"Things always seem fairer when we look back at them, and it is out of that inaccessible tower of that past that Longing leans and beckons."
-James Russell Lowell
I'll try to break up my reflections into three posts to render justice to the immensity of each purpose - never have I had so much meaning and conviction tightly packaged in a week composed of erratic sleep cycles, deadlines, stress and laughter. I enjoyed every moment of this cacophonous adventure; rather, I embraced the energy of the city and channeled it to my endeavors. Here's my attempt at chronicling what transpired in the Big Apple.
Prologue
All of us had our own expectations of New York. Personally, I was nervous. That the city would be too gargantuan for me. That somehow I would not find my place there, literally and figuratively. There was always this genuine worry that I would be overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of this vibrant city, or underwhelmed because of my extremely high expectations. Nonetheless, I wanted to extract as much substance as I could from this trip. I wanted to distill all the excess impurities until I can ascertain New York's essence: what does it mean to survive and thrive in this city? That was the goal of my adventure, the Holy Grail of my quest. Granted, it was and still is an ambitious question; however, I can pride myself to say that I have composed a partial answer to it, based on my observations and discoveries. That is not to say that this answer will remain unchanging, what I've learnt about New York is that its dynamism and flow really requires our perspectives to evolve with the times. More on this later, for now, allow me to usher you into a pseudo-chronological narrative.
Travelling there
Our UBC team consisted of 12 members, and we received a generous grant from the President's office to compete in the National Model United Nations conference. We have spent the past few months preparing for this conference, and may I insert here that my past few months were anything but pleasant. It was grueling, physically taxing and emotionally draining. Nevertheless, we were on our way on March 31st 2012, NY-bound aboard flight CX888. The general consensus was that the food and service were impeccable, and I personally found it hard to find fault with the way CX is heading.
 |
| We were all tired as we waited for Jade to fly in from Toronto @ LaGuardia |
We arrived in JFK airport at around 6am, having lost 3 hours due to time difference. No surprise at the long line up and meticulous questions at immigration, one would expect nothing less from US border personnel. The next few hours were riddled with slight unpleasantness and unfamiliarity. First, we weren't sure how to connect to the NY subway system (esp. the one in Queens) via the Airtrain. It was a case of tourists in a foreign, strange land, and many of us were quite unsettled, not to mention tired. Second, we had to carry a lot of baggage around, and this coupled with the fact that NY metro stations aren't luggage friendly (staircases, small turnstile lanes), we were therefore exhausted when we came to LaGuardia Airport to receive a colleague flying in from Toronto. Third, all the waiting, transiting and movement made the 5 hour flight seem like a 15 hour one, since we got to move in to our rented apartment in West Harlem only at around 3pm.
 |
| Walking to our Apartment in Harlem |
That being said, all prior tiredness and negativity dissipated immediately upon entering our two-level apartment suite. It was homely, spacious and well-stocked - definitely the place many of us would want to call home for the next week. Indeed we did look forward to come home; personally, I thoroughly enjoyed resting and recharging every night in that very comfortable space on W117th and Frederic Douglass Boulevard. The girls claimed their nests on the top floor while the guys settled in the basement. What was that thing about gender equality, again?
 |
| Top Floor of the Apartment - It was cozy, homely, well-furnished & well-stocked |
The Apartment
The apartment was rented at a very affordable price from a gentleman named Stanley, who I believe was an attorney. He radiates professionalism, no-nonsense and communicates enough to come across as sociable and personable. Apart from being the owner of the unit (heard he owns the building), he showed a lot of hospitality when it came to furnishing the living space and supplying plenty of amenities. Most importantly, the apartment was a important area for our team of 12 - it was more than a place to eat and sleep; it was a communal place shared by all. We lacked considerably when it came to tidiness, order and cleanliness however,but that is to be expected of a group of young people such as us. Besides, we had our good looks to compensate for our rather sub-par domestic habits.
The apartment was a stones throw away from W116th Street Station, where the B express train would take us directly to Sheraton on 53rd street and 7th avenue. There was also a grocery store just around the corner, a Starbucks (absolutely essential watering hole to many on our team), and a tasteful cafe (Cafe Medina) that dished out some good grub and offered many nice pastries. If there is one thing I learnt from this trip, is that girls go absolutely head over heels for desserts and pastries.
