Fotos & Friends: 1st Photo Walk Jan 2024

My first Fotos & Friends photo walk! On Saturday January 20, 2024, a few friends and myself went to Flushing, Queens! Our meet-up spot was in front of the library.  

For people who would like to organize their own photo walk, I’d recommend scoping out where there are bathrooms you can use that don’t require being a customer to use them. NYPLs have bathrooms you can use, usually shopping centers like malls have bathrooms, and some NYC public parks have bathrooms.

I initially wanted our group to go to an OG indoors market (reminds me of the markets in Mexico City) where there were many small businesses. But when we got there, it was gone. It’s now a Teso Life (41-28 Main St, Queens, NY 11355.) NGL Teso was cute but it was saddening to see those mom and pops gone, now another relic of NYC’s past, specifically Flushing’s history. 

Our next stop was the platform of the LIRR in Flushing. I took a few portrait shots of Izabella and then we were outie. The stop after that was right on the corner of Main Street and Roosevelt Avenue. Heads up: Flushing is always bustling with people so try to be courteous to your fellow New Yorkers, don’t obstruct people traffic. We walked down Roosie towards the Shops at Skyview. 

Antes de llegar ahí, pasamos por Tour les Jours to get some pastries and warm drinks: 3902 Union St, Flushing, NY 11354-5514. Skyview was mostly a break from the frigid weather y para comadrear. The stop after Skyview was the projects/public housing across the street for my friend Cris to take pics for her series on projects in New York City. 

We were getting hungry so we walked up to the New World Mall! I honestly never went down to the last floor of it because I thought it was another floor of a J-mart they have. But Maria showed me it’s a food court! ^_^ we all got a quick meal and headed back to the streets to take pics now that the sun was setting. We took a stop at Tiger Sugar right around the corner from Coco Bubble Tea off Roosevelt Ave and Main Street. The final shots of the photowalk were back at our initial meeting point, in front of the library steps accompanied by the softest orange winter sunset.

Here’s a short reflection from Instagram of my first photo walk! “Hosted my first photo walk today✨☺️🩷🫶 I’ve been thinking of what keeps us going for the long haul✨what is a conduit for grounding yourself in love? For me, one of those conduits is intentional connection✨✨intentional connection centers me in the remembrance of why I choose to be here, what my gifts are and how healing it is to commune with people of all walks of life ✨thank you chicas for being a part of this photo walk, and I can’t wait for the next ones.” Used Partiful to plan this photo walk!