Winter, snow, and public transportation

One of the first hashtags I used is this one: #summerismyseason. I have used it a billion times. I love summer and let's face it, I'm a summer girl because I was born on July 1st. But truth to be told, I love Christmas. The only reason I survive the winter is because of the beauty of the Christmas holiday. The decorations, the songs, the carols, the trees, the smiles on people's faces, the presents, everything seems perfect during that time of the year. Moving to New York put the whole Christmas craziness into a whole new different level of excitement.

Let's walk a little down memory lane; I see myself walking with my husband on 5th Avenue and fall in love with the windows of Saks Fifth Avenue. It was a magnificent experience for me, I don't know it I can say much about it, I cannot find enough words to express my feelings. The following pictures is what my eyes witnessed during last year's holiday season.

Saks Fifth Avenue Holiday window 2015 - 2016

Saks Fifth Avenue Holiday window 2015 - 2016

And then, after the beauty, came the first snowstorm of my life. I was shocked by the volume of the snow and I was scared of getting out of the house. The following pictures were taken during last year's snowstorm.

Picture taken in the morning, at the beginning of the snowstorm. January 2016.

Picture taken at the same spot at night, when the snow stopped falling. January 2016.

Whether you believe it or not, I didn't want to get out of the house because I thought I would break my leg if I tried to walk in the snow. Honestly, I was so scared and found myself wondering what am I doing here. When I decided it was time to get out of the house, I realized that it wasn't that bad, it was something totally new and I had to accept that it snows in my new home. I may never love the cold weather, but I learnt to survive it and enjoy some precious moments, like the ones on the following pictures. 

Walking on the white fluffy snow. December 2016. 

On my way to the bus stop. December 2016.

The beautiful house and yard close to my bus stop. December 2016.

Walking in the beautiful and pure white snow, it makes you feel like there's a little corner in the world that's called paradise on earth. The weather isn't freezing cold; you feel like everything is magical because this new life you live in NYC is full of adventures and the scenery is like no other. For a moment there, you dare to say: "I love NY." "I am blessed." "What a magic moment." 

And then... And then you wait for the bus. I take to buses to go to work. The first bus came quickly, I waited for only five minutes, I was lucky. I arrived at the second bus stop in ten minutes. I expected that the second bus would come on time too, but little did I know. I waited for the bus for fifty minutes. It seemed like a lifetime. MTA does a great job usually, so I was quite disappointed with the second bus' tardiness. I was late for work and I was very upset. At least, the snow didn't last, the following day it rained and it melted. 

But this past Saturday it snowed all day... The buses were running so late I felt I would die because it was freezing cold. The good part of the whole situation is that I wasn't late for work this Saturday, the problem was on my way back home. Another silver lining, I took a cab home and I was safe. 

The ugly truth: when you don't drive, you have to have a lot of patience in winter. The weather conditions are harsh here and it is equally hard to find reasons to stay optimistic. On hard days, or moments, I dream of this beautiful summer moment, the last picture of this blog entry. I'll always be a summer girl, #summerismyseason. 

Lambiri, Akhaia, Greece. June 10th 2012.

P.S. All the pictures used in this blogpost belong to me. I captured them with different cameras. Hope you'll enjoy it.