I wrote this before Birthright but didn’t get the chance to post it because I was too busy living in the moment of that trip and am just now getting around to it.

Unfortunately I tested positive for Covid right after Birthright so that fucks up part (if not all) of my Portugal trip with the fam but I am currently quarantining in Tel Aviv. More to come on that story with the Birthright post but there’s a little sneak peek into where I’m at right now.

It was a great 9 day stint in Sarasota, got exactly the rest needed to re-energize myself and completed the last minute planning/research required before my adventure begins. I kept saying I would figure out all the loose ends for my trip when I got to Sarasota and can proudly say that I accomplished everything I wanted to. My life for the next 7 months is packed, and I’m officially ready to live out of my backpack. I also spent a lot of quality time with my parents and eating my Dad’s amazing cooking; saw Grandpa twice; practiced Spanish daily; went on the classic boat ride to Old Salty Dog; got incredibly sunburnt on Siesta Key beach; watched the eclipse; had lunch with Carol at Zach’s bench; sold my car for twice the trade in value I got offered last year; got dinner with Jared and Peter; went to David and Patti’s condo; had dinner and drinks with Steven, Sarah, and Cristian; and of course ate a Pub Sub. It was jam packed but still relaxing. I now feel more mentally ready than ever for the trip and am so excited for what’s ahead! So many months of preparation all leading to the journey ahead.

But I had one last stop in America before leaving the country for the rest of the year. What better place to exit the US than New York City?! May not have seen any live music or had any super late nights out in the city that never sleeps but I got a real first hand experience of what NYC is all about. I caught up with so many different friends, walked all around the neighborhoods of Brooklyn and Manhattan, chilled in the biggest parks, ate bomb food, went to a museum, and soaked in the energy of constantly being around thousands of people. Just like my week long trip to SF last year I feel like I truly know the city better and get why so many people want to live in these two cities even though rent is astronomical and the lifestyle costs a fortune. I would never live in either city (well maybe briefly if I won the lotto) but I will definitely continue to come back throughout my life.

It was also a good reminder of how I want to prioritize my time when I travel to big cities in South America. I think if you truly understand your own style of travel and what you get the most pleasure doing then your trips will be a so much better experience. You don’t have to force yourself to do what’s popular if it’s not something your into because there are always so many other things a city or place can offer that provides more value to the individual traveler. That’s also the beauty of traveling solo, you get to choose what you want to do, and not have to worry about the group. Of course I still love the social interactions of traveling with a group or getting pushed into doing something you wouldn’t normally do that you end up really enjoying.

I flew into LaGuardia and got picked up by the G Train himself. And no that’s not a subway line, it’s one of my good friends from Tulane, Matt Garber. He lives in Queens so not in the heart of the city or the most glamorous borough – immediately lots of trash in the street and scaffolding on the buildings. In the words of Garber “this place sucks” but he’s also a die hard Mets fan so he’s used to things sucking. We shot the shit for a bit then called it an early night because he had to work the next day.

Day 1: Where Brooklyn At?

Can’t start my first morning in New York without a bagel and lox so I walked to Bialy’s. It really is true that New York bagels are so much better than anywhere else, the perfect softness. Now that I was full and caffeinated it was time for some exploring; took the E > 6 > 4 to the Brooklyn bridge. Done like a true pro. I’m a cheese ball so I was listening to all the classic New York songs on the way:

-Empire State of Mind: JAY Z and Alicia Keys

-N.Y. State of Mind: Nas

-New York, I Love You but You’re Bringing Me Down: LCD Soundsystem

-New York City: moe.

-New York City: Peter Malick and Norah Jones

I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge with thousands of other people; you could tell who was a tourist and who was a local based on how fast they were walking and whether or not they were stopping every 5 feet to take a photo. The views of Manhattan from the bridge are absolutely incredible with the expansive skyline and the allure of America’s biggest city off in the distance. And of course the view walking toward Brooklyn is no slouch either. I was dance walking across the bridge to LCD Soundsystem which was perfectly fitting music to cross into Brooklyn to. There was tons of street vendors on both sides of the bridge selling hats and random souvenirs but none of the salespeople were pushy like you would see in other countries.

