Visit to New York

Over spring break, I had to opportunity to visit a close friend in New York City. She grew up in Fort Wayne with me and moved to NYC for college when we graduated high school in 2011. Since she was not on break she had class and rehearsals, so I spent a lot of time walking around, taking in all the sights and sounds of the grand city. I know people often talk about the amount of people in NYC, but I couldn't get over the amount of places! I have lived in Fort Wayne all of my life so I know about the majority of places here and it's hard to find new places. I couldn't get over the amount of new places I could potentially find in New York, not to mention the variety of these places. In my time there I visited the Met, a beer garden, a club on the Hudson, and a swanky hotel bar decorated like a parlor of an old school explorer. Although most of those things I just mentioned were bar related, there was a lot I could do that didn't have to do with alcohol or being old enough to drink. One day I visited the High Line on the Hudson River, which is an elevated park/ walking path built on an old railway line. I loved the idea of this space because it incorporated the idea of reusing and reinventing space. I think it's a project that other cities can learn from, because it sparks creativity to have to use something that's already there and turn it into something different, and it's good for the environment to put plants and vegetation in a place that doesn't have a lot of it. It's also a space that encourages activeness and isn't focused on commercial gain. I think it's a great public space. So not only was my trip fun, it also helped me think more about spaces and places and what possibilities are out there that I haven't seen in Fort Wayne yet. It reminded me about what I learned at DID about cities learning from each other and sharing ideas. I know NYC is much bigger than Fort Wayne and has a population to support many more places, but I still think that we can be inspired by some of the public spaces and innovative city projects there.