Applesauce

Yup, I ventured across the southern border for the first time in over 2 years. It was an adventure well overdue, especially considering that the year before that, I had been in 13 different countries in the space of 5 months. Wow. I forgot what it was like to be a bird, aloft in a sky, friend of the shining sun. Although reality has struck my side and I had all but forgotten that I was ever even [just] there, a little bash with the extended family today reminded me that, "Oh, right, um, yes, I actually have been doing something out-of-the-ordinary". . . .

Here's an ode to my solo six-day adventure in the Big Apple. It was nothing but glorious.



#1 thing I learned in New York City is that fellow tourists take really bad photos. This is the extent of my non-blurry, non-silhouettey Nicole-in-the-Big-Apple photo collection. For the rest of the photos, my face is behind the camera lens.

Excuse this somewhat cliche-esque photo, but asking folkies on the street to take a photo of one's self against a supposedly non-descript background can get some awkward responses.




Highly recommended: If you haven't traveled alone before, do it...at least once. Oh, the possibilities. Do whatever you want, whenever you want. Mmm. Delicious. I, for example, got the pleasure of hitting up every single art gallery that I didn't want to leave the city without visiting [note the Brancusi above] ...and that's not mentioning the hours upon hours of roaming the neighbourhood streets just for the sheer wonder and joy of it. Sure, I went to all well-known sites, but nothing can top the potent absorbtion of New York City atmosphere. People, smells and the incredibly differences between all those neighbourhoods were things to imprint on my memory and stay with me a while. My feet deserved a photo for all they put up with. I can't remember the last time my feet hurt so much. 18 hours/day of walking will do that I suppose.


[View of Chelsea building from the High Line]

Ode to the ex-student status: Really, nothing can replace having someone to share an experience with, so I don't plan to make a habit of galivanting all over foreign cities alone in the future, but oh, it was grand. Even passing through customs stands as quite the spectacular experience. Seriously, being a non-U.S.-VISA-STATUS-STUDENT is a wondrous thing. No paperwork to show, no interrogation, no copious amounts of time spent twiddling thumbs waiting for security personnel to quit chit-chatting about miscellaneous nothings over coffee to give you the time of day. Mmmm. Again, delicious. It's a whole lot easier to cultivate warm and fuzzy feelings for a country when treated with respect.

So much to say, but I'll leave it there for now. After all, my New York adventures are over and I'm back to finding ways of keeping life potent and exciting on this side of reality. Today involved a trip to church, a sourdough bread baking extravaganza, a cycle in the sunshine, a birthday bash with cousins and contemplating which day might be best to visit the upcoming World of Threads Festival. If you have other colourful ideas to add my future, do let me in on them. I'm up for almost anything.