Aside from the culture and community, the professional learning and development opportunities were abundant. Somewhere along the way, though, I found my professional voice and a growing interest in federal policy, and felt New York City could only open so many doors in that space.<\/p>\n
Relocating to Washington, DC, felt like an increasingly obvious choice. As much as I loved New York, being in DC would put me in the epicenter of US policy, and my rent could be much cheaper.<\/p>\n
So after nearly two years in Manhattan, I left.<\/p>\n
Living in DC has made me appreciate NYC even more<\/strong><\/p>\n There are benefits to living in DC, but I’ve missed the community I built in New York.\u00a0<\/p>\n Anika Nayak<\/p>\n I moved to DC in the fall and, shortly after I arrived, immediately began to miss so many things about living in New York City.<\/p>\n I don’t have a car, which means I rely entirely on public transportation. NYC’s subway system<\/a> is vast \u2014 25 routes crisscrossing four boroughs \u2014 whereas DC’s Metro has just six color-coded lines extending into Virginia and Maryland, with plenty of neighborhoods only accessible by car.<\/p>\n As someone of South Asian heritage, I shop for South Asian groceries often. In NYC, that was easy: I could hop on the train to Rose Hill in Manhattan or Jackson Heights in Queens<\/a>. In DC, it’s a whole adventure that usually entails a Metro ride into Virginia or Maryland, followed by a rideshare.<\/p>\n DC can also be surprisingly quiet. New York’s population is over 10 times the size of DC’s, and I could feel the difference. In DC, the Metro and the streets can feel nearly empty at night. I miss the noise and the sight of people clustered on every corner.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n