had to step down into to enter it. When Tim arrived, Carol came with him. I knew she looked familiar and had seen her before. She was originally from Ann Arbor and came to Mountain Top back in the day. Sam Lee also joined us. We downed the food then decided to do some exploring. We made our way over to Korea Town and got some bubble tea (a must). Then we went to a hotel with a rooftop bar. The weather was fantastic so when we got to the top, I was more than happy to relax on a cushioned couch with the sun beaming on me hundreds of feet above the city. To be honest, I could've stayed here the rest of the evening...

...but we had more people to meet up with so we left and made our way to a coffee house. Tim caught up with some more friends and we were joined by David Luu, Isaac, and Vincent. Somehow, everyone else got hungry, but since I had been practically eating all day, I decided to go hang with Sean and Jenny for a bit while everyone else had dinner.

Back in lower Manhattan, we enjoyed the view of the setting sun and the statue of liberty in battery park. Sean and I made a lot of noise stepping on musical tiles acting like children. We then headed to a pub called Ulysses and our server had what I'm pretty sure was a Scottish accent. The best part was the place was nearly empty inside, which is a rarity because even in the lesser places of NYC, there were still people everywhere. We finished enjoying our food and then the three of us went up to mid Manhattan where we met up with the guys to play some pool at this neat little place called Space Billiards. The others were content with playing darts while Sean, Jenny and I played a few rounds of cutthroat, each of us winning a game. That wraps up day five and the last day was a joy in itself. Until next time.