PASSING FOR NORMAL

LC’s visit to New York

I always like to see New York in the eyes of people who visit for the first time. I almost want to ask them how they made it so far without checking this place out and how will they go on and leave it after they have lived its charm. LC came recently to have a night on the town. This guy is, in case you don’t know him (except for you Laila), the most adorable little guy. He’s the quintessential second generation (even if not technically) Lebanese person who still identify with back home and wants to move back for sure not even knowing why or what he is missing out on. I took the opportunity to live the experience of discovering the city one more time through his eyes. And here’s how Manhattan goes… As you leave the borroughs, you’re almost surprised by its grandeur and beauty. Every city has its feel and its identity. It’s a recipe made of the little details and the ones not to be missed; the different architectural patterns, the street signs, people’s attitudes and the landmarks. New York’s charm is hidden behind the giant concrete monstrosities and the cold distant glass and the undependability of the bridges. As you get to know it, you start to understand. Away from the comfort of the familiarity, it wraps you up in a still cold blanket only to warm up to you. It’s a city that needs to get to know you before it can embrace you. From the distant cold faces of upper east wasps to the almost bohemian relaxed attitude of the village inhabitants. From the museum stretch, the public library and the opera house to the street vendors in Soho to the hooka joints everywhere. From the magical peaceful atmosphere of the park to the havoc of Broadway and Times square.From little Italy to China town to little Brazil to the German quarter to the Latin quarter to the Egyptian streets. A real cosmopolitan pumping life. Restless imageries and never ending changing scenery. You have to live it to realize. This is not a place that grows on you and it’s not a city that you choose. This is a city that chooses you. Just like a lover, she teases you with unpredictability and constant bickering. She wears you down till one day, a random day, she warms up to you.
It is not as warm as Beirut, not as majestic as Rome, not as delicate as Paris and not as pretty as Barcelona. It is New York. Just like that.

(pic: Meghan Jost)