the stranger project

Age:

20

Cultural Background:

Chinese (Me) Boyfriend (Indian)

Story:

The first time I ever laid eyes on my current boyfriend was at the 74th Street Jackson Heights train station. Ever since that fateful July evening, we’ve been inseparable ever since. I love how you can walk down Roosevelt Avenue and you can see the cultural changes in the neighborhood from Indian sweets shops to taco trucks to small little Colombian Cholado shops on 82nd Street. Our Second date was actually spent walking down Roosevelt.

The Farmers’ Market at Travers Park is definitely one of our favorite treats! We urge you to indulge in some delicious community building while savoring their A-mazing home-made salsa… for example.

• Location: Travers Park, 34th Avenue, between 77th and 78th Streets, Jackson Heights, NY
• Open: June 6 - December 19, 2010
• Times: Sundays, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Age: 14

Cultural Background:

Puerto Rican

Story:

I remember when I performed in front of complete strangers when I found a pink and green piano right beside the post office. It was probably one of my most memorable moments living here in Jackson Heights. 

Age: 35

Cultural Background:

European mutt

Story:

The first happy-ending massage parlor I ever went to in New York was in Jackson Heights. It was tucked behind a thick metal ground-floor door with a simple “Acupuncture” sign on the front. She was gorgeous, though as usual, the quality of the massage itself was in inverse proportion to the masseuse’s attractiveness. I’ve gone back to the heavy garlicky air of that place a few times in the year since, but I’ve never seen her again. Ah well. It’s just business.

Close-up 

37th Ave and 83rd Street