As you can see from the title I went to my dream state! My whole life I have constantly told everyone, “I want to live in NYC”. I was a bit nervous that after going I would change my mind, however, my opinion is still the same. I could definitely see myself living and working in New York.
My flight to New York was absolutely horrendous! First, my flight was canceled I was upset about this because this was a straight flight from DTW to JFK. I booked a new flight and this flight went from DTW to ATL then finally to JFK. How does this make any sense? It doesn’t. The layover in ATL was about 2 hours and I did not arrive in New York until about 3 a.m. I clearly did not sleep much during this entire trip, but who cares I WENT TO NEW YORK!
My Uber ride to my home for the weekend was amazing, seeing all the lights, bridges, and tall buildings gave me so much excitement despite being 3 a.m. When I arrived in Harlem, the city was sleep not much to see but a few roaches, stray cats, and a few people making there way home.
The next day when I was able to explore Harlem, I quickly realized why people in New York don’t need to drive. Everything was in walking distance because the buildings were extremely close. And those who drive were always honking, I’m not sure they liked driving much anyway. When the streets were active diversity is real. I immediately heard Spanish every corner I turned, saw different kinds of people, styles, literally everything was diverse. I noted this just because no two cities are the same and generally I don’t get to see so many different people in one setting, especially not in Ann Arbor.
I did not eat much in Harlem because my trip was way too short! But I was able to get a fresh smoothie from a little shop called The Yellow Banana Snack Bar. The drink was so fresh and natural, no extra ingredients, and when they made too much they gave you the rest no extra charge (a certain coffee shop should take a hint). The prices were reasonable, so if you ever end up in the Harlem area be sure to grab a smoothie from here!
I stayed in an Airbnb during my time here, this was my first time staying in one but it was not bad at all. My host had the cutest apartment, with some well thought out decor, and snacks for guest. Although I did not spend much time inside my Airbnb, if my trip was longer I would have loved to stay there more.
Once I was able to get used to the subway system, my boyfriend and I had to figure out how to get home. I learned to appreciate that all the streets in New York are numbered instead of named, which made it easy to see if you were lost or not. We were excited on our last night here, our phones died and we found our way home without Google maps! That’s a sign, we could live there, I already see it.
From the little taste of Harlem I was able to see, I have fallen in love with the place. I cannot wait for my next New York visit. I definitely want to explore food in Harlem and thrift shops when I come back.
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