The Enchanted East Side
This morning was pretty rough for me and I ended up getting into the city a little late, however I was able to find my class before anything important happened. I met them at "The Museum of the City of New York," which is located in East Harlem on 5th Ave, between 103rd and 104th St. (ENY, 162). I took the 6 train to 103rd Street and literally ran towards 5th Ave. to meet my class because I knew Professor Russo would not be happy with me . As I was coming closer to 5th Ave. I realized that I was running through a set of projects, which are known as the Carver Houses. Once I got to Fifth Ave. I was like, am I in the Twilight Zone?, everything was so beautiful compared to 50ft. behind me. Finally I found the museum. This museum was founded in 1923 and originally housed Gracie Mansion. It moved to its current location in 1932 (ENY, 163). One of my favorite attractions in this museum was the "Timescapes," which is a 22-minute documentary and provides the viewer with an engaging multimedia timeline of New York City, from when it was first discovered by the Lenape, until now. It was full of interesting facts and contained literally every piece of history a tourist should know. We also learned about all the mansions that used to exist on 5th Ave. that aren't there anymore. An example of one mansion was William Vanderbilt's mansion, which was the second largest in NYC.
This morning was pretty rough for me and I ended up getting into the city a little late, however I was able to find my class before anything important happened. I met them at "The Museum of the City of New York," which is located in East Harlem on 5th Ave, between 103rd and 104th St. (ENY, 162). I took the 6 train to 103rd Street and literally ran towards 5th Ave. to meet my class because I knew Professor Russo would not be happy with me . As I was coming closer to 5th Ave. I realized that I was running through a set of projects, which are known as the Carver Houses. Once I got to Fifth Ave. I was like, am I in the Twilight Zone?, everything was so beautiful compared to 50ft. behind me. Finally I found the museum. This museum was founded in 1923 and originally housed Gracie Mansion. It moved to its current location in 1932 (ENY, 163). One of my favorite attractions in this museum was the "Timescapes," which is a 22-minute documentary and provides the viewer with an engaging multimedia timeline of New York City, from when it was first discovered by the Lenape, until now. It was full of interesting facts and contained literally every piece of history a tourist should know. We also learned about all the mansions that used to exist on 5th Ave. that aren't there anymore. An example of one mansion was William Vanderbilt's mansion, which was the second largest in NYC.
After this museum we walked a block down to meet our tour guide, Luke Nephew, a poet, right outside the entrance of the museum "El Museo del Barrio." Luke informed us
that this museum started out as a box that said "El Museo," and it has evolved to what it is today. "El Museo del Barrio" was founded in 1969 by Puerto Rican activists from East Harlem, seeking to preserve their cultural heritage (ENY, 163). We entered the lobby of the museum and immediately Luke has us form up in a circle. He wanted this because he wanted us to go around saying our names and one word that describes how we are feeling at that moment. We did not go into the actual museum, however from the looks and sounds of the museum, it seemed like a vibrant and interesting place.
that this museum started out as a box that said "El Museo," and it has evolved to what it is today. "El Museo del Barrio" was founded in 1969 by Puerto Rican activists from East Harlem, seeking to preserve their cultural heritage (ENY, 163). We entered the lobby of the museum and immediately Luke has us form up in a circle. He wanted this because he wanted us to go around saying our names and one word that describes how we are feeling at that moment. We did not go into the actual museum, however from the looks and sounds of the museum, it seemed like a vibrant and interesting place.
