The Globetrotting Geek

College – Tuesday – Day 40

August 31, 2012

I woke up early and packed my bags, this was the big day. College. Downstairs where a taxi was already waiting for me, I waved goodbye to the doorman and headed to Penn Station. Arriving at 7:40AM for my 8:15AM Bolt Bus to Philly. The Bolt Bus ride was uneventful (though only cost me $12) and I was soon again on solid ground in my next city.

I hailed down a taxi and caught a ride with all my bags to Rodin House, my dorm for the next few months. I checked-in and received my key and temporary building pass and took the ‘elevator’ to the ninth floor where my room was. The building was largely silent and void of other individuals, as Rodin is solely for ‘upperclassmen’ (no first years) and they were yet to move in. I unpacked my small amount of stuff, picking a desk and bed next to a window for plenty of natural light. I then raced off to the Office of International Programs to see if there was room left on the bus trip to Target and Ikea to pick up needed supplies.

When it was clear to me that I wasn’t going to be able to get on the bus and that Target and Ikea were a cab drive away I decided to go shopping on campus for the real essentials. I went to the bookshop and purchased a set of sheets and a pillow and then went to the ‘Franklin Building’ and picked up my PennCard, my UPenn ID. I then walked back to my dorm via Locust Walk, the main walkway around which the entire campus is centered.

I settled back down to my room for a few more hours (watched an episode of Breaking Bad) and then headed out to meet with other exchange students for dinner. One of the UPenn students showing us round decided it might be wise to try a Philly Cheesesteak and so we caught the SEPTA (South-Eastern Philadelphia Transit Authority) subway to a well-known place. There I purchased a vegan Philly Cheesesteak and a Dr. Pepper Soda. The Cheesesteak I couldn’t bear, far too oily, however I thoroughly enjoyed my soda.

After that I retired to my room to reflect on the day and prepare for an early start the next.

Monday – Day 39

August 30, 2012

Today started off baking drop cookies with the girls, and though the drop part didn’t work so much the cookies were still quite tasty.

Following that it was out to walk the streets of New York City. First stop, the bagel store for a giant cream cheese and lox bagel. Just as I ducked into the store it started to pour with rain. Little did it bother me and I just keep walking through the storm, eating my delicious bagel that was so full it was hard to fit into my mouth. I walked along Fifth Avenue and after a brief detour into central park, made it to the famous New York Apple Store, dripping wet. I went inside briefly and was uninspired and thus continued to FAO Schwartz next door. FAO Schwartz is a giant toy store that unfortunately over time has become less impressive, however, still on display was a massive teddy that although tempting I did not purchase.

Note by this point my camera battery had run out and I was left with my phone as my battery charger I had unfortunately left with Gus in CT. Don’t expect nice photos for a few more days.

After that it was down Broadway again and past Times Square. As I was walking down a side street, the number of Jews suddenly increased exponentially and, as I walked down I saw why. Jeweller’s Alley, full of merchants buying and selling gold, jewels and diamonds, many of them Jewish. With store names such as Stein and Sons or Mendel’s Gold Emporium, the Jews had certainly kept up their traditional trade in this part of the city.

From there I walked to B&H, a store whose name stands for “Be’ezrat Hashem” (with the help of g-d), a store run by a certain sect of Hassidic Jews. However, don’t think that this is some little operation. B&H Photo is the largest photo store in NYC and is impressive for its huge range of professional electric equipment, staffed almost entirely by Hassidic Jews.

After that I finished walking downtown to J&R electronics, another Jewish owned electronics megastore and by then was tired enough to return home for an hour before my last trip in NYC.

The night brought me to celebrating Irit Shachari, my house-mother from ISSI’s birthday with a theatre production called Puppet Kitchen in the East Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York. The show was themed ‘divas’ and featured numerous performers expressing their art through puppetry and song. Following that a quick jaunt to a local ice cream bar with fully organic, locally sourced, interesting flavors.

Back to Yoni and Rivki’s I struggled to fix the internet and eventually, for once, defeated, retired to sleep.

 

Shabbat/Sunday – Day 37/38

August 29, 2012

This Shabbat at Yoni and Rivki’s with Sophie and Tziporah, my little cousins, was very peaceful. In the morning I settled down to read another John Grisham novel and following that a nice quiet lunch (except for the few tantrums thrown by the two little girls). The afternoon was a trip to the local park and a walk along the promenade bordering the Hudson River and the borough of Manhattan.

The park was divided up into cute little zones, each for a different type of recreation. The first one we visited was a children’s playground. It featured many different jungle gyms, water fountains with a bathing area in the centre and, park benches surrounding the zone so that parents could keep a close eye on their young. After playing with the girls for a few hours, the sky began to darken and it was time to make a quick visit to the rest of the park before heading back home.

The next zone we visited was the ‘small dog run’ a five by three meter, oval, tiled area on which ran a number of very small, very cute and terribly adorable dogs. My favorite of them being a darling little pug with a ball in his mouth that was larger than one would reasonably assume would fit. He carried it over to many individuals around the sides and would beg them to take it away and throw it so that he could attempt to catch it in midair.

Following that we went to the ‘big dog run’, a larger area on which bounded hounds and dachshunds, among others. After a while of watching those, we walked back, passed the basketball courts and along the river.

After the conclusion of Shabbat I decided to treat myself to something I’d been wanting to do for a while: Batman! Finding an IMAX screening that I could make, I excitedly picked myself up and headed over to AMC Lincoln Square: Loewe’s. After climbing four flights of stairs I arrived at the IMAX screen and candy bar. Deciding to make my American experience complete I purchased the smallest combo of popcorn and drink offered: a three hundred gram massive bag of popcorn with a 1.56L drink. Daniel Serebro had said to me that the movie was not a “batman” movie, and though I thoroughly enjoyed it, I tended to agree. The focus of the movie was more on the events unfolding in Gotham City rather than the exploits of batman himself. For his part, Bruce Wayne spent more time soul-searching than fighting crime with catwoman making only a brief appearance.

Sunday morning marked a trip to Governor’s Island with the girls. Located towards the battery park end of Manhattan, a ten minute ferry ride away, Governor’s Island was a fort, used at one time as a coast guard base and more recently as a military prison.

Today it is converted into a cultural site, with an African festival being held for the duration of our stay. The first order of business was to visit a graphic design museum on the Island, where I realized a long-term love for typography and brand design, oohing and ahhhing at the posters and vector graphics while the girls looked at the pretty pictures.

That was followed by a picnic lunch with Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches, another American tradition, I had not experienced in years.

 

Afterwards, a walk to the otherside of the island to listen to the African drummers, to run around with the girls and, take a well-deserved nap on the grass.

 

We returned to the apartment early to prepare for the arrival of my great-aunt and uncle, Alfie and Zahava Slonim, at whose place I had stayed while I was preparing for and sitting my SATs. Also in tow were my second cousins once removed, Louisa and Adam Slonim. Dinner was a delicious platter of Deli foods, most notably some sizzling hot pastrami which with a bit of coleslaw went down most splendidly.

After their departure, I finished my book and headed to sleep.