Anyway, that's tomorrow's story. Today I just checked out and stowed away my luggage in the luggage storage of the hostel. The condition was, of course, to return during desk hours to collect it.
Then, I walked out to look for something to eat. That was the primary objective. And that was when I stepped into the truly dead-town that was Buffalo on a Sunday morning.
It seemed like a street from one of those zombie movies like I Am Legend, during the day. Everything - literally everything, by the way, was closed. Even Subway was closed.
I walked further down Main Street and there was no change as yet; only perhaps now a few souls were wandering the streets, and a few church bells were ringing. Adding to the scene was the fact that there was classical music being played, for some reason, from every tram station along Main Street. Hence Main Street's only sound was the classical music.
And in my head, the sound of swirling winds. And papers flying around. I've watched too many Zombie Movies perhaps.
Well, actually, the swirling winds would have been quite welcome - the weather was still relatively hot. I walked further south.
*
Another thing about Buffalo is that they do have a tourist information office.
However, that's only open on weekdays. And today was Sunday. So that left me stranded for a bit. However a little research earlier on when there was wifi had led me to the knowledge that there was a free walking tour going on later today, at noon, around the Canal.
Further down south and I was starting to get really hungry. But it was already 11.40 so I couldn't afford to go for lunch. I saw a couple munching on Macs in a parked car, so I stopped and asked them for directions to the nearest food outlet. I thought it would be Macs, since they were happily munching on Macs.
In retrospect, they were in a car, and they could have come from the Macs in Cleveland for all I knew. Anyway, they said there was no fast food nearby and the only place was this Pearl's Restaurant a few blocks up. They assured me it was open for lunch on Sundays; so that just meant that I must have missed it on the way down to the lakeside (I was already down near the lakeside by now).
No time to go grab lunch; so I thought I'd have to delay lunch today as well. So I asked for directions to the Truss Bridge. Apparently that was REALLY nearby, so I walked there first.
As evidence that there has been divine intervention on my travels so far, there was a burger stand on the way. The prices weren't cheap, but hey, I was really hungry. So I bought a cheeseburger and went over to the Truss Bridge to wait for the guide.
*
It turned out that Buffalo isn't - at least at the time of writing - in any sense, a mainstream tourist destination. To be honest, I have no idea why it appeared on my itinerary. Perhaps the main attraction was the Buffalo Wings. But Buffalo Wings are for later. Now I was waiting for the whole tour group to gather. And it seemed that I was the only foreigner. The rest seemed to be locals of Buffalo or perhaps the region around it, looking to learn a bit about their own county's/region's history.
For Buffalo is full of history. So, as always, with free walking tours, it was all about a story. The story of Buffalo.
This walking tour was, by no means very entertaining. It was more educational. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that this guide didn't expect to be tipped; like the other free walking tours I've been on in Europe etc.
But Buffalo used to be a major city - mainly because it was on the end of the Erie Canal. What is that, you ask? Well, it's this super cool canal that actually connected New York to the Great Lakes. And for the first time, I saw how great the Great Lakes really were.
As a Singaporean, you don't actually think about the massiveness of the Great Lakes at all. I mean, yes, I did know they were very large. But the fact is they acted as an inland sea; trade could actually happen between the cities along the Great Lakes' shores - including Chicago, Detroit and others. Toronto is also on the Great Lakes but I don't think it was very feasible to get stuff there since one would have to pass through Niagara Falls just to get to Lake Ontario.
Plus the Great Lakes were a source of freshwater. Added bonus, indeed.
Anyway, the issue with the Great Lakes was that it wasn't connected to the Northern Atlantic Ocean. I mean, if you wanted to transport grain to New York, you could sail down the (megalong) Mississippi to get to the Atlantic Ocean, and then all the way back up to New York. Takes quite a lot of time. And money.
Plus, going by road to New York involved climbing the Appalachians. Not easy. Hence the Erie Canal, connecting Buffalo to the Hudson River and hence New York, allowed Buffalo to become a major port city along the Great Lakes; in fact becoming one of the richest cities in America in the day.
