Welcome to New York City, the city that never sleeps - the city where everything seems to be moving three times faster than it should. I often hear people say that New York City will either make you or break you. I must admit that this statement is quite accurate. However, the complex dynamic of life in New York City transcends making or breaking a person. The complexity of life in New York City amazes and disappoints at the same time. It is that fulfilling sense of achievement we experience as we move a step closer to our goals in life - it is also that nearly depressing state of uncertainty as we find ourselves so close yet so far from real, concrete success. Yet, once we look past the socio-economic challenges that New Yorkers never miss an opportunity to complain about, we open ourselves to experiencing first hand the beauty hidden beneath this fast-paced, overpopulated, craze-inducing city.
It has been argued that the city of New York is a melting pot within the bigger melting pot that is the United States - A bouillon of cultures interacting with each other on a daily basis. At first glance, this statement is accurate as well. Our everyday activities take us to places we never thought we would visit. In Chinatown, we feel like we are in China, Washington Heights feel like the Dominican Republic, Flatbush Ave feels like the Caribbean.
The beauty of the city stems not only from gleaming skyscrapers in Times Square but also from its cultural diversity. Each neighborhood has its particularity, its unwritten set of rules, history, its "swagger". This cultural diversity enhances the image of New York and makes every day a new experience; we can never know what amazing things we may run into once we step outside of our house. We are overwhelmed by the choices we have when it comes to deciding which new cuisine to try or which new pub to go check out. We live in New York City and we learn to embrace different style of music, we learn different languages, we pick up words from different dialects - a friend speaks patois, another speaks creole and another speaks Swahili.
However, after being in New York City for only a few months, one will realize that the reality surrounding the city is much more complex than a melting pot. A melting pot is a container where different metals are melted then mixed together. The notion of melting pot, as described above, seems too simplistic to define life in New York City. Is New York City really a mix of cultures? Or is it made of segregated clusters of cultures that create a complex cultural kaleidoscope? We aim to develop a better understanding of the make-up of New York City by focusing on various cultural outlets such as language, religious beliefs, make-up of neighborhoods, cuisines and so forth. We will share all observations and findings with you while trying to remain as unbiased as humanly possible.
