Saturday 25 September 2010 0 comments

Happy Birthday

So, today is my birthday!  And what have I done with it... that's right, not a great deal, haha!  I had a lazy start to the day, grabbing breakfast at Starbucks and coming back to the hotel to get ready for the day, and then heading up to Niketown on 57th and 5th (just to buy socks, cos I love the Nike socks) before a quick browse around Tiffany's.  I then walked across town, not realising just how far Columbus is from 5th to get the Subway down to Penn to meet Cher, Clare and Yuwei, but as I was not paying much attention I ended up getting the uptown train, having to get off at 66th and get the next train back down.

I met Cher there and we ended up going to K Mart whilst waiting for Clare and Yuwei, and I bought a bag and some 32 fl oz Vitamin Water - why don't we have that at home?!?!  We then went to meet Clare and Yuwei and went for lunch at a Japanese style place in Koreatown before Clare and Yuwei headed back.  It was sad that I didn't get to spend more time with them, but life goes on!

After that we headed back uptown to Tiffany's where I bought a necklace and then walked down to my hotel on 24th, and I've been having a lot of trouble with my knee and it was absolutely killing by the time we got back, but a stop for Jamba Juice on the way down helped with the humidity.  We waited in the hotel until Anne got here and then went to meet Abi at Penn before heading to Anne's apartment to drop Abi's stuff off.  We then went down to Crif Dogs in the East Village... how I love that place.  I kind of wish they would open one near me, haha!  I had a Jon-Jon Deragon and tater tots and it was absolutely wonderful (see right).

Now back at my hotel, thinking about going to bed.  I can officially say that technically it is no longer my birthday, and officially, I really want a new tattoo.  Should I get one while I'm here?
Friday 24 September 2010 0 comments

Three Days

So, update of my time in New York so far.

Tuesday - we went to the Botanical Gardens, which were absolutely beautiful - a few photos of which can be seen below - but there was far too much to see given the time constraints we had.  It was a shame to see that some of the flowers were beginning to die off, but that's completely understandable given the time of year.  I bet at the height of flowering season this place is absolutely spectacular!






Tuesday night we went to see Wicked, and what a spectacle that is!  Absolutely brilliant it was.  I would definitely go and see it again.  It was funny and sad all at the same time.  It really makes you think about whether good is really good and evil is really evil.  It clearly depends on your perspective of things at the time they happen.  Naturally, I took a sneaky pic of the Gershwin Theater, but if anyone asks, it wasn't me!!!


Wednesday I spent in Baltimore.  I spent a lot of time down at Inner Harbour.  I started the morning off with an historic walk which was done by the visitors centre.  It was interesting, but the lady taking the tour tended to get a bit lost in the information she was giving.  Still, I came away knowing more than I did before I went to Baltimore!  I then went up the World Trade Centre (the tallest pentagonal building in the world apparently), and took some gorgeous photographs from the top of there.  I then spent a lot of time around the amphitheatre listening to a guy sing songs and another man dancing.  He seemed so content!  It was amazing how many people actually got up and started dancing when someone joined him... black, white, kids... such an eclectic mix of people!  Apart from going to get some dinner, I spent the rest of my time in Baltimore there, because it was just so picturesque as the sun began to set behind us.  I was however, absolutely shattered by the time I got back to the hotel, having been on the go for over 20 hours!!!

Thursday - had a late breakfast and then headed up to Yankee Stadium for a tour.  What an absolute honour it was to be there.  The new stadium looks amazing, and they're so proud of the history of the club, and rightly so.  We looked at the museum, where there were over 800 balls signed by different players (Derek Jeter's is below), and a whole bunch of memorabilia relating to different aspects of their history, including rivalries, the three teams there used to be in New York, and the World Series they've won so far.


After the museum we were led to Monument Park where they honour all the past players who've had their numbers retired and also have plaques to key figures in the clubs history, including the late George Steinbrenner, who owned the club, and was key in shaping how baseball teams are run.

Following on from that we headed to the Yankees dugout, and that really was an honour - to be in the same place that the modern greats sit on a regular basis was wonderful.

