I’m originally from Canada, but had never been outside my country before then. I had never gone to Disney World as a kid, or been taken on a cruise. My parents just couldn’t afford it, and that was okay. We’d done some traveling inside Canada, and that was enough for me. My best memory, up to that point, was river rafting down the Ottawa River. But when I heard that my school was taking a trip to New York City in October of 2003, I couldn’t help but get excited. I’d been saving for a long time; ever since I got my job in fact, and I knew that this was the perfect way to spend my savings. It could be a once in a lifetime experience!
It was some time before the day finally arrived, and our bus rolled up early that morning. The bus ride was long, but as we approached New York City, I realized that I wouldn’t forget that memory for the rest of my life. I’d be treated to a number more memories in my five days in New York, from standing in Times Square, watching one of the busiest places in the world buzz around me, to standing at the top of the Empire State building, seeing one of the most amazing cities in the world sprawled out beneath me.
My absolute favorite memory, though, is from the Gershwin theatre. That was where I saw Wicked for the first time, though it sure wouldn’t be the last. Dressed up in a suit, accompanied by my classmates, we entered the theatre, and were treated to one of the most brilliant stage productions I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing. I think back on it now with such fondness, because when I saw it again in Toronto, it had just lost something. Maybe that glimmer of the big apple, or perhaps just something else, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I did that day.
I look back on that trip as a real turning point in my life. Wicked was the point at which I started to like musicals, and the trip in general was where I began to mature as a person. New York really changed me, and it did so for the better. Some day, I know I will return. But until that day, I’ll still have the memories from my very first trip.
