Oh United States – first Hawaii and then New York – it is the happy end of the holiday. Six weeks. Passed so fast. Again. Holiday is never too long. When I left for my one year world around trip three years ago my dad used to tell me that I will get bored and come back sooner. Never happened. Never would happen to me. I can spend my time figuring out so many nice things on my freetime/holiday and still I always run out of time. Both Hawaii and New York left so much behind…
I liked New York. It was cold and rainy (if not counting a couple of really nice sunny days) but still I was fascinated. It’s the NYC feeling and the feeling of a classical city – sensing the magic around. I can only imagine how much I would have liked it during the summer. Of course it’s a very big place so I can’t recall this a love affair to NYC but this was a good start for our friendship and I will definately visit again and again. Actually it’s funny, as you can see on the persona page of mine; I aim to visit as many new places as possible – but with some cities / coutries you know that you just want to come back, you still need to spend more quality time there. And that is why you don’t feel sad leaving.
The Lion King Musical Review
The rest of the trip in NYC was sweeeeet. I went to the Lion King musical. I had heard that it’s amazing and this time something really wasn’t ruined by all these glorious talks and higgh expectations. The Lion King was really something. I would give it 4,5 stars out of five. And the missing half is just because of some minor things such as that the stage wasn’t as big as I thought (on the other hand this gave more of a intimacy feeling) and that there could have been even more super good mood scenes such as Hakuna Matata song and less that bad guy lion. Yes – it really was a good mood musical – and humorous too! I went there without realising how it works. That besides beautiful – and also authentical to Africa – musical performance it’s really a true art piece of costumes and some cool things! Such as they really make Animals out of People!!! There was a four feet walking biiig giraff and elephant and everything! This sounds ridicilous now but first before going there I thought that it was a puppet show. Because we had been laughing’n’ talking with Antti that you can’t really make lions out of human. But yep. They had really built everything. So cool! I got goosepumps. I got tears in my eyes. It was beautiful. And the cutest ever was around 6 years old cute kid performing the main role of Simba. Ohhhh. Can someone make babies with me now?!
I was so lucky too. I was sitting just in front of the stage. Thus it’s great travelling alone. You don’t have to worry about booking prehand. I booked the musical on Sunday for Tuesday’s show and paid 189US. Normally the orchestra front row tickets cost way over 240…
The best museums in New York
On that day I saw also something else that was special! Ladies and gentlemen can I introduce the T. rex! Great thing to see and gives some funny thoughts to imagine. The Museum of Natural History has 85 percent complete T. rex skeleton found 1988 in Montana. It is fascinating when thinking I would’t have wanted to run into T back the jurassic era… And what about the kind and nice vegetarian Apatosaurus. Even though eating salad, such a giant that better to hide in the lowest bush… Definately dinosaurus were one of the greatest attraction in the museum (but a hint: try to avoid the school hours, otherwise Jurassic turns into a child Park!!!) I had great time in the museum anyway which also happens to be the setting for – of course Ben Stiller casting – comedy the Night at the museum. I also enjoyded the Metropolitan museum of arts and MoMA. But in all these three, like in general in NYC: there’s almost too much to see – it’s impossible to have enough time and energy. I’m sure that even those living there have the same problem. And museums require time if you want to get something out of them. I like to learn things and get new insights.
When I was in Uni I was studying art history as a minor subject. MoMa is really the place where I could see the biggest amount of art pieces on a same visit. It was great to see live the art that we had been intepreting in the lectures. Some of my personal MoMA favourites:
One thing that I was also really happy about was meeting Frida. The first thing that came across when I marched straight on the fourth floor – of modern art paintings and sculptures – was Diego Rivera on the hallway and then his artistic young on and off wife Frida. I read Frida Kahlo’s biography a while ago and had a feeling that there’s smt in her that I can identify with. A bit crazy touch on life, not too well balanced character and that is also shown on her paintings. What is also wonderfull is how she was pretty much self-taught artist and in fact started her paintings quite late. The book affected me some much that more and more I want to do my own creative things. And to travel to Mexico!!! In fact Whattawowworld’s next trip is to Mexico! This is how I live! When I get the obsession I can’t avoid it. So Mexico calls…
Thanksgiving thoughts
Here’s a good brigde from colourful maya Mexico to the roots of US Thanksgiving. There was Thanksgiving – to me totally unfamiliar public holiday and reason to party – on Thursday. But young people I met during my trip told me that the history was about celebrating the peace and mutual relationship between the native american indians and the western colonists who in the end decide to destroy the whole tribe and today the thanksgiving is pretty much one more commercial show. This was something really interesting during my trip: Young Americans – the bright minded generation (vs. the rednecks) – that I met were very critical. They were having straight opinion about Thanksgiving aswell as about 911 – the government playing with fire… It seems that everything pretty much sucks in America but somehow the films and all manage to spread the American dream. It’s not a dream for people paying high taxes without getting anything in return. The money goes to war they claim. And that is true, I don’t know how it’s so undeveloped with some things from delivering the post to having too many homeless. It’s too much a land of divergence. I went to Harlem and still saw a riot with cardboard signs about black people’s rights ( a lot to do with the police who shoot the black guy) etc. When you look around there are all kinds of people living in a perfect harmony together but when taking a close up, it’s not equal. Everything is on your background. You have to be lucky to get a normal living life. This is when I express my Thanks to Finland. My homeland is great not to prag about it. Even though I don’t want to live there and even though it’s too serious place, I start to appreciate my home country more and more when travelling around.
It’s good time to stop writing here. Sorry about my posts being so far so long but this will change now since I get home soon and will have unlimited internet access. Even I really did enjoy my days without it!!! Thank you my holiday, I’m Grateful! And ThankS god I’m safe home or at my aunties! Tomorrow I have my laser eye operation check (that’s why wearing glasses in every pic which is unusual) in Helsinki and then I see you guys in Malta! Happy to come home!!!!