Which made me wonder what on earth happened. Because right now, Buffalo was quite a poor city; one of the poorest cities in the US in fact.
Anyway, it was one of the richest cities in America but it also had one of the largest rich-poor divides. So our guide was reiterating the point that even if a little uptown you'd find some of the best mansions in the country, this canal area, with all its coolies, would have been quite an ugly sight, dominated by crime and poverty.
Another illustration of the importance of the Erie Canal - almost 80% of the population of the state of New York live within a few miles from the Erie Canal.
*
Anyway, after the tour, I stayed by the lakefront for awhile; but there was nothing much there. Buffalo's tourism industry was still in its infancy stage and there really wasn't much to do save for getting baked by the sun.
So I walked back up north towards the city centre towards the bus terminus to see what else I could do. On the way I passed by some stadium of the local team - the Buffalo Bisons - and peered in. The tickets were about $8; a little too much for a sport I don't understand at all.
I considered the fact that I might be standing outside the equivalent of Anfield or Old Trafford in baseball terms; so I took a few pictures.
It turns out that it was no Anfield or Old Trafford. Maybe Selhurst Park (homeground of Crystal Palace).
Honestly, the price of $8 to get in should have been an indication - it would be about $80 to get into Old Trafford. At least.
There were a few interesting sights that I could have seen - namely, the Buffalo Zoo, which is one of the oldest zoos in America; and the Botanic Gardens which supposedly (according to tripadvisor.com) was worth going to.
However, the buses to these places were non-operational on Sundays; making it even more obvious that driving in America is a necessity. The only tourist place that was reachable by public transport conveniently today was Elmwood Street. Buffalo's equivalent of Orchard Road or Arab Street, I think.
The shops here were actually open, unlike the case in downtown Buffalo. I usually think that on days where I don't have any plans to do I'll have not much to write about; but this is not always the case. A lot of times, when I don't go looking for a story, the story comes to find me. So here's a little story of what happened on Elmwood Street.
I took the bus all the way up to the beginning of Elmwood Street; I mean, thats the best way I'd see most of the shops along Elmwood Street and then I can walk down all the way. I stopped by at a petrol kiosk, and went inside to go look for a drink. I don't have to mention it again, but it was really hot. And I didn't have my water bottle with me.
At the kiosk, apart from insanely cheap Ben & Jerry's ice cream, there was also the drink that Mat introduced me to on that day I met him. 99c for about 600ml. Quite worth it.
I forgot what flavour he recommended, though. So I bought what looked tasty - Kiwi and Strawberry always go well together. Or so I thought.
While taking this picture of the drink, a guy who was sitting down on the curb side called out to me. I tried to ignore him but he kept calling; so I thought it was impolite to keep walking so I responded.
Then he asked me if I was taking the picture to send back to India.
Idiot.
I said no, I live in Malaysia.
Then he started talking about how difficult it is to find a job here, coming from Puerto Rico.
And in my head I was thinking at least you have welfare; you should come to Singapore if you really want to find a job. But I just kept quiet. Well, actually I said I didn't have a job either.
Then he said his daughter was waiting in his car and his girlfriend wasn't picking up the phone and he needed some money for gas.
I said I'm sorry I can't help out as I have no small change. Which was partially true (I didn't have small change but I wouldn't have helped him even if I did), so I wished him luck and walked off.
I mean, perhaps if he didn't way I was from India; or if he said "wife" instead of "girlfriend" (still from a conservative society here); or said petrol instead of gas (English, not American) I'd have been fine.
Whatever.
There was nothing else to do along Elmwood Street; it was more of a shopping area with bars and I didn't feel like shopping or drinking so I just took the bus back to the city centre.
I wanted to visit City Hall, because apparently Buffalo's City Hall was worth visiting. I'm not sure why.
Well, for one, it is a huge building. With slightly strange architecture.
Something's a little odd about that photo; let me zoom in to the base for you to see clearly...
Yes. A protest.
So what was this protest about? It was about the legislation to legalise gay marriage in the state of New York. I was very curious so I walked in. Good thing I walked in on the side of the protesters, rather than the counter-protesters.
