Gobble, Gratitude, and Giddy: A Thanksgiving Diary of a New York Novice
It's the Sunday of the Thanksgiving break. The campus is almost empty. The library is completely silent apart from the sound of the cards swiping when someone enters. Perfect day to become the academic weapon I so, so wanna be. But I'm me. I'll listen to music, stare out the window, and take random words swirling around in my foggy brain and weave them into sentences to make a blog post out of it that romanticizes my time here in New York City (because at least I can be consistent at this 🙃.) And because I HAVE decided to write and not study, might as well do it in a more "writer-esq" environment. [between the last and the next line, I changed locations lol]
So here I am, sitting in the same cafe where I was while writing the last blog, having my cappuccino (they're out of mocha again 🙄,) not ready to let the Thanksgiving break end, writing about the said Thanksgiving break aka my first Thanksgiving in NYC aka my first Thanksgiving ever (Ik Ik this is a repeating sentence in my blogs but I am experiencing a lot of firsts here so can not help 😭.) Let's get to it then (after a small detour that is these bullet points :))
- "The One Where the Underdog Gets Away" was the one that introduced me to the existence of Thanksgiving and the different kinds of potato dishes that are consumed during its celebration.
- "The One With All The Thanksgivings" was the one where I learned that it's a big, big day when entire families come together, no matter where they are, every year, to eat lots and enter into a food coma.
- "The One Where Ross Got High" was the one with "THE TRIFLE" and the one that made me realize that the celebrations can shift from the "childhood house" to an "apartment" and parents can be "invited over" instead of "visiting them," but the spirit remains the same.
- "The One With The Rumor" clearly described the importance of carbs during a Thanksgiving dinner ("Pass me the yams!!" - okay Mr. Pitt, calm down?!)
- "The One With Rachel's Other Sister" justifies the use of new china for Thanksgiving, implying the significance of the holiday. AND the one that introduced me to Macy's Thanksgiving day parade (the one which Joey was supposed to be a part of). AND also the one that helped me connect the dots that the "Underdog" in the first season was a balloon from the parade!!
- "The One With The Late Thanksgiving" had the iconic floating heads so even though it did not teach me anything new about Thanksgiving, it DESERVES a mention. :))
Initially, I only had one thing on it: "The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade," which was all I wanted to witness in order to self-declare that it had been a successful Thanksgiving. But after coming here, I learned that there's a pre-parade event thing called "watching the balloon inflation," a day before TG. So naturally, I HAD to add that to my list at number two. And I actually managed to tick both of the things off my list!!! How'd it go you ask? Lemme tell you that.
Wednesday, November 23, after packing all of my school stuff and stashing it away for four days, I headed towards 73rd and Columbus Avenue, with two of my only friends enthusiastic enough for this. The coolest thing happened on the subway, where there were announcements at every stop about the balloon inflation. And this is in no way something "oh so wow", but I just had to record it because "how cool would this be as the opening to a video about today (if there was to be one?!?)" Anyways, we got down at 73rd and Broadway to walk two avenues till we reached the entry point of the exhibit slash walk-through. And boy oh boy was it a vibe!! Firstly, the city had a filter on that day it seems because "how the f could something be so aesthetically pleasing and warm and picturesque while being gloomy???" And secondly, EVERYONE was walking the same way. Now, in all honesty, I thought this would be a low-key event, that not many people know about, and we'll be in and out in not more than an hour and a half. But surprise, surprise!! NYC and low-key can't be in the same sentence now, can they? So we ended up in a two-hour long queue, that went around two blocks and a very, very, very, very, mesmerizing street. All brownstones, Halloween decorations outside some, and Christmas decorations outside a few. The dark walls against the few yellow leaves left on the trees in front of them made the perfect frame for pictures. Honestly, the views and the vibe were what kept us (or me at least) motivated to stay in the line (and the random conversations too). And man am I glad we did because that day has easily entered my "most memorable days in New York" list. It even inspired me to write a silly little Tumblr post that could be tagged as "light academia!!!" (big win) 😭😭
Enough build-up, I'll start with the real thing now :)) The balloons that were going to be a part of the parade were being inflated on the streets that went around the American Museum of Natural History. So we had to walk those streets and see them on the way. Started with THE Turkey, and saw all of them - Spongebob, Baby Yoda (Grogu?!? to be specific), Kung Fu Panda, the Blue Cat NFT, Dinosaurs from Jurassic Park, Snoopy, Baby Shark, and many many more (19 if I can remember and count correctly.) They were all set for the parade, but not floating yet. Covered in nets attached to weights keeping them grounded. Just looking at the preparations made me all happy and giddy. But, but, but. The balloons were not the highlight for me. It was everything that was happening on and around the premises - children dragging their parents excitedly when they identified a certain balloon, older couples walking slowly with no phones, just admiring the scenes and taking breaks on the benches, families trying to fit in one frame for the picture, tourists marveling at the hugeness of everything, The museum of Natural history, though closed to the public, standing out and giving "Princeton vibes" as I like to call it, and most of it all, the mellow holiday-themed songs playing on the speakers all throughout the way. I mean, being a Bollywood fan or a fan of movies that give me delusion in general, I've always wanted to have background music in my life. And on most occasions here, New York City does that for me.
