Oh, Luisa. I got teary reading this, especially about the scent memory. I can remember exactly how the home of my grandparents smelled in England, and the jolt I got every time I walked in for the first time on our biannual visits.
My Italian grandmother was also born in NYC! She was the youngest of eight, and the first to be born outside of Italy. She was born at home on Mott Street in 1897. One of her brothers drowned in the General Slocum disaster.
Your family is as beautiful as you are. Stay well and happy. I am impatiently waiting for your new book.
I left NYC when pregnant and also have never gotten over it. I go back at least once a year but never with my kiddo. Love this trip and the strategy of meals!
Thank you for capturing everything I love about my home. I’ve been reading you forever and you are one of my favorite writers. I’m so glad you had a good visit, despite the unrelenting heat.
Thank you for sharing your adventures in New York City with us. I’ve only been to NYC in the summer once, but I remember that brutal heat and humidity very well.
Most of my visits were on the day after Thanksgiving and we would take New Jersey Transit from my in-laws’ house. My husband and I would go early, visit a museum, grab lunch, and meet the rest of the family for a matinee of a musical. On one trip, the two of us went in to New York on a weekday, walked the High Line in the morning found a little place for lunch, and then went to the Tenement Museum. We both found the tour fascinating, especially my husband, whose grandparents emigrated from Eastern Europe around the same time as your great-grandparents. I shared the return percentage for Eastern European immigrants with him, and he was surprised that it was as high as 6%. He said he was very glad his grandparents decided to stay.
Anyway, those day trips are just pleasant memories, as both of my in-laws are gone now. It’s a much bigger production to travel to New York City from Seattle, but reading about your trip gives me the itch to plan a trip sometime soon.
This evocative, vicarious trip to New York made me homesick. Except for that summer humidity. Ugh. Hopefully the boys will allow a return trip where they are freed from the yoke of oppressive summer weather and truly able to enjoy a romp through Central Park.
I echo others’ comments about this being a lovely vicarious trip and I also haven’t gotten over leaving New York! I’ve come to love Boston but it’s not the same at all. Thank you for this.
Luisa, thank you for stopping in DC yesterday. It was a delight to join your talk on the new book. (Adding abendbrot to our family dinner rotation.) Today, I am diving into previous Letters from Berlin and am here to say how much I enjoy not only your food writing but also your personal narrative writing. This letter on NY resonates with me, a native NYer living in DC, and always nostalgic for (a previous) life in Europe. I love your honest take on parenting and your literary recommendations. Thank you.
Oh, Luisa. I got teary reading this, especially about the scent memory. I can remember exactly how the home of my grandparents smelled in England, and the jolt I got every time I walked in for the first time on our biannual visits.
My Italian grandmother was also born in NYC! She was the youngest of eight, and the first to be born outside of Italy. She was born at home on Mott Street in 1897. One of her brothers drowned in the General Slocum disaster.
Your family is as beautiful as you are. Stay well and happy. I am impatiently waiting for your new book.
I left NYC when pregnant and also have never gotten over it. I go back at least once a year but never with my kiddo. Love this trip and the strategy of meals!
You’re such a beautiful writer. I feel like I just spent a week in NYC without the hassles!
Thank you for capturing everything I love about my home. I’ve been reading you forever and you are one of my favorite writers. I’m so glad you had a good visit, despite the unrelenting heat.
Thank you for sharing your adventures in New York City with us. I’ve only been to NYC in the summer once, but I remember that brutal heat and humidity very well.
Most of my visits were on the day after Thanksgiving and we would take New Jersey Transit from my in-laws’ house. My husband and I would go early, visit a museum, grab lunch, and meet the rest of the family for a matinee of a musical. On one trip, the two of us went in to New York on a weekday, walked the High Line in the morning found a little place for lunch, and then went to the Tenement Museum. We both found the tour fascinating, especially my husband, whose grandparents emigrated from Eastern Europe around the same time as your great-grandparents. I shared the return percentage for Eastern European immigrants with him, and he was surprised that it was as high as 6%. He said he was very glad his grandparents decided to stay.
Anyway, those day trips are just pleasant memories, as both of my in-laws are gone now. It’s a much bigger production to travel to New York City from Seattle, but reading about your trip gives me the itch to plan a trip sometime soon.
This evocative, vicarious trip to New York made me homesick. Except for that summer humidity. Ugh. Hopefully the boys will allow a return trip where they are freed from the yoke of oppressive summer weather and truly able to enjoy a romp through Central Park.
I echo others’ comments about this being a lovely vicarious trip and I also haven’t gotten over leaving New York! I’ve come to love Boston but it’s not the same at all. Thank you for this.
Thank you for the thoughtful (and link-ful) account! I love truly everything you share. You are such a wonderful writer, Luisa!
thank you so, so much.
Loved this, what a fun-filled trip! I also haven't gotten over leaving the city...
Laughed out loud that Hugo stared blankly at David Remnick. Glad you got to eat at Elea. It's one of my favorite restaurants in Manhattan.
Luisa, thank you for stopping in DC yesterday. It was a delight to join your talk on the new book. (Adding abendbrot to our family dinner rotation.) Today, I am diving into previous Letters from Berlin and am here to say how much I enjoy not only your food writing but also your personal narrative writing. This letter on NY resonates with me, a native NYer living in DC, and always nostalgic for (a previous) life in Europe. I love your honest take on parenting and your literary recommendations. Thank you.