the arts of living in New York

My friend, nyc julie, often sends me emails of events and shows happening around the city. Trying to be mindful of taking advantage of as many opportunities as possible, I join her when my classes or my budget don't interfere. Saturday night, I had the chance to join nyc julie along with several other friends to see the performance, Christina Olson: American Model. Claire Danes was the solo dancer who depicted the girl in Andrew Wyeth's painting.
Christina Olson lived her life in defiance of muscular degeneration that paralyzed her legs and weakened her arms. She refused to use wheel-chairs instead using her limited body movements and strength to move around. Through dance, Claire Danes demonstrates the inner and outer struggle Christina Olson endured. This was my first time to attend a modern dance performance. It was a pretty amazing experience.
We continued the New York experience by getting Thai food for dinner after the show, followed by drinks over in the West Village with nyc julie's roommates and friends.
The next morning we woke up way too early after being out way too late. But friend a.m. said we needed to be in the ticket line early to get our discount broadway tickets. So at 11, friend a.m., her Boston friend, and I were on our way to Times Square. I was finally going to my first Broadway show since moving to the city. By 11:30 we were in line, and by noon we had tickets to see Sweet Charity.
As we waited for our 2:00 show, we went to Brunch at a nearby Italian Restaurant. Then it was nearly show time. Our seats were lower level- close, but not too close. I loved everything about the show. The story line, the costumes, the music, the dancing, and most especially Christina Appelgate. I loved Sweet Charity!
A.M. and I said good-bye to her friend who had joined us from Boston, then nyc julie met us for dinner. We continued experiencing new things- we went to dinner at an African restaurant. Eaten with our hands using very unusual/different bread to pick up and scoop up the lamb and chickpea sauce, the food and the experience were equally great.
On a whole the weekend was full of cultural experiences from theaters to restaurants, and life in between.