Urban Experience my thoughts of New York Now

           Before the class started I viewed Long Island, New York City, Brooklyn and Queens as entirely separate entities. What I have learned from the class is that although they belong to different boroughs, they all make up Long Island.  This is something that I teach to my friends and family and they still do not believe me.  After taking this seven week course I really learned to appreciate New York. The irony is that in order to appreciate New York as a whole, one has to appreciate the individualities first. In Brooklyn for example, DUMBO has become a wealthy area with upper class residents.  Travel down to Williamsburg, there is a huge population of Hipsters. There are so many different parts of New York that make it amazing.

            At the Museum of New York, the video Timescape really painted a picture of how much New York has changed. From a land bought from the Native Americans to the big hustle and bustle city that we all know and love today.  The trips allowed me to correct common misconceptions people have about New York, but at times lived up to its stereotypes.  Spanish Harlem lived up to its intimidating reputation when a random resident decided to follow and harass us the moment we got off the subway. We did however meet one of the well-known graffiti artists in person while he was working on his art.

Being an amateur artist, that was an amazing experience. I am a food enthusiast and enjoy trying new things as long as I am not allergic. Although the foods we ate were not new to me, I still enjoyed dining with my classmates and sharing opinions of the places we visited.  The biggest thing we learned about New York is Gentrification and how much it is changing New York. What was once considered poor places to live, are now so expensive that families that have been living and owning shops there for years can no longer afford it. We saw evidence of gentrification everywhere we went; from DUMBO, Chelsea and to even Harlem.

Meritta would tell us that she has been living in Chelsea for years. The meat packing district had so many buildings that handled and packaged meat but now have been closed and now in the process of being turned into apartments or restaurants of fine dining. Mike would also tell us how his grandparents moved out of their original home and when they tried to move back, it was way too expensive to live. An example would be the apartments we saw in Harlem. The first thing was the stoops that New York adapted from the Dutch. We learned that at first, the hired help such as maids would be living on the top floor. Now a adays people pay big money to live in rooms that maids once lived in.

This class was honestly one of my favorite experiences at my 4 year stay at Molloy. Since my freshman year, I've always wanted to go on a school trip, but because of the demand of nursing school I was never able full-fill that goal. This class enabled me to go on multiple trips and experience so many new things. For that I am grateful. I can’t express how much I will miss the people I’ve met. My Friday mornings will not be the same but nonetheless I will remember everything this class taught which has made me a proud New Yorker.