Travel: Impressions of New York Volume II

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that a few weeks ago I was in New York City for work (and if you don't, you should! I often post stories of unboxing and photos of products I won't do a full review of on the blog, like this mouthwatering marshmallow shower gel). When I wasn't working, I walked around enjoying the city and taking a few pictures (and sometimes watching HGTV in my hotel room, but hey, I was jetlagged!). Here are a few of my photos and feelings about NYC!

I'm a city girl to the core. The city I was born and grew up in is nowhere as huge and busy as New York, but it's urban - something that I sorely miss in Southern California. Here I can't really walk places, public transportation is non-existent, and the streets are empty except for homeless people...

So when I visit NYC, I have this strong feeling that I'm back home. The bustling city is my element. The packed subway, crowded sidewalks, people chilling in the park at night, the noise, the smells, everything takes me to my happy place. There's an incredible energy that radiates from a dense city and I'll take that, frenzy, fury, madness and all, over the sleepiness of single-family house San Diego. Yes it's exhausting after a while, but a short visit recharges my batteries with pure life force.

In the crowd I also get a glimpse of the infinity of life paths and destinies that cross, accidentally bump into each other, and disappear around a street corner. From a group of young Wall Street bro's to old hippies, preppy girls wearing the trendiest fashion brands or runners in their sport bras, it looks like anyone belongs here, and so I feel like I do, too. Central Park is a great place for people watching, especially on a hot and sunny day when it becomes the main attraction for locals and tourists alike.

The Lake, Central Park

Humans collide and mix in the public space, and so do art and architecture. Although I'm far from a specialist, I really like art deco architecture, and I love walking around Midtown with my nose up, looking for chevrons. You'd be amazed by the number of chevrons you can spot. But the really cool thing is that art deco chevrons mix with neo-gothic vaults, beaux-arts columns and international style straight lines, creating an eclectic collage of styles and influences that you can't find anywhere else.

Chanin building, Midtown

Chrysler building and its steel gargoyles

Mobil Building

United Nations Building

Inside Tudor City

Grand Central Terminal

Chrysler building

St Patrick's cathedral

This time I also spend a couple of days in Brooklyn, where I finally discovered what makes this borough a popular place to live. Just a few subway stations away from the pulsating Manhattan, you can find quiet streets lined with trees and rows of brick houses. It's peaceful yet so close to the energy center of the city, and the hipster cafes don't hurt, if you ask me.

Brooklyn

And of course there's the skyline. Can you ever get tired of that? Probably not. There's something about an urban landscape reflecting in water that I find mesmerizing. I never grew tired of watching the silhouette of Sultanahmet over the Bosphorus when I lived in Istanbul, even after 5 years. Watching Manhattan from Brooklyn has the same effect on me, filling me with wonder.