The Famous Big Apple

No other image epitomizes my idea of wealthy New York more than a regular image of the magnificent city. A birds-eye view of large skyscrapers, the luminous shots of nighttime New York, these are the images that signal to my brain: Wealth! This is similar to the first thoughts that pop into my head when someone mentions New York. When those words hit my ear I instantly think of wealthy businessmen, wall street, grandiose apartment complexes, art museums, finely dressed men and women walking along busy sidewalks, and all that glamorous stuff. Now one might ask me: What about the poverty in the city? What about the large disparity between upper class and everyone below? What about all the budget cuts in education? Aren’t these more pressing issues in New York that should be consuming my first thoughts of the city? Now this is where I look at the birds-eye view pictures of our city; the bright night time shots of our skyscrapers; the beautiful sky lines of New York; and I answer: Where do you see that here?

Now I’m not trying to say that I have a blind eye for many of our city’s important issues. Rather, I’m just trying to express the fabulous idea of New York that I, and probably many others, perceive when we look at a picture of the city. Actually, maybe I’m one of few New Yorkers who think this way. I was born and raised in Queens, and Manhattan was just a place I never explored too much. I would only go there once or twice every couple of weeks for special occasions like dining or shopping. The city to me is still a wonder and as a result my mind is wired like that of a foreigner who’s never experienced the city. Foreigners often times derive their judgement of New York City from the movies and shows they watch, and what they see are, a lot of the time, depictions of upper or middle-upper class New Yorkers. This would explain my judgement of the previously mentioned city images.

However to be completely honest, even though I have my visualizations and ideas of what the upper class New York is like, I haven’t personally witnessed the magnitude of this wealthy, high and mighty class, save a couple of experiences. A lot of how I portray the upper class, is exactly how I imagine them from the movies: condescending, egotistic, narcissistic, and always expanding on topics which have minimal importance. (There are nice rich people too! I’m not trying to make them out to be evil if that’s what you assumed.)  I have never seen the people in the Plaza hotel. I have never been to a restaurant that serves wealthy guests. I’ve seen shows and movies with them in it, but that is all. I cannot garner much personal experience sadly.

So when it comes down to it, the big city and its upper class inhabitants will be mere projections to me. However, I draw motivation from it. Just like a foreigner first moving into New York, I have a feeling within myself that this is the city where my success is to be made. In my head, this will always be where I too can become a part of those that call themselves wealthy.

Now quick, what were the first things that came to mind?