George Lauder Bursary - Week 5

Monday 29th June - Sunday 5th July

This week was slightly different from the previous ones, as I had finished my course at Pratt and had a week off before starting at Columbia. My friend from back home was also visiting. He arrived quite late on Monday, so I showed him around the area before we went out for some food and called it a night.

Throughout the week, we tried to explore as much of New York as possible and visited a lot of places that I hadn't had time to do when I had projects to complete.

• We took the ferry to Staten Island, which also had a great view of the Statue of Liberty. It felt completely different from the rest of New York and almost like we had travelled to another city.

• We visited the Bronx and Queens, meaning I had now travelled to all five boroughs during my time in New York.

• We went to Central Park and spent time walking around and enjoying the scenery.

• We visited Times Square so my friend could experience one of the busiest and most recognisable parts of the city.

• We travelled on the Roosevelt Island Tramway, which gave us a great view over the city and the East River.

• We went to a comedy show, which was something we both wanted to experience while staying in New York.

• We tried lots of different food places throughout the week and made the most of having time to explore without worrying about classes or project deadlines.

• We also went out for drinks with some of the friends I had made since arriving in New York. It was nice to introduce my friend from home to the people I had met during my time here.

Saturday was the Fourth of July, so we travelled to Rockaway Beach and met up with a larger group of people. The beach was very busy, but there was a great atmosphere and it was interesting to experience such a big American celebration.

Later, we went back to Brooklyn Heights and watched the fireworks. It was a memorable way to finish a busy day and one of the highlights of the week.

Sunday was mainly spent relaxing after doing so much throughout the week. We still walked around for a while as it was my mate's last day, but I also had to begin looking over information and preparing myself to start my new course at Columbia the following morning.