“Concrete jungle where dreams are made of…these streets will inspire you, they’ll make you feel brand new” were key bars from Alicia.

It had been 13 years since I last visited the US, and I avoided it at all costs. There’s just something about the country that does not sit well with me and I can’t verbalise it. But my baby bro was now a dad and I couldn’t get away with not visiting him or my new and only niece.

I was excited to meet her and hang out with him. I’ve lived in Europe for 19 years and left Antigua when he was 9, other than my summer trips back home, we hadn’t much time together. But when we did, I always found something cool to do, taking my big brother role seriously.

The trip was booked and there was no turning back. I landed in JFK on Saturday evening and immediately my ‘resting Sym face‘ was well and truly on display. New York is the most famous city in the world but the airport was sub-par. Dark, dingy, decrepit with long lines sprawling up and down and most importantly, no air conditioning. It was my idea of airport hell. You see, I love destinations but hate airports.

After leaving the terminal, I ventured out into what is now referred to as ground zero and felt somewhat sombre while there.

Anyone over the age of 30 remembers where they were when terror was forced on innocent people, who did nothing more than go about their daily lives. For me, it was lying in bed and turning on CNN, my morning ritual, maybe a minute before the second plane hit and I remember laying there thinking that it was a stunt and being stunned for the whole day.

Reading the names of those who were lost, really struck a chord with me, even though I didn’t know any of them.

There were random white roses stuck next to some of the names and as I leaned in to snap a pic of it, someone explained that the roses signified that it was that person’s birthday. That made it even sadder and I couldn’t explain why. Later while speaking to a friend, she corroborated the story of what the roses meant.

I took my snaps and went to the train station to make my way back to Jersey; I clocked up 26000 steps and my legs were killing me. I’m not sure if it was tiredness or not paying attention, but I couldn’t find my platform. I saw an MTA worker cleaning on the same platform where I was and made my way over to him.

“Excuse me, can you tell me how to get to platform 2, I can’t seem to find it,” I asked, to which he replied… “Yeah I can, but it will cost ya, do you have money” he replied.

I think the incredulity appeared on my face immediately, I retorted ‘seriously’, and he said ‘yes’ and I calmly said ‘bless your heart’ turned and started walking away. At that point he started to explain where I needed to go, followed by a smirk and an explanation that some people were panhandlers and liked to try their luck. I guess he was one of those people.

All the good feelings that had built up from visiting ground zero left me at that minute. I couldn’t believe his audacity. But I was able to find the platform from the information he provided.

The next few days were more of the same, but this time, I met up with old friends, people I hadn’t seen in years.

Viniesha was young when I left Antigua and I hadn’t seen her in 20 years. Her sister visited me in Spain earlier in the summer and now I had to repay the favour and meet up with her. We met, grabbed a couple of burgers and sat in a park having lunch and a chat. It was a really good day.

The more I posted pics to my Facebook and Instagram, the more messages I received from old friends and some family members. Sadly, though I couldn’t meet them all, nor did I want to and the ones I did want to meet were just a tad too far for me.

I was selective in who I met and I am not even ashamed to say so. I probably avoided some of you who are reading this post (sorry not sorry).

Brooklyn Nets vs. New York Knicks

I had something exciting planned for my ‘big brother time’, even though my little brother had lived between New York and New Jersey for 7 years, he never went to a basketball game. And I decided that we were going to do that, just the two of us.

I bought the tickets for, the Brooklyn Nets vs, New York Knicks! I hadn’t watched a game in aeons and never went to one either, so this was a first for both of us and we were equally as excited. What he didn’t know was that I splurged and got us really good seats, 15 rows away from the court!

It was incredible, firstly I didn’t know that the Nets had moved from Jersey to Brooklyn (Yep, it’s been that long since I paid attention to Basketball) and secondly, they absolutely crushed the Knicks, leading 79 to 48 by halftime!

