New York, and resting is doing something!

Today was not a day lost in NYC. Though we are surrounded by spectacular things to see and do, so much to experience, it was a day to rest.

I have so many great adventures, but what what has really bloomed dramatically in me over the last year of consciously trying to adventure all I can with the body I have is that I am not trying to have the adventures OTHERS have, I am trying to have the adventure I can have. It is MY adventures that fill my soul, not living the adventures of others.

A healthy person can look at 7 days in NYC as an opportunity to see and do as much as they can, because what an opportunity! However that mindset was really detrimental to my perception of being able to have fantastic adventures. I remember my anxiety approaching my first trip to NYC, and then my insane road trip (It really was a ridiculous undertaking) to Joshua Tree this summer. Feeling this big mountain ahead of me that I really wanted to climb, longed to climb with every bit of my soul, and see every vista possible in the process, but that freaking mountain was HUGE.

On my first NYC trip I remember feeling quietly resentful and limited because I had to rest more, could not do all I dreamed of. I was ecstatic and returned home empowered and looking forward to pushing myself more, but if I am being really honest, time I was "not doing anything" felt like a waste, a loss. Necessary, but stinky.

However a year later, both in Seattle, and now in NYC, I have found a different love of the quiet gentle pace my body chooses for me. I can push a day, but don't have to feel like I have to push as much as possible while my pain is more manageable. I don't feel regretful that today, we stayed in. Not totally in, I walked to pick up a couple groceries this morning, and we took a long stroll down at the waterfront this afternoon.

That is enough. That is a great day in NYC (Well Brooklyn specifically today)! We watched the huge ships, watched people walk by, and then wandered the blocks back up from the shore to our home base.

We also have been binge watching Star Trek (The Next Generation),which is seriously important work as well.

Today as been a very good adventuring day!

I'm leaving, on a jet plane..flying.

                                                                     Wow, departure day really came fast,

since I only

 had a few

 weeks to

 get ready!

Let's start this chat talking about flying, and what not to do that I have done:

Unfortunately, because the NYC plan was hatched so suddenly, airfare was pretty pricey. I absolutely encourage you to get airplane tickets as far ahead as possible. 

We have been really lucky finding low prices by looking early, and selling our soul to one airline so we could accrue loyalty rewards. I think we picked up our Frontier credit card on our first trip to San Diego. We use that card consciously, almost exclusively to pay for travel, or strategic large purchases. We then pay it off right way and earn air miles for money spent. We have been able to find some really fantastic fares, often at a departure time we choose.

I encourage you to do some research on airlines before you settle down, or get one of the cards out there now that lets you use your miles on many different airlines. When we got ours we traveled rarely, and were not super experienced. Cheap was really most important in truth. However at this point Frontier has so many different fees, the seats are so tucked in there they took away the ability to lean back at all, so the seat is absolutely wrong for my body and very painful to sit in upright for hours with limited movement. I am not sure I can continue to fly on this airline for that reason alone.

At one point we traveled and I was not strong at all. I called ahead and arranged to have a wheelchair transport to help me get to my gate, trying to save my energy reserves for the rest of the trip. Weeks ahead I made arrangements. We arrived when told, then waited a really long time for the person with the chair, making us nearly late for our flight. The bonus is that the attendant bypassed all security lines and then waited while we went right through screening. We made it too late for the early boarding for those who need extra time, however I later realized that getting on the plane early just means you sit in those seats longer. 

So back to that afternoon in early November. Because my trip was such a last minute surprise my flight times were about as awful as they could be for me. I departed Denver at 4:40pm, arriving in NYC at 10pm. I am often out of steam by 2pm! My return flight was even later, so I drove to the airport and parked instead of making Dan collect me after midnight. Thankfully I was on a stretch of feeling pretty good, and moving to a lower altitude seems to always mean a break for my body and a bit more energy with little less pain, potentially.

My friend thankfully said my best bet, late and tired, was to hire a car from the airport in NYC. So I called a car company she likes. It was curbside pickup, not someone standing holding a sign with my name, but it still felt pretty fancy to me! The ride was fantastic, absolutely a perfect start. I flew into Laguardia, which meant I drove from one end of Brooklyn to the other. I went right past the brightly lit up skyline of Manhattan, and could pick out familiar landmarks.

