Heading to New York this fall? Here are 4 places I recommend you visit!

Six months and a week of my life were spent on the East Coast. While this may not seem like a lot to fellow travelers or those who move around a lot, uprooting my life for six months with no definite return date was definitely an insanely spontaneous and adventurous decision I made last summer. I moved to a city, a state, a side of a country that I had never stepped foot in. Six months and a week struck through my life like lightening, leaving a bright spark of memories… Looking back, sometimes I question whether those six months existed at all. They did. I have the pictures to prove it!

If you have been following my writing, or at least had followed my adventures in New York, you know how hectic my first week in NYC was. Unexpected incidents during my first week forced me to move to Princeton, New Jersey for a little over a month before moving back to Brooklyn. After settling in NJ with my cousin’s family, and after exactly fourteen days into my entire move to the east coast, a friend visiting New Jersey and I headed into NYC for a proper touristy filled day. Yesterday marked two months since I have been back in California, which is why I am taking you all back to last August! While I hope to share more of my adventures throughout NYC during those six months, the following pictures are a great representation of two Californians enjoying the Big Apple. I will admit that it may not have been the sunniest day, causing my pictures to come out looking gloomy as I struggled with my camera in the strong winds, but I think our smile defined our level of excitement and happiness of that day.

 1. Dumbo New York

Development Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass.

My favorite place in the country is still Coronado Island in San Diego, California. Being able to sit on the ocean, watching the waves escape underneath the bridge only to crash along the rocks has always given me a sense of calm. Living in San Diego, Coronado was the place that I ran away to when I needed to breathe… Usually with a book, journal, and pen in hand. The first time my good friend, and former college roommate who now lives in New York took me to DUMBO park, I couldn’t help but remember my place of serenity back in California. When my brother visited New York, I insisted on taking him there before walking across the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. We were blessed that it was a bright and warm day in November. The ocean will always be where I find endless peace knowing that it is still filled with many opportunities for discovery. One of God’s most beautiful blessings.

2. Brooklyn Bridge Web of Dreams

November is when the seasons began to change for me in New York, whether they be the actual weather or my experiences. It had also marked three months that I had been on the East Coast. To my joy and surprise, my younger brother came to visit me and explore New York for the first time. The weather had already gotten colder than what Californians usually experience. Yet, the week he came, it was unexpectedly warm and sunny. Exactly how I felt all week knowing family, my little brother, was in the same city. I also took advantage of his visit by taking the opportunity to re-explore the city with my DSLR by my side. My brother, his friends, and my friend became my subjects.

One of my favorite trips was walking along with him across the Brooklyn Bridge on the beautifully warm day. I had already walked the bridge in the morning and at night, more than once. Walking from Brooklyn to Manhattan or vice versa is a true experience of bridging two different worlds, for both Brooklyn and Manhattan are each its own character. More than that, the bridge itself, with its web of iron wires made me feel like I was walking through a web of dreams holding up the bridge. New York is where the dreamers come to find opportunity and experience a world unlike any other in the country. No matter the outcome, the person leaves changed. Forever.

3. A Canvas of Colors at Central Park

I’m taking you back in time to last Fall in November brought a canvas of colors brushed among the leaves and waters of Central Park. The pictures I took burst alive with the warmth of Summer leading way into the coming Winter.

4. Washington Square Park: Square of Youth

One of my favorite things to do in NYC was to take on the city by strolling through an entire borough from one favorite spot to another. One of my beloved walks was beginning at Washington Square Park and walking uptown on 5th Avenue until I reached Bryant Park. While Central Park may be the most well-known or largest park in New York, I had a love first for the Square. It sits in the middle of New York University’s campus and is always filled with the youthful glow of students – of all ages from all over the country and world. It’s a much smaller park but filled with activity – even when it’s raining. As for Bryant Park, with it being in midtown – close to the Rockefeller Center and Times Square – there’s always something going on based on the seasons. The Square, to me, was a place I could always go to just sit and breathe between grabbing a quick bite to eat and visiting a large coffee shop or my favorite bookstore nearby, Strand Bookstore.