Once we left that museum we walked back down 103rd Street, and this is when he told us to
stop once we were next the Carver Houses. He told us how this street used to be a river and I thought it was amazing how much the world has changed. We turned down block and we came across a mural, created by James De la Vega. We took a moment to realize what the actually message he was trying to portray to the viewers. It says "Realiza tu sueno," which means become your dream. The message was to live the life you want and you can go past limits that you would never think you can. Luke kept telling us on our adventure through East Harlem how we could not just go through a hood without saying "what's good." This meant that when your in someones house you have to show them that you respect them and thank them for having you there.
stop once we were next the Carver Houses. He told us how this street used to be a river and I thought it was amazing how much the world has changed. We turned down block and we came across a mural, created by James De la Vega. We took a moment to realize what the actually message he was trying to portray to the viewers. It says "Realiza tu sueno," which means become your dream. The message was to live the life you want and you can go past limits that you would never think you can. Luke kept telling us on our adventure through East Harlem how we could not just go through a hood without saying "what's good." This meant that when your in someones house you have to show them that you respect them and thank them for having you there.
Before our final stop with our extraordinary tour guide he gave us the opportunity of hearing one of his poems that he wrote. It was very moving and I wish I could see him again to hear many other of his poems. He told us that this poem was about singing your song and what he means by this is the work we do, the love we bring to our communities, families and friends. According to Luke, that is our music. "We keep our music inside, but sometime we got to be generous with our music." It was about a women that he saw on the train and how beautiful her voice was. One day he close friend was murdered in Colombia and he felt miserable, however the next day he heard this lady's beautiful voice. To Luke, her voice was "the key to free Nelson Mandela." I though this powm was very touching and moving. For our final stop we went to a store owned by Jorge Vargas, aka "Justo." He sold herbal old fashioned remedies. I thought Justo was amazing because he has seen four generations in NYC. He explained to us how he has seen NYC changed completely overtime.
If you want to know more about Luke Nephew please visit his website at www.thepeacepoets.com. "The Peace Poets" is the name of his group. They are a collective of artists that celebrate, examine and advocate for life through music and poetry.
If you want to know more about Luke Nephew please visit his website at www.thepeacepoets.com. "The Peace Poets" is the name of his group. They are a collective of artists that celebrate, examine and advocate for life through music and poetry.
After this we separated to get lunch. I went to this delicious place that served the best tacos I've ever had, called "El Aguila." They were extremely cheap and very tasty. They had mexican goat tacos that I could probably eat all day everyday. If your in East Harlem I highly recommend you go to this place for lunch. Even if your anywhere in the city I suggest you go out of your way to at least try this place one. You will be extremely satisfied.
Nearing the end of the day we headed towards North Central Park, located at 105th Street, entering through the Vanderbilt Gate. This gate was made in Paris in 1894 and originally stood before the Vanderbilt Mansion, which was noted above (ENY, 150). Our professor informed us on how during the mid 19th century, below 14th street, the city was industrial filled, consisting of poor immigrants. It was crowded and this was the time of the cholera epidemic. The only place people could escape to was to cemeteries. They finally realized they needed a park to relax and escape to. They decided to make every part of the park different, French Italian, and English. When we entered through the gate we walked into the Conservatory Garden, the only formal garden in Central Park (ENY, 151). One statue caught my interest. It was of three girls enjoying their time together. This statue was a French statue. At the end of our Central Park stroll Professor Russo gathered us up and talked about what we have learned about NYC. It was cool because he considered this our classroom. I would love to always have class on Manhattan Shiest in the beautiful Central Park.
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Our final major stop was at the exquisite Grand Central Terminal. We kept comparing it to Pennsylvania Station. Penn Station is nothing compared to Grand Central Terminal in terms of architect. This station is considered to be Beaux-Art. This station looked like a museum. The ceiling was beautiful, consisting of constellations. It represents God's perspective looking down at us. If you go downstairs you will find the food court, which has many varieties of food. It looked exactly as i saw it in movies. We ended our day with Professor Russo giving us a little tour of Midtown. We viewed many skyscrappers and hotels and we actually got the chance to go into a couple lobby's. A few buildings that we saw were the Chrysler Building, G.E. building, and the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, which was one of the most elegant hotels I have ever been in. We used their restrooms and it was so nice I would not mid having that as my room.
