Some stereotypical tidbits about the city

I’ve been here for less than three days and I’ve already learned a lot. For example, a lot of those stereotypes about New York are true:

Small bedrooms – My sister’s room is ridiculously small. Not Orlando small, when you have trouble practicing feng shui because of the big screen TV, desk and king size bed in your room. No, it’s small like I can’t cross the room without climbing over a twin size bed. I’ve heard about claustrophobic NY bedrooms before but I always thought it was an exaggeration. And I was so wrong. But the bedroom can’t take away from the rest of the apartment. The living room and kitchen are spacious, a lot of light comes in and the neighborhood is in an awesome part of Brooklyn. Who needs a car when the bar is across the street?

Tap water that doesn’t taste like ass – New York tap water is drinkable. It actually tastes good. As a former employee of a water treatment company I used simple facts to lure people into buying water filters. Fact: NY has the best water in the nation; Florida: not so much (we’re second to last). I won’t drink tap water in Florida unless it goes through my Brita first. When I got to my sister’s Brooklyn apartment, I had some water and it tasted ass free so I’m sold.

NY pizza is amazing – Yep, it sure is. Really good. I’m not supposed to eat pizza. I gave up animal products more than a year ago. Dairy = Big no-no. But I’ve never had NY pizza before so I gave in. I don’t remember the name of the restaurant but I remember the ricotta and spinach slice I ordered. That’s the culprit in the photo above. I’ve been paying for that slice since I ate it but I can’t say it wasn’t worth it.

They really do sell everything here – You can buy an iPhone on the side of the road or have your shoes shined while you wait for the train. You can even buy porn in bars and on trains. Yep, my sister’s roommate was approached by a sweet old lady who walked into the bar offering “cigarette , porn, cigarette, porn” the way a vendor would yell “hot dog, beer, hot dog, beer.” Once you agree to buy something she asks “man- woman, woman- woman, man -man?” and apparently she goes to the different trains to offer her goods as well. Wow…

Everyone looks so put together – I feel strangely underdressed every time I leave my sister’s apartment. You have the hipsters in their fedoras, plaid and leather and you have the Blair Waldorf wannabes (or the inspiration behind the character) toting around their Chanel 2.5 quilted bags. Everyone has some semblance of style. I love it; it makes “people watching” feel like an impromptu fashion show.

There hasn’t been a dull moment and I’m completely enamored right now. It could be the change of scenery or the exciting internship or the 10 different restaurants down the street or all of the above. I even enjoy taking the subway! I’m going into the city on Monday to research an article. Hey, maybe this time I won’t get lost…