Once across I strolled along the Brooklyn Bridge promenade which had all sorts of daytime activity going on. Pier 2 had basketball courts, ping pong tables, and a playground all with the amazing city backdrop across the river. Pier 3 was this beautifully forested park on the pier with fresh spring scent in the air and narrow pathways winding through art sculptures. Felt like it could have been a haunted maze with someone popping out at every corner.

Then I made my way up from the water and walked the Brooklyn Heights, which has that classic New York look you see in movies. It’s a residential neighborhood with old brick buildings that have stoops and fire ladder escapes and are so close together that it’s hard to tell where one ends and the next begins. These buildings have definitely seen some crazy shit over the years. NYC has such a storied history, both good and bad, and you can really feel it in the air when you walk through the different parts of towns. I continued walking through a more busy downtown Brooklyn to Fort Green Park and got lunch at Walter’s for some good ole fashioned American food and an ice cold one. From there I made my way down to Prospect Park and found a shady spot in the middle of the park under a tree to lie under and chill.

I am really impressed with all the green space in the city. There are so many parks everywhere that no matter where you live you’re just a short walk away from one. And they are really beautiful and lively parks too. I guess since everyone lives in such a small space you have to take advantage of getting outside and hanging in the park especially with great late spring weather.

I walked through Prospect Park Woodlands, Brooklyn’s last remaining forest, and it almost felt like taking a hike in Colorado (minus the elevation) with the luscious green trees and dirt pathway. This type of space really puts my soul in its happy place. It may not be the mountains but just the peace and quiet of walking between the trees elevated my mood and mindset.

After a long day of walking all around Brooklyn I made my way to the SE corner of Prospect Park to go over to Joe’s place (my college roommate 3 of the 4 years). Good thing I’m a fast walker and like to hike long distances so I can cover a lot of ground walking around a city. My landlord when studying abroad in France said “tu marches comme un Parisian” which means you walk like a Parisian, and she’s not wrong. Being a fast walker also helps me look less like a tourist. Best way to get to know a city is walking around soaking in the energy of the neighborhoods, people watching, and gazing at all the different buildings, restaurants, and shops. It also gives me a better directional sense of the city layout. And the best part is it’s free!

Joe has an incredible spot! It’s the top floor of a 3 story townhouse and it was actually a really good size space, especially for New York. And he is only a 1 block walk away from Prospect Park. We decided it made more sense to just hang around his area rather than going all the way back to Garber’s place in Queens for me to change just to head back into the city. So in true wook backpacker status I borrowed some of his clothes and channeled my inner Joe Eichner look. We grabbed a drink at his neighborhood bar, The Double Windsor, and it just started dumping rain. Looks like we’ll have to hang around here for a few drinks but it all worked out because we had a lot to catch up on. Luckily the rain had pretty much stopped by the time we hit the subway toward Chinatown for dinner. It was a Tulane family affair that night at Wu’s Wonton King, a classic Chinese restaurant with the Peking ducks hanging from the windows and lazy Susan’s on the table (although ours didn’t have one). We had a great turnout of classic Tulane hosses – me, Joe, Scotty, Garber, Nate, and Owen. I hadn’t seen most these guys since before Covid and Owen since graduating college so it was an awesome reunion. Even they all hadn’t seen much of either over the past few years since everyone gets busy in their own lives and that whole pandemic thing. It was really great to see everyone, and not gonna lie…we’re all crushing it. Roll wave! Scotty is a great chef and knows how to order at this type of family style Asian restaurant so we let him take charge. Ahhh reminded me of the Yen and Vicky days where they ordered the different Dim Sum plates and I just had to show up and eat the delicious food. Unfortunately got no photos of the boys all together or the food; was too busy catching up but I really do need to be better about capturing the moments during this trip. I’ve never been great at that but it really is worth it later.

After dinner half the crew went home. That’s how you know we’re in our 30s now, 3 out of 6 people go home at 9 on a Friday night. This same crew that would party til sunrise in New Orleans. Oh well such is life. Me, Scotty, and Joe went to 169 Bar for Scotty’s friend’s bday party and it was kinda fun but way too packed standing around the leopard print pool table while people were trying to play. Joe and I left after a few drinks and headed to Montero Bar in Brooklyn to meet his girlfriend and another one of their friends. And the last pleasant surprise of the evening was that Mark (another Tulane friend) met us there as well. We ended up doing multiple rounds of whiskey shots and beers just like the good ole days. I was pretty toasty by the end of the night. No clue what time it was when we left but obviously wasn’t going to make the trek back to Queens so I ended up sleeping on Joe’s couch.

