It’s time to write about my final destination. After flying from Los Angeles to New York me and Anna managed to get to Anna’s ‘hometown’ Albany, even though the traffic in New York did its best to prevent us from reaching it. Christmas went by just chilling, being lazy and eating at Anna’s roommates’ parents’. So basically it wasn’t that different from a Christmas in Finland, except that the dishes were really different. And I have to admit I never managed to get a proper Christmas spirit, but that’s rather understandable. On Friday after Christmas Anna’s roommates threw her a farewell party, and I got the change to see Albany’s nightlife. Had a great time, and I really understand why Anna’s been enjoying her stay.
On Saturday we took the bus to New York City and stayed there till Friday. I can’t remember what we saw and did on each day, but basically Anna managed to show me everything south of 72nd street or something: Central Park, Fifth Avenue, Empire State Building, Rockefeller Centre, Times Square, Broadway, Grand Central Station, Chinatown, Statue of Liberty etc. But the greatest sight was Manhattan itself. It’s completely different of any city I’ve visited, so packed with people and so busy. And yet really intriguing.
The real ‘activities’ of our stay were a New York Knicks match in Madison Square Garden and the musical Chicago on Broadway. The basketball match was really cool; the arena was rather full, the game of course better than any basketball I’ve seen before and the atmosphere great even though the Knicks lost after all. Also the Broadway musical was brilliant, it’s hard to believe how much talent there is just on one single street and how the theatres can be full for year’s every single day.
After all the glory there was New Year’s Eve… As we were in the city we thought we just have to get to Times Square to welcome year 2009. We got there at half past six, and managed to get to the corner of 49th street when the main activities were at the corner of 42nd. We saw the famous ball alright, but didn’t see or hear anything from the program. And then after waiting and freezing for almost six hours the ball finally dropped, some colourful lights and screens flashed for a while and then that was it. No fireworks, no nothing. I got the feeling the people there were more decoration than an actual audience. Shame. Thankfully everything was saved on New Year’s Day when we had an excellent brunch and visited the American Museum of Natural History.
Actually New Year’s was the only disappointment I’ve had in the States. All the sights and things we’ve seen and done have been just as great as I expected. I even got to really like Manhattan, even though it’s really, really crowded and full of tourists at some spots. And the people here seem friendly, open-minded and definitely more social than in Finland, at least in general.
Again I’m writing on an airport, this time from JFK waiting for my flight to Helsinki. And because I’m flying with Finnair, there are Finns around me. It’s strange to hear Finnish, and honestly I’m not sure if I’m ready for it. I have a strong urge to play a Finland’s Swede on the plane just to get to continue talking a foreign language :) But, after all I have to admit that going home feels quite good, even though I’m gonna miss everything associated with my exchange…
For photos, go to http://picasaweb.google.com.au/jyjuvi/NewYorkState
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