Thursday, May 14, 2009

New York; it's History, it's Poetry.

Taken in August,2008. by Special K.


I am leaving for New York tonight, at 11:30pm. I will not give details about all the trouble that comes with booking a trip with more than one person. Originally, we were 4, possibly 5. We planned on getting a little room in the city, so we can be close to everything & not lose time travelling from New Jersey. Then, that number dwindled to 4, then 3, & now, only hours away from our departure, we are uncertain if number 3 is coming or not. This is the summary, without all the extra details.
I am very excited, as New York has the ability to erase all my cares & worries. New York is my breather, it's my 'get away from this mess', it's my 'stress, what stress?' or 'job, what job?'.
It's a well of creativity, scents and sights colliding at such speed, when I think of New York, I imagine; a flurry of lights red, blue, green, Drummadics performing on 125th station, The drummer beating on Paint buckets whilst his band mates rally around him in Saxophones & Djembe.
I imagine a city that never sleeps...

Brooklyn, we go hard; nail shop & Hair salon at every end of the street, where my ex spent 7 years of his life, where there's Caribbean food everywhere, where I gorged on 'Doubles' & 'Patties'.

Manhattan, ice queen; Statuesque high rises, stilettos that cost more than a year's rent, where I accompanied a model friend from agency to agency for audition day, feeling like a dwarf. Manhattan, the beautiful shops, the sweltering crowds, the yellow duck cabs.

Time Square; Broadway ads larger than life & Amsterdam hotel, where we paid 177$ a night for a room the size of a closet during dead season. & where I ate a Portobello sandwich at Friday's, that cost me 17$!

Harlem the renaissance; How I love thee, Harlem. Soul food at 'The Rouge', a quaint little resto with a bathroom that is pure art, food that is heaven to palettes, & a waiter that made us blush every time he looked at us. Yes. Harlem, where you find 7$ shoes, an old man sitting on a cartoon in the middle of the sidewalk with gangrene running from his toe nails to his knees, where you see homeless amputee after homeless amputee, Harlem where i learned the story of a 24yr old girl that's been struggling with HIV since she's been 19.

New York is a hustle, 24/7; men selling hand bags out of cars, immigrants with their peanut & halal carts, a woman in Harlem selling poetry for a 1$ a pop, self published writers marketing their books on street stalls, dope boys standing on their corners.
New York is a dream; everyone is trying to be rich.
somehow, in all this turmoil, I find solace.
New York is 8 million people, living on top of each other, their stories intertwine.
It's History, it's Poetry.

4 comments:

Akirah said...

I heart NYC! Have fun. I haven't been in awhile actually. One of my favorite things was visiting the American Girl store. For some reason it brings me back to my childhood in a way I can't describe.

Unbreakable said...

For someone who don't live in New York City thats a very positive review.If i am not sure i think you live in Canada and i will be there in June on a cruse,...i hope you enjoy New York, your running into it i am running away from it.

deepteshpoetry said...

Great photo n superb post as usual.I've a new poem....do drop by pls.u loved the last one.Sure u remember?

Nana said...

@Akirah: I've never been to that store, but I definitely enjoyed Century 21, Macy's & Forever 21. I got my shopping on!
@Unbreakable: Isn't it always like thaty? You never appreciate the city you live in until you have left it.
@Deeptesh: Of course, I remember, I'm off to visit you right away :-)