I walked back from the exhibit, all the way to my university (only 40 streets,) smiling and thinking "It's highly likely I'm gonna be the happy kinda emotional/overwhelmed during this Thanksgiving." And with every passing hour, it in fact was happening. I walked to my campus, and directly to the Thanksgiving Potluck (with apple pies,) and was welcomed with my (for the lack of better words and in an attempt to make this heartfelt/dramatic,) my found family/friends/cohort (the ones that didn't go home or away for TG,) yummy food, and delicious hot chocolate. We exchanged greetings, played some music, and Pictionary and heads up, clicked pictures, ate good food, drank a few too many cups of hot chocolate, and had a relaxing time after so, so long! After a day of walking and exploring and having new experiences, a small celebration in the comfort of the same lounge where I've spent many, many days this semester, with these very people, brought so much calm and gratitude to my heart! Isn't that what Thanksgiving is all about?
At the end of the mini-celebration, we all made plans to go and see the parade the next morning. Although I had already made up my mind to go and see it even if no one else went with me (it happens toooooooo early so can understand,) to see so many people being excited about the same thing as me and the possibility of all of us going to together and having a shared experience just added to my excitement! And even though we all were doubtful if we would be able to wake up at 6 am, the desire and determination were there! (honestly, never have I ever woken up at 6 am after coming here!) And we all DID succeed in waking up!!!!!! Thursday, November 23, 2023, 12 sleepy but excited kids, gathered at 110 Broadway, took the crowded subway to Columbus Circle, roamed around for 30 minutes to find a good viewing spot, and were stranded in the middle of the crowd for the next 40 minutes, lost ALL motivation to stay for the parade, but still stood there, people watching, passing comments on random stuff, deciding to "definitely not coming again next year" (not me, I'm coming back every chance I get!) And when the faint sounds of the drums and music were first heard, everyone moved. Roars, chants, greetings, whistles. The security guard urged us to "KEEP MOVING TO THE LEFT IF YOU'RE HERE TO SEE THE PARADE AND NOT OTHER PEOPLE'S HEADS." And we followed. We "kept moving left" till we found a good enough viewpoint. Everyone found separate ones, so we stood apart but were looking at the same thing, among the same people. I stood in that spot for 90 minutes (I think?) I saw and recorded every balloon, every marching band, the dancers, JIMMY effing FALLON and Keenan Thompson!! There was an older man with the spirit of a little kid, who was shouting out the names of and facts about each and every balloon and performance happening during the parade. There were kids in the balconies of the buildings along Central Park South, in their pajamas, waving at the parade. People with expensive cameras and equipment. People with iPhones. People with Samsungs. Some were taking it in just with their eyes (the best way tbh). Happy squeals, and many "Happy Thanksgiving"s.
After the parade ended and everyone dispersed in all directions from Columbus Circle, I started walking towards a coffee shop because I was freezing and needed something "extra hot" to gulp down, I was smiling to myself (yet again.) Why you ask? Well, I was covered in/surrounded by five layers of things/stuff/"an appropriate word for what I'm gonna write?!?" And I am not referring to the turtleneck, another turtleneck, a sweatshirt, a hoodie, and a windbreaker that I was wearing. I mean, over the last two days, I have been surrounded by the comfort of friends (mine), the warmth of families (not mine), the excitement of tourists (which I am not), the genuine joy of kids, and the spirit of holidays among EVERYONE. (I meant for this to sound more dramatic and heartfelt than it does now so pretend it is 😭.) At that moment, the thought that crossed my mind was that I could not agree more with that little boy I saw last Saturday in Times Square while eating a dollar slice 🍕, whose words made me stop with the said slice hanging in the air, and smile the widest smile. What did he say? Well, he actually yelled: "Man I LOVE this city!" with his whole heart! In the middle of smiling, I knew for sure that he was definitely making it to my blog! And he did! I agree with him with my whole heart. The experiences I am having, the opportunities to have these experiences, and the spirit of the people during any and every festival, are only happening because I am in New York City. So on the day of thanks, I have the utmost gratitude for this opportunity to be a "novice" new-yorker. (no sarcasm this time, genuinely am in awe of the city!)
As I sit here proofreading this blog (which has turned out to be way too long 😭,) I can see students returning to the campus with suitcases and unexcited but peaceful faces. The one you have when you've had a wholesome family weekend and are not ready to get back to the grind. Honestly, neither am I. But we don't have an option. So I'm gonna end this here and mentally prepare myself for the last two weeks of this semester (all with a happy and content heart and a bit of anxiety for good measure.)
Until next time!
~ Vee 🗽
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