 The big long bridges, the blackness of the water with the lights of ferry traffic. The Statue of Liberty from far across the water stood greeting me just like she greeting my ancestors coming to Ellis Island. (which I knew was right near that statue..). I looked and looked with such excitement that I can't quite express it!

The driver was just perfect as well. He was a Muslim man from Pakistan who had been in the USA for many years, raising 3 daughters with his wife. It was interesting to ask about how he was feeling being here, with the 2016 Presidential elections just days away. 2 of his daughters have married and returned to Pakistan, where they feel more comfortable. He was so very welcoming of me, proud of this city he has come to love. I am sad that he does not always feel as welcomed.

He helped me find the building I was staying in, and get my bags to the door, and suddenly I was quite on my own in NYC. 

 I entered the lobby and could not for the life of me find the elevator. There was one door that looked every so slightly different from the rest of them, but it was the same size and color. I finally noticed the buttons to the left of the door and the lack of a number. It opens and reveals a large closet sized elevator. Those are the sorts of details I love, and find so fascinating about travel. Well, about life in general. 

My hostess had carefully given details on finding this magical little elevator(which I forgot), along with every aspect of her house, her cats, and epic tips on how to get around the city and not be a dork or unsafe. She also left me her metro cards, a gift certificate for acupuncture and some other things. 

As you can imagine, I was pretty jazzed to be there, quite exhausted, and hurting a bit. So I set about trying to settle in, in the City that Never Sleeps I was supposed to sleep, when sleeping in general is really challenging for me!

New York, New York!

I actually stood on the Brooklyn bridge, by myself (surrounded by millions of course) and watched the lights of Manhattan turn on. How spectacularly magic and breathtaking that was.

However I should back up a little. I was suddenly given an opportunity to spend 8 days in NYC in November 2016. A friend would be out of town, and I could stay in her Brooklyn apartment, take care of her 2 cats, and explore as much as my body let me. Then we could spend a few days together when she got home. WIN!

Dan had talked it through with me, and encouraged me that even if I got there, and spent a week laying around in my pj's, watching cable tv, playing with her cats and ordering takeout, it would be a great adventure. I jumped at the opportunity, trying to cautiously dream big while keeping my options entirely open and feeling like whatever it was, it would be just what it was supposed to be.

It was so dizzying to read about what I could see and do, after a lifetime of longing to explore this magical history filled city. My budget was very little, so I was trying to focus on experiences. In fact I was reflecting on my journal to write this, and found my list of "Things I can actually do in NYC". It was a list written with a sense of awareness of my limitations while still dreaming.  I had crossed off "do" and added "experience".

 However by the time I left, I had really boiled it down (mentally) to a few things that I felt were entirely achievable and would leave me feeling wholly fulfilled by my journey.

Walk on the Brooklyn Bridge

Figure out the subway(bonus people watching)

Ride a tour bus around Manhattan

Get to know the Brooklyn neighborhood I was visiting. (shop there, eat there)

Spend time with my friend. (well, and her cats of course)

Many people have marveled that I was not afraid to go to NYC alone. The truth is about the exact opposite! I was excited by the opportunity to be alone with myself, with my thoughts. I wanted to prove to myself that I was capable, in spite of how fragile I feel sometimes. I wanted to have reasons to initiate conversations with strangers. I had taken on another country, with a giant city (with subways that I conquered) where I did not speak the language. I wanted to feel like that bold adventurer again. To pick up where I had left off.

There is also a fair amount of guilt wrapped up in days I can't function very well, lost to pain or fatigue. I am the wildcard who will probably flake on those evening plans, or even plans at all. I am not always dependable, not always ready to go explore. That long walk you wanted to take, well cut it in half and maybe I could do it. Having the luxury, the wonderful guiltless extravagance, of just doing what I want, when I want, without anyone else being disappointed, was so luxurious. Guilt free, self centered care centered adventuring. In NYC even!

I will do a blog post at a later date about my travel journal system, which is pretty much "Stick up ephemera you want to save and jot a few thoughts" and BAM! You have a lovely way to remember your trip, day by day. Not intimidating, not overly fussy, and just such a handy way to make it easy in the moment.

Stay tuned to read more about the trip!