Steemhouse in NYC!

Every trip I take to New York City is an adventure. Usually I’m passing through after a rescue transport, but this time I was in that corner of the U.S. to make sure my Steemhouse partner caught a plane back to France. We had a bit of time before his flight left, so we spent it exploring.

The irony is that back in November, I posted about @michelios as The Traveler after a chance post-Steemfest encounter in Krakow. Little did I know he’d soon be traveling on my turf, and that once again I’d get to follow him around a city enjoying sights I’d never seen before.

I really thought I’d seen most of Manhattan. But I had never seen it this way. Soho. Tribeca—the Hudson River across to the Jersey side—I never knew there were so many little parks tucked away downtown with gorgeous scenery and a quaint atmosphere. Michel must have found them all. No map, no planning. He just starts walking, and the view unfolds.

Eventually we took the subway to Times Square. Even my dog Paige got to ride, because she’s so good about staying in her carry bag. NYC is extremely dog-friendly. Call me crazy, but I think I could live there.

And in the next photo, the top of a certain pony-tailed head. . . .

One of the great things about traveling and being a citizen of the world is that you lose your fear of meeting people. Once again, in true Steemhouse fashion, we made new friends on the subway ride back to our car parked at the Battery. Linda and Brenda found us on the platform as naturally as Michel found me at Wawel Castle last November. And we’ve stayed in touch! Both of these lovely women are animal lovers with ties to rescue and animal welfare. They were visiting from Canada, and we struck up a conversation that will hopefully lead to enduring friendships. The Steemhouse bookstore tour will take us into Canada in May. Linda? Brenda? Any chance we can plan a meetup while we’re there? We’re planning to be as close as Toronto anyway. Would love to see you two again!

The world is definitely becoming smaller. Lives are impacted by the ease of travel, social media, and changing views of how we are all connected on this planet. I am so grateful for all the opportunities I never thought I’d have, like traveling around the country and even the globe, and meeting people who I would never have known otherwise. The future looks very bright not only for me as an author, but for the publishing house overall and the vision our board members and staff share for its success. Life is good!