“You are on the train with a random cast of characters and sometimes people strike up conversation with you,” said Park, who is originally from Massachusetts but now lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side and was crowned Miss New York at the Paramount Hudson Valley Theater in Peekskill on May 31, 2021.
“You never know who you’re going to meet or who you’re going to be seated across from or behind. It’s a really fun experience and fun opportunity to meet other people and see where they’re going. You get on the train, you’re there for a few hours and then you all get off and go your separate ways. For those few hours, it’s a community experience. Everyone is stepping into everyone else’s movie.”
During a recent Amtrak trip that Park made from Moynihan Train Hall in Manhattan to Exchange Street Station in Buffalo, this cinematic experience was amplified by the sweeping, stunning and compelling views she enjoyed while looking out the train window. Adding to the experience was that it was Park’s second trip to Buffalo, and her first trip to Buffalo by train.
“As you’re traversing these different landscapes, it’s a beautiful reminder of how big and grand our state is,” said Park, who was first-runner up for Miss New York in 2019 and is on track to graduate in May with a law degree from Fordham University School of Law, which is located at the school’s Lincoln Center Campus in Manhattan.
“It’s a nice, calming feeling of being away from it all. You pass a lot of sprawling fields; a farmhouse here and there. I love that amount of space that is out there. It’s just a very nice, big breath—a nice exhale, to feel you have tons of space out here and you could watch and look as far as you want to.
“That’s one of the glorious things about being on an Amtrak train. You get all of this bundled up into one neat train ride. You can really focus on looking out the windows and seeing everything that New York has to offer.”
“As you’re traversing these different landscapes, it’s a beautiful reminder of how big and grand our state is,” said Park, who was first-runner up for Miss New York in 2019 and is on track to graduate in May with a law degree from Fordham University School of Law, which is located at the school’s Lincoln Center Campus in Manhattan.
“It’s a nice, calming feeling of being away from it all. You pass a lot of sprawling fields; a farmhouse here and there. I love that amount of space that is out there. It’s just a very nice, big breath—a nice exhale, to feel you have tons of space out here and you could watch and look as far as you want to.
“That’s one of the glorious things about being on an Amtrak train. You get all of this bundled up into one neat train ride. You can really focus on looking out the windows and seeing everything that New York has to offer.”
Park has logged plenty of Amtrak miles traveling back home to Massachusetts, by rail, to see her parents. Her mother is a registered nurse at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, and her father is a land developer who runs his own company.
But Park and her family have established a firm foothold in the Empire State. She graduated from Columbia University in Manhattan with a degree in American studies; her twin sister is a biomedical engineering Ph.D. candidate at Columbia; her younger sister is a Columbia graduate; and Park’s youngest sister is currently studying chemistry at Columbia.
Adding to Miss New York’s cosmopolitan sensibilities is her role as a youth soccer coach in the South Bronx, which builds upon her passion for the sport she played in high school.
And looming large over it all is Park’s Miss New York crown.
Asked to describe the past year, she used the word “adventurous.”
Her reign as Miss New York has left her “open to adventures and doing the unexpected.”
“It’s been a really fun year,” she said. “I’ve gotten to know women from all across the United States. I have friends in every single state.”
Park’s travels as Miss New York have brought her to just about every corner of the state, including Buffalo, Syracuse, Albany, Cooperstown, the Hudson Valley and the Adirondack Mountains.
One highlight for Park was visiting the New York State Museum on the Empire State Plaza in Albany.
“It is so cool,” she said. “It was really quite interesting to see, not only the social history and the cultural history, but also to see some biodiversity history as well. Getting to see the full swath of what makes New York, New York, was a really cool educational experience.”
Park traveled by car to Buffalo in August 2021 and visited a sports camp for girls. While there, she discovered the Beef on Weck sandwich while dining at Duff’s Famous Wings. It was so good, she declared it, “My new favorite sandwich.”
Park’s return to Buffalo in March came by way of Amtrak and she said the entire journey, from the moment she entered Moynihan Train Hall to board her train, was a joy.
She was joined by Ashley Whitebirch, a board member for the Miss New York Scholarship Competition, and an early highlight for Park was being able to purchase her favorite coffee—Birch—inside Moynihan Train Hall. The new transportation facility, said Park, maintains “a modern take on old New York grandeur.”
Moving through Moynihan Train Hall came with ease and efficiency and once on board the train, Park turned up the brightness on her phone before showing her digital ticket to the conductor and the two shared a brief conversation. Park soon purchased a second coffee in the café car and took in the scenery—a coating of mist above the Hudson River surface.
A cheese and sausage tray from the café car came later in the trip, as did work she needed to finish before arriving in Buffalo. The electrical outlet at her seat and fold-down tray for her laptop made for a focused work session and helped pass the time on the eight-hour journey. Park and Whitebirch also got a glimpse of the Amtrak station in Syracuse by stepping onto the platform for a few moments when the train stopped.
And how about the view from the window seat?
“I basically just leaned my forehead up against the window and watched as all of New York passed by,” she said.
As for the length of the trip, Park said, “A lot of people think ‘Oh-my-gosh, an eight-hour train ride, I could never.’ I was going to have to go to Buffalo one way or the other. It was much better for me to ride on a train.”
Park and Whitebirch arrived at Exchange Street Station in Buffalo and the next morning rented a car for the less than 30-minute ride to Niagara Falls. While there, Park thrilled some folks visiting the natural wonder by putting on her Miss New York sash and taking some photos with them, including several children.
And that was her first trip to Niagara Falls.
“It took my breath away, frankly,” she said.
After the falls, Park and Whitebirch headed to SPoT Cafe and enjoyed cinnamon rolls and hot caramel coffee drinks served in miniature barrel mugs, in honor of those who have ventured over the falls.
Next on Park’s itinerary was a Miss New York appearance—a soccer clinic for local girls ages 8-12 with Victory Sports Global Outreach at the Eastern Hills Mall. The event also served as a collection point for sports bras for the nonprofit Sports Bra Project, which helps girls living in underserved communities secure proper gear for athletics.
Park also met up with Miss New York candidates from around the region.
The next morning brought Park and Whitebirch back on-board Amtrak for their 7:30 a.m. return trip home. Once the train was under way, Park drifted off to sleep and woke as the train reached Syracuse.
She arrived back at Moynihan Train Hall around 4 p.m., took a cab home and, surely, began gearing up for her next adventure as Miss New York, one that could quite possibly involve the panoramic and cinematic excitement, convenience and endurance of Amtrak.
“I’ve been all over the state, but I’ve been all over the state driving,” Park said. “What was nice about this train was I got to see my state in a way that I would not have ever gotten to, had I just been solely driving this year. That was really special for me, to get to witness New York State in a whole different light and a whole different way, thanks to the train.”
Amtrak has taken several initiatives to ensure the safety of its passengers. They have committed to requiring face masks for all passengers, converting the cafe car to takeout only, adding social distance signage, and much more.