Having concluded the tour, I headed back down to Midtown and did a bit of shopping, after lunch with Cher.  I bought a bunch of stuff I probably don't need, but I at least will wear from Old Navy.

This evening it was the first Rangers preseason game.  Luckily they won in overtime, but it just reminds me of how much I miss seeing them live when I'm not here.  Okay, I subscribe to be able to watch them over the internet, but it's not the same, is it?

Now is time for bed.  I have officially turned 26, and all I want to do is sleep.  The fact that it is 1:30 in the morning has nothing to do with it.  I am getting old.  Goodnight!
Thursday 23 September 2010 0 comments

Are We The Waiting

So, just another quick update whilst I'm waiting for my photos to sync on to my computer.  I was waiting for my iPod to sync to iTunes, but it somehow managed to finish just as I decided to upload the pictures!

On Monday, I should have known things weren't going to go all to plan when I got to the airport, only to be made to wait in a check-in line for ages, and then when I got to the first of the security questions the guy kept going off!!!  Eventually I cleared that and made it through the x-ray machines, only to then be patted down (I don't know if they were doing this to everyone, but oh well!), and made to take my boots off and put them through another screening.

I had decided not to get breakfast at the hotel, due to the £15 cost (let's be serious, is any breakfast worth that much?), and so eating at the airport was my only other option.  I got a full English and it was disgusting.  All the food was cold, the toast was soggy, the bacon salty.  It's two redeeming qualities were that the mushroom was hot and the whole thing was washed down with some Tropicana.

After a further wait in the lounge, my hand luggage was checked again, and I was patted down again!  A flight that took longer than expected due to strong headwinds was what followed, and then, after a long ass flight, it was time for immigration clearance.  This took TWO HOURS!!! Unbelievable really. Some people were trying to cut the line because they had connecting flights, which was rather annoying given how long we had waited there, and they felt they didn't need to wait.


Having cleared immigration, there was a massive queue for the taxis, so by the time I had finished queuing and got to my hotel it was an hour and a half later, so by the time I had finally checked in most of my day had gone.  Ridiculous!  Still, a new camera and Shake Shack awaited so it wasn't all bad!
0 comments

Short On Ideas/One Last Cigarette

I know I've not wrote for a while, but that's because I've not really been on the computer much.  I guess this can be considered a good thing though, as it means I am out and about doing things rather than sitting at a desk in a hotel.

So far it's good, but hot.  I've visited the Botanical Gardens, Shake Shack, Baltimore and been to see Wicked.  I've also picked up my new camera (love it!) and can't stop playing with that.

Also happened in the past few days - got stuck at immigration for 2 hours (just queuing, I wasn't detained or anything), then got stuck waiting for a taxi and getting in to the city for an hour and a half.  My day was almost over by the time I got to the hotel!  I got bit by a mosquito in the Botanical Gardens, and the site is all red and inflamed.  I've also somehow managed to hurt my knee, but I'm hoping it's nothing serious.

Anyway, as I've just got back from Baltimore, I have decided it's time for bed.  Can't wait to get up, take a shower, and start a new day here.  Will update more tomorrow, and no doubt include a few pictures!

Goodnight!
Saturday 18 September 2010 0 comments

Ready Or Not

I'm just attempting to clear my DVR of it's recordings prior to leaving for the airport tomorrow afternoon.  I have a bit more packing to do, but I'm just so tired at the moment that I may just go to bed instead of finishing it off.  There's a bit to do, but I may just get up early(ish) in the morning, finish off what I need to and then hope for a decent nights sleep in the Crowne Plaza tomorrow night.

Today I went in to Leeds to get my dollars and some other bits and bats, and then to Pudsey, where I got a beautiful scarf, even though I'm not a huge fan of scarves really.  My father and I then went to Whitkirk Club to watch the Warrington v. Huddersfield game, and the result was really surprising - Huddersfield outplayed Warrington and deservedly won, which means that tomorrow at the Club Call I'm sure it will come as no surprise if we end up playing Wigan in the semi finals.  Everything points to St. Helens choosing Huddersfield to play against, leaving Wigan for us, which will be difficult, especially with Magsy, Biffa and JP all out for the season, plus those other niggling injuries, which I don't know if they will be healed or not, but as long as we give it our best shot, that's all we can really ask for.

