For the love of NYC

Has this trip to NYC been the best one of my life so far? Most probably. Has it been the most meaningful one? Definitely!!! I have decided not to post any picture of my holidays on facebook because I do not want to share my memories publicly. This encounter with this good old buddy is so very intimate that by just posting a few pictures out there would be like a lack of respect towards it. New York deserves better than people 'liking' it and barely paying attention to what it has to say. New York needs to be told to people you love around a meal. What am I saying? several meals... Of course, every adventure has its exaggerations and embroidery and my recounting the tale of my adventures in the big city to friends and family members will be sprinkled with additional flavors but at the end of the day, it is the only way I know how to pay tribute to what is now a good friend. Only me and me alone know how delightful and unforgettable this holiday spree has been and how kind the city has been to me.

The town has that wry sense of wit to it, one can't deny it.  It teases you all the time by unraveling new places to you when you thought you had already been taken aback.On the plane back, I tried to list down the best moments I experienced only to realize that each and every minute in the big apple had its own charm and carried its load of good souvenirs. Was it the pic-nic I had in Central Park before falling soundly asleep on the grass to later waking up to the sound of the squirrels fighting over a nut? No,wait, it was probably my walk on Brooklyn Bridge on a cold, rainy day where it had been deserted and I felt as if I owned the place. That's not right again, it surely must have been when I was sipping into that divine prosecco at Tomi Jazz at 1am listening to that band led by the lady with the mellow voice.Or was it when I let a tear roll down my cheek while admiring 'La Repasseuse' by Picasso at the Guggenheim? On second thought, I will give the credit to that stroll in strawberry field down to the bow bridge on a warm sunny morning. But then again, there was ballet night at the Lincoln Center... The New York City Ballet performing 'A midsummer night's dream' must surely have been the highlight of my holidays. but what about The Botanical Garden in spring with the blooming  flowers and Smorgasburg, the outdoor foodie market in Brooklyn where I tasted Argentinean beef? Seriously, I cannot pinpoint one specific moment over another where I felt more overjoyed.

The greatest thing about this holiday is that I was there on my own for fifteen days and I never felt lonely or depressed. I managed to make friends and engage conversation with perfect strangers. Walter, the old black, homeless guy in Brooklyn who shouted 'Hey mamoo' at me near the subway station. 'Do you know the meaning of mamoo?' I asked him, to which he surprisingly replied "Yeah, it means uncle in hindi'!!! - that was my OMG moment / Soraya, the puerto rican lady in Harlem  who engaged a conversation with me about the queen and Lady Di. We talked for an hour and she made me laugh so hard / Peter, the kind gentleman who lives in Queens and provided me with so many tips about how to get around and find the best seats for the shows / Margarita at the ticket counter at the cinema theater who advised me to take a taxi from Columbia Square to Lexington Avenue after the midnight session of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. From what I have experienced, New Yorkers are nice and friendly and helpful and I really fell for that place. To wrap it up, how can I forget about my dear Polish friend, Thomasz and his cult phrase, in his charming broken english, which left everyone laughing their head off :  "Global warming, global warming...what global warming?!? Come to Poland, Global Cold!!!".He was so upset the evening everyone turned him down for the drinks at the bar. It was funny and at the same time said so much about his character.

So far I always had a soft corner for London - 1998, that spectacular year where my life changed forever. How beautifully has 2017 made the tables turn! New York City has just become my favorite holiday city.