NYC Post Trip Blog: Ethan

Feed your passion with ambition, hard work, determination, and say hello to Broadway was the lesson that I learned throughout my one week trip to New York with NPAC. In that time we learned A LOT and it was absolutely amazing. In the seven day period where we were in New York we (among other things), visited two colleges, rode the subway multiple times, ate real New York pizza, and saw the Statue of Liberty.

Highlights of the trip… Where do I begin. New York was absolutely amazing every where. There was not one time that I was bored. The Broadway shows were really great and cool. If I had to choose a favorite, it would be “Kinky Boots.” The show was absolutely amazing. Even the most serious parts of “Kinky Boots” implemented humor at the perfect time. “Kinky Boots” also appealed to me because of the morale. Acceptance of people who are different and the ability to have faith in others.

Another highlight was the tour of NYU, in which a section of the time was spent talking about the different groups/clubs. One of the groups/clubs was reserved for quidditch ( A game played on broomstick in the “Harry Potter” book series). This is an interest of mine because I am a huge “Harry Potter” fan. The clubs also appealed to me because of their creativity. I was very interested in all of them.

My third favorite highlight would be the “9-11 Memorial Museum.” “9-11 Memorial Museum” was filled with history and facts about the tragic terrorist attacks of the Twin Towers and Pentagon. The whole experience was very somber yet really interesting.

Of course Rockefeller Center had to be in the list of highlights. I found it very interesting to be able to see all of Central Park. Yet it is still very hard to choose because of the fact that all of the sites were amazing.

New York was rich with information and exceeded what I thought was going to happen. We learned quite a bit of fun facts about New York. Such as, did you know that New York has the highest level of Chinese immigrants in the world? Did you know that Columbia was built before the city of New York and was originally called King's College until the American Independance from Britain?

I also reconsidered different potential occupations while I was on the trip. Journalism for instance was a passion which was nourished on the trip by our visit to NBC studios. Acting and singing-wise the actors and actresses who we all talked to said the same thing at the subject of development of their careers, “Don’t have a fallback plan, when you do you will forget your drive and desire to fulfill your passion. You should work survival jobs as a way to keep your house and food.”-Lina Lee (Actress in Broadway Musical “Miss Saigon”) This message followed throughout each person that we talked to. Either way you put it, the information they fed us was plentiful and legitimate.

New York has changed me in my opinion and not just my sleep-cycle. I now appreciate Oahu and most of all the rural areas. New York has its own charm, yet nothing beats being able to walk around in the waist high grass and pulling weeds in your own yard. Before I went to New York I never fully appreciated that. New York also made me reconsider how I view life. “9-11 Memorial” showed that tragic and untimely deaths are real. Before that I had thought that terrorist attacks were just an attack on the general public not individuals. Yet going and listening to the survivors and the families of those affected made me realize, there are real people in those attacks. The negative side of New York for me, was the walking. Sometimes, people would have to run to catch up while we were going places and the pace of walking was a lot different.

New York was an amazing experience for all that attended the trip. The trip taught all of us students so much, like did you know that Saint Paul the Divine baptises animals? I think everyone who went on it feels the same way, that the “NPAC to Broadway” trip was too awesome to comprehend and that we are very grateful to all those who helped make the trip as great as it was. This has been a wonderful experience and everything was amazing.