On a warm Spring day, New York City is one of the most amazing places in the world.
That was the thought running through my head as I walked the streets of Manhattan today. New York itself is not a terribly beautiful city, but on a day like today, I was struck by the beauty of the historical buildings, and by the energy and diversity of their inhabitants.
I walked through a few different parks: Union Square, City Hall Park, and Washington Square. And every park bench in every park was full of people enjoying the warm sunny weather. I wonder how many languages I heard today. Certainly Spanish and English were the top two, but I am sure there were many others.
Thai Airways' non-stop flight from Bangkok to New York arrives before 7 AM, so after a quick taxi ride to my hotel in Flushing to drop off my bags (it was too early to check in) and a taxi over to a friend's house in Queens, and a bus and subway ride, I found myself on the streets of Manhattan.
My main task for today was to buy a new laptop to replace my Sony Vaio which seems to have permenantly died. I first visited the amazingly sleek Apple Store in Soho, which I realized was a serious mistake because when I went to Best Buy, Circuit City, Staples (3 of them), some other random computer shop, and finally J&R Electronics, every single other store made me physically ill to be inside.
Why is it so hard to create a store that provides an enjoyable shopping experience? How difficult is it to hire intelligent, knowlegable, enthusiastic staff? Is designing a store layout that allows you to easily compare and try the products a monumental task? Apparently, all of these things are next to impossible, since of the 6 chain stores I went to, only Apple pulled it off.
In some ways, I feel like I am voting with my money when I buy something. So, to make a long story short, I am now in my hotel room typing on my brand new iBook. It wasn't my cheapest option, by far, but I am so happy that I made this decision.
You forgot about the wonderful sandwich you had with the Moz cheese/ tomato/ on a a bagette in that cute little coffee shop in Soho.
Hey at least you have a wonderful sleek mini accesory.
Yes, that was a great caprese salad on bread sandwich in SOHO, with excellent company to share it with. That's definitely one thing I just love about New York: so many cool high-quality little cafes and bars on every street.