September 24th
We were off to the great city of New York, where we were warmly welcomed by Aunty Rose, her daughter Amara, and their little dog, Dakota.
We were fortunate to stay at Aunty Rose’s apartment for the week. Amara and Aunty Rose prepared us a delicous meal and we enjoyed reconnecting.
Once settled, we headed out to meet our lovely Godmother, Laraba, who happened to be in the City as well! After reuniting, we strolled through the city and walked by where she used to live.
We stopped at a charming café called “Maman” for chai lattes and pastries.
For dinner, we went to Little Italy for pasta and gnocchi, which were ok but nothing crazy, and then made our way to Chinatown for bubble tea as dessert.
September 25th
On our first full day, we decided to watch a Broadway musical — Hamilton!
Before that, we had lunch at Raising Cane’s, which was on my iblings’ U.S. bucket list.
Unfortunately, the experience wasn’t great because there was a DJ playing loud music, plus a soundcheck happening at the same time. The food was fine, though.
After that, it was time for Hamilton, and it did not disappoint. The performance, music, costumes—everything was perfectly done.
My siblings and I had a wonderful time, which also allowed our parents to enjoy some time for themselves.
After more wandering, we met up with Liv, a family friend, for tapas. She was in town for Climate Week, another happy coincidence!
Some extra bits from that day:
September 26th
We decided to walk to the MoMa (Museum of Modern Art)
where we spent three hours exploring , and although my siblings felt a little bored after a while, it was a great visit.
Afterwards, we met up with Aunty Rose and Amara for an incredible Korean BBQ dinner—absolutely delicious.
September 27th
We visited my dad’s old neighbours, Aunty Martha and Uncle Harvey, from when he was six years old and living in NYC in the late 70’s. This wonderful couple has lived in the same building for over 50 years!
After a very tasty lunch, my family and Aunty Rose went to Central Park while Sam and I explored the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The Met was my favourite museum in New York, and I wish we had more time to explore because there was so much to see.
I came across a painting that reminded me of our little Tambo back in Switzerland. By coincidence, my grandpa had sent us a picture of him on the very same day.
In the evening, we headed to Brooklyn,
and found this excellent pizzeria called Juliana’s. At first, we were a bit worried because there was a long line outside, and we are a family of six. However, the host at the door managed everything so smoothly and with such a positive attitude that we felt welcomed even before being seated.
The menu was customizable, and our pizzas came out perfectly cooked in just a few minutes. The whole experience was seamless—you had no time to be bored! The food was fantastic, I highly recommend it.
After dinner, we planned to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, but we ended up taking an Uber home instead. The views of the city on the way back were stunning.
September 28th
The weather was miserable, so we took it as a sign to relax at home—and that’s exactly what we did. Aunty Rose also encouraged us to have a relax day to keep Xan happy, who was desperate for a pyjama day.
September 29th
On Sunday, we were invited to meet Uncle Thomas (my grandpa’s brother on my dad’s side) and some of his children, whom my dad had never met before.
We had a great time chatting, eating, and playing games together. It was wonderful to meet more of our family, and we hope they’ll visit us in Switzerland someday soon!
September 30th
Our last full day in NYC was packed with tourism plans: walking the High Line, seeing the Statue of Liberty, and finally walking the Brooklyn Bridge. However, not everything went as planned.
When we got to 34th Street to start the High Line walk, we found out that part of it was closed, so we had to backtrack 11 streets. Despite this, the walk was lovely.
We also wandered around West Village, which is such a cute area. ↑
For lunch, we stopped at a place called Taco Mahal, which was tasty.
Next, we headed to the 9/11 Memorial Museum, which was really impressive and indeed very tragic.
Next we made our way to the Staten Island Ferry terminal and saw some more iconic views:
Unfortunately, our plan to see the Statue of Liberty didn’t work out either, as the ferry to Staten Island now takes four hours and a tour would have cost $150. Instead, we went to a nearby park, to gaze at the statue from afar.
Afterwards, we took a short ferry to Brooklyn, where we were able to have a beautiful view of NYC after all.
Walking around in Brooklyn was really nice as well.
Although the sunset wasn’t as spectacular as we’d hoped, walking across the Brooklyn Bridge was still beautiful.
We ended the day with some of the best food we’d had so far in the middle of the street in Chinatown yum yum!
We also found a gift for Sava (a close family friend) and had a funny encounter – with a group of people, one of whom spoke Swiss-German, which was a surprising coincidence.
How small the world is … here we are in China Town in NYC buying chopsticks for my mother’s Serbian/Canadian/American friends while my Ghanaian/Ugandan father is having a chat with three Indian Subcontinent heritage guys one of whom spoke Swiss German because he had lived in Basel for 30 years. Funny how that happens.
We are incredibly grateful to Aunty Rose for so generously allowing us to take over her lovely, cosy apartment in Harlem.
It truly made our stay in New York so special, and we can’t thank her enough for her warmth and hospitality. We hope to see her again very soon, hopefully in Switzerland!
We miss you!!
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