Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Walk to the right from Eataly and you'll see a slim building that is featured on the cover of one of the city tourist brochures. Called the Flatiron (as in the iron for ironing your clothes. Duh), the triangular pointy part of the building on the ground floor is where famous artists want to exhibit their work.




Not an intentional pose, but it was a windy day.


A friend who went to NYC for the first time last year came back disappointed with the city. There were many noisy demonstrations (Occupy Wall Street) and streets were packed with people. Yes I saw a couple of protests in the 9 days I was in NYC but I loved the protests! The police escorted the protesters, the mood was fun and nobody got heated up about the issues. I live in a country where the government sprays chemical-laced water at protesters so I think the freedom to protest is divine. A society that can handle difference in opinions peacefully is mature and learned. I envy that.




If I thought the subway stations in London were archaic, I was in for a shock in NYC because the subway stations there are not just old but also run down. However, gone are the graffiti and homeless people.

We stayed in Manhattan and didn't venture to Brooklyn or Queens but one day Yi wanted to see MoMA PSI in Queens (north of the mainland) while I wanted to be in Brooklyn Botanic Garden for the annual sakura festival. The park has 200 mature cherry trees and is known as one of the best parks for cherry flowers viewing outside of Japan. I took the subway by myself for the first time that afternoon. The subway system in NYC is a little bit complicated but once you figure it out, it is quite easy to take.

I asked at the entrance if the cherry trees were still in bloom, as my friend's tree in San Francisco was already putting out leaves. I was told that there was plenty of flowers so I paid the entrance fee of USD15. Big mistake, because the cherry flowers were all gone. I felt cheated. Central Park is free and I went all the way from Manhattan to Brooklyn and paid a fee to get into a park for something that's not there. The festival was still held however and the park was festive and merry.



































Despite my initial disappointment, I thoroughly enjoyed the four hours in the park. I am a plant person and walking in a park looking at the flowers and trees soothes my soul.


I had forgotten to bring my phone and we were to meet up at the Grand Central Terminal. I waited for an hour and half and Yi was no show. I was frantic.


Cupcakes in a bakery in Grand Central Terminal.

I walked all the way home from the terminal because I didn't want to figure out the interchange. It took 45 minutes, and it was a great walk because the streets of NYC are all laid out evenly in a grid. There was so much to see. People, shops, lights, window displays.

When I got to the corner outside our apartment and waited at the lights, I looked at the person on my right and it was my daughter. We hugged and cried and celebrated at Momoya, a Japanese restaurant at the corner of 7th Ave and 21 St. There was a long wait but we didn't mind.


This was a big bowl of unagidon (soy sauce eel on rice). Very delicious.


The assorted sushi and sashimi platter was very fresh and delicious. I found the food in Momoya better than the other Japanese restaurants I had been to in NYC, including the hottest restaurant in town, Momofuku.