The particular area we lived in was sort of in the outskirts of Harlem, we were flanked to the West by Morningside Park and bordered by Central Park to the South. To our east was Spanish Harlem, El Barrio and East Harlem, the less glamorous parts of Manhattan. Further up North was the Bronx, and that area needs no special introduction. Our location was very friendly to foreigners and visitors like us since it was considerably safe.I was particularly thankful that Peter did very well in securing this place for us. Not only did we save plenty from not staying at an exorbitantly priced hotel room in Midtown Manhattan, by the end of the week, the experience of commuting to' and fro' our apartment and the city made us feel just a little more like locals, barring the tremendous amount of souvenirs that some of us purchased and so shamelessly flaunted.
The average time it took for us to get to our conference venue at the Sheraton Hotel via the B train was around 10-12 minutes, with the Local C train at 20-25 minutes because it made more stops and you needed to transfer at 59th St. Columbus Circle Station to the B or D trains anyway. All in all, the apartment has found a special place in all of us because it was just that idealized environment that all of us would yearn for in any trip, much less here in New York. It was a blend of necessity and luxury, from the decor to the wooden paneled floors; the beds to the free liquor. I can safely wager that nobody had anything bad to say about the apartment, and that the only complaints would probably be because of my whistling or skype conversations at night. That then, was a minor issue when it came to the acoustics of the apartment: sound travels everywhere in that unit.
The Conference
The primary reason for my trip is to compete in the National Model United Nations, a collegiate conference which attracts a very large pool of students from Europe, North America, Latin America and some from Asia. The conference is so populous that the organizers, for logistical reasons, have to separate the conference into two venues with two different dates. I have yet to find out if the calibre, quality or competitiveness of these two venues are dissimilar, but I have heard rumours that the Marriot venue is a lot more competitive. All the better, since we were in the Sheraton venue.
 |
| Our Team @ the NMUN 2012 Opening Ceremonies |
The opening ceremony consisted of the usual official remarks, and I felt my eyelids get heavier as speaker after speaker droned on about cliches. I've always wondered if it was the solemnity of ceremonies, the gentle lighting used to create ambiance or the soft atmosphere that has caused me to doze through every single ceremony I've been to (and I mean every), or maybe its those cliches that almost always manage to find their way into speeches. Either way, I was glad to be in committee session with my partner Jennefer. We were in the African Union, representing Madagascar.
MUN is an extremely nerdy endeavour - we role-play as delegates from a country (in our case, Madagascar), debating on policy issues and collaborating with other students who do exactly what we're doing. Out of this mesh of personalities and cultures, you get eloquence, leadership, ideas and a thrill of politicking like no other. In any case, the objective of these conferences is to simulate the workings within the United Nations, with an emphasis on cooperating with others and building consensus. You do so by drafting up working papers or policy proposals that deal with predetermined issues that are pertinent and relevant to the global population. These policy proposals outline what should be done, why and how it is to be done and who will do it.
It was a grueling conference schedule, with committee sessions starting at 9.30 am typically and ending at 11pm (with breaks of course). Jen and I were at the right place and the right time, and both of us went into our element right from the start. We caucused, delivered speeches from the podium, and were hard at work garnering support for various ideas and to include everyone into these working papers. We exercised diplomacy, conjured our interpersonal skills and took up a leadership role in committee that, to our delight, rewarded us with several passed resolutions and a Peer Choice Award. I was pleased with my performance, and extremely satisfied with my partner Jen's showing as well. Not only did she require minimal assistance or guidance (this being her second MUN), she took on heavy duty tasks which involved not only the usual mundane tasks of diplomatic conversation; instead, she had to appease many angry Italian delegates. Let me assure you that that in itself was a task deserving of some heroic title. She was and is a heroine in my heart because I shied away from the prospect of having to appease them, not only because I felt daunted by it, I also felt that my pride and frustration would get in the way. I believe that Jen performed admirably and tactfully, and because of that I owe her my gratitude.
 |
| Jen & I - African Union committee partners |
Our UBC delegation won the Outstanding Delegation and a Best Position Paper award. Surely, what is accomplished here is no small feat, and deserving of an entirely separate reflection. On that note, I will focus on other aspects of the trip, particularly living there and the whole NYU situation in Part 2 of my reflections on New York.
For now, my bed calls out to me.
Comments
Post a Comment