Why do they call it that anyway? I have no idea. I mean, sure, it's big, but it's not apple like at all.
Right, so, round two in NYC thus far has been a mix of old and new experiences. I'm staying a few blocks from where we were staying for Xmas/ New Years so now I'm pretty much an expert on the area surrounding around 110th and 101st and Broadway but not really anywhere else. That's about the extent of my knowledge of Manhattan.
So the things we re-visited thus far are central park (though it was covered in a thin layer of snow this time), the Guggenheim (but they were in the process of taking down the exhibits that were on during Xmas/ New Years so there wasn't much to see). And sort of the Statue of Liberty although we took the actually ferry instead of the Staten Island one.
New things pretty much include the Met, Battery Park and UN Headquarters.
Also, I'm pretty much running out of things to do here. I mean, really, who would have thought you could run out of things to do in NYC?! Well, sure, there's still the Empire State Building, a Broadway show and a taping of David Letterman but these all cost money. Again, money that I don't have.
Also, on another note, the other day I was just randomly looking on Hostelworld.com for accommodation in DC for the 19th to the 21st (for Obama's inauguration) sort of already knowing that there wouldn't be anything there. But no! Something had come up! And was reasonably priced! That to me is pretty miraculous. So that's it then. I'm gonna be a part of history. Excellent. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do about it though. I mean, I'm going to experience such an important moment in history but what am I gonna do to commemorate it? I suppose I should do something... journalistic seeing as that's what I'm meant to be after this year...
Wow, I'll be finished uni next year. That's kinda nuts. I'll be out on my own. No more studying, well, not necessarily but y'know. My plan is to go traveling in 2010 but I'm not sure where or when. Probably Europe seeing as that's where I have a high concentration of friends now. Hopefully that works out slightly cheaper. I dunno. I'll worry about this at a later date I suppose. Not sure why any of this paragraph is in here actually. I just kinda rambled on for a bit. I think I'll stop now.
Showing posts with label new york city. Show all posts
Showing posts with label new york city. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Bloggin at the airport AND the train. Ooooh.
So here I am, bloggin at the airport again. There’s no internet access here so I’m gonna have to CTRL + C/ CTRL +V this thing when I’m done.
I’m sitting at gate A11 at Newark airport waiting for my flight to Montreal and subsequently my flight back to Toronto. I’ve had real shitty internet access at the hostel that I moved to after posting the post below. The first hostel we were in was pretty much a hole. The room smelled of something that none of us could quite put our finger on; the beds squeaked; the mattresses were generally uncomfortable and the bathrooms left a lot to be desired. There was though, good internet access and a slightly better location than our next hostel and an elevator. I suppose the compromise here was a good internet connection, location and elevator for a more safe/ secure non-smelling room with still, pretty average showers.
The second hostel we stayed in was pretty much in the middle of Harlem which to be honest, wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Apparently it’s an ‘up and coming’ area of NYC and you can kinda see that happening. Granted, you still probably wouldn’t walk around there at night unless you didn’t have a choice. You also kinda have to stick to the main streets. But besides that, it’s pretty cool. The food is really good too. Deli’s are pretty much awesome. Think of a dairy crossed with a deli in the supermarket which also makes excellent sandwiches. Excellent. Mostly.
Also, I’m not sure where I left off on my last post so I’m just gonna start with the Staten Island ferry. (This is what happens without the internet) (I love you internet). So forgive me if I cover some stuff again. Also, all the days seem to roll into one so I can’t really distinguish which bit comes where... Thank god for my over 500 photos from this trip.
OK, so as I probably may have mentioned, Christmas was pretty uneventful, I got a bar of Grenadian chocolate (which I still haven’t eaten yet) and supposedly some money in my bank account (which, as of yesterday, I still haven’t received... ). We all went to an Italian restaurant for dinner (which I’m pretty sure I mentioned already....) I think I also mentioned the Guggenheim and MoMA (mostly because I distinctly remember writing ‘the goog’ in my last post for some reason. If not, then, I dunno, I guess that word just stuck in my mind.) Just in case I didn’t though, both MoMA and the Goog were pretty cool. I’m pretty gutted that I missed going to the Van Gogh exhibition for free though. Long story.
