The Empire State and...

Today we woke up and the sun was streaming in through the windows, so the first thing I thought was "Let's go to The Empire State Building!" Mark and I headed across and for the first time since arriving, Manhattan felt more like I was expecting, I even felt a wee bit excited!

That was until we joined the queue to go into The Empire State. And then the queue went into another room, and another, and they were renovating, and we chose to climb 6 flights of stairs to skip another 20min wait, and my jeans were falling down, and then suddenly, we were there!!

What an awesome sight, I kept thinking of all the people over the years who would have stood on that very platform. A cool breeze was blowing and the light was fairly bouncing off The Chrysler Building. Some brave soul had managed to get their child up there in a pram and could not move in the crowd. Other people were kissing, or marking their names on the bricks, or (over) posing for photos. I'm glad we did it; if you go to New York, I would put it down for one of the first things to do as it really gives you a sense of the enormity of the area (before you kill your feet pounding its pavements.) And buy your tickets first on the internet! It gave us a 5 minute advantage in the queue, and believe me, every minute counts.

Then the inevitable occurred - I started shopping. I was really pleased I had held off this long but I basically couldn't stand it any longer and went to a few places like Banana Republic, Gap, and Loft. Really pleased I did, because they still had end of summer racks and I didn't purchase a thing over $50. We ate lunch at Macys and then I went to Victoria's Secret and they measured me up and I bought some requested items for my sister. This store is AWESOME, just everything about it, you could never expect anything like it in Oz. From the level of service to product knowledge and efficiency of paying and packing and getting the hell out of there... suddenly, even after shopping in Europe, do I understand what this is all about.

We walked up to Columbus Circle which is sort of the closest thing to an actual 'mall' in New York where shops are close together, I think by the time we got there we were all tuckered out, and it was time to head back to Hoboken again! One good clue about Columbus Circle is there is a huge Wholefoods store in the basement that sells little picnic packs to take over to Central Park (which is opposite) and enjoy there. I am hoping to do it later in the week, particularly if the weather stays like this (sunny warm with easy cool breeze.)

Today Mark and I also got ripped off! We were on the corner of 33rd and Broadway, walking along with all the people, when some black guys all kitted out in hip hop gear approached us, waving CD demos in our face. At first it was free, and then it was a donation, then before you know it they are signing your name on it, then asking for a minimum of $10!! Mark and I just laughed it off, but there was a whole group of about 20 of these guys, spread out in the crowd doing this to lots of tourists and other unassuming people! People were arguing everywhere, some were very red in the face and indignant. I'm glad we didn't let it get us down, it was a pretty ridiculous situation... and could surely only happen in the US!

Some random thoughts and observations about New York so far:
- Fashion is non existent until night time (and I don't really go out.) The whole weekend seems like one extended gym session for most women here, and they seem to get around in gym gear and running shoes most of the time (I don't mean street wear, I mean actual gym gear.) I guess that saves alot of stress about 'what to wear!'
- Women here actually wear alot of make up though, and often quite badly, mostly while wearing above mentioned gym gear. Doesn't always look so good...
- People are generally more friendly than I first guessed, lots of 'sorrys' and 'excuse mes' when you get bumped on the subway or somebody dashes past on the street. I will put it out there and say i definitely find New Yorkers more friendly than Londoners.
- Clothes sizing is much the same as Australia, I am a 12 there and a 12 here. I think all of that size 0 bullshit etc. is for Asian chicks or the many neurotic New Yorkers who walk all day then obsess over dinner in the aisles at Wholefoods before actually eating... nothing (all after yet another 2 hour gym session.)
- There are lines everywhere but they are always moving, patience, patience.
- Ladies, be prepared to see leggings, and more leggings on a street near you, for like, the next 2 years.

Well that was my day! I'm quite excited about tomorrow as we are going to The Plaza Hotel for High Tea, then off to see Daniel Radcliffe in Equus... this is the life!

Mush love xxx

New Yawk

Good Morning New York!

It's day 2 for me here and I'm up typing because I've been struck with jetlag, not that bad though because I managed to sleep until 6:30am. Alot of people get up at 6:30am, just that it is Sunday here and awful quiet.

