Flushing

2016 Fall Term

Urban Sociology SSN 187 6864[30288]

Dr. Arturo Ignacio Sanchez

Jing Wu

     Teacher organized and led a historical walking of Gantry State Park. When we dropped at subway station, we saw a lot of Queens American Institute of Architects. Such as police office and church. How do we know we are in the central place? According to the unique architecture. Compared to the modern city, I feel that I stay at the old town. When I see these building, I know it has a long history.

     Saturday afternoon is quiet. I see a lot of people running and walking. When I pass by some restaurants, I see a lot of Asian. Here's a bit of a surprise because I don’t know here lives a lot of Asian. The Asians here are not the same as Flushing. I almost can recognize what the difference they are. They speak fluent English and they have high education. In the simple way, they are rich people.

     When we go to the park, it is a nice place. We surrounded by beautiful life. I see a lot of building cross the ocean. They are high rise buildings. Why they have a small land occupancy area? Because they have a high cost of land. Many people are reading and walking the dog. I assume that they are living around here. They look like so happy with their families and they enjoy their free time. This is a different life style. When I go back to my home, everyone is busy at working. They don’t have day off, and they work so hard. They need money to feed themselves.

     There are a lot of residential buildings, and they are gorgeous. They even have guard. I see a building with a special construct. The glasses with an orange appearance. Some people say “it is so ugly.” It is not a nice building though, I see it has a big balcony. People can see the panoramic view. Of course, the house here is very expensive. People pay for the stuff. They provide the best environmental conditions. It is a big different from my home. There are a lot of fast food stalls. People don’t cook at home, and they just eat on the street. Everyone has a different life style. This is not bad for them, and they enjoy it too. We pursue the different happiness. I know it is so hard for new immigrants in order to have a wealthy life. Moreover, people originally are not rich.

     I see a lot of young people playing the basketball. I reminisced that when I was a teenager. They say “We are the flowers of the motherland.” I didn’t like to study, and I felt it is useless. I was carefree as those young people. When I came to NYC, my parents prepared everything for me. I didn’t realize how hard it is. I watched a drama called “A native of Beijing in New York” They think people live a luxurious life, but they live in basement. The guy is a cello musician in China. Due to the language problem, and he is a waiter in New York. Finally, He does sweater import and export trade. He makes some money, and there is also some family disputes. People say “The United States is heaven and hell” Actually, I understand everything, but I never give up. Like this trip, everyone has a dream paradise, but we can’t live in the fantasy. Maybe I am a bit of pessimistic. It is a long way to change the present. Time has been changing so fast. Sometimes, we cannot keep up with the times.