Reasons I Want to Live in New York City

Today I was talking to a friend of mine about my desire to live in New York City. She thought I was nuts. It made me really think about why I want to live there. 

1) The beauty of architecture and nature within a huge city. The perfect meeting of these two things is Central Park. I absolutely am in awe of being in the middle of Central Park and seeing the buildings towering over the treetops as I look up. (Again, didn't I mention the importance of looking up before?) When you are in the middle of Central Park, you feel like you are in the middle of nature, not in the middle of one of the largest cities. When you look up, however, you see the beauty of the city looming over the trees, begging you to join it.
There area parks everywhere. From teeny-tiny to Central Park. I love how the city has maintained the blend of nature within the city. I appreciate that I could look out of my window and see trees up and down the street. Are all streets there like this? Of course not, especially when you get downtown, but for the most part, you can find nature in the busiest of places.

2) Culture. I know I mentioned this one before, but I love that so many cultures are smashed into one large area. If you wanted to find a rare or unique food or spice, New York City is the place to find it. I can't tell you how many times I have looked for an unusual food item and couldn't find it anywhere. I want to be able to walk into a family owned Italian store and pick up some handmade pasta or walk into a spice shop and know I can find the weird spice on my list. Organic food markets? Yes please! The closest health food store is about 20 miles from my house right now. I would much rather shop through my limited selection at my local grocery store.
The biggest thing we are lacking where we live now is quality restaurants, particularly Chinese and Thai. I want to be able to call up an authentic, good Chinese restaurant and have my food delivered! I want to head to a Thai restaurant and know what I am getting is the real deal. I want to spend my weekends trying restaurants from cultures I have never experienced before. New York City offers that.

3) Theater! One of my greatest loves. I want to see Broadway musicals, attend comedy clubs, join a community theater to act, and witness top-notch ballets. This is something we are sorely lacking here in podunkville. I did get to see Wicked when it came through town and was completely enamored with the set design, costumes and quality of acting. When it was over I wanted it to continue. If I lived in New York City I could experience that more often. Yes, tickets are expensive, but one or two shows a year is much better than one show every three years here.

4) Running outside year-round. I understand that NYC gets freezing cold during the winter, but it is not bad to run in the cold. Where I come from it gets so hot that sometimes it feels like my eyeballs are on fire. Running outside anywhere above 85 degrees can run a high risk of dehydration. I have experienced dehydration and I can tell you it is miserable and I don't wish it upon anyone. Cold I can manage. Layers are good. I can always put more on, I can't always take more off. I want to run the entire city, explore every path, every sidewalk, every street. Would I ever run Central park alone? No. But to be able to run outside throughout the year excites me.

5) Restaurants. Some of the best food in the world comes from NYC. Max Brenner and Serendipity 3 are two of my current favorites. But, more than the stereotypical places, I want to find the family owned, mom and pop shops. I know that the best piece of pizza comes from a hole-in-the-wall restaurant. Have I eaten it yet? No, but I want to find it! Greek, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Thai, Chinese, Irish, English, Indian. I want to try them all! I am not the one to follow the newest trendy places. I want to support the little shops. Does that mean that I will never try the trendy places or the restaurants owned by the big-name chefs? No. Those will just be saved for special occasions like a birthday or anniversary.

6) Farmers Markets. I. Love. Farmer's. Markets. Especially open-air markets like many in NYC. Locally grown, fresh, brilliantly colored produce is a feast for the eyes. I want to walk the aisles, pick up the fruits and vegetables and inhale the sweet and earthy smells. I want to find heirloom tomatoes, fingerling potatoes and fresh arugula and artichokes. I would take them home and make a meal that would explode on my taste buds and excited the senses. We don't have that here. I want it.

7) The noise and excitement. NYC is the city that never sleeps. I love that. Sometimes I am awake at odd hours. I like knowing that I am not alone if I am up at 1am. The hum of cars, the rumble of the subway, the murmur of people walking below. This does not turn me off of living there. If anything, this makes it all the more exciting.

8) The subway! I love the subway system of NYC. There is something about zooming from one place to another without needing a car. I am an avid people watcher. This is the perfect place for it! Hundreds of thousands of people use the subway every day. Hundreds of musicians play in the tunnels. It makes one feel like anything can happen. No matter where you go in the city, you are always connected to another location, just by hopping on the subway system. Sigh... Heaven for a person who wants to explore.

9) Pictures. My favorite pictures that my husband and I have ever taken have been the ones from New York City. There is so much to look at and so many nooks and crannies to explore that photography would be a snap! It seems like no matter where you go there is something, or someone, to take a picture of. A quiet residential street offers a row of historic facades. Central Park offers unique landscape and people. Times Square offers lights and excitement.  The Empire State Building offers spectacular views and unique vantage points of all corners of the city. NYC is a photographer's paradise.

10) Experience. I just want to do it so I have the ability to say I did it. Even if it is just for one or two years. I want it. The hubbub, the noise, the food, the opportunity. NYC makes me feel like I can do anything.

Did I ever see myself living in a place like New York City? Not at all. I love small country towns and quaint places to raise children. But does that mean that I can't want the city now? Of course not. Does it mean that I will actually live there? No. Do I hope to? Absolutely. Maybe someday, we shall see. But for now, I am happy where I am at, dreaming of NYC and hoping that someday I will get the chance to call it home, even for a little while.