Right, lets skip forward a bit shall we? (fast forward noises) And here we are, a few days ago on the Staten Island ferry. It’s free and apparently not a lot of people know about it. I don’t think there’s a lot to see on Staten Island, it’s pretty much a residential area. But as a wise man once said: ‘the most important part of a journey is not the destination but what happens in between’ (or something to that effect. This would have been much better if I had googled this quote (he he, goog). Once again, I apologise for my lack of internet access). Anyway, the point is that the Staten Island ferry goes right past the Statue of Liberty. And it’s free. Being as poor as I am, free things/ things that cost very little money come top of the list when deciding what to do. Hence why we didn’t go see a Broadway show, plus we didn’t have a lot of time to do it... There’s a ferry which takes you right to the Statue and to Ellis Island too but of course, that costs money. Money which I don’t have.
Ah, yes, I remember now. This is the day where one of my friends was meant to be on a plane to India the night before but went to the wrong airport. We spent the day on the Staten Island ferry and were lucky enough to make it to Brooklyn Bridge at sunset. We also visited the Seinfeld diner (which is actually called Tom’s Restaurant) which was pretty cool. Obviously in the show it’s only the facade that’s shown but it’s still pretty cool. The food isn’t too shabby either. It was super busy too. We were pretty lucky though, that the diner was only about 3 blocks up from our first hostel.
A trip to New York probably isn’t complete without seeing Ground Zero. Right now it’s under construction so there’s not really much to see but there’s like, a visitors centre/ museum across the street which is pretty much designed to make people cry. The whole sentiment of the exhibit is designed to be very emotional, very patriotic and very well, pro-America. Children’s paintings – ‘not just NY’s finest, but the world’s finest’; missing persons posters; sappy movies with interviews with people; random things found in the rubble. It does the job though, I suppose. It made me almost want to cry. Just being so close to something so big. There’s just a big empty space where you think there should be something but there isn’t. Just a big patch of blue sky. Visiting the museum is a must but it really brings you down. It kinda ruins the rest of your day. You get kinda depressed and don’t want to do stuff. Luckily though, when we were there it was getting dark anyways, so we just went off to find a bar somewhere.
Let’s skip forward to New Years Eve. Being in NYC for New Years you can’t not go to Times Square right? Apparently though, the whole Times Square thing is for tourists only. Apparently New Yorker’s go t Central Park instead which would have been cool too. But I think it’s true. None of the people we talked to were from New York. Pretty much anywhere BUT NYC. This New Years Eve also was the coldest on record in NYC history which is pretty cool. It didn’t really feel that cold though because all the people were huddled together. But as soon as it hit like, 12.10am on the 1st pretty much everyone had left the area and you could definitely feel the -10 degree winds then.
The actual ball drop itself to be honest, was kinda lame. The ball is super tiny and the ‘fireworks’ weren’t spectacular at all. The event has a lot of potential which isn’t being taken advantage of which I find surprising – I mean, NYC is one of the cultural powerhouses of the US but it can’t put together a decent New Years show. It could just be so much better. I mean, for people who are pretty far away from the ‘action’ there’s not much going on. I mean like, Lionel Ritchie was performing and apparently the Clinton’s were there but no one where we were gave a shit. I dunno, it’s not really what I expected to be honest.
So that was round 1 of my trip to NYC. Flying home was pretty uneventful, except for when I fell down the stairs at the hostel and twisted my ankle and when my bag didn’t arrive at Montreal airport (cos apparently when you arrive at Montreal airport you need to pick up your bag and go through customs again to recheck your bag on your next flight. So, I waited for my bag for like, close to 2 hours which made me miss my flight which meant I had to book another flight to Toronto. Luckily for me the flights were hourly so I didn’t arrive too much later than I was meant to. I was kinda scared that my bag wouldn’t turn up and I’d have to postpone or even cancel my East Coast trip (on which I am writing the rest of this post) ( It was there waiting at Toronto airport for me and thank god for that!) It was also my last night in Toronto last night. It was pretty uneventful, a few drinks at Mick E Fynn’s (well, just the one for me) and one final night staying at the Primrose.
