This weekend is the National Art Education conference. Thousands of art educators from all over the country have assembled in New York City to discuss all things art teacher.
My Instagram and Facebook feed has been consumed with images of art teachers at the MOMA, eating pizza, roaming around Central Park and Times Square. Posing with the Starry Night, posing with other art teachers that are well known in online art communities, and posing with the giant LOVE sculpture. I can hardly contain my jealousy at the onslaught of images of skylines, architecture, and famous art. I've only been to NYC once, but it was for the very same convention in 2012. I traveled with a friend/colleague who used to live in New York, so she was a valuable asset when it came to navigating the subway and getting around. She basically let me make a list of everywhere I wanted to go and we went there. We did a lot of walking, and we stayed in a hostel in Brooklyn, but it was absolutely incredible. Leaving the city on that final morning, we had a glimpse of the skyline from the taxi, and as the plane took off, we could see the skyscrapers jutting out across the landscape. The Statue of Liberty sent us off with a little farewell wave as we ascended over thousands of taxis, millions of people making their way to work along the sidewalks, and below ground in the subways. When my plane descended in northwest Arkansas, I stared out the window at the short stacks of hay bales, the groupings of diary cows in green pastures, and the crawl of a lonely car on a two lane highway. Wearing my I {HEART} NYC hoodie, I disembarked the aircraft with tears in my eyes. The next morning, I stood in the cafeteria at my tiny kindergarten center, wearing plastic food safe gloves, opening milk cartons and cutting waffles with tears in my eyes. The New York trip sparked something inside me. While I don't long of living in a big city, I fell in love with my experience. Thinking about all the big cities I have visited: Vancouver (another top favorite), Portland, Seattle (okay I love this one too), Dallas, Sydney, Rome, London, Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Philadelphia, Auckland, none of them can really compare to the feeling that I had in New York. It was a passionately 'American' feeling. Writing this post makes me really want to go back......(looking at flights now) Have you ever been to New York?
2 Comments
Caitlin
3/5/2017 12:41:58 pm
This made me giddy! I went to NYC almost 10 years ago. I agree, I don't long to live in a big city, but I absolutely love going to them. Boston, Hong Kong, and Ulaanbaatar are some of my other favorite cities I've visited. My itch to travel has been insane recently and your post only made it worse! I hope you get the chance to go back to the National Art Education conference sometime.
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KatyB
3/5/2017 07:24:25 pm
I LOVE the city, and I do long to live in one, but only if I also have a home at the beach and another in the mountains. My daughter and I watched a documentary today about an artist, and in one scene he visits NYC. I've never been, but have always wanted to go. Maybe I'll look at some flights today too!
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Mrs. Mitchell
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