Oh yes, there were a few counter protestors, insisting that the protestors were being insensitive. "Remember those days when inter-racial marriages were illegal?"
Personally I have no issue with gay people. True, being from such a conservative country in a conservative course, I might be somewhat uncomfortable around them, if they are overly expressive of their sexuality. But to me, its not an issue of gay people's rights. More so an issue of the changing definition of marriage.
But the church should not interfere in state affairs; that would cause quite terrible state of affairs. Cross reference the Treaty of Westphalia, even if that was more European in nature.
Anyway, I'm just thankful that I live in a conservative state.
I didn't really want to stay too long in the protest, because there were some Catholics who were there who were so passionate about the cause it felt quite uneasy. Again, church and state shouldn't mix.
So I walked a bit away and took refuge under some trees a few blocks from City Hall.
When the sun had gone down just a little bit; I decided to walk to the Lakefront so as to watch the sunset over the lake. It wasn't too difficult to find the lakefront; even if there was plenty of walking to do.
That was about all there was - no place to sit down. And about 4 hours before the sun actually went down. So I decided to walk back.
On the way back I passed by this interesting building.
I was wondering why there was someone about to jump off the railings (see the lower right corner).
Yes, they were dummies.
Anyway, this was actually the Pearl's Street Restaurant which the lady earlier on had directed me to; so I decided to go in. It was nearly 5.30pm and about time for dinner anyway. Especially if you consider that I had such a light brunch.
I promised myself that I would have Buffalo Wings for dinner, so I ensured that they did indeed serve that dish.
It was not bad; but after eating 3/4 of the dish I was relatively jelak. I mean, I think that dish was meant as an appetiser for 2 or 3 people to share, rather than as a main course for one person to have. But I needed to have Buffalo Wings.
After dinner I resumed my quest for a park by the waterfront so that I can sit down and watch the sun set. Using the google map that I had on my iPad I walked towards what promised to be a park.
However, halfway through not finding the park (it was well concealed and I couldn't find a path to it) I started to question the wisdom in walking back after dark. The road that I was walking on seemed quite dodgy, even during the day. And it kept getting dodgier by the metre.
And like Luke Skywalker hearing Obiwan's voice going "Use the Force, Luke" I heard Agnieska's advice against walking around too much in Buffalo since people would mistake me for a son of a rich Indian and rob me. And the experience with the Puerto Rican man who thought I was from India didn't help.
So I walked back towards the hostel.
It was way too early to start heading to the bus station; so I just sat in the lobby of the hostel. After all, there was free WiFi.
I ended up talking to some lady from South Africa who was here to take the NY bar exam. She wasn't the first person living in the hostel who I met who was here for that exam, actually. There were quite a few of my dorm-mates who were here for that reason; which would explain why the dorm was well booked this period.
Anyway, around 10pm I took the tram down towards the bus station, and boarded the NYC-bound bus. On board the tram, some guy, seeing me as Indian, asked me if I knew Russell Peters.
Of course, I said. Who doesn't?
He said he used to open for Russell. And that Russell wasn't that big a deal in America. He said he didn't know what a big deal Russell Peters was until he googled the name.
Cool shit.
We talked a bit, but sooner rather than later I was at my stop and got off to go to the bus station to wait for my bus at 11.45pm.
The bus was full, so they ended up ordering a separate bus for us in Buffalo to go back to NYC - this bus went express to New York. Which would mean that I would arrive in New York earlier than expected. Awesome.
I said no, I live in Malaysia.
Then he started talking about how difficult it is to find a job here, coming from Puerto Rico.
And in my head I was thinking at least you have welfare; you should come to Singapore if you really want to find a job. But I just kept quiet. Well, actually I said I didn't have a job either.
Then he said his daughter was waiting in his car and his girlfriend wasn't picking up the phone and he needed some money for gas.
I said I'm sorry I can't help out as I have no small change. Which was partially true (I didn't have small change but I wouldn't have helped him even if I did), so I wished him luck and walked off.
I mean, perhaps if he didn't way I was from India; or if he said "wife" instead of "girlfriend" (still from a conservative society here); or said petrol instead of gas (English, not American) I'd have been fine.
