Out on the East.

This short vacation in New York proved to be a test of how long can a person walk. Depp, Bee and I scurry around the city with our hands clenched tightly around the little money we had. We were mainly stuck with the dilemma of pooling money to ride the subway or walk fifteen blocks, but always opted for the latter. The first day I spent was exhausting as I had stood and drank the night before, got barely any sleep and just hopped on a 6AM flight like a zombie but this trip relieved it all even the loneliness and homesickness I felt for months as I was finally together with friends from back home. 

And so after a train from New Jersey the adventure begins in dirty white-blue tiled grimy Penn Station, a large scale slightly better version of Quiapo underground pass in Manila as it has the same feel with people just scrambling to get where they need to go. A lot of things reminded me of Manila in NYC from the smell of the sewer to the loud metal clanging like thunder above your head from the train passing as you are walking on the sidewalk filled with vendors of pirated films, bootleg clothes, and street foods from every continent. I guess thats part of the reason I want to live here, its a better version as Manila, second reason is the Jollibee branch. 

As cliche as it sounds it really felt like you were sucked in a movie when you first take it all in. We had a movie like moment of almost getting soaked from gushing fire hydrant water as we were eating breakfast in Times Square. Long story short, guy was fixing the fire hydrant when he messed up and it exploded and we were saved by our quick reflexes. Some stray observations: there's a minimum of 5 elmo mascots in Times Square, Moms who jog and push baby strollers at the same time in Central Park is kinda amazing, Van Gogh's starry starry night almost made me leave in tears, Every block is an alternating smell of pretzel and shawarma, Brooklyn bridge is smaller than I expected, Shake Shack burger is the best thing and the only reason I will eat a burger, You will always get lost in the subway so don't ever be afraid to ask for directions. 

I left New York with a smile on my face and a sigh of relief as I thought finally! I can rest my feet from all the walking but eventually came back to Chicago telling Depp and Bee how I wish we had more time and did this and that. We were faced with the reality of going back to our normal lives but deep inside I hoped all three of us were headed to the same home, and by home I mean the land where we were born, Philippines.

photos were taken mostly by Depp