Concrete jungle, what dreams are made of

The band recently got an opportunity to go to New York to play at Carnegie Hall. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity I was not going to miss.

The first week of spring break was spent practicing three pieces for the performance. On Friday, we had practice and then packed up at around 3 p.m. to leave for the twelve-hour trip to the Empire State. It was a long trip. Barely anyone slept. I only got an hour of rest. As soon as we made it to New Jersey, we ate breakfast, and finally our day started.

First, we went to Ellis Island. I went on the guided audio tour, which was wonderful. I heard firsthand accounts from immigrants, who came to the island. Each one told their experience with being an immigrant at Ellis Island.

Right after that, we took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. That is when it began snowing quite a bit. It became immensely colder than it had been, so I had to buy some very comfortable socks. We ate lunch near the statue and then made our way to the city.

The sites we visited over the three days in New York were popular tourists attractions. We visited the 9/11 memorial and museum, the Top of the Rock, and Radio City, as well as seeing Yo-Yo Ma in concert. All the sites were amazing.

The restaurants we ate at were all amazing, but expensive. The favorite place I ate at was Shake Shack. It is basically like a tastier, more expensive Five Guys. I would definitely get it again. I didn’t have enough money to splurge on getting more food than I needed, but what I did have was delicious.

Playing in Carnegie was an experience I will never forget. The acoustics were amazing. So was the beautiful and timeless architecture.

While I do want to forget the ride to and from New York City, I do not want to forget the atmosphere and the beautiful sites the city held. I hope to go visit New York City again.