Overall, this long, amazing day was all worth it again. I realized how lucky I was to get a spot in this class. I know next week is going to be another part of the city that is unknown to me. I can't wait. |
The Wild West Side
Today, our first stop was at the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art), which is one of the most important and influential museums of modern art in the world (ENY, 121.) It contains pieces of art from the 19th and 20th centuries. . I've hear many good things about this museum so I was excited to go. The weather was a little on the downside but I didn't mind much because we were going to be inside most of the time. When we got to the museum it was so crowded. We had to check in our backpacks and there was a 30 minute line. This interfered with our game plan for the rest of the day. I don't think Professor Russo was too happy about that. After our class gathered and we explored the first floor of art. My first impression was that I was surprised and shocked. Some of the exhibits were really weird and made me wonder how this is considered modern art. I guess I would have to think very deep to understand why. For example, some of the the rooms displayed sinks mounted onto the walls, a room with drawn penis's as wallpaper, and a video of someone cutting into a deer head. Some of the exhibits i was creeped out and weirded by but in a way it was fascinating. I wish I could show you pictures, however no photography was allowed. Please take a visit to this museum if you are interested in this kind of art, you won't regret it.
Now it was time for lunch, which everyone was looking forward to because of the hype Professor Russo had about this place. It was called "Yum Yum Bangkok," which serves Thai food, located in Hell's Kitchen. I ordered the Pad Thai and I thought it was delicious. Before our food came out Professor Russo had a litle quiz/game to play, recapping some things that we learned throughtout the class. I ended up not winning but it was still a fun time. This was my second time eating Thai food. The first time was a strike out but this time was a home run, I loved it and can not wait to eat Thai food again. Thank you Professor Russo for reintroducing me to Thai food, if you haven't I probably wouldn't try it again.
After lunch we traveled down 42nd Street towards Uptown where we met our enthusiastic tour guide, Jim. We met up at General Grant National Memorial. This memorial houses General Ulysses S. Grant and his wife in a beautiful red granite sarcophagi casket. "The tomb is build of white granite and consists of a conical dome sitting atop a square base" (ENY, 171). The tomb is shaped in the form of a crosee with a sunken crypt place directly below the tombs dome. Unfortunetly that day we were unable to go to the lower level but it was still amazing to see General Grant's tomb.
Right across the street was Riverside Church. Jim and Professor Russo took the time to tell us a little about this astonishing church. The church is considered to be neo-gothic and was built in 1927. It is also considered the tallest church in America (ENY 172). The outside of the church was breathtaking. I thought it was so cool how if displayed many significant figures that impacted the world. For example Einstein. I wish we were able to go inside but there was a wedding going on so we weren't allowed. I'm sure the inside is as beautiful as the outside.
Today, our first stop was at the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art), which is one of the most important and influential museums of modern art in the world (ENY, 121.) It contains pieces of art from the 19th and 20th centuries. . I've hear many good things about this museum so I was excited to go. The weather was a little on the downside but I didn't mind much because we were going to be inside most of the time. When we got to the museum it was so crowded. We had to check in our backpacks and there was a 30 minute line. This interfered with our game plan for the rest of the day. I don't think Professor Russo was too happy about that. After our class gathered and we explored the first floor of art. My first impression was that I was surprised and shocked. Some of the exhibits were really weird and made me wonder how this is considered modern art. I guess I would have to think very deep to understand why. For example, some of the the rooms displayed sinks mounted onto the walls, a room with drawn penis's as wallpaper, and a video of someone cutting into a deer head. Some of the exhibits i was creeped out and weirded by but in a way it was fascinating. I wish I could show you pictures, however no photography was allowed. Please take a visit to this museum if you are interested in this kind of art, you won't regret it.
Now it was time for lunch, which everyone was looking forward to because of the hype Professor Russo had about this place. It was called "Yum Yum Bangkok," which serves Thai food, located in Hell's Kitchen. I ordered the Pad Thai and I thought it was delicious. Before our food came out Professor Russo had a litle quiz/game to play, recapping some things that we learned throughtout the class. I ended up not winning but it was still a fun time. This was my second time eating Thai food. The first time was a strike out but this time was a home run, I loved it and can not wait to eat Thai food again. Thank you Professor Russo for reintroducing me to Thai food, if you haven't I probably wouldn't try it again.
