The fourth day was spent at classes for her conference. She'd meticulously set up her schedule so that after the newcomers breakfast she was jam packed with things until the group lunch. She ran into an old co-worker from a decade ago and sat at her table. She heard her old boss from there had gotten bumped up after the venue decided to go with another company to manage their shows. It seems she'd left that job just in time.
After the day was complete she went back to her room across the street. She didn't have anything more that day until she had to go to Times Square for a networking party. She decided that since she didn't find anything during her walk the day before, she would try Shake Shack and have them deliver it to the hotel, since the hotel's room service menu would've ended up costing her another $50. She ran down to get her meal and then sat at her hotel desk in the room and ate. It was good, but about average. She was glad she tried it, and it did give her the energy she needed to get down to the party.
She looked at the map and decided that it was a bit far to walk, but she wanted to be able to take in as much of the city as possible which could only be done by walking. So she left a little early and walked down the now closed stores of 5th Ave window shopping.
Times Square was a street she turned onto, so as she rounded the corner it felt like it slapped her directly in the face. The address she had for the party was in fact an entire block of Broadway, and she had to find the one unmarked door. She circled several times, and the overload of stimuli made it so she actually walked down the street to the Lyric Theatre where Harry Potter was performing so she could catch her breath. She ended up running into the Bubba Gump and asking them for directions but they were completely unhelpful. She finally found the unmarked door and went into the party. She was covered in panic attack sweat by the time she made it upstairs, but tried her best to shake it off and socialize. She hated the idea of "networking" for the sake of it, she found it very performative, but she tried her best to connect with as many people as possible. She asked about their theatres and took photos out the window of the NYE ball that was still lit in the main section of Times Square. After an hour she had spoken to everyone at the party and decided to go. Her late night walk back was quiet and reflective, and she fell asleep very quickly at her hotel room.
The following day she picked up breakfast from Joe and the Juice instead of her $50 bagel from the hotel and went to class.
After the day of classes were complete, instead of going to the country music concert for the conference, she took a Lyft down to her cousin J's job. She showed her around the massive offices and they grabbed some food from a party they were having in one of the rooms. Soon they decided to take off and go to a "speakeasy" called Angel's Share where she had a "New York New York" cocktail which was delightful. Then they had a chat about where they wanted to eat. "I really want to eat in a NYC deli before I leave, I feel like I have to or I won't be able to live with myself."
Katz's Deli was nearby, but J suggested 2nd St Deli instead. She said it was a bit more authentic and Katz almost always had a huge line. She opted for 2nd street and they were off. J ordered a bit of everything and 2 matzo ball soups and they dined like kings. She talked about how she weirdly never felt closer to her Jewish roots than she did in the city. J said that it was understandable and it did feel more authentic in the city. J was the type of person who could always find something cool in any town and make even the most mundane of experiences amazing. She was sad to say goodbye to her, but eventually they got into their respective Lyfts and headed in opposite directions.
On the ride home they drove around Grand Central Station, and it felt like a dream seeing it. She had to check her map to make sure that was what she was actually seeing, and got very excited when she realized she had guessed correctly. She still found it strange that just existing in the city, walking the streets, felt more magical than any "sight" she'd seen so far. This must be why so many people wanted to live there.
She didn't want to leave.
