Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to spend my fall break in New York City. This was my first time to travel to New York, and I fell in love. This city offered me so much, even with so many things to see in so little time. But after only four and a half days - to be exact, I felt like I left with a good sense of the city and its creative offerings.
Friday Oct. 2
Filled with both nerves and excitement, my trip began by meeting my group and traveling to Memphis, Tennessee. Thanks to Professor Harvey, we had a lovely New York mix CD to listen to during the car ride. Although the flight from Memphis was delayed twice because of weather, the delays did not put a damper on our excitement. In a few short hours, we arrived at LaGuardia.
Although later than expected, the reality had finally set in that we were in NYC! It was rainy and much cooler than at home. We then headed by taxi to our Brooklyn home for the next few days, New York Loft Hostel.
After settling in, we headed out for our first subway experience and tried some delicious Polish food. After dinner, Lauryn, Heather and I headed to Manhattan to see the sights of Times Square - like typical tourists. We did a decent job of navigating the subway and making it back to the hostel, especially for it only being the first night of our adventure.
Saturday Oct. 3
The first full day began with breakfast and tea in a French coffee shop that was next to our hostel. I had banana nutella toast, which was excellent. After eating, we made our way to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to meet the rest of the group. We spent the whole morning exploring the vast museum, including the famed work of John Singer Sargent. Even with a map, I still managed to get turned around multiple times thanks to the intertwined interior. Because of the massive amount of art the Met houses, I don't think even a whole day would be sufficient to enjoy all of its contents.
Lunch came from a food cart outside the Met, which made me a believer that hot dogs are just better in New York. In the early afternoon, we took in the beauty of a small portion of Central Park and happened upon the Alice In Wonderland statue. It is quite large, and much bigger than I expected. When we exited Central Park, we came out at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum of Art. Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, the Guggenheim architecture is a sight to see. On our way back to the hostel, a few people stopped at Grand Central Station to get a look at the beautiful ceiling, painted blue with constellations.
By this time, it was mid-afternoon, and our feet were exhausted. Since we knew this city never slept, we went back to the hostel and rested up for our afternoon's agenda: a graffiti tour of Bushwick in Brooklyn. The beginning of the graffiti tour was freezing cold, but by the end it warmed up a good bit. We learned about graffitti and street art, both in general and as it pertains to Bushwick, while getting further oriented with the neighborhood that we were staying in.
After the tour, it was not only dinner time, but also game time. Naturally, having been raised a true maroon bulldog, I knew the place for us. Heather and I made our way to Bar 515 in Manhattan, where the MSU alumni gather to watch State play football every Saturday. Even though we lost, the food was good and being in the company of State fans and cowbells was even better! Since we were not far, we stopped by the Chrysler building after the game and took in the amazing art deco lobby interior. Heather and I stopped by Grand Central Station to get a snack, then headed to our next destination, the Empire State Building. We walked a good distance to get there, then went straight up, with no wait at all. It was SO windy and cold at the top, but I think it was worth it for the view of the city at night. Feeling satisfied with a full day behind us, we headed back to the hostel to rest up for the next day.
Sunday Oct. 4
Although we had time, how could we sleep in when there was so much to see? Heather and I started our Sunday morning with coffee and tea from The Swallow, another coffee shop located close to our hostel. We then navigated the complicated subway system through Brooklyn to get to the Brooklyn Bridge. As we walked the bridge and took pictures, I lost a dollar bill that the wind so graciously took from my pocket. Heather and I watched as things did not go so well for the dollar. After being ran over by a few cars, the wind took it down to the East River. Poor dollar.
Although the morning seemed to not be as kind to the dollar, it was much better to us. Across the bridge in Manhattan, we visited Ground Zero and the Reflecting Pools at the 911 Memorial. After making a pit stop to buy comfier shoes, we spent some time at Washington Square Park, then made it back to the subway to meet the group.
Our afternoon was spent on an architectual boat tour, which took us all the way around the island and even by Lady Liberty. Our long day ended at one of Brooklyn's French restaurants, where we had dinner and conversation with Mississippi State art alumni. It was nice to get to know the alumni, understand their careers and hear about how they ended up in New York.
Monday Oct. 5
Monday morning was all about studio tours. The first studio stop was at Ryan Cobourn's, a fine art painter. Cobourn talked about his process and how he made his paints. He also showed us some of his current paintings, as well as some finished ones. We then went to two graphic design studios, one of which was started by MSU graphic design alum Jessi Arrington. Because of these visits, I gained a greater excitement and understanding about what career options and opportunities are out there for me. After studio tours, I had one of the best slices of pizza that I have ever eaten. Ham and pineapple always make a mean combo, but somehow they were even better on a New York style pizza.
Next on the list was a visit to Pratt Institute. We enjoyed a tour of Pratt's graduate program for art and design. The campus was beautiful, and the art and design facilities were top notch.
Later that afternoon, we stopped by MoMA - the Museum of Modern Art. This was one of my favorite places from the trip. Around every corner was something that I recognized from art history - like VanGogh, Klimt, Warhol and Monet to name a few. After taking in all that MoMA had to offer, we went back to the hostel for a short rest before dinner. Heather, Anna and I ate at a little Thai restaurant, then wrapped up our last full day stopping by Rockefeller Plaza and Times Square - Times Square again? I know, we're typical tourists.
Tuesday Oct.6
The weather was perfect for our last day in New York - sunny and warm. We started the day in Chelsea by walking the Highline, an elevated railroad that has been converted into a park. Toward the end of our HIghline walk, we found an interactive lego exhibit. We took a few minutes to build - in my case attempt to build - something cool. After a pleasant walk on the Highline, we visted several galleries in Chelsea. The galleries were another one of my favorite things from the trip.
Our last NYC food was lunch from a cute little market with numerous delicious options; my winner being a warm perfect lobster roll and some macaroons to save for later. Following lunch, we visited more galleries, then Heather and I made a few last minute stops to buy souveniers.
Unwillingly, we made our final trip back to the hostel to meet the group, and then headed to LaGuardia. Our flight touched down in Memphis around midnight, which had us back in sleepy Starkville around 2:00 a.m. Wednesday morning.
With a head full of thoughts, ideas and inspiration, I have settled back into my everyday routine full of classes and projects. But my trip to New York City has changed the way I now view my future. It clarified some existing ideas and encouraged new ideas in me that needed to surface. I am thankful for my friends and classmates that made the trip so exciting and fun, as well as my professors, Ben and Neil, who took their time to teach and provide us with this educational opportunity. Thanks New York for an inspiring visit - I'll be back soon.