I’m now sitting on a train bound for Montreal. Nothing much to report really. I’m just sittin, writin’ shit. Bloggin on a train. Being kinda anti-social listening to my ipod but trains aren’t really set up for that kinda thing anyway. Plus, the lady next to me doesn’t seem very interesting. It’s kinda weird travelling on my own again but I don’t really mind it. I was meant to be travelling with someone originally but plans change and I’m cool with that. So yeah, everything seems to be running on time as far as I know, and I should be in Quebec City late this afternoon. Cool.
I’m sitting at gate A11 at Newark airport waiting for my flight to Montreal and subsequently my flight back to Toronto. I’ve had real shitty internet access at the hostel that I moved to after posting the post below. The first hostel we were in was pretty much a hole. The room smelled of something that none of us could quite put our finger on; the beds squeaked; the mattresses were generally uncomfortable and the bathrooms left a lot to be desired. There was though, good internet access and a slightly better location than our next hostel and an elevator. I suppose the compromise here was a good internet connection, location and elevator for a more safe/ secure non-smelling room with still, pretty average showers.
The second hostel we stayed in was pretty much in the middle of Harlem which to be honest, wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Apparently it’s an ‘up and coming’ area of NYC and you can kinda see that happening. Granted, you still probably wouldn’t walk around there at night unless you didn’t have a choice. You also kinda have to stick to the main streets. But besides that, it’s pretty cool. The food is really good too. Deli’s are pretty much awesome. Think of a dairy crossed with a deli in the supermarket which also makes excellent sandwiches. Excellent. Mostly.
Also, I’m not sure where I left off on my last post so I’m just gonna start with the Staten Island ferry. (This is what happens without the internet) (I love you internet). So forgive me if I cover some stuff again. Also, all the days seem to roll into one so I can’t really distinguish which bit comes where... Thank god for my over 500 photos from this trip.
OK, so as I probably may have mentioned, Christmas was pretty uneventful, I got a bar of Grenadian chocolate (which I still haven’t eaten yet) and supposedly some money in my bank account (which, as of yesterday, I still haven’t received... ). We all went to an Italian restaurant for dinner (which I’m pretty sure I mentioned already....) I think I also mentioned the Guggenheim and MoMA (mostly because I distinctly remember writing ‘the goog’ in my last post for some reason. If not, then, I dunno, I guess that word just stuck in my mind.) Just in case I didn’t though, both MoMA and the Goog were pretty cool. I’m pretty gutted that I missed going to the Van Gogh exhibition for free though. Long story.
Right, lets skip forward a bit shall we? (fast forward noises) And here we are, a few days ago on the Staten Island ferry. It’s free and apparently not a lot of people know about it. I don’t think there’s a lot to see on Staten Island, it’s pretty much a residential area. But as a wise man once said: ‘the most important part of a journey is not the destination but what happens in between’ (or something to that effect. This would have been much better if I had googled this quote (he he, goog). Once again, I apologise for my lack of internet access). Anyway, the point is that the Staten Island ferry goes right past the Statue of Liberty. And it’s free. Being as poor as I am, free things/ things that cost very little money come top of the list when deciding what to do. Hence why we didn’t go see a Broadway show, plus we didn’t have a lot of time to do it... There’s a ferry which takes you right to the Statue and to Ellis Island too but of course, that costs money. Money which I don’t have.
Ah, yes, I remember now. This is the day where one of my friends was meant to be on a plane to India the night before but went to the wrong airport. We spent the day on the Staten Island ferry and were lucky enough to make it to Brooklyn Bridge at sunset. We also visited the Seinfeld diner (which is actually called Tom’s Restaurant) which was pretty cool. Obviously in the show it’s only the facade that’s shown but it’s still pretty cool. The food isn’t too shabby either. It was super busy too. We were pretty lucky though, that the diner was only about 3 blocks up from our first hostel.
A trip to New York probably isn’t complete without seeing Ground Zero. Right now it’s under construction so there’s not really much to see but there’s like, a visitors centre/ museum across the street which is pretty much designed to make people cry. The whole sentiment of the exhibit is designed to be very emotional, very patriotic and very well, pro-America. Children’s paintings – ‘not just NY’s finest, but the world’s finest’; missing persons posters; sappy movies with interviews with people; random things found in the rubble. It does the job though, I suppose. It made me almost want to cry. Just being so close to something so big. There’s just a big empty space where you think there should be something but there isn’t. Just a big patch of blue sky. Visiting the museum is a must but it really brings you down. It kinda ruins the rest of your day. You get kinda depressed and don’t want to do stuff. Luckily though, when we were there it was getting dark anyways, so we just went off to find a bar somewhere.
