New York City

Hi!

It’s about time I wrote my post about New York City and world pride, so here it is. My view and opinion about the city that never sleep, the big apple, NYC!

World Pride

I’d like to start with the main reason for my trip to New York: world pride. World pride is the biggest pride festival in the world and held in a different city every year. Because of the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, world pride was held in New York City this year. Traveling to NYC has always been appealing to me. When I heard that world pride would be there while I was in Canada it was a no brainer for me to book a ticket to YFK and check it out.

The Stonewall Inn

A little history:

Everyone knows that back in the day being openly gay/lesbian/bisexual/trans/… wasn’t as easy as it is today. In 1969 the Stonewall Inn was the largest gay establishment in the US. The police often raided Stonewall. In the early morning hours of June 28th 1969 the police raided the Stonewall but the community fought back, causing a riot. People of all genders and sexual orientations spoke up and started fighting for the LGBTQ+ rights. A year later the first pride parade was held in NYC. Back then it was called Christopher street liberation day.

On the 28th of June 2019 I took the subway down to the West Village where the Stonewall Inn is. They had a free event to honor and remember Stonewall day. Lots of celebrities came to support the community. I saw Conchita Wurst, Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, Bob the drag queen etc.

The west Village is the gay heart of NYC. It’s home to Big Gay Ice cream and they even have Gay street!

The Dyke March

On Saturday I joined the Dyke March. The Dyke March is a lesbian visibility and protest march. Much like the original gay pride parades and gay rights demonstrations. I was impressed with how many people marched. It was amazing to join the March surrounded by my community.

The Parade

On Sunday the actual Pride Parade kicked off around noon. According to some there were more than 15.000 people marching in the parade. There was no end to it and there were people EVERYWHERE! It was insane! My favorite moment was by far when I finally saw the L word float with Bette, Alice and Shane on it.

The parties

On Friday and Saturday night I went to a party. Both of the parties were great and I met some cool people. No one will be surprised to hear that I picked these parties because Honey Burlesque, the burlesque dance group with Scarlett Snow, was performing. I felt really grateful to see these talented dancers again.

Tourist in NYC

When I wasn’t surrounded by rainbow flags, unicorns and glitter, you could most likely find me near one of the big tourist attractions in NYC. Together with Ellie (who joined me from the UK) or on my own I tried to explore and see as much as possible.

• Top of the Rock: You can take an elevator to the top of the Rockefeller Center. It gives you an amazing view over NYC

• Empire state building: Ellie and I embraced all the Gossip Girl feelings when standing on top of the Empire State building

• Staten Island Ferry: this free ferry takes you from the mainland to Staten Island. Why is this a tourist attraction? The ferry sails past the Statue of Liberty on it’s way to the islan

• Times Square: I knew Times Square was big and busy and I’ve seen it on TV many times but actually being there is something else. It was very overwhelming. There are people, cars, busses, lights. It is incredibly loud and bright. I loved and hated it at the same time!

• Wall Street: the finance district of NYC. Nothing special to see, just high buildings and lots of men in suits

• 9/11 memorial and museum: Ellie and I went to see the 9/11 memorial and museum. It’s very beautiful, emotional and sad

• Fifth Avenue: the big shopping street in NYC

• NYC public library: I didn’t even go in the library. I really just wanted to see the famous steps where Serena and Blair would spend time in Gossip Girl

• Grand Central terminal: this beautiful train station is worth a stop and knowing that Blake Lively walked those steps, gives it a little extra something

• Central Park: probably the most famous city park in the world

• Friends apartment: yes, I hunted down the apartment where the friend in “Friends” lived. The cafe isn’t Central Perk but we did find the building

• The high line: this is an elevated linear park, greenway and rail trail created on a former NY central railroad

• Broadway: can’t go to NYC without seeing a show on Broadway. Ellie and I are both Frozen fans so the decision was made quickly. Let it go, let it go, can’t hold it back anymore!

• The Vessel: this is a structure and landmark composed of 154 interconnecting flights of stairs, with almost 2500 individual steps and 80 landings.

• Brooklyn Bridge: one of the most famous NY bridges

4th of July

I was in New York during the 4th of July. It’s one of the biggest events in the US and the 4th of July fireworks in NYC are supposed to be the biggest in the world. Worth checking out! I decided to watch the fireworks in Brooklyn, close to the Brooklyn bridge so I had a view of the city and the fireworks. It took me a while to get there because most of the streets were fenced off for the event. I eventually found a good spot and enjoyed watching the fireworks.

I was afraid it was going to take me forever to get back to the hostel after the fireworks (traumatized by getting back home after the NYE fireworks in Sydney, Australia haha) but it didn’t take me any longer than on any other day to find my way back uptown.

Brooklyn

I wanted to give Brooklyn some extra attention. I think Brooklyn was my favorite part of NYC. It is less crowded than Manhattan, there is lots of street art, little bars and cafés,…

I did a graffiti and street art tour in Bushwick and absolutely loved it. I learned all about the history and different types of graffiti and street art.

I checked out the LGBTQ+ scene in Brooklyn and went to an amateur burlesque show at House of Yes.

New York City literally is the city that NEVER sleeps. It is always busy, loud and crowded. It is hard to escape the fast pace, the rush and the overwhelming feeling. I’m sure I’ll be back one day but I’m not sure if I love or hate this city. Maybe a little bit of both?

I will be back soon with a post about my trip to Toronto!

Love,

Jay/Joke

P.s. a shoutout to Ellie to join me on a couple of my NYC adventures and get me sucked into the souvenir stores around Times Square.