Buffalo Soldier

Being the significant other of a JetBlue employee, I am awarded his flight benefits. Without the variable of being able to afford airfare, spontaneous excursions will be a-plenty this summer as I continue to struggle with settling into normal life here, otherwise know as work. For our first air venture together, we chose Buffalo. Not at all a glamorous destination but one that afforded a doable weekend itinerary of thrifting, nature and food.

Opting for taking the extra charge of a GPS system in the rental car, the otherwise unknown terrain of Western NY became an easy, almost disturbingly mindless minor roadtrip. First stop was the Salvation Army Thrift located at 2196 Seneca street. Typical, by Salvy’s standards, I snatched up more unnecessary decorative purchases for my apartment, including a huge pristine matador and bull wall tapestry, and a turtle planter, and some more clothing that will most probably fit me awkwardly. Also in my goody bag the first of what became a reoccurring theme of thrifting in Buffalo, a 80’s exercise leotard.

Cognizant of Salvy’s 6 p.m. closing time, we hit another one at 1080 Military road. This huge store did not live up to the parking lot excitement however. I nabbed a cross-stitch kit for my mouse pad, a Moby Dick paperback with impressive cover art and a one of them ironic and witty vintage tees that sell in NYC for double digits. More impressive were the two Amvets thrifts that were next programmed into the GPS, one at 1833 Elmwood and the other at 1900 Ridge road.

Buffalo is indeed a strange city. Being college is out, the place was a ghost town, save for many day mayors. Along with the many interesting sociological observations, this home seemed to be the personification of the weirdness in the air: vacant yet populated.

Real vegan offerings are slim in Buffalo but many websites reported Betty’s as vegan-friendly. After a yummy lentil soup & a Boylan cola, I ordered the only item on the menu that could be made vegan and remain substantive, the grilled veggie wrap (its official name was yummwich). Despite it’s lack of dressing or accompaniment, the wrap was delicious- stuffed with sweet potato (a nice touch), onion, pepper, mushroom and the usual suspects. It never sogged and fall-out was minimal, two problems that usually turn me off to ordering wraps.

The following it was onward to one of the great wonders of the world, Niagara Falls where I rainbow chased obsessively. Not since working in Chelsea had I seen so many rainbows! It was a beautiful day to see the falls, and relatively uncrowded to boot.

Before heading back to New York, New York, it was mealtime again. New York Restaurant offer a full vegetarian menu of mock meats. Pictured here is the sweet corn and bean curd soup I order at these joints with the hope it’ll be like Seattle’s Bamboo Garden, and almond beef on top of ginger rice. Yummy but lingered heavy in the belly making the silly shenanigans of Clifton Hill less enjoyable.