Let’s skip forward to New Years Eve. Being in NYC for New Years you can’t not go to Times Square right? Apparently though, the whole Times Square thing is for tourists only. Apparently New Yorker’s go t Central Park instead which would have been cool too. But I think it’s true. None of the people we talked to were from New York. Pretty much anywhere BUT NYC. This New Years Eve also was the coldest on record in NYC history which is pretty cool. It didn’t really feel that cold though because all the people were huddled together. But as soon as it hit like, 12.10am on the 1st pretty much everyone had left the area and you could definitely feel the -10 degree winds then.
The actual ball drop itself to be honest, was kinda lame. The ball is super tiny and the ‘fireworks’ weren’t spectacular at all. The event has a lot of potential which isn’t being taken advantage of which I find surprising – I mean, NYC is one of the cultural powerhouses of the US but it can’t put together a decent New Years show. It could just be so much better. I mean, for people who are pretty far away from the ‘action’ there’s not much going on. I mean like, Lionel Ritchie was performing and apparently the Clinton’s were there but no one where we were gave a shit. I dunno, it’s not really what I expected to be honest.
So that was round 1 of my trip to NYC. Flying home was pretty uneventful, except for when I fell down the stairs at the hostel and twisted my ankle and when my bag didn’t arrive at Montreal airport (cos apparently when you arrive at Montreal airport you need to pick up your bag and go through customs again to recheck your bag on your next flight. So, I waited for my bag for like, close to 2 hours which made me miss my flight which meant I had to book another flight to Toronto. Luckily for me the flights were hourly so I didn’t arrive too much later than I was meant to. I was kinda scared that my bag wouldn’t turn up and I’d have to postpone or even cancel my East Coast trip (on which I am writing the rest of this post) ( It was there waiting at Toronto airport for me and thank god for that!) It was also my last night in Toronto last night. It was pretty uneventful, a few drinks at Mick E Fynn’s (well, just the one for me) and one final night staying at the Primrose.
I’m now sitting on a train bound for Montreal. Nothing much to report really. I’m just sittin, writin’ shit. Bloggin on a train. Being kinda anti-social listening to my ipod but trains aren’t really set up for that kinda thing anyway. Plus, the lady next to me doesn’t seem very interesting. It’s kinda weird travelling on my own again but I don’t really mind it. I was meant to be travelling with someone originally but plans change and I’m cool with that. So yeah, everything seems to be running on time as far as I know, and I should be in Quebec City late this afternoon. Cool.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Start spreading the news - Xmas in NYC
I'm assuming you've read the post directly below this so you know how difficult it was for me to get to where I am now. I'm writing this in true New York fashion, sitting on the window sill of my room by the fire escape. The only thing missing really, is the cigarette. Too bad I don't smoke. Besides that, I think I've got this New York lifestyle down-pat. It's not so hard.
But seriously though, NYC is pretty massive. The people here are really friendly too, contrary to popular belief.
Since arriving (late, well, not that late, but still, later than I was originally meant to be there) we've just been wandering around. Xmas day was pretty uneventful as well, only got one present - a bar of chocolate from Grenada which I am still yet to open. We also went to an Italian restaurant for a late lunch/ dinner which was pretty cool. It didn't snow either which was sort of disappointing but there was still snow on the ground which I suppose sort of counts... I didn't really feel like xmas though, to be honest. Sure, there were lots of xmas decorations around but I just couldn't get into the spirit. I don't know why, I guess family makes xmas. That's pretty much all I can put it down too. Also, the fact that I didn't need to buy any presents for anyone this year. I hope you'll all forgive me for that, I kinda can't afford it right now.... (see exchange rate below)
We also checked out part of Central Park and Times Square and had a museum day where we visited the Guggenheim and MoMA which were extraordinary. Some of it wasn't really my kind of thing but I mean, you can't be expected to like EVERY piece of artwork, right?
Also, the exchange rate is killing me right now. As of this morning it's 1NZD to 56 US cents so I'm pretty much paying double. For EVERYTHING.