Whatever.
There was nothing else to do along Elmwood Street; it was more of a shopping area with bars and I didn't feel like shopping or drinking so I just took the bus back to the city centre.
I wanted to visit City Hall, because apparently Buffalo's City Hall was worth visiting. I'm not sure why.
Well, for one, it is a huge building. With slightly strange architecture.
Something's a little odd about that photo; let me zoom in to the base for you to see clearly...
Yes. A protest.
So what was this protest about? It was about the legislation to legalise gay marriage in the state of New York. I was very curious so I walked in. Good thing I walked in on the side of the protesters, rather than the counter-protesters.
Oh yes, there were a few counter protestors, insisting that the protestors were being insensitive. "Remember those days when inter-racial marriages were illegal?"
Personally I have no issue with gay people. True, being from such a conservative country in a conservative course, I might be somewhat uncomfortable around them, if they are overly expressive of their sexuality. But to me, its not an issue of gay people's rights. More so an issue of the changing definition of marriage.
But the church should not interfere in state affairs; that would cause quite terrible state of affairs. Cross reference the Treaty of Westphalia, even if that was more European in nature.
Anyway, I'm just thankful that I live in a conservative state.
I didn't really want to stay too long in the protest, because there were some Catholics who were there who were so passionate about the cause it felt quite uneasy. Again, church and state shouldn't mix.
So I walked a bit away and took refuge under some trees a few blocks from City Hall.
*
When the sun had gone down just a little bit; I decided to walk to the Lakefront so as to watch the sunset over the lake. It wasn't too difficult to find the lakefront; even if there was plenty of walking to do.
That was about all there was - no place to sit down. And about 4 hours before the sun actually went down. So I decided to walk back.
On the way back I passed by this interesting building.
I was wondering why there was someone about to jump off the railings (see the lower right corner).
Yes, they were dummies.
Anyway, this was actually the Pearl's Street Restaurant which the lady earlier on had directed me to; so I decided to go in. It was nearly 5.30pm and about time for dinner anyway. Especially if you consider that I had such a light brunch.
I promised myself that I would have Buffalo Wings for dinner, so I ensured that they did indeed serve that dish.
It was not bad; but after eating 3/4 of the dish I was relatively jelak. I mean, I think that dish was meant as an appetiser for 2 or 3 people to share, rather than as a main course for one person to have. But I needed to have Buffalo Wings.
After dinner I resumed my quest for a park by the waterfront so that I can sit down and watch the sun set. Using the google map that I had on my iPad I walked towards what promised to be a park.
However, halfway through not finding the park (it was well concealed and I couldn't find a path to it) I started to question the wisdom in walking back after dark. The road that I was walking on seemed quite dodgy, even during the day. And it kept getting dodgier by the metre.
And like Luke Skywalker hearing Obiwan's voice going "Use the Force, Luke" I heard Agnieska's advice against walking around too much in Buffalo since people would mistake me for a son of a rich Indian and rob me. And the experience with the Puerto Rican man who thought I was from India didn't help.
So I walked back towards the hostel.
It was way too early to start heading to the bus station; so I just sat in the lobby of the hostel. After all, there was free WiFi.
I ended up talking to some lady from South Africa who was here to take the NY bar exam. She wasn't the first person living in the hostel who I met who was here for that exam, actually. There were quite a few of my dorm-mates who were here for that reason; which would explain why the dorm was well booked this period.
Anyway, around 10pm I took the tram down towards the bus station, and boarded the NYC-bound bus. On board the tram, some guy, seeing me as Indian, asked me if I knew Russell Peters.
Of course, I said. Who doesn't?
He said he used to open for Russell. And that Russell wasn't that big a deal in America. He said he didn't know what a big deal Russell Peters was until he googled the name.
Cool shit.
We talked a bit, but sooner rather than later I was at my stop and got off to go to the bus station to wait for my bus at 11.45pm.
The bus was full, so they ended up ordering a separate bus for us in Buffalo to go back to NYC - this bus went express to New York. Which would mean that I would arrive in New York earlier than expected. Awesome.
No comments:
Post a Comment