Danielle Itshaik
Response 2 of 5
I have always considered myself to be a New Yorker, but recently this class has made me contemplate if that’s actually true. Moreover, it’s made me rethink what being a New Yorker means. I’m pretty familiar with the city, I can navigate through trains, figure out directions, and get to my destination with some ease. But, I have never really ventured past the main attractions there. Central Park, Times Square, and a few scattered museums are the extent of my city experience. The walking tour on Tuesday made me see the city in a different light.
Getting off the train at Canal street to me has always a little confusing, with all the noise and the similar looking streets, it usually takes me a few minutes to orient myself and figure out where Soho is. A few times I have walked to the wrong side accidentally, where we walked on Tuesday. But, I never really noticed what was there. I was surprised to know there was a whole part of the city I overlooked, that was so close to a place I often go.
One thing that surprised me about the walking tour Tuesday was how physically close together all the different ethnic neighborhoods were. Within minutes we were in what was, and in some cases still is a totally different enclave. To be this close to so many different cultures is a factor I feel is what brings New Yorkers together. The variety of authentic foods available was also an interesting factor to me. We were able to get real parmesan cheese and pickled pineapple from two different stores within walking distance. This really shows how diverse the city is, by walking one city block, you could be in a totally different ethnic neighborhood.
Questions:
- Why do you think some ethnic stores continued thriving in the neighborhood while the ethnic enclaves tied to those stores had faded from the area?
- Do you think these stores will continue to thrive?
