I went there with a dream...wanting to investigate opening a coffee shop in Brooklyn. Crazy, I know! I had no idea that my journey would change me in many ways.
My first week in NYC was quite hard. I had left Melbourne unsure of what was going on with my store in Fitzroy. I had sold my business back in August this year. The person who had agreed to purchase my store pulled out of the sale at the very last minute. The whole experience turned into a total nightmare involving lawyers. I decided I wasn't going to let this ruin my journey. Got to just learn from things and move on!
While in NYC I had many amazing experiences. Too many to mention but some highlights included:
* hanging out at a bike bar eating a giant soggy sandwich with Kathy
* taking the Ikea taxi to Red Hook with Doreen to eat key lime pie, visit Baked, all the cute handmade stores and a comic book exhibition launch
* free pizzas with every beer at Alligator Lounge. Awesome!
* watching Shonen Knife play at the Knitting Factory
* a food cart tour
* rooftop parties in Greenpoint
* refereed a food eating contest
* the crazy delicious cookies at Momofuku Saam Bar
* Halloween in NYC
* all the roof top bars
* couchsurfing for the very first time
* the dive bars. My faves included Jimmy's Corner, The Turkey's Nest Inn and Rudy's (free hotdogs everyday!). Beer with a chaser of whisky seemed the norm over here.
I came back to Melbourne with a totally different mind frame. Right now, I'm interested in learning more about social media, film making, writing my blog, ethical eating, volunteering in Cambodia or Peru, micro financing, the political/historical/cultural contexts people are living today across the world - put simply, how lives are being lived. I still have a love for handmade design and independent fashion. It's just my view of the world has changed. From my journey, I have many ideas for new projects which I'll tell you about very soon.
And the coffee shop idea? Forgotten long ago! Although I did enjoy investigating all the coffee shops in NYC and trying to find the best.
Also, I want to apologise to all my readers for being crap at updating my blog the last few months. I am back and have plans to improve my blog in the coming months. I will be updating the online store with new clothes, pocketwatches and more very soon. I think my heart wasn't in it for awhile but now I feel refreshed and ready to rock!
[photo above: this was taken near the beginning of the Brooklyn side of the Williamsburg Bridge. I walked over this bridge to the Lower East Side many times!]
[photo above: school buses parked at a terminus in beautiful Red Hook. I noticed most of my overseas friends would get excited at their first glimpse at a school bus. I guess this is because you see them all the time in movies.]
[photo above: I was so excited to go to Yoshitomo Nara's exhibition. He also had statues like this one installed on Park Avenue during his exhibition. My housemate Doreen is in the pic.]
[photo above: street art alongside all the posh art galleries and the incredible Comme Des Garcons store in Chelsea.]
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