ELIZABETH CENTER

I finally had the chance to go to Elizabeth Center. Growing up, it used to be one of my favorite places to go!

It's definitely a big hang out place for children, teenagers, and Animae buffs. Elizabeth Center (aka EC) is composed of small shops that sell things like Hello Kitty items, origami supplies as well as Animae tapes and figures.

There were many reasons EC was one of my favorite places growing up. For starters, all of my friends in the C Town area hung out there. It was the "cool" place to hang out and meet up with your friends. Secondly, it was the place that I went to purchase my inventory to sell to my classmates in the burbs...

I grew up in Little Neck, NY and Asian items were always very in. The problem was that they were very hard to get unless your parents made a trip to Flushing or Chinatown. Back in those days, Flushing wasn't as developed as it is now, so the best place to buy Hello Kitty or Animae items definitely was Chinatown.

I used to buy things from Elizabeth Center and go back to my classmates and sell the items in school. Since my Dad put me to work at a young age, I made weekly trips to Chinatown. I had access to inventory that I could sell that was hard for everyone else to get.

Memories of an entrepreneurial childhood! =) Good times!

(Elizabeth Center is located on Elizabeth street btw. Bayard and Canal.)