New York, a city people say you have to be in once in your life.
I agree totally, you have to experience it to know it. I had a memorable time over there for reasons one too many.
Although it's been an year since I have been staying in USA, still before going to New York I was apprehensive as to what will I meet; a thought that had once crossed my mind when I left for Mumbai. At Mumbai I had reached at 5 am in the morning and waited for an hour before I called my brother up. Those were the times when land line was the norm and mobile was still a luxury. He had a PP number and the person concerned did not pick up the call initially, and when he did said there was no one with my brother's name. I had a near sinking feeling cause I knew none in the city and started thinking if I should just head back. Luckily I remembered that I have a sister too in the city and after many calls and PP numbers was able to reach her. That is how my tryst with Mumbai started.
My tryst with New York was also memorable. My host was very punctual and reached the airport right on time. There was only problem though, she assumed that the D terminal I was supposed to arrive on was actually just a slang for Delta terminal. So here I am standing on D terminal looking around frantically for a known face while she was at least a mile away. The airport shuttle came to rescue and I met her in another 5-10 mins. Thereafter the journey to home on NY metro was largely uneventful. Next morning I had a meeting with a professor at the New York University and Yasmin offered to come along as it is very easy for a naivete like me to get lost in the subway system. I was much at peace with myself and was looking forward to meet the professor, but that was not to be. At the subway, the train was crowded and after some people made some space at the door I was able to get in and was trying to get her in. She thought it would be better to wait for the next train and coolly stepped off the train and before I could have reacted, the doors closed on me. So here I am seeing her through the closed subway door from inside the train while she was standing on the platform. The beauty of subway system is such that your mobile phones do not work inside it or on the platform and you are bereft of any way to contact the other person until you get out of it. The train accelerated and so did my hear beat, unsure of where to get off or what to do and I was already short on time to meet my professor.
I did what I thought would be sensible, get off the next station and hope that she will board the next train and that she will care enough to get off or look for me on the platform. Luckily the subway system which was insulated for mobile phones, allowed my brain waves to travel across and I spotted her traveling on the next train. I reached in time to meet my professor and had a lovely and fruitful discussion with her. My way back was largely uneventful or you may say that I got used to my host's darting in and out of the subway nature and could make it to the same side of the subway doors before the doors closed upon me.
Another highlight of the trip was meeting old friends in a foreign land but with the same homely feeling. Same jokes, ripostes and grilling each other, yet never getting offended. Roaming around the streets of New York was no different from being at home. So at peace I was, that I said to Yasmin one day before leaving for Saint Louis," I will be back in Baroda tomorrow." There where people all around yet none around but you had ones that mattered, there were loads of confusing streets and names yet you could find your way, innumerable trains and buses going through many a routes enough to get you lost but you reached places on time. A city with chaos yet an order to it.
I hope to be back in New York soon.
