A NEW YORK MINUTE - PT. 1

A New York Minute is shorter than a blink of an eye, they say. And after 6 days of stumbling through this buzzing city of dreams I can totally see why. So many adventures, so little time.

The Big Apple welcomed us with open arms in form of a highly hospitable airport driver who stopped the cab right ON the motorway to let us take some obligatory skyline pictures. It might have been the mix of life-threatening experiences paired with American hospitality that instantly made me fall in love with New York City. Minutes later, on the way to our dreamy hotel, the concrete jungle finally swallowed our taxi and left me overwhelmed for 144 hours. And counting.

The next thing I can remember is getting squeezed into a high-tech elevator, shooting us up to the 86th floor of the Empire State Building. When you’re standing on this platform, crammed like a Penguin breeding ground, you know you’re about to see something special: The view over 8.4 million New Yorkers (tourist swarms not included) and their flashing streets. This is e p i c. Unforgettable, although I preferred Top of the Rock. Less tourists, more view. I stood there and felt so small. I mean how enormous is Central Park???

This is an American thing anyway: Everything is bigger, faster, fatter and louder. You even have to ask for a small menu at Mc Donald’s, which ends up being a European medium Haha. The NYC diet made me feel like a bloated whale. I blame you, heavenly cheddar cheese popcorn! And Choc Chip Cookies. And double cheese pizza. And…

At least I got to treat my long-haul tortured skin at the historical Kiehl’s Apothecary in East Village. As a big fan of their skincare range it was a great experience to dive into the brand history and how it all began.

The Pharmacy is a 15mins walk and 100 honking cars away from the Flat Iron Building. Who lives in there? And isn’t it annoying to live in one of the world’s most famous buildings? I mean you can’t just open the blinds half-naked because a million tourists is staring at your window and….your boobs.

Anyway, Grand Central Station is cool (Wifi everywhere and the biggest Apple Store I’ve ever seen) but not as cool as Times fuckin’ Square. It’s like the grown-up version of a Toys“R“us, full of dazzling advertisment, weirdos (the naked cowboy is boring, btw), food trucks and the Disney Store. Hashtag Bedazzled.

It’s just like Alicia said: If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.

To be continued…