Eat and Learn Adventure

Today I want on what I call an Eat and Learn Adventure.  These are variations on what my father and I called eating our way across town that consist of alternating between museums and other cultural institutions and, well, eating.  They are an excellent way to get to know a new place.

Today's adventure took place in lower Manhattan, and on the train ride home I realized I had inadvertently curated a thematic adventure focusing on immigration.  I began at the 9/11 Memorial, headed to the lower east side for lunch at Katz's Deli and a tour at the Tenement Museum, walked through Little Italy where I ate ravioli and an amazing cannoli, and ended up drinking coffee in Battery Park looking out over the Statue of Liberty.  It was a fascinating, and delicious, trip through several historical periods that correlated to the immigration of different ethnic groups into the US through New York, and it made me think about the relationship between immigration and the family unit as well as the role of immigration in shaping the history of the US.

The story of the Piatt family in the US actually begins before the US.  There is some confusion owing to common names and inaccurate records, but we do know that the first Piatt came from France before the Revolutionary War.  Like with many immigrant families, this created two distinct branches of the family - one in the new world and one in the home country.  Over the generations, several Piatt men married Irish women who came from families who had entered the US much later.  In my case, the answer to the question "when did your family come to America?" cannot be answered simply, and with every passing generation the stories of all American families become more complicated.

My takeaway from today's adventure is that we can find strength and community by seeking out those of similar experience (or ethnicity), but what makes us stronger (as individuals and as a society) is the combination and cooperation of those with varied backgrounds and experiences.