Epilogue

We left New York City a month ago. I am not sure if that is enough time to pass to properly assess our year long stay there but I will give it a whirl. This was not planned but you may notice this is our 100th post.

In many ways it is like the end of a vacation. Every vacation leaves one changed somewhat. As you would expect a year long vacation makes a huge mark. We certainly picked up a lot of free training for urban living. Every time I think that I am losing some of my “New York-ness” I find that it is still there when needed, a bit like riding a bike. It is a determination and it is an efficiency. It is getting from here to there without wasting a step. New York requires this because of its density.

We will always miss the things that brought us to New York to begin with and specifically to Midtown Manhattan and all the neighborhood attractions: Central Park, Rockefeller Center, Museum of Modern Art, Bryant Park. We took advantage of our location and visited those icons regularly. Some of the other things we miss were unknown to us until we lived there. All the great affordable restaurants in Hell’s Kitchen, some of the hidden gems of Greenwich Village, but most of all and the most surprising was just how convenient everything was in New York City. All the free and cheap delivery, the inexpensive buses and trains, all the great street food. If it wasn’t for the rent prices one could really save money in Manhattan believe it or not.

We were torn about leaving the City. We could have settled in there but we knew each subsequent year would be less interesting. Not that we saw and did everything there was to do but we knew that we would adopt a routine and start repeating things and the sense of excitement and discovery would drop very quickly. One year was good, perhaps perfect. We got to see all the seasons. We would have never traveled to New York for Christmas or New Years but there we were and they were the most exciting times to be there. What a bundle of wonderful memories. And best of all that so many of you made time to see us during that year. Those memories are the most special. Thank you. We couldn’t have done it without you.

We will see you at the Toronto Blog

Bill and Toni