Day 2: Party in the Park

Woke up the next morning feeling a little rough, damn you whiskey shots!! Luckily the bagel and lox from Terrace Bagels helped settle my stomach. Although they had a heavy hand on the cream cheese and I had to wipe some cream cheese mountain off. Joe’s friend had biked over but the two of us were still feeling rough so we needed a dumb comedy on Netflix to help ease us into the day and Senior Year hit the spot. After a quick jaunt to the bookstore, because that’s what you do when you hangout with Joe, we rented City Bikes and road about 30 minutes to Marsha P Johnson Park in Williamsburg for Joe’s friend’s bday celebration. It was a nice, mostly downhill ride through Brooklyn and I feel like I really got a good sense of that area between walking around the day before and that bike ride. Marsha P was a really small park and you technically weren’t allowed to drink in it so we had to hide all our Seltzers in Joe’s bag but it all worked out. It actually had a great view of the city and wasn’t very crowded which on a warm spring day like this probably couldn’t be said about most parks in New York City that day. I got to see yet another Tulane friend for the first time since college as Marco also hangs out with this crew of people. It was really good catching up with him, he’s always been a super genuine guy and very easy to converse with. I also chatted quite a bit with a handful of other people; I really enjoyed Joe’s friend group. A lot of intellectuals that like to read books and are very well spoken. Even though I have my big party side to me I can fit in with the best of them with that crew too. The Leo in me has always prided myself in adapting to whatever type of people I hang out with.

Before I knew it we were still in the park as the sun had gone day and it was already 9pm. Five hours flys by when the booze and conversations are flowing all around. While there were snacks at the park none of us had actually eaten dinner but instead of going that route we went to drink more at one of the guy’s from the park’s apartment in Williamsburg. It was a super nice building and his place was dope, but the real highlight was the rooftop with incredible views of the city. Based on what other people have said their rent is I wouldn’t be surprised if this place cost $5K/month. We were reaping the benefits though because that rooftop was a great place to be hanging and drinking on a Saturday night. My 30 year old ass would much rather party with friends on someone’s apartment rooftop than go out to a bar.

All of the sudden it was 1am and I had over an hour commute to Queens and was starving. As you all know I suck at leaving the party but luckily Marco was trying to leave too so I used his exit as my cue. The 1am subway crowd was certainly quite interesting. While waiting for it to arrive people were shit talking this one guy across the tracks. Just glad it wasn’t me. Even though I am very mellow and conflict free, my skin toughens and senses heighten in situations where there is potential danger afloat. I mean I have lived in New Orleans, Houston, and Denver; and have traveled to countless big cities domestically and internationally so I know how to handle myself. 

Once I got on the subway there was this dude passed out using his pizza box as a pillow. He eventually woke up, took out a slice, ate a bite, pass backed out again, and repeat. I got off at the 2nd to last stop and he was still out cold. That dude was probably going to be riding back and forth on the J line all night. I made it back to Garber’s and luckily he had ordered a ‘za so I finally got some food in my stomach. We chilled briefly but it was late at this point so we called it a night.

Day 3: Upper West Siiiide

Woke up and hung with Garber for a bit but he had his weekly volunteering gig at the animal shelter so I just chilled and ordered Thai food from Kin’d. Don’t think South America will have much authentic Thai food so I had to get one last papaya salad before the trip. It was tasty and had a nice kick to it but still can’t match the spice of the Yen Ton version. Then I gathered all my things into my giant backpack for the migration to Jared and Annie’s apartment (Denver friends that recently moved to NY) in the Upper West side by Central Park. In hindsight I could have left my giant pack and just brought my day pack since I was gonna stay with Garber again on Tuesday because he lives closer to JFK. But that didn’t cross my mind until I was already out of his house walking to the subway. Oh well, it was good practice for what’s ahead with my travel, traversing major cities with a nearly 40 pound pack. It didn’t help that it was 88 degrees and sunny out. Certainly going to take some getting used to but I got this. Made it to Jared and Annie’s and that was yet another warm reunion as it’d been about 9 months since they left Denver. After a bit of catching up we headed to Jared’s cousin’s new speak easy Pine and Polk in Hudson Village. The matcha gin milkshake drink I had was perfect for a hot day and the veggie board was fuego. Here I go advertising again but all my New York friends should check it out if your in the area, it’s a really cool vibe.

