Tales From The Tall Town
2008/08/29
New stories from where the towers stand tall, from the city of noise and restlessness. This is Tobias reporting live from New York City.
Journal entry Aug. 23, 2008
This morning, I boarded a plane in Hamburg and this afternoon (or noon in local time), I got off in New York. Right, I am back in the city, almost exactly a year after my first visit in 2007. I'll catch up on some things that I missed last time, see some new places, have a photo shoot, and of course take lots of "regular" photos as well. And yes, I am travelling on my own, which caused mildly bewildered reactions form both friends and a US immigration officer at the airport (Officer: "You're travelling alone? So you're gonna wander around on your own for two weeks?" Me: "Yeah." Officer: laughing out in a surprised and condescending way.)
Back to the flight, which passed somewhat quickly, thanks to the new entertainment system in the jet. I used the same route as last year, and this year they had new (touch-)screens in the seat backs, which offered a variety of movies, music and games (!). I ended up watching Iron Man (pretty boring stuff) and playing countless rounds of solitaire.
The world is not as big as one might think. This becomes clear when you go halfway around the world (well, about one quarter) only to see a familiar face. In fact, I already noticed her in Hamburg during check-in. She's a workmate, the kind that you sometimes see in the corridors but never talked to. I wasn't even sure whether it was her or not, so I didn't ask right away. But when I saw her again at the ground transportation desk at Newark airport, I figured this would be the time to walk over and ask. We had a good laugh about it.
Supershuttle service to Manhattan was somewhat late and lame this time. Unlike last time, where I witnessed the city and the always impressive Empire State Building peeling out of the fog, the weather was very clear this times, so you could see a lot of the city from a distance. The plane landed parallel to Manhattan, and it was a great view to see the island while slowly sinking towards the ground.
From a distance, Manhattan's range of skyscrapers doesn't seem so intimidating. But once you get closer, the buildings seem to become more massive until each one is towering, looming above you like an urban promise. The best time to experience this is not during the day though, but at dusk, when the last reddish traces of sunlight fade into the crystal blue of the clear sky and the city's silhouette becomes a fabric of a million diamonds shimmering in the dark monoliths that line the streets. On the ground, the never-ending movement paints dynamic and ever-changing pictures. Breathtaking.
The blend of people on the Upper West Side, which is where I am staying, is certainly different from the folks on the Upper East Side, where I stayed last year. Here, the atmosphere seems a bit more rough and there are some pretty weird types walking about. Nothing to worry about though. As I was grabbing some food at McDonald's (no better way to start a true NY trip...), a woman complained about the line not moving. I said this seems to be a worldwide problem; the line you're on always moves slowest, which she agreed on. Turns out though that she is part of the problem though, starting a discussion with the cashier about free salad dressing. And at a local supermarket, a cashier who's in a conversation with another one says "And then she called your mother a bitch!?"
Welcome to New York!
