12:45 pm, Uptown 6 Station – Lafayette and Canal Street:
The light, airy notes of the mandolin reach my ears as I exit the station.  An older man plays with a peaceful look on his face, entranced by the music it emits.  I, too, am entranced by the people rushing past me.  I hear excerpts of their conversations – in both Chinese and English – and catch glimpses of their faces as they walk into the station. I notice a group of Chinese men and women pass through the turnstile.  I pick up the fast pace of those around me as I emerge from the station.  I am greeted with snippets of quick chatter, as the broad avenue lined with shops featuring shiny jewelry and multi-colored Pashmina scarves meets me.   Amidst the hustle and bustle of pedestrians crossing the street, an old man comes up to me and asks, “Handbag? Louis Vuitton?”.  The street signs for Canal, Mott, Baxter, and Mulberry are written in both Chinese and English, a manifestation of the culture rooted in this locale.  The sign for McDonalds is written in Chinese as well, but I able to recognize it by the trademark arched yellow ‘M’.   A man on the sidewalk is quickly making sweet mini cakes for the line of people in front of his cart.  A pagoda-shaped directory catches my eye, and staring at the map, I am able to visualize the cultural importance of Manhattan Chinatown.  The map points out particular streets, and what they are known for; it describes Mott and Canal Streets as the “heart of Chinatown”, and Grand and Mott as the perfect place when one is “shopping for fresh ingredients.”  This world is teeming with life, business, culture, and dreams, and yet- I am amazed that this was precisely the area that was devastated by Superstorm Sandy a few months ago.  This area was in the dark; it slipped through the attentions of government officials, thus cast aside in the face of an inevitable natural disaster.  But not on this bright day.