I think I planned this at the wrong time, given that oridinarily I would be going to the semi final, although I wasn't aware of the play-off format at the time of booking, and was a little confused at how the format worked anyway.  I've been trying to find a bar in NY that will potentially show the game, but as yet, I haven't been able to find one, but I'm hoping that I will have more luck once I get there and can go in the bars and ask.  If all else fails then I will just have to spend the afternoon in the hotel listening to the game over the radio.

Definitely time for bed now - shattered!!!
Friday 17 September 2010 0 comments

What To Do

There's workmen outside my house, making lots of noise.  So annoying.  I'm wanting to sleep, but think I may start doing my washing and begin packing.

There's just been a storm in New York, so I'm still confused about what to pack.  Luckily all the clothes I ordered from Debenhams arrived today - that's a brand new coat (not going with me), a hoodie (definitely going with me), a pair of boots (going), and a pair of cords (also going).  I was convinced they weren't going to get delivered until next week but I'm so glad they arrived.

It's so hard to decide what to take.  I can't just take a set outfit for each day, but I really don't want to take too many clothes.  I want to limit the amount of crap I take, because of all the baggage space and weight it takes up.  How much stuff could I possibly need for 10 days?  Like 5 or 6 trousers/shorts, 8 to 10 tops, underwear, a couple of hoodies/jumpers, 2 pairs of trainers and my boots.  That sounds reasonable to me.

So glad to have finished work for nearly two weeks.  It's been so stressful that I really need this time away from everything to try and forget about it for a little time.

Just realised that I also have to pack my hand luggage.  A couple of magazines, a book, iPod, MacBook, wallet, tickets/reservations... what else do I need?  Oh, I also need toiletries and make up and chargers.  What else?  Not sure, but no doubt my scatterbrain will come up with something as I begin to pack!
0 comments

All You Good Good People

So I was at work this morning when Dean walked in and flung £10 at me for my birthday next Friday.  I was absolutely gobsmacked.  I nearly started crying!  Made me feel genuinely liked and appreciated.  Not the money, as I tried refusing that, but that he thought so much of me that he wanted to give me something for my birthday.  There are good people in the world.
0 comments

Life Thru A Lens

I wear contact lenses, and I need a new batch of them to arrive either today or tomorrow in order that I don't have to go a day wearing glasses!  It's not that I hate my glasses, in fact, I quite like them, but I just don't like wearing them!  Contacts are much easier to live with!

At present, I will be wearing my glasses all weekend in order to have enough contact lenses to take away with me.  Oh, woe is me!
Thursday 16 September 2010 0 comments

Packin' Trunk Blues

So, I have to seriously get packing and sorting.  I know I have three days until I actually leave but there's just so much to do.  I also have no real idea what it is I want to take.  I don't want to take too many clothes just incase I buy stuff when I'm there.  Plus, I'm only going for 9 nights/10 days, and who knows what the weather is really going to be like.  Yes, I can get an idea from the weather predictions, but how accurate are they really?!
0 comments

Answering Machine (Interlude)

I hate talking to answering machines.  It's so cold and informal.
0 comments

Miseria Cantare (The Beginning)...

So, I decided to start up a blog.  No doubt there will be a lot of random musings on here, of when I discover a new piece of information or am listening to something, etc., but I will also post other updates - travels, travel planning, things I do, and so on.

Not much is really going on at the moment.  I'm just packing and cleaning/tidying ready to go to New York.  I fly on Monday, but leave for the airport sometime on Sunday (whenever it is that my dad deems a suitable time to take me!) and I'll be staying in a four star hotel at the airport.  It's called the Crowne Plaza, and you can certainly expect pictures from it!

New York is the only place I truly feel like I can be myself and it just feels like home!  I am so happy to be going back!

What I should actually really be doing is getting back to work - so much to do before I go away, but really unmotivated to do it.
 
;