I'm not staying in Manhattan, I'm staying in Hoboken New Jersey with Mark's brother Tim and his girlfriend Fabienne. Up until now the only thing I knew about Hoboken was how much I enjoyed the Homer Hudson icecream, 'Hoboken Crunch.' Hoboken reminds me alot of Pyrmont in Sydney, lots of rebuilding and middle class white couples wandering around, we are in a two bedroom apartment about 10 blocks from the water and the 'PATH' (the train to Manhattan.) To live and rent here is almost exactly the same price as East Sydney, about US$400 per week for a one bedroom. Interesting!

So far I find New York... comfortable (as long as you have the money to make it that way!) I did not think that would be how I would describe New York at all, but I don't really find it awkward, or challenging, or really that confronting.

Yesterday we went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and I immediately started singing Rufus Wainwright's song 'The Art Teacher' in my head, but I did not see any of the artworks mentioned in his song. Instead Mark and I saw a great Morandi exhibition and I generally longed for my early twenties again where all of this stuff could have fed directly into my study. (Then I spent lots of time imagining I was a kid in New York and visiting The Met was a common and normal thing to do.)

We walked across Central Park and saw the squirrels running around and zig zagged back down 5th, Lexington, and Madison Aves. There were lots of unhappy faces inside the designer stores, probably due to all of the recent financial troubles in New York - they were all empty! I must add that now most of these stores are just about anywhere around the world, including airports and internets, they are not nearly as impressive or exciting. If anything it all looked a little bit stupid, and there certainly weren't any Carrie Bradshaws swanning about. Not a pair of platform high heels or a giant-flowered lapel in sight, phew!

It's been hot and muggy here both days so far, and there is sort of a fog over the city. Apparently there is a hurricane off the coast, and New York feels more like Asia, hot and muggy. It has rained on and off and I'm dying to feel just the slightest breeze. There is alot of aircon around but it just doesn't feel like it's cooling anything down, and the subways are steaming! Up on the road steam is rising and pouring out of manholes and pipes, it feels as though underneath the city is bubbling away, a giant pot of dirty soup. For some reason it reminds me of Loreal and Maybelline commercials, where a lady always seems to be running across the street away from a yellow cab in New York, smiling and applying lipstick. Go figure!

The people here are, well, even out on the edge of the city this place is full of people who don't live here! My ear is constantly straining to hear an accent, but instead I hear French, or Russian, or even Australian accents (yes, there seems to be more of us here than you would expect.) Living in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs and Inner West has given me a thick enough skin so being ignored or spoken down to doesn't really crack me up. A lady at the subway gave me a dressing down yesterday because Mark lost his ticket and I came back through the gates to help him - then my ticket wouldn't work when I tried to get back through. Apparently you can only use your subway ticket once every 20 minutes, point being? I don't know. Although it was obvious I was not a local I just stood there and shrugged, waited for her to finish. I smiled at the end because it was actually interesting to hear someone talk in real life like they would in the audience of an American talk show - she was very to the point and forceful!

The food here is awesome. It's not what I expected at all, I thought it was all Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks. Yesterday we had breakfast at an amazing store called Garden of Eden which was basically any organic store you could imagine on steroids. Fresh fruit and vegetables are everywhere, and we even stumbled on a Farmer's Market in Union Square yesterday. Paying people in tips means that service is excellent and you are never forgotten. I feel like slapping Sydney waitstaff over the hand now I see how it works here. Last night we went up to a local grill and gig venue called Maxwells, nothing showy, $30 for two people including a giant margherita! The food was fresh, fast, and friendly. The night before we ate at a great Mexican restaurant called Charritos. It was possibly the best Mexican I have ever had! That said, I'm still thinking I might get some donuts today, or something like that, you have to try everything once!

Today we are going to walk less and subway more, there is a Kirchner exhibit on at MOMA and we might try the Guggenheim as well. I haven't really been shopping yet, but plan to make Monday a shopping day as more of the smaller stores will be open. Later in the week we are going to stay in Manhattan for a few days while Tim and Fabienne move house. It has been hard deciding where we will stay as everything is so expensive, but we feel a bit beyond hostels, it' hard to make a decision about what to spend when you will hardly be there, hmmm.

Well, time to go and make a cup of tea, it's nicer making it here at home and then I'll catch up on my facebook scrabble games while I wait for Sunday to happen. Hopefully by tomorrow, my (very mild) jetlag will be over!!

PS No photos yet but I'll add them later

x

Quote

"When you raise a god instead of a child, you're bound to be serving him for the rest of your days." Mama Day.