The entertainment was pumping throughout and I counted 7 Soca songs playing during the game. Fabulous, a rapper/singer from the early 2000s was there and it felt like I was watching it on tv. We left the game 5 minutes early to avoid the crush of people getting on the train. It ended 112 to 85 in favour of the Nets.

And just like that, it was my penultimate day in the US, after cancelling plans with one of my friends, I decided to go get some snaps of the Brooklyn Bridge just so I could brag that I crossed it. There were probably more cars than people and after venturing a couple of hundred meters up, I called it quits. It wasn’t worth my time to be wading through that thick crowd for a pic, especially because I was on my own, so would get nothing more than a selfie. Plus, I desperately wanted to pee and there was no public bathroom in sight. It could just be me, but I swear it’s harder to find a bathroom in NYC than it is to find lactose-free milk!

Urban exploring is always good when there are random things to be seen. After peeing in a corner (classy, I know), I started making my way back to Jersey and took a few detours. Without even realising it, I stumbled onto a pier and had a perfect night view of Brooklyn.

The toll of fitting so much in, over such a short period was weighing on me, it was as if all my muscles and bones decided to quit on me at once, which forced me to head home earlier than I had initially planned. But it was my last night and I was going to make the most of my big brother/#1 uncle time. I got to the apartment and as Murphy’s law dictates, they were both asleep, while his girlfriend was watching tv.

The 5 days had flown by so quickly, but I also felt like I did a heck of a lot. I know people who lived in NYC for well over 20 years and they haven’t done some of the things I did in 5 days.

My last day was on me and I received a message via Facebook; a friend and former colleague from 21 years ago had landed in JFK a few hours before I was due to leave. She was returning from Afghanistan, a mission assigned to her by her work. She spent the last decade or so working for UNICEF in far-flung regions of the world, we were regular Facebook friends but never coincided when travelling other than this time, so I had to meet her!

While arranging to meet her, Biko who is a friend, but someone I consider a brother messaged me. We couldn’t meet due to his family commitments, but he had taken the morning off and wanted to take me for coffee and give me a lift to the airport. Both of which I appreciated.

I moved from not having a plan before leaving, to meeting up with 2 people I worked with in my youth. When Biko showed up, we had our coffee and catchup chat and continued chatting on the drive from Jersey to Midtown Manhattan, where I planned on meeting Rie.

The weirdest part was that the 3 of us were dressed in the same colours and style, having not planned it. That in itself was a source of laughter. After Biko left, Rie and I grabbed lunch, reminisced about the past and caught up on our present, before it was time for me to get my Uber to JFK.

While I steadfastly remain in the ‘not a fan of the USA‘ corner, catching up with people who were once part of my life was heartwarming. Moreover, being able to spend time with my brother and niece was beyond anything I can explain. I hadn’t realised how much I missed him until this trip and I will be damn sure not to wait that long before we meet up again.

Just not in the US, because this place is not for me.

After arriving at JFK, my feelings didn’t change, I have been to better airports and terminals in 3rd world countries. Moreover, the heating in the building was odd, as it was not that cold outside. It wasn’t cold at all. It left people fanning and removing outer layers to cool down. At one point, I felt like I was about to pass out, it was that bad.

I was so thankful to have boarded the plane so I could get the hell out of there. When I found my seat, a cute American couple sat next to me. We were all moaning about the same thing, the heat! You could see visible signs of sweat on the poor guy while his wife said it felt uncomfortably hot.

We struck up a conversation and must have yapped on for half of the 8-hour flight. The wife had lived and studied in Spain in her younger years and this was his first time in Europe. We kept talking about food and wine and all the things that make a really good holiday. They were friendly and humble and proved that there are still good people in America and reasons for not tarring everyone with the same brush.

Upon landing in Madrid, I wished the couple well on their journey to Seville and started planning my next trip which was 10 days away, to Weinsberg Germany, my third home.

While I don’t plan on visiting here again anytime soon, I wouldn’t try to dissuade you from doing it. To each their own is my motto, I may have had a few bad experiences but that isn’t a reason for you not to explore New York for yourself.