Thank you so much, E-pao for giving me a great opportunity to share my experiences with my young e-pao readers who are mostly the upwardly mobile and the yuppy group and also the new face of our young generation !!!

I can talk to them and share like nothing else!! Some of the older generation may scoff at me but who cares!! I ain't no bowl of cherries nor a wallflower either!!! I'll tell like it is!!

Let me tell you about my summer this year. Its been the greatest and the most fruitful one so far!! This summer I had the good opportunity to visit New York city to watch the Fourth of July Macy's fireworks with my little son on a shoe string budget!!

I must mention that E-pao is the main link to my pursuits because I came in contact with all these young Manipuri computer professionals and the like that I was greatly encouraged to use the internet for anything under the sun!! And thats how I found out that I could visit NYC with the minimum but enjoy the max !!

I chanced upon international hostelling in NYC and so that is how I got to get the cheapest accomodation - right in the middle of the city just under $100 for 4 days of accomodation !!

Boy!! I sure am glad that in some way E-pao has been a stepping stone for me to take up such endeavour....visiting NYC all by myself with my son!! Omigosh! Everyone thought that I was crazy to go on a visit with no friends there in NYC! But I knew my way around as I had worked there for year in Manhattan so I was not scared !! I did not have to know anyone there to visit!!

I would not have known any difference between surfing the net and trying to find the best deals in town for anything, if it was not for the E-pao readers of my articles who have been a great help especially -the Dallas kangbu....(party) !! I will be visiting them shortly when their 'bundle of joy' arrives!! I cannot wait for that day!!

New York is truly a great international and the most cosmopolitan city of the world where you can mingle in with the crowd and not get any different stares from anybody! I must say it has to be seen and visited to know and feel its full international atmosphere!!

You do not feel like you are in the 'States' but anywhere in the world's greatest city!! This I say because I have lived and worked in Bombay city for over seven years and both have so much similarities - being the hub of the financial capital, fashion business, its cosmopolitan atmosphere, melting pot of different cultures etc!!

The only difference being that NYC is much cleaner than Bombay !! I sure am glad to have worked in Bombay because of which I did not get a culture shock when I came here in 1999.

Well, the international hostelling rooms were dorm type but clean and quite comfy. Some of them were 6 bedded - all female room, some were all male rooms and some were co-ed!! We were given a co-ed room because my son was a male and we shared with 4 others from Brazil, France, Canada and Mexico!!

If you all want to have a luxurious and expensive outing, then this hostel is definitely not for you but it is mainly for backpackers!! I certainly loved it because it was very close to the subway and the bus stops and we wasted no time to get around the city!!

There were plenty of things to see and do!! It was much better than getting some fancy accomodation in the NY Suburbs and get into the city for sightseeing!! For me, it was a very good way to visit a big city with a shoestring budget!!

I did not mind sharing the bathrooms with world travellers from all over. We were able to make new friends and share a joke and laugh or even ate breakfast together!!

My son was too excited to be sleeping on a bunk bed in that hostel!!! To him it was all heaven and nothing else!! He just could not contain his excitement!! He kept on asking me questions and more questions about why we had to be sharing that room with others!!

He was not satisfied with my answers and I could not help it because he was just being 'curious George'!! I was exhausted and too tired for his questions and answers sessions!!! Someone help me, please !! My son blabbers too much sometimes!!

I dont know if its his stage of growing up or what!! But I guess he is just being himself!! If it was not for him, I would have been long gone crazy as its very hard to be here without any family !! He is the only one which keeps me focussed on life!! Thank god for that!!

Coming back to the story of my trip, the international hostel in New York city is located on 103rd street on Amsterdam Avenue. It had a small cafe where you could eat breakfast at reasonable prices!! We survived on good ole Mc Donalds' and street foods. We used $7 - one day - Metro fun passes( cards) for riding the subway and buses to get around the city!!

Anyway, me and my son had the best time of our lives during our 4 days of sightseeing and what not! Everyday we would leave the hostel by 10 AM for sightseeing and get back by 12 midnight!! We just could not see everything of the city's attractions but we made do with as much we could visit within those 4 days!! We were in no hurry but took our time - window shopping, taking a walking tour or just simply watch the beautiful and fashionable people of NY rush by to their work places!!

It was too amazing to see such a vibrant city - full of life and activity even though it had been wrecked by the senseless actions of some msiguided people who downed the WTC towers!! I took my son to see the WTC ruins and I could not help crying at the sight !! I had been in that city for watching the 4th of July Fireworks and was there on the observatory deck two months before they fell !!!

I visited the ruins twice after that and cried and cried all the time I was there !! It is a very emotional environment when you are standing there in the ruins!! Just thinking of all the innocent lives lost on that fateful day of sept 11,2001 on those towers......made me cry so much!!

My son gave me his paper napkins to wipe my tears !! I just hugged him for a long time without saying anything !! I could not even walk properly after coming out of the ruins on Church street!! It affected me so bad to think of all who died there! But somehow my son brought me back to life!! And we continued our sightseeing!!

We went to see the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State building, Nightline Cruise, Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum, Top of the Rock Observatory at the Rockefellar Plaza Center, Central park Walking Tours, Hop on-Hop off NYC Tour Buses, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Brooklynn bridge, Grand Central etc.

I am glad I bought the Explorer's pass online for the city attractions which saved me time and money too. If you want to go on top of the Statue of Liberty, you need to reserve your spot ahead through the national parks website, or else you wont get to the top. You will end up just going around the island!!

I did not tell any of our people here because it will make them ask too many questions as to who I was going with or whether I knew anyone in the city to stay with and what not!! If I made up my mind so be it!! No need to tell any Chaoba, Tomba, Thoibi or any nosy parkers!!

The only ones whom I felt comfortable telling about my trip was my good co-workers who are always very encouraging and supportive of me!! I told my ever good and sociable Sagolband friend here about it only when I came back just to shock her!!

I was tickled to see her jaws drop when I told her the reason for my not answering my cellphone!! She said "Hingchabi.. iche ... you never told me anything !!" I told her that she could crucify me for that if she so desired!!

But she was very happy for me. We ate her delicious Khajing Bora( shrimp battered ) dumplings!! We caught up on so much happenings!! Gosh!! she just loves to talk and talk....!

Now I know why she is the daughter of a Judge back home!! Her hubby ,on the other hand is just the opposite!! He is the nokmi-nokmi type( quiet and smily on the exterior)!! but very witty!! And their daughter is very cute and so much fun!! She tells me that she loves to eat thabi ( cucumber)!!

I must conclude to say that it has been a very good year and expect good for everyone of my friends out there!! More stories later!!