The Other New York

Today is my last day in New York State for a while. Tomorrow I venture in to Connecticut and start moseying into New England, but wanted to share a few thoughts about everything I've seen since Manhattan and the rest of NYC.

I left the city for a few days on Long Island. Never got as far as the Hamptons but got a taste of most of it. Life slows to a crawl the moment you leave NYC proper...or maybe that is just what it feels like after the whirlwind that is Manhattan. The predominant feeling is freedom. The preeminent color is Green and the flavor of the air is fresh and salty.

 Outside of a couple major freeways (stress the word FREE here) most of the roads are small and very lightly traveled and take you through some very picturesque country. From Queens to Huntington, Massapequa to Northport it was a joy to travel those roads. And the home in which I stayed in Centerport was fun...an intentional kind of community built of about 8 long, short and medium stay occupants that all got along really well, interacted at a very high level and were big on sharing. It was, in a word, fun. Now, if only my cell phones would have worked in the home it would have been perfect.

There were a couple of thrilling memorials on the Island which are posted on my Facebook page for your viewing pleasure. Unlike leaving Manhattan, I was a little sad to have to leave this place.

The rest of my days in new York have been pretty much like those days on Long Island. Rather than seeing a lot of industrialization and other signs of "progress" it has been more green, more rivers and lakes and canals, more small town quaintness and really nice people. West Point was a very special place to visit, Port Jervis was surprisingly warm and fuzzy, and the drive from there to Albany and vicinity was beautiful. My hosts in Port Jervis wouldn't let me go till I had seen the "Hawk's Nest," their local scenic road that parallels the Delaware River and was, truly, worth the trip. Thanks to you, Mark and Maryann, that part of the journey was very special.

Please see the New Website where this article is now posted:
http://vietnamveteransmemorialtour.org/the-other-new-york/