The Other Side of New York

When I say the word Chinatown, what comes to mind? Food, Mandarin, Stolen/knockoff items, and probably NYC. The Chinatown that many tourists have come to know and love in NYC is located in lower Manhattan, and despite the name, is very much Americanized. Yesterday, some friends and I visited Flushing Meadows, Queens and as I walked up from the subway, I entered a world completely different of that from Brooklyn and Chinatown Manhattan.
Our goals in visiting Flushing Meadows included seeing Arthur Ash Stadium where the U.S. Open Finals are held, Citi Field where the Mets play, and walking through the 1,255 acre park, known as Flushing Meadows Corona Park. (Side note, Central Park is arguably the most well known park in NYC, yet it is far from the biggest park in NYC. In fact, it comes in 5th at 843 acres.)

However, before reaching any of these sites, we walked right into Chinatown Queens. Massive amounts of Asian people, signs predominately in Mandarin and discount, off brand products made it obvious that we were in Chinatown. After exploring up and down Main Street, we walked into the City Hall building and read about tigers and their prominence in Chinese culture. James, a fellow friend and intern, began to color a man/dragon/tiger picture with crayons and did so with a preciseness to be envied by any boy or girl who calls coloring a hobby. Unfortunately, James's coloring extravaganza was cut short due to our hunger and a lunch recommendation given by the receptionist. Being that we were in the heart of Chinatown, we thought it only fitting to eat at an authentic Chinese restaurant, so we visited the "Little Pepper". O yea, did I mention that the receptionist, an Asian man, said with little concern the restaurant was a "little" spicy.

The awning above the restaurant had only Mandarin characters, with a little pepper man eerily smiling at any visitor that dared to enter and brave the Asian cuisine. We sat down and instantly noticed that we were the only Americans in the restaurant. The waiter poured us tea as we perused the menu and i eventually noticed that almost every dish ended saying "with chili pepper", or "hot pepper sauce". I blame our ignorance, but we each quickly realized after one bite the huge mistake we had made. Most notably, my good friend and fellow intern Nathan ordered Lamb coated in seeds from some type of hot pepper and within 5 minutes, was profusely sweating from his face. To put this in perspective, Nathan is a football player at Truman State University. If i were to guess, he stands 6' 3'' and weighs about 270LBS. If anyone could handle this food, I would guess it to be Nathan, so when I saw the extensive sweat on his face, I knew i was screwed. Despite the intolerable spiciness, Nathan cleaned his plate and proved his manliness to each and every onlooker.
Another note about the Little Pepper. The waiter did not give us water, not did any other table have water. We had hot tea, and that was the extent of our drinks. I'm not sure if this is standard with authentic Asian cuisine, but that changed quickly. Within minutes of eating our meal, the woman at the register noticed our misery, began laughing and brought us an entire picture of water. We swept through 2 of these for lunch, making this one meal i will never forget.

After lunch, we visited the newly built Citi Field where the lesser known and arguable less talented New York Mets play. The field was closed, so we were only able to look in through gates, but look forward to photos from a possible future game i attend.
Next, we visited Billie Jean King Arena where the U.S. Open is held each year. We walked through the maze of courts, mainly focusing on Arthur Ash Stadium where the final match is held. I believe i even included a picture of us with Arthur Ash and little children.
From here, we wondered the enormous park, visiting such sites as the Unisphere that you may recognize from the popular blockbuster hit Men in Black along with the concrete saucers, built for the World Fair NYC hosted in the mid 20th century.

After a full day of exploring new cultures, foods and architectural wonders, I gained a new appreciation for the other side of New York. The side off the the beaten path, away from 5th avenue, Central Park, Rockefeller Center and Time Square. Not to say these aren't great places, but I think most people tend to forget that their are 4 other boroughs within New York with just as much to offer and if you happen to take that leap of faith in exploring one, you might just be pleasantly surprised.

This is Nate, saying "Repetition breeds familiarity".