chinatown ish

4.67 miles

the sights: a white man drawing pink and yellow chalk hearts on the street, blocking the way of an asian grandpa pushing a cart stacked with vegetables; glistening fish; a man spraying his arms and legs with disinfectant; the chinese hispanic grocery store of the les; tourists; locals; a store of leather and fur jackets; classics like katz and russ and daughters; so many closed restaurants; outdoor dining; lines.

a friend noted how often i mention people's race (or what i assume to be their race) here. i admit it is on my mind perpetually, especially today, and especially as i walk around the lower east side and pass by the hunched over chinese grandmothers and grandfathers, as i witness who is doing the unloading of the groceries, who is delivering the meals on bike, who is frequenting the restaurants.

weirdly, this is the walk i received the most catcalls on to date.

chinatown was bustling, yet somehow still desolate. closed storefronts. i sat at nom wah tea parlor (i'd never been, it was fine, as expected) listening to a very American loud tourist couple try to decipher siu mai and laugh at chicken feet. i made eye contact with the well-dressed asian businessman at the next table over. i read the memoir of jaquira díaz, a puertoricanmiamifamilybildungsromantourdeforce.

did you know that asians make up two-thirds of the world's population?

i frankly messed up my walk today because i couldn't really decide if i was walking horizontally or vertically, whether i should be doubling back, and the like... a lesson for next time.

short for today because i must go read about iminobenzosemiquinonato, hurrah.