After lunch we traveled down 42nd Street towards Uptown where we met our enthusiastic tour guide, Jim. We met up at General Grant National Memorial. This memorial houses General Ulysses S. Grant and his wife in a beautiful red granite sarcophagi casket. "The tomb is build of white granite and consists of a conical dome sitting atop a square base" (ENY, 171). The tomb is shaped in the form of a crosee with a sunken crypt place directly below the tombs dome. Unfortunetly that day we were unable to go to the lower level but it was still amazing to see General Grant's tomb.
Right across the street was Riverside Church. Jim and Professor Russo took the time to tell us a little about this astonishing church. The church is considered to be neo-gothic and was built in 1927. It is also considered the tallest church in America (ENY 172). The outside of the church was breathtaking. I thought it was so cool how if displayed many significant figures that impacted the world. For example Einstein. I wish we were able to go inside but there was a wedding going on so we weren't allowed. I'm sure the inside is as beautiful as the outside.
Colombia University was next. I wish I could attend this school. The campus looked so rich and peaceful. This college was the first college established in New York State and the fifth in the U.S. (ENY, 169). Professor Russo noted that this campus was designed by the architectural firm. McKim , Mead, and White. We also stopped by the statue in front of the library, which is the bronze Alma Mater. The figure sits on a throne draped in academic attire with a crown of laurel on her head. If you look closely you will see a hidden owl under the folds of the statues gown.
One of our final stops was in Morningside Heights, which is part of either part of Manhattan's Upper Westside or part of Greater Harlem. There are many disputes of the location of it. We stopped to view Harlem from a high point of view. It was quiet and peaceful from up there. Our final stop was at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and the Peace Fountain. The Peace Fountain is one of my favorite monuments in New York City. It was sculptured by Greg Wyatt and marked the 200th anniversary of the Diocese of New York in 1985. It weaves together many different representations of the conflict between good and evil. Next we went into the cathedral, which is the largest cathedral in the U.S. and the largest Gothic-style cathedral in the world (ENY, 167). When I first walked in I was like OMG this cathedral is HUGE. It has room for 3,000 worshippers (ENY, 167). As we got closer to the altar we passed these mini statues of historic figures, such as, Ghandi, Susan B. Anthony, Albert Einstein, and Martin Luther King.
This is when the day ended. It was yet another day of successful traveling and learning. |
Immigrant New York
Oh no! I know for a fact I set my alarm but it never went off. Today we were instructed to meet at Penn Station by 9:00 AM. I missed that time and ended up meeting my class at the Tenement Museum. I missed the whole tour. You have no idea how mad I was at myself. Even though I missed it I'll tell you about this museum from my handy dandy textbook. This museum is located on 103 Orchard Street, off Delancey Street. It provides the viewer a glimpse into life of the immigrant families who lived in that exact building during the mid-19th century, which was built in 1863 by the Prussian-born immigrant, Lukus Glockner (ENY, 67). Soon, I will take a trip to this museum and find out what I missed. The first activity that I was involved in was when Professor Russo broke us up into groups to explore China town on our own. Professor Russo provided us with directions and places to go and he wanted us to the various amounts of food/snacks Chinatown has to offer. Once we hit Chinatown it felt like I wasn't in New York anymore, the atmosphere was completely different, besides the traffic in the streets. A little history on Chinatown: The first wave of Chinese immigrants came to the U.S. shortly after 1868 and settled around the area of Mott. St. (ENY, 72). A few stops that we took were at "Vivi," where they served bubble tea (I'm not a fan of it). Some of my classmates got it. Next we went into a Buddhist temple where you were able to pick your own fortune. My spoke about becoming a leader and giving all that I have at all times, it was very positive. On the left you can see a picture of a statue that was in the Buddhist temple. This temple is called Po Zhao Buddhist Temple and is located on 20 Eldridge St. Our next meet up spot was at Congee Village, where we ate lunch. I loved this place. The servers would bring out meals after meals after meals. I wish we stayed their all day just trying new dishes. This restaurant is located at 100 Allen St., between Delancy and Broome Street, and serves a wide variety of Cantonese dishes (ENY, 79). |
After lunch we had another tour with our acquaintance Jim. We strolled onto Rivington Street where Jim explained the first settlement house in NYC. That was a quick detour. Prof. Russo then brought us to the biggest candy store I have ever been in. It wasn't big in size but it had one of the largest variety of candy. Every corner of the store was filled with candy. Theres was no place that you would look and you wouldn't find candy. I ended up buying Sweet Tarts, watermelon Sour Patch, and crackers with chocolate. This candy store is called Economy Candy and first opened in 1937 (ENY, 67).
