“Your school gets to go to New York?” Halmoni, my Korean grandmother, said, clapping her hands and grinning with pride. “You’re such a lucky, lucky girl!”

On that early February afternoon, I had just told my halmoni over FaceTime about my upcoming Discovery Week trip to New York, something that I had looked forward to since I applied to Westridge at the end of eighth grade. My Discovery Week trip was the second time Westridge gave me the chance to experience the East Coast. (The first was when I went on a Spyglass affiliated trip to the 2024 JEA/NSPA National Journalism Convention in Philadelphia.)

My parents themselves had never been to the Northeast. I was going to places me, my friends, and my family dreamed of going, all because I was blessed with a school that provided me with opportunities to expand my horizons. 

Even though New York isn’t a whole new country, I was exposed to an entirely new way of life. I was thrown right into the deep end in terms of walking, which holds a very different meaning in New York. While I was used to walking for leisure, New Yorkers walk with clear intention and direction. Walking is the main form of transportation for New Yorkers, with the subway just right behind. In fact, we rode on over 40 different subway trains in just the five-day trip.

With New Yorkers constantly walking for their commute, they had a much faster walking pace that took some adjusting to keep up with. Although I found myself needing to catch my breath sometimes, I also found beauty in the hustle and bustle. Even at night, the city was still full of people visiting thrift stores and pizza parlors. I saw women walking effortlessly in kitten heels on the cobblestone streets. The nighttime liveliness showed me firsthand why New York is called “the city that never sleeps.” While Los Angeles is the place of ease, New York is a constant stream of energy and vibrancy.

Even while I was exposed to a different kind of city culture, there were many aspects of New York that reminded me of the warm feeling of home. Like LA, New York is a cultural hub—which also meant there was amazing food. In Harlem, I dined at the United House of Prayer to eat Soul Food for the first time. There was Katz’s Deli with the line stretched way out the door, which was where I ate my first bowl of comforting matzo ball soup. And of course, I became a new member of the cult-like following that surrounds New York bagels, with Pop Up Bagels being the best bagels I have ever had. 

There was also a certain pride that every New Yorker had to be a New Yorker. The energy was infectious. New Yorkers greeted us while we went on tours of the city. We received passing welcomes while on a walking tour by Spanish Harlem residents. 

The restaurant service was top tier as well. While eating Pizza at Bleeker Street Pizza, the cashier gave one of my friends an extra garlic knot because her order was just a few minutes late. On our second trip to PopUp Bagels, the cashier not only remembered us, but also gave us a free tub of cinnamon sugar butter along with our order. We ate ramen at Noodle Bar, and the waitress graciously did the tedious task of splitting our check for eight individuals. I don’t think I had ever received such courteous service at restaurants before. “Good service” had a whole new meaning after my trip to New York. Every restaurant in New York welcomed me as if I was a local, as if I could just tell them “I’ll get the usual.” 

New York has an around-the-clock, fast-paced atmosphere that deservingly gets called “The City that Never Sleeps.” But as a junior in high school, I realized that I also never sleep. New York’s work-hard culture isn’t that far off from my own life. Whether it’s a history paper, Track and Field, or volunteering at the library, I feel like I constantly have something on my plate. I’ve been so busy that I’m almost addicted to it. It’s a fresh rush of adrenaline as I scramble for the next deadline of the week. Getting moments of rest and reflection feels like time wasted from progress, not a restorative break.

But even in the midst of what seems like a constant activity, there was Central Park. The park is purposefully placed in a plot of land carved several feet below the ground to block off the noise of notorious New York traffic, allowing the park’s beautiful nature to remain uninterrupted. I could finally slow my footsteps and go at my own pace, admiring the nature around me. In Central Park, I could reflect on everything I had taken in during my time in New York: friendly greetings from New Yorkers, receiving kind service at PopUp Bagels, and our tour guides geeking about New York cinema trivia, which taught me that slowing down is important to balance bursts of energy.

New York is a city infused with pride, pluralism, and pulsating energy. From the vibrant high fashion that people donned on the crosswalk to the Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera exhibit in the Museum of Modern Art, I felt firsthand the fantasy world that is New York City. I’m so incredibly grateful to Westridge for giving me and so many others the opportunity to explore different places and discover (pun intended!) themselves in the process.