As you may or may not know, I live in Hong Kong (temporarily), and it’s currently summertime, a time for vacation, no school, and all together happiness. So for this year’s vacation, my family went to:
NEW YORK CITY!!!
(and later on Los Angeles)
The main reason we were in NYC was for my Carnegie Hall performance in my school choir. When I was younger, Carnegie Hall felt like a pipe dream, something that wouldn’t happen in a million years. Little did I know that I would stand up on that stage and sing in Carnegie Hall along with people from all over the globe. The Buena Onda performance at Carnegie Hall really felt like a dream come true, and during the entire thing, I was just floating with excitement and happiness. For classical singers, Carnegie Hall is top tier, there’s nothing after that.
I also met a ton of people through this experience. People from Houston, Brownsville (also Texas), Florida, etc. Living in HK has really given me so many opportunities that I am so grateful for, and I’ve learned a lot as well!
But New York City also has more to do than just rehearsals and performances, right? I got to visit so many interesting landmarks in New York, as well as eat some great food. To be honest, I had better food in Boston, but NY still had some yummy bites! One notable activity was the sleepover at the Natural History Museum.
My friend had asked me to go with her, her sister, and another friend, and of course, I said yes. The NHM in Los Angeles was my favorite museum ever, and I had heard so many great things about the one in New York, so I really was excited. It was such an amazing experience! We got to sleep underneath the scale blue whale and explore the museum at night (spooky!) It was like Night at the Museum, (but with fewer dinosaurs). Sadly, we were pretty jet-lagged so we slept early, but we still got to see so much. We saw a man from 1000 years ago who had died in a mining accident. We saw creepy shrunken heads and gigantic T-rex fossils. Altogether, I loved the experience, and only regret not having enough time!
On my last day in New York, my family and I visited the famed Metropolitan Museum of Art. I had heard all about it, through the Met Gala along with all of the famous artwork. The temporary exhibit, all about Camp, was really remarkable and I learned so much about the history of Camp. Originally, Camp was a term used in the LGBT+ community, more prominently with cross-dressers in the 19th Century. Crazy, right? I thought Camp was just about outlandish and crazy fashion, since it was the theme of this year’s Met Gala.
All in all, I had a really great time in New York City. With all the names it is given (the City where dreams come true, the city that never sleeps, etc.), I think that NYC really is the city where dreams come true. And don’t worry, I’ll definitely be back.
Uniquely Me 