Our last and final stop was at the Henry Street Settlement, which was founded in 1893 by Lillian Wald, a nursing student who was disappointed by the conditions she encountered on the Lower east Side. The purpose of it was that the nurses would bring health care to people's homes, rather than having them come to a clinic for treatment (ENY, 69).
Overall, today was a good day. The weather was perfect and we had a good time. The food was awesome, along with the candy. Once again my favorite part of today was visiting the Peace Fountain. I loved all aspects about it, the monument itself and also the environment around it.
Our last and final stop was at the Henry Street Settlement, which was founded in 1893 by Lillian Wald, a nursing student who was disappointed by the conditions she encountered on the Lower east Side. The purpose of it was that the nurses would bring health care to people's homes, rather than having them come to a clinic for treatment (ENY, 69).
Overall, today was a good day. The weather was perfect and we had a good time. The food was awesome, along with the candy. Once again my favorite part of today was visiting the Peace Fountain. I loved all aspects about it, the monument itself and also the environment around it.
Lower Manhattan
Alright so this was our last day. It was a beautiful day to end the class with. At this point I am upset that the class is over but at the same time I'm like I'm free on Saturdays now! Today we toured around Lower Manhattan. Lower Manhattan is where New York City began (ENY, 39). Our first stop was the financial district where Wall Street is located. Our first major activity today was going to the Fraunces Tavern Museum, which is one of the most important historical sites in Lower Manhattan (ENY, 55). The building that contains this museum is considered to be Manhattan's oldest surviving building, being built in 1719. We learned here that this was the place that General George Washington announced that he was stepping down from his power. We discussed how it was incredible how he did this because he literally had so much power, however he never abused it. In 1904 the building was bought by the Sons of the Revolution and restored to its original Georgian style (ENY, 55). The lower part of the building is used as a restaurant that is probably delicious. As we were leaving the building you could smell the food and it smelt so good. One of my favorite things we learned about in the museum was about General Lafayette, who worked alongside with General Washington and changed the direction of the American military. There is also a flag room that contains the flags that we used since the beginning of the 13 colonies until now. Our current flag was made by Betsy Ross in 1777. |
Our next stop was Wall Street. We sat on the steps of the National Museum of the American Indian, right near Bowling Green Park. Prof. Russo informed us how each statue in front of this museum represents four continents, which I thought looked pretty cool. We walked through Bowling Green Park and passed the fountain, which is made to commemorate the completion of the Croton Aqueduct in 1842 (ENY, 54). Next we walked by the Charging Bull and had a few laughs. After this we headed to Hudson Eats for lunch. We walked along a promenade where you could see New Jersey. The weather was perfect for this. Once we made it t our destination for lunch I was excited to eat. Hudson Eats is a food court so there were many different places to choose from. I ended up getting a burrito from Dos Tacos. I enjoyed it a lot, it was almost as good as Chipotle. If your in the area I recommend you come here because of the variety of places. It has Mexican, Vietnamese-Cambodian, BBQ, Japanese, and Italian food.