On a brighter note though, my fake ID is working. 3 out of 3 bars and 1 out of 1 nightclubs (which wasn't that great by the way - drinks were super expensive and everyone was super old. I suppose that's what happens when the drinking age is 21 huh? Also, for those of you who think that me having a fake ID (sorry, a souvenir ID) is wrong, I can justify it by saying that the drinking age at 21 is just stupid.
But seriously though, NYC is pretty massive. The people here are really friendly too, contrary to popular belief.
Since arriving (late, well, not that late, but still, later than I was originally meant to be there) we've just been wandering around. Xmas day was pretty uneventful as well, only got one present - a bar of chocolate from Grenada which I am still yet to open. We also went to an Italian restaurant for a late lunch/ dinner which was pretty cool. It didn't snow either which was sort of disappointing but there was still snow on the ground which I suppose sort of counts... I didn't really feel like xmas though, to be honest. Sure, there were lots of xmas decorations around but I just couldn't get into the spirit. I don't know why, I guess family makes xmas. That's pretty much all I can put it down too. Also, the fact that I didn't need to buy any presents for anyone this year. I hope you'll all forgive me for that, I kinda can't afford it right now.... (see exchange rate below)
We also checked out part of Central Park and Times Square and had a museum day where we visited the Guggenheim and MoMA which were extraordinary. Some of it wasn't really my kind of thing but I mean, you can't be expected to like EVERY piece of artwork, right?
Also, the exchange rate is killing me right now. As of this morning it's 1NZD to 56 US cents so I'm pretty much paying double. For EVERYTHING.
On a brighter note though, my fake ID is working. 3 out of 3 bars and 1 out of 1 nightclubs (which wasn't that great by the way - drinks were super expensive and everyone was super old. I suppose that's what happens when the drinking age is 21 huh? Also, for those of you who think that me having a fake ID (sorry, a souvenir ID) is wrong, I can justify it by saying that the drinking age at 21 is just stupid.
Bloggin at the airport
So, I’m sitting at Toronto airport. Y’know, just chillin as I usually do. I had a flight to New York City this morning. It went well. The flight was delayed three times and then cancelled, after sitting on the plane for about 2 and a half hours. Now I’m sitting at the baggage carousel, waiting for my luggage. Nothing new has come out for about 20 minutes. Best Christmas ever. The next flight out is at 6pm which makes things better though. Hopefully I’ll be on it, luggage and all. This is the first time I’ve had any trouble at the airport and it just happens to be on Christmas Eve; a Christmas present and congratulations on your first Christmas away from home from Toronto. Thanks. Thanks a lot.
Right, so after about two hours of waiting at the luggage claim, my bag finally comes though. It’s covered with wet spots from the rain/snow but I don’t care. I don’t care about any of this shit at this point. By now it’s about 3pm. I’ve been at the airport since 6. Now I have to go in search of a new ticket. Hauling my recently acquired 20kg bag around (cos I can’t afford the $2 for a trolley) I literally walk from one end of the terminal to the other trying to find the ticket counter. I manage to get another ticket for a flight which at 5.15 which isn’t too far away, no guarantees it’ll be taking off though. So now I have my new ticket, I’m back at square one. I need to go back through customs and do all that shit. Again. I got a bit hungry as you can probably imagine and airport food isn’t that cheap. Especially for what you’re getting.
It’s been a long day, and I still haven’t left the country yet! I need a drink. ....Fuck!
Right, so after about two hours of waiting at the luggage claim, my bag finally comes though. It’s covered with wet spots from the rain/snow but I don’t care. I don’t care about any of this shit at this point. By now it’s about 3pm. I’ve been at the airport since 6. Now I have to go in search of a new ticket. Hauling my recently acquired 20kg bag around (cos I can’t afford the $2 for a trolley) I literally walk from one end of the terminal to the other trying to find the ticket counter. I manage to get another ticket for a flight which at 5.15 which isn’t too far away, no guarantees it’ll be taking off though. So now I have my new ticket, I’m back at square one. I need to go back through customs and do all that shit. Again. I got a bit hungry as you can probably imagine and airport food isn’t that cheap. Especially for what you’re getting.
It’s been a long day, and I still haven’t left the country yet! I need a drink. ....Fuck!
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