Afterwards we walked around the West Village, which all the shops were pretty much shutdown after 5 on a Sunday, but I got the gist of what that neighborhood has to offer. Then we grabbed dinner at Suprema Provisions which is a nice Italian restaurant that also happens to have one of the best burgers in town. While it felt weird to order a burger at an Italian restaurant, I needed one last good burger before the trip and it did not disappoint…perfectly cooked and the juiciness was on point. Who would’ve thunk Italian burgers would be son damn good?! After dinner we chilled for a bit at their place but called it an early night since they both had to work. I needed it too after 2 straight party nights. 30 year old me doesn’t have the stamina like I used to.

Day 4: Power Walking Manhattan and a Good Laugh

I woke up at 9:30 ready for a day of exploring Manhattan but first, you guessed it, another bagel and lox breakfast. Per Jared’s recommendation I went to Zucker’s Bagel and Smoked Fish and it got my day started off right. My first stop was Strawberry Fields in City Park which has a giant Imagine plaque in the sidewalk and the guy sitting there strumming his acoustic guitar was playing Imagine. Wonder how many times he does that a day…

Then I headed north through the park along the Lake through Shakespeares Garden and the Ramble woodlands. There are so many different paths to take; it’s a choose your own adventure based on whichever one looks most appealing. I continued past the Great Lawn and went around the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir which had some phenomenal views of the Manhattan skyline.

Made my way back to the middle of the park and lied in the grass in front of Turtle Pond facing Belvedere Castle. There was a lot of art students painting and a yoga class going on so I decided to be productive as well and practice Spanish on my Babbel app. I am still a total beginner level but I have come a long way from using this app and supplementing it with some online resources. I used to only know the complete basics like hola and adios but now I’ve got a wider range of vocab and grammar under my belt. The hardest part is getting the adult brain to remember it all. But I just have to remember it’s a long, slow process that isn’t going to happen over night. A little bit of practice every day helps, which has been tough at times these past few weeks with all the stuff I’ve been doing. Once I’m living in South America and surrounded by Spanish all the time I think I will see some good improvement.

I continued my way through the rest of the park and then walked down Fifth avenue between the gigantic buildings surrounded by hundreds of people and high end fashion brand stores which really makes you feel small. It’s pretty amazing how many people were out and about on a Monday afternoon shopping, eating on the restaurant patios, and just walking around. I was power walking to Sound Tribe Red Rocks 2019 looking like a real New Yorker making my way through the crowds. The nice thing about traveling alone is I can walk fast as shit and not have to wait for anyone. I walked all the way down 5th Ave to the giant Macy’s on 35th to get a belt then continued walking down Broadway to Soho/Little Italy area. My end destination was Prince Street Pizza which was recommended by Jared and Annie as their favorite spot in town. There was a line out the door at 2pm so that was a good sign. Not typical New York pizza but I get the hype – the sauce and the flavor was incredible. Of course gotta top off my meal with a gelato while in the little Italy area and went to Figo Il Gelato Italiano down the street.

From there I headed to Washington Square Park which was the best people watching of all the parks I’d been to. Much smaller than Central Park and Prospect Park so all the action was happening in one place. Also it’s in the heart of the city and right next to NYU so it was extremely lively on a Monday afternoon – street performers, skateboarders and bikers doing tricks, people hanging on blankets with friends or reading a book solo, and the smell of joint smoke wafting in the air. I was having a great relaxing time until the this crazy guy came to my area and started talking shit to everyone and yelling ridiculous things when people stood up to leave which scared the crowd away. There was no sign of him leaving so that was my cue to move on with my day and I found an outdoor patio bar in Greenwich Village, Off the Wagon, for a couple beers.

