The next morning we had to wake up early. We wanted to get in line for student tickets to memphis, so we had to be in line by 8 o clock. We left becca's house at 6:30 and ended up being the second people in line. We got great seats in the front row (it was cool to see all of their faces and everything so close, but it took a bit of the magic away to be able to see their wigs and sweat flying everywhere) for like twenty six dollars. Memphis just won the tony for best musical and is extremely popular, so we were very grateful for our luck.
Before the show we found this HUGE farmers market/flea market going on on the Avenue of the Americas. It went for probably twenty or twenty five blocks. We had lunch there and shopped around a little bit.
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| half of the group that went to memphis |
Memphis was amazing. I mentioned before that we were in the front row, and that was really neat. We weren't craning our necks or anything, the only problem was when there were props on the edge of the stage that blocked our view of some parts of the stage. We were close enough though to touch anything on the stage. The show itself was great. I had no idea what it was about before, and I didn't know what to expect at all. It is the story of a white guy in 1950s memphis who loves "negro music." he hears it, thinks it's really great, and tries to get it out to the white people on the radio and tv. The characters are great, the music is really fun, and the dancing is also a lot of fun.
After memphis we spent some time seeing the sights and had an amazing hamburger at "good burger" right near grand central station. We saw the brooklyn bridge, the west village, and had some good dessert.
The next morning we attempted to find the Harlem singles ward, and failed miserably. We did however find a clapping tambourine-banging black baptists church, and decided it would be better than no church. And it was. it was neat to see how enthusiastic those people are about their worship. And they were so friendly and welcoming. In the middle of Harlem, in a place that looked like it came straight out of a rap video or a new story of a drive by shooting, we found a place where we were welcomed and felt at least a little bit at home as they sang about Jesus. even if they randomly yelled "thankyou Jesus" every few minutes. It was a neat experience. The four of us were the only white people in the room, and nobody seemed to notice that fact but us. Church and worship can bring all types of people together.
After church we grabbed a quick bite at a place called heavenly burger (I wanted to find a really good new york hamburger) and then hung out in central park until it was time to catch our bus back to washington DC. We listened to the Giants game on the bus because they had wireless internet, which was a major blessing.
I really like New York. But when I got off the bus and stepped back in to Washington DC, I couldnt help but feel relieved. My heartrate may have literally dropped back to a normal speed after the stress and busyness of New York. I didn't feel stressed there, but I also didn't feel relaxed. There are too many people, the city smells, the subway is terrible compared to the DC metro, and the buildings are just too tall. I love it for a good visit, but I don't think I would ever want to live there. DC feels like home now. When we got off the bus we all took in a deep breath of the cleaner, fresher air and were glad to be home.
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