New York is my dream city. Since I was a little girl I dreamed of visiting this wonderful place and coming to Stockton made my wish come true. It all started when my French friend, Laure-Anne, announced her birthday. She, with a big smile on her face, asked us to accompany her to the city and obviously I could not refuse. The most fabulous thing is that it was a girls' trip. I never thought I'd take my friends for the best ride of my life.
We got up very early that day at our friend Kate's house. We slept over at her apartment the night before, because we celebrated Valentine's Day there. We returned to our house and had our bags packed in less than half an hour. We got in the car and drove off down the road. Kirsten was behind the wheel while I was in charge of the music. Our playlist was full of kpop and a little bit of Ed Sheeran. In the back, Janet and Laure-Anne were instantly put to sleep. To be honest, I couldn't sleep, even though I was so tired, the excitement of seeing New York didn't let me close my eyes.
After a two-hour drive north, we arrived to Metro Park. There, Kirsten left the van and we took the train to the city. In the rush to get out of the house I had forgotten to go to the bathroom, so the whole trip was torture with me about to get into my pants. Still, we arrived in New York in 45 minutes. I remember the first time I went out and saw the buildings downtown, all seemed so beautiful to me. People were walking fast and not smiling, the sound of cars filling your ears and the cold wind freezing your cheeks. I almost bumped into several people because I was looking at the sky, which was blue and with clouds that looked like cotton.
The first day we visited Times Square, which was just like the movies showed it, then we went to Central Park and did the Gossip Girl tour. We walked to the MET Museum, where we ended the day amidst paintings and laughs. When we arrived to our Airbnb we were too tired and frozen to talk, but at the elevator all we did was laugh. So ended our first adventure in New York, eating hamburgers in a small room and looking at the four of us with happiness.
The second morning began with us venturing into the subway. I was the one who came up with the idea of using it for transportation, so they all put me in charge of the ride. I was wrong and we ended up in Chinatown, not at the 9/11 Memorial as we were supposed to. In my defense, getting lost that day served to eat a good pizza in Little Italy and see the Brooklyn Bridge from afar. The girls were very hesitant about what to eat so I went into the first cafe I saw. We discovered a delicious bubble tea and also a coffee with an impressive aroma. After wandering around for a while, we took the subway again. This time we made sure to take the right direction and get off at the station that was.
In the afternoon we visited the One World Observatory. There we had a full view of the city and enjoy a honey-coloured sunset. The truth is that we were very tired, so the whole visit was full of nervous laughter and badly taken postcards. Kirsten used her polaroid and took a picture where she looked like a ghost, she hated it at the time but I carry it in my wallet as a souvenir. Also, we met a little boy who stole our breath and we chased him around for a while to see how he posed. He was actually very cute. This day we topped it off with a ride on the Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty. It was a quiet ride where we could rest and admire the city at night. A few hours later our last member, Laura, joined us and we had dinner, Southern style.
The last day was full of activity and hunger. We began by walking through Bryant Park, where we saw some little girls skating and had breakfast. Seeing the city awakening around us is something I will not forget. Then we visited Brooklyn Bridge. There we walked for a while and took some incredible pictures. Besides, we proved the theory that it is crossed in half an hour. Soon the sun started to fall and it was time to go home. Before leaving, we stopped to buy and some tourist traps. I wish I could have bought more things, but the suitcase and the weather wouldn't let me.
On the way back our faces were melancholy. It's funny how just three days can make you fall in love with a city. In the car the others fell asleep, while me and Kirsten played Seventeen loudly. The summary of this trip left me with two wonderful albums, three polaroids in my wallet, extra weight and many beautiful memories. This trip was a dream because I was able to share it with my friends, who made New York a city of laughter, plus I got to see places I only dreamed of seeing in pictures. I will always carry the Big City in my heart.