New York City is a remarkable city full of beautiful places, incredible food, and very fascinating people. I got the wonderful opportunity this summer to move there and get a small taste of what a “New York minute” actually means. You can see it in movies, but nothing will ever come close to the real thing.
When I found out I got the internship, I just remember being stunned. I could not believe it was happening. I had been to New York City twice and was just in love with it both times, but moving there was going to be a completely different experience. I found out in January 2016 and had four months to wait.
I looked at a million apartments, dorm complexes, and housing units, anything and everything. I looked at where they were in relation to where I’d be working, and I also wanted something that was close to Central Park. I finally found something at the very top of the Upper East Side, which was a 30-minute commute to work, but it was in a beautiful area. It was only two blocks to Central Park and only two blocks to the subway to work.
After four months of waiting, it was finally time to pack up and move. My dad was going to be traveling with me, so we packed four suitcases and two carry-ons and headed on our way. It wasn’t easy saying goodbye to my family and friends until August, but it made it a little easier knowing where I was headed. When we arrived in New York we spent the first few days unpacking, getting groceries, and exploring the area I’d be living in and practicing my route to work.
The company I worked at was called The Sak Brand Group. It’s a handbag company with three lifestyle accessory brands: The Sak, Sakroots, and Elliott Lucca. The brands are all different but all beautiful. The Sak has handcrafted crochet, textured leather and a casual, west coast feel. Sakroots, the most fun in my opinion, has colorful canvas bags with a slogan of “choose your karma” because each of the prints benefits different charities. Elliott Lucca has artisan fabrications, luxurious woven leather, and is effortlessly chic.
On my first day my boss, Jamie, took me around and introduced me to all the people who worked there, from the designers to marketing, to the eCommerce team, which is who I would be working with. All of the people behind the brands were just as fun and inviting as the brands themselves. I could tell that I was going to love the environment.
I got to experience market in August with all our clients coming to our showrooms to view the latest lines. I even got to sit in on a run-through with Seventeen magazine with one of the marketers. It was such an amazing experience getting to learn and grow with such a brilliant company.
On top of loving my job and going to work, I also got to be a tourist for three months, going to shows, museums, Central Park, trying a bunch of different food, and all the other places I got to visit. I went to see Chicago, Cats, Aladdin, Wicked, The Lion King, Matilda, and I got to see The Rockettes. Cats was by far my favorite, it was spectacular.
One of my favorite experiences while I was there was getting to go see The Macy’s 4th of July Fire Work Show. We got some snacks together and went to JFK drive, which they had completely blocked off, and we sat outside and waited for around four hours for the show to start. It started raining on us about 30 minutes before the show started.
We didn’t let that ruin our fun though, while everyone else was beginning to leave, we sat there and waited for those fireworks and I’m so glad that we did. The display was spectacular. I’ve never seen a firework show like it, and I don’t know that I ever will again. These are only a few of the amazing touristy experiences that I got to have this summer.
Life in New York was amazing, but it wasn’t without its hardships. Once, I cut my thumb open and had to walk six blocks to the hospital, which was not a fun experience since I had never been to the emergency room before, that I can remember. I had to have stitches put in, and let me tell you, I was not a fan. I got lost at least three times a week. More often times than not it was every other day.
It’s an experience I will remember forever. I may have only been there for a few short months, but I left a part of my heart in New York that I don’t think I’ll ever get back. There is nothing like New York, to me anyway. I wouldn’t trade the experience that I had for anything, and I couldn’t have done it without the amazing support from my parent’s and the rest of my family and friends.