Landmarks

We started the day at 9am and made our way to Columbia University. My first impressions of the campus were that it had a very old and historical feel to it. Perhaps because the campus was empty, but it did not feel as welcoming as some of the other campuses. We visited the original library that became its admissions office, the chapel and the bridge that provides a view of 100 blocks away from the campus.
After Columbia, we went to Manhattan Chinatown to go on the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) tour. We learned about the history of the Chinatown and the Chinese community. The tour guide provided a different perspective in the history of Chinese American history. Afterwards, we ate at a Shanghainese restaurant nearby. Along our tour, we had seen a well-known Asian snack store called Aji Ichiban and the famous Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, so we made our way there after lunch. The flavors at the Ice Cream Factory were very unique and they were all homemade at the store. Since Little Italy was close by, we decided to walk through it on our way to the subway station. On our way to visit Wall Street, we passed by Trinity Church, so we decided to stop by and visited it. The church was very beautiful and all the glass window design were very intricate. Wall Street and the area around the NY Stock Exchange were very crowded, but seeing the often filmed area was very memorable. Afterwards, we went to Battery Park to head near the Staten Ferry to get a closer view of the Statue of Liberty. Lastly, we made a quick stop to New York University before getting dinner at an Italian restaurant called Carmine’s. New York University reminded me of GWU, but the Washington Square Park in the middle provided a more welcoming feel.
-Diana Lin