After lunch we went to the 9-11 Memorial, located in the World Trade center complex (ENY, 48). I have never been there before so I was excited to see it. This memorial opened up in 2011 and was designed by Michael Arad and Peter Walker and they called it "Reflecting Absence." The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation held a competition and had 5.201 submissions and the results were Arad's and Walker's design. This memorial is where the original Twin Towers used to be. It consists of two one acre pools with 30 ft waterfalls. These waterfalls are the largest manmade waterfalls in the U.S. (ENY, 49). The border of the waterfalls hold the names of the victims of the 9-11 attacks. Professor Russo told us about a tree that survived during the attacks. This tree is called the "Survivor Tree," and was planted during the 1970's (ENY, 49). I really loved this place. It was peaceful and very moving. I also like the actual memorial itself. It is very fascinating to look at. I kept wondering how deep the hole was in the middle and also wondered why the designers made it so that the viewer couldn't see where the hole ended. You can see some family members and friends of the victims mourning over there loss. I am thankful for all the people who died helping others that day.
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For the last thing we did with the class was sit on the step of the Tweed Courthouse. Prof. Russo directed our attention to the Municipal Building, which is one of the largest governmental buidling in the world (ENY, 48). We also talked about the Tweed Courthouse, aka The Old New York Courthouse. It was built between 1861 and 1881 and has an Italianate-style design. It was designed by John Kellum and Leopold Eidlitz, two of New York's most prominent 19th century architects (ENY, 48).
This concluded our class. Sadly this would be our last class ever. Prof. Russo dismissed the class but he gave us the option to go to the Brooklyn Brewery and he would walk us over. Half the class left and they missed out. To get to the Brooklyn Brewery we had to walk over the Williamsburg Bridge. The construction of the bridge began in 1896 and was completed in 1903. This bridge set the record for the longest suspension bridge in the world (ENY, 197). Walking over the bridge was a good time. It held wonderful views and the time of day made it even better. The sun was setting and was just perfect. It was a good way to end the day. |
Final Impressions of New York
Wow, so my view of New York has totally changed. I knew there was so many places I never knew of and I'm so thankful this class gave me the opportunity to explore them. I am now confident that I can make my way in the city on my own without help from a friend or my phone. The avenues run north and south and the streets run east to west. We were only able to go to certain museums but I am excited to see a lot more. This class also gave me the opportunity to see all the different areas and ethnicities. It was awesome to see the difference between each area. Before this class I did not think we would learn about the different building styles. Now when I go I can impress my friends by telling them the exact design of any building. Thank you Professor Russo for that. I also got the chance to try many different foods. I am now a fan of Thai and Indian food. I can not wait to continue to explore the city. I am going to make an effort to go to the city at least twice a month, exploring many museums, churches, parks, restaurants, and historical sites. I am very thankful Molloy has this class but we could only thank Professor Russo for that. If you have the chance to take this class, I highly recommend it. You will not regret it.
Wow, so my view of New York has totally changed. I knew there was so many places I never knew of and I'm so thankful this class gave me the opportunity to explore them. I am now confident that I can make my way in the city on my own without help from a friend or my phone. The avenues run north and south and the streets run east to west. We were only able to go to certain museums but I am excited to see a lot more. This class also gave me the opportunity to see all the different areas and ethnicities. It was awesome to see the difference between each area. Before this class I did not think we would learn about the different building styles. Now when I go I can impress my friends by telling them the exact design of any building. Thank you Professor Russo for that. I also got the chance to try many different foods. I am now a fan of Thai and Indian food. I can not wait to continue to explore the city. I am going to make an effort to go to the city at least twice a month, exploring many museums, churches, parks, restaurants, and historical sites. I am very thankful Molloy has this class but we could only thank Professor Russo for that. If you have the chance to take this class, I highly recommend it. You will not regret it.