After a long day of walking (probably over 12 miles) I was ready to take the subway back to Jared and Annie’s. We chilled for a bit then headed to dinner at Mermaid Inn which had incredible seafood, quite possibly my best meal in New York. Got ceviche and a kale Caesar as the appetizer and seared yellowtail tuna with cauliflower fried rice as my entree. Straight fire. Seemed like the type place where you can’t go wrong with anything you ordered. After dinner we went back to their place and I spread the good word of 82 Moons, my band in Denver before I left. Link here to our YouTube channel if you wanna check out some ripping Saturn Rock Moon Funk.

Jared and Annie went to bed early for work but everyday is Saturday when your retired like me so I had bought tickets for the 11:30 late show at Comedy Cellar. It’s one of the most famous comedy venues in the country and is known to have famous comedians randomly pop in to do standup. Plus the other acts are usually amazing too because they are trying to make a name for themselves in the scene. Dave Attell was billed as the final act so that’s already a big name to look forward to. The line wrapped around the corner and ended up filling the entire venue once we were let in. The word on the street was that Monday and Tuesday are actually the best nights since touring comedians aren’t on the road and are back in NYC after the weekend. I was seated in the back corner since I was riding solo which at first I was like ah man but then I thought about how the front row probably gets ripped on at these types of shows and boy did they. The MC, James Mattern, came out just before midnight and his whole bit was just talking shit to the people in the front. I’m sure he has some back pocket ammo for things to say but it was pretty much all ad libbed. Then he was followed by 6 different comedians that all performed for 15-20 minutes. It was absolutely hilarious. My favorite was actually the first guy, Gianmarco Soresi, who had this great self deprecating sense of humor and some top notch punchlines. The next couple acts (Caitlin Peluffo, Shaun Murphy, Franqi French, and Sean Payton) all had the place roaring with laughter too and each one had pretty distinctive senses of humor. Dave Attell closed it off with a bang (so unfortunately no unexpected pop ups). You could tell he was gauging audience response for new material for the road as most his jokes were short and quick whereas the other comedians felt like they were doing more of their established bit. The show ended up going until 2 in the morning and I was so glad that I went. Would highly recommend the Comedy Cellar for any stand up fans living in/visiting New York.

Day 5: Softball Scorekeeper

Got up around 9:30 again the next morning and walked over to Tap and finally strayed away from bagel and lox for an açaí bowl because I’m a full on New Yorker at this point. Then I did another stroll through Central Park trying to take different paths than the day before and checking out some new areas. Also had another Spanish practice session under a shady tree. From there I met Joe in Rockefeller Plaza where we grabbed some dank Italian sandwiches from Alidoro and ate them outside in the plaza. I said a final goodbye to my dude and went to the MoMA. I respect the work of an artist but am very uncultured in the art world. The top floor had a lot of classic artists like Picasso (of course I saw Starry Night), Monet, Matisse, etc. There was some other really cool paintings that drew me in as well. The 3rd and 2nd floor got more contemporary as you went down. Some of the stuff was really cool, I do thoroughly enjoy what Pollack does, but some “art” is just like what the fuck is this? Overall glad I went because I had to hit at least one museum while in New York, but I still prefer walking around the city and chilling in parks – soaking in the museum of life; also known as the real world.

I went back to Jared and Annie’s to say goodbye then took the subway to Garber’s place in Queens. He had a softball game that night and I had nothing else to do so I went with him to go watch. They asked if I wanted to do the scorebook which I was actually thrilled about. I used to love doing the book as a kid at baseball games, or even as an adult…it was only a few years ago that I stopped doing it. I love that it makes you actually stay engaged in the game because it’s easy to get bored and stop paying attention at a baseball game, especially adult softball. Did not expect this to be how I spent my last night in the country of 2022 but there is nothing more American than scoring a lawyer softball league. Afterwards we ordered delivery Korean fried chicken wings from Pelicana Chicken and watched Jumanji. A nice, relaxing night to close out an incredible stay in New York. It was also good to get one last solid night of chilling with the G Train.

I am so glad that I had all this time between quitting my job and doing my big trip. The last six weeks were exactly what I needed to put me in my best headspace in a long time and I couldn’t be more ready for my adventure. Don’t get me wrong, my Denver life was amazing and I wouldn’t trade the last 5 years for anything, but it’s easy to get so caught up in work and socialization that I didn’t even realize how mentally drained I was. It’s good to take a break from it all and reinvigorate my mind in other ways.

Bye America and see you in 2023! Israel your up next.