NYC ... Beauty in Concrete and Marble, Part 1

  Now, I know many are reluctant to leave the world with which they're comfortable, travel to distant lands and observe the folks who live there... maybe even (yikes!) interact with the locals!
  It is scary to think that we might not understand signage,

 misinterpret gestures... fail to grasp the message yelled at us from a behind-schedule city bus driver...
  So, THIS guy        ------------->
He actually knows the language, but, as we can see, the words are blurry...  Understood.

  But what about the family from Japan who gets on a New York City bus with a stroller (4 year old 'baby' in it) and smiles and nods when then driver tells them to remove the baby from the stroller and close it, please. (smile, nod)  I can't move the bus until you close the stroller... (smile, nod, 'OK') SIR! Please close the stroller!  (Oh?  OK?  OK... Arigatou gozaimasu! Thank you, thank you!)  ~wailing 'baby', smiling and nodding parents folding the stroller~
  What would I do in Japan if the driver was asking me to do something?  Probably smile, nod and say the only word I knew in Japanese...  'arigatto'  (spelled wrong AND pronounced wrong!)  I know I would feel embarrassed and I would have liked to disappear right then... I felt that way in Italy once (ONCE?) We approached someone to ask directions to the nearest gellato place.... in Italian...  So she gave us directions... in Italian!     Duh.    ......  We asked someone else... ~English, please?~     got 'em!  Gellato!!! YAY!
  We visited the 911 Memorial site... (did I mention we just went to NYC?)  Beautiful. Bittersweet. Long line of people that dispersed into the HUGE Memorial site!

South Tower Site.  Same location, smaller footprint...
Still immense!

The day those two towers collapsed was the same day my first flight lesson was scheduled...  Thank you, God for cancelling it!  The way I was drinking at the time, I might have done something like that BY MISTAKE!  Funny?  Yes!   and No ...    It was a heartbreaking day... My Mom and I held each other and wept as we watched it happen on TV....    Crazy!  Coincidence I had a flight lesson that day? hmm... NOPE!  Luck?  Just ask Obi-wan!  He'll tell ya!  

Start small, but out of your comfort zone... for some, the front door...  GO!  
Peace be the journey!   
timlambert.travelspy@gmail.com