The Gateway to America: Ellis Island

Lady Liberty

The journey millions of immigrants made to America was not easy. The 8 days by boat makes our future 8 hour flights look like joy rides. Their travel conditions were terrible, crowded, and dirty making our society's complaints about leg room and seat assignments trivial. They left relatives behind in their native countries, some they would never see again. No ability to Skype or FaceTime whenever they wanted. They came to a place where they could not speak the language. No iPhone apps to help with translation or currency exchange. They did all of this for a better way of life for themselves and their children. Could you do it? Would you be brave enough to leave your family and friends for life in another country? As we leave America in our rearview, we contemplated the appeal America had for so many millions of immigrants.

I'm Movin' Out!- A shift in mindset...

"If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies."

Moving is never easy to do. It is often the climax of a change in ones life. As humans, we tend to strongly dislike change, ourselves included. 

Our apartment was taken over by boxes, bins, and the accumulation of "things" that had taken place over a period of time. You find yourself making piles of clothes titled toss, donate, and storage. Well this time was a bit different for us. We had 4 piles. Toss, donate, storage, and trip! It was tough deciding what clothes made the cut for our 6+ month journey but we found a way. As the movers took all of our "things" away this morning, I thought back to the notion of accumulation of things. How is that we acquire so many items of furniture, clothing, books, DVDs, etc? I believe we hold onto things for their sentimental meaning. Not so much for the value of the item itself, but more for what that item reminds us of, a time or moment, or memory we want to hold with us. 

Our New York State of Mind

Our last month left in New York we took advantage of all New York state and the Northeast had to offer. We visited the wineries in Westchester County, saw the fall foliage in Connecticut, visited local markets, picked apples, ate our favorite foods, and traveled far upstate to visit friends and family. From the museums in Manhattan to the bowling alleys in Buffalo we covered it all! Here is our journey through Fall 2011 in our beloved home state during our goodbye tour. Enjoy our photos as Billy Joel tells you all about our New York State of Mind.