In 2013, I knew I had to travel once more before I start my master's program, and the initial itinerary was to the Miditerrean, but considering that I was going to pay over 60K for Carnegie Mellon, I decided to stay in the states and travel to the east coast. My first stop was to New York City and it was mind blowing because there were so many people. I especially loved how the city had so many different people. 10 minutes in the airport and I saw a group of Chinese here and another group of Europeans there and everybody was speaking all sort of languages. Therefore, in that sense I really enjoyed the diversity, but the city was just too "fast" for me. People talk fast, people walk fast, people eat fast, and I'm just a mellow guy from SoCal. I remember having constant headaches because my hotel was a block west from Time Square and so every time I went out or home I had to face a horde of fast walking tourists, it was literally like dodging bullets for me! NYC is so amazing; tall buildings, neon lights, and delicious food are just some highlights. It's so crazy that over 9 million people live in the Metropolitan area, and I guess this is why their Metro system is so sound and effective. The subway takes you almost everywhere and it's quite cheap in my opinion. I paid $30 for a 7-day pass (which I only used half since I was there for only 3 days, but I gave it to some Scandinavian guy when I was departing from the airport). I am missing the street food (namely the brand carts Halah and Sobretto). I remember walking a lot and to everywhere I could, and by the end of each day, my feet were fried from the heat and pressure. I traveled with a photographer's mindset, and I always strive to get that "postcard" photo. One of the things I love to do when I travel is visit a gift shop to get inspirations for my photos. I try to imitate the postcard in real life. In NYC, it's hard to pass on the skyline and the Statue of Liberty. Unfortunately, the statue was closed for restoration due to Hurricane Sandy, but I did manage to hop on a free ferry to Staten Island hoping to capture to some nice shots. However, and to my surprise, the sun didn't set until after 9 PM! I departed empty-handed back to Manhanttan out of desperation for food and rest. That very same night, I was still determined to take more photos so I went to the Brooklyn bridge and on my own ride back to my hotel, there was a signal malfunction with the subway system and I was stationary for over 45 minutes!

When it comes to cheap food you can get it on the street if you know where to look, but pretty much everything else in NYC is expensive. My hotel was like $175 a night for two beds. Oh, let's not forget Central Park and American Natural Museum. Both were super dope. On any given day in my college years I would totally run and explore the city like I did in Rome, but unfortunately I couldn't do that for any city that I visited. Central Park would have been a nice place to run. The Natural Museum wasn't as great as the one in Vienna (I'm being very biased since the Vienna's Natural Museum was the first of its kind that I went to), but it did keep me occupied for hours. There was so much to learn, so much to read. I noticed that the museum had more attention to the Native Indian tribes, which was good since I wanted to learn more about them.

My next destination was Washington, DC, and I was very fortunate to have a dear friend host me for two nights. She and her husband were very welcoming and kind. They live about 45 minutes away (in Virginia) but were still willing to pick me up and drop me anywhere I wanted. If you are reading this, Renata, thank you so much for giving me an awesome time in DC! The district was actually one of my bigger anticipations because I had always wanted to visit the Capitol of the country. The National Mall is a super long park with many national treasures including the Declaration of Independence. Smithsonian was the best. 19 museums for free including the Natural History and American History, what can possibly go wrong here? I went to many museums because DC was really hot and humid when I was there. I have to say, I feel that I am more well-rounded for doing this North American trip. I think having visited three Natural History museums qualifies me for Jeopardy, wouldn't you say so? There were so many fascinating exhibitions in all sort of fields (space, air, art, you name it). Not to my surprise, many buildings were off limited including the Capitol. You'd need something like a year reservation to visit the White House and the closest you can get to it is a mile away with securities and gates everywhere; it's not surprise the White House is the most protected building in the world. I got no where near this building and my 18-55 kit lens barely scratched a few pixels. Lincoln Memorial was packed and the Reflecting Pool was under construction (so was the Washington Monument). I was REALLY surprised that the walk to the Memorial was really dirty! It literally had duck poop along the pool. Metro in the city was great and works similar to the BART in San Francisco where you pay as you go. I think every American should visit DC at least once.

Chicago was the last destination on my trip. This city is so beautiful, especially the architecture, after all this was where the Modern Architecture movement started. It enjoys the attention of housing many of the world's tallest buildings including the Willis Tower and Hancock Tower. Everyone here called me "Sir!" The weather was not necessarily hot, but super humid. I stayed at the best hostel ever, located in the heart of Dowtown! I slept in many hostels before but this one is by far the best. For $35 a night, you get free continental breakfast, Wi-Fi, discounts and unlimited resources. My 7 roommates were awesome people as well and I shared many great conversations with them. Some attractions to see are the Buckingham fountain, Wrigley Square, Millenium Park, and Museum campus. The Cloud Gate was the best! Miracle Mile is a fancy shopping district with many luxurious stores. The transportation from the airport to Downtown cannot be any easier, the Blue line directly takes you there with no transfer. CTA (Chicago Transit Authority) is $2.25 per fare with $0.25 for the first transfer and unlimited after. Since I was there for three full days, I was actually pretty bored at some times and went to the AMC theaters twice! Deep dish pizza was great but can be pretty pricey if you're a tourist. The first restuarant that I was recommended to was like $26 for an individual serving, but I left because I didn't know it was going to take at least 45 minutes! After some research, I settle for a cheaper one near by hostel, but it was good nevertheless. Chicago has a big and important African American history; it is said that nearly fifty percent of the population is Africans. To my surprise, there isn't any museum dedicated to the history of gangsters like Al Capone. There were times I had nothing to do so I watched movies at the AMC (World War Z is great, by the way, but I have never seen zombies run that fast before). Overall, my experience in Chicago has been great and my trip to USA is a beautiful, well-spent one. I very content with everything and now I'm just looking forward to move to Pittsburgh to start my program! :)