NYU Strawberryfest

What can I say, I’m a sucker for these kinds of festivals, even if they are a block long. Maybe years of deprivation have magnified the allure, but when I went to college, we never had festival anything. Now the lucky students get Pancake Day, Strawberry fest, this feast, that party. I would have felt something missing from my college years if I didn’t experience Strawberry fest at least once, even if as an alumni. It’s small, but boast the world’s longest strawberry shortcake. If you look at my photo, you won’t contest the boast. This year, there was also free cotton candy, soda, little smidgens of ice cream, a cup with strawberries and of course a slice of cake. You get a strawberry bag – all right, it won’t give you the same sense of entitlement as a Unilocal bag if one even exists, but it’s great for shopping and for stuffing the free candy. Sour patch kids, Twizzlers, smarties and chews were given away. I left that for the happy fresh faced college students eager to sugar up for studying. There were even carnival game jammed into this block. It was a time of discovery. I did find out I’m an ace at skeetball. Take that, youngsters.
It’s always during a weekday, at a time when most expired college students are generally working but current NYU students are not. You’ll need an NYU ID to get in or a state ID. The guard took pity on me when I told them I was a former student and couldn’t find my ID since it had been years ago and allowed me to use my work ID. If you really want to mingle with youths, just make sure you have your new NYS ID card or your drivers license and in no time, you’ll be noshing on strawberries. Unlike what Ming experienced last year, your ID does get you all the freebies as long as you are willing to wait on long lines. Some move fast, such as the cake line. A stroll down memory lane accompanied by a piece of strawberry shortcake isn’t a bad detour if you happen to be in the area.