First day of class and I was up by 7:30 am all excited and nervous. I checked and double checked to make sure I had everything I would need for the day. When I arrived at Penn Station my heart was racing. I walked to where would be our meeting place and constantly kept looking at my time to see if I would be late, I did not want to get left behind. I looked around to see if I notice any familiar faces. I was so excited when I saw a face I knew and then my heart rate went back to normal as we waited for everything to get settled. Mike took attendance and explained our agenda for the day.
As we started on our journey towards the mythic #7 train, the famous 7 subway line which is nicknamed the “International Express” due to the fact that it traverses through so many different ethical communities (BG, 493). So we were headed to Citi Field to Flushing Meadow Park which was once all salt marshes (BG, 497). I was excited and couldn’t wait to head to the Unisphere. I saw it many times in movies but to actually witness it in person was amazing. And because it was the same time as the U.S. Opening the fountains around it was on so it looked even more marvelous. It was very interesting to learn that the Unisphere was a symbol of the 1964 World’s Fair. The Unisphere is 700.000 lbs of stainless steel, 12 stories high and 120 ft in diameter (BG, 497). From here we then proceeded to the Queens Museum of Art which now occupies the former New York City building built for the city’s exhibition in the 1939-40 World’s Fairs and was then later used by the United Nations General Assembly (BG, 497). Here we examined the Panorama which is an unforgettable architectural model of the city, commissioned by Robert Moses for the 1964 World’s Fair and updated in 1992. It contains 895,000 buildings – every building constructed before 1992 in each of the five boroughs (BG, 498). Next we visited the Watershed Exhibit. Our tour guide explained that it was originally prepared for the 1939 World’s Fair but because of limited space in the New York City Pavilion it was never displayed and hidden away. It was restored and is now on display at the Queens Museum of Art. It traces the City’s water supply system from the outermost, upstream tributaries to sea level at the Nassau County line.
After we left the museum we walked a few blocks and talked a little about what we saw and how we enjoyed it. We then hopped on the train headed for Jackson Heights to Jackson’s diner. We were having a buffet style lunch at this East Indian restaurant. I sort of already knew what to expect because my ancestors are from India. But the food spices and taste varies a little because I’m West Indian from Trinidad in the Caribbean. Our spices give the food a different taste from East Indian food. Some of the food was very similar so I enjoyed it very much and went back for seconds.
After such an enjoyable lunch, we headed further west to Astoria a place outside of Greece with the largest number of people of Greek heritage. Astoria today has seen an outburst of immigrants from all over the world. With a short walk down Steinway Street, it took us to the Museum of Moving Images where we were introduced to Astoria as being the center of the film making industry. The Museum of Moving Image is one of the biggest tourist attractions in Queens (BG, 499). By the time we got to this point I was so exhausted and worn out. I walked around and looked at a few things but didn’t really take any pictures here. I just didn’t have any more energy. The one section that caught my attention though was Jim Henson. I sat down on the bean bag and just looked up at the screen. It reminded me of my child like days. I had no idea he had anything to do with Sesame Street, my favorite show as a child. I also learned that Kermit the Frog from the Muppets Show was his first Muppet. I was taken back and just enjoyed every moment while I relaxed and unwind for our next adventure.
Before I knew it, we were off again, back on the train headed to yet another part of Queens, Long Island City. We trudged on towards M.O.M.A P.S. 1 where we viewed wild contemporary art. MOMA PS1 was once a school, hence PS1. It was an abandoned building that is now one of the oldest largest nonprofit contemporary art institutions (ps1.org). It was used as studio, performance, and exhibition space, in support of artists from around the world. I never knew this existed. After here we took a short walk 5Pointz, an outdoor exhibit devoted to graffiti. When I first laid eyes on this place I was in awe. It looked straight out the ghetto like the graffiti paintings I see on buildings when I travel by train, but much more upscale. These artists did such an amazing job expressing their individuality. I was hoping to see some artists when we got there but that didn’t happen. The colors used were so vibrant and popped out at you. It wasn’t what I expected. Our last stop was Gantry Plaza State Park. Here we got a look at how the Queens waterfront has opened up in Long Island City and transformed previous industrial space into flourishing public parks with a remarkable view of Manhattan. We learned that we were at the very tip of Long Island. Also we saw enormous gantries that have been preserved from the city’s former days.
At the end of our tour I was overly exhausted. I reflected back on the full day and felt accomplished. I couldn’t believe we covered all that ground in just one day. I couldn’t wait to get back into Penn Station and head home. I just wanted to get home, shower and take a load off because it was such a hot, sticky beautiful day. What a way to end our exciting, eventful day. Amazing!!
No comments:
Post a Comment