I was in New York City last weekend to take in the sites. While my companions were more interested in shopping and tourist attractions, my interest was checking out the flagship Apple store on 5th Ave. Ironically, this toy store for adults is located right beside FAO Schwartz, the multi-story toy store for children.

First, the Apple store isn’t really a store but a beacon for anyone who is part of the Mac Nation or aspires to be part of the Mac Nation. With a large cube sitting atop the subterranean store, the store is impossible to not notice.

Getting into the store is an adventure as you carefully walk down a spiral staircase while a steady stream of people head up the stairs. Once arriving at the bottom, you arrive in a large room that is teeming with people. It is difficult to know where to start given there are people everywhere. This makes it difficult to tell where anything is located.

If you want to actually buy something, which seems like a major challenge, you need to literally tackle one of the Apple Geniuses and tell them exactly what you want to purchase.

It goes without saying that going to the Apple store is a fascinating experience.

It’s fascinating to see so much enthusiasm for a company seen as dead that long ago. It’s fascinating to encounter so much consumer frenzy at a time when the economy is still volatile and the prospects are, at best, uncertain. It’s just fascinating to see first-hand how Apple has captured the imagination of consumers.

And perhaps what is most fascinating is not so much the coolness of Apple’s products the way that the company and the brand have been embraced as a lifestyle, a fashion statement and a form of self identity. It is something that crosses gender and demographics. The Apple store had children playing on iMacs, hipsters checking out the new 11″ Mac Air, and older people looking at iPads and iPhones.

This is perhaps the most striking part of the Apple “wave” in that it’s a long way from its roots as a computer for geeks. Apple has become everyone’s company or, at least, the company that makes products that people aspire to have.