Monday, February 28, 2011

Slán go foillín

There are a few things that are essential to travelling but are not enjoyable at all. Packing is one of these along with goodbyes. I really don't like goodbyes...


Flip Flop and Mamma Mia went home on Saturday. We had so much fun and made lots of great memories in New York.



It wasn't until the blowing kisses and waving through the departure gates was done that I realised I was all alone in the Big Apple. When I boarded the Air Train and transferred to the subway I had this sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, the one you get when you have just done the scary drop on a rollercoaster, and I started to feel really sick. But then, Flip Flop's words of wisdom came to me, and I decided I shouldn't waste my precious time in New York being sad, I would enjoy the adventure.

Also, thanks to my good friends at home (the beautiful Byrne twins), I was going to stay with a wonderful couple and their 2 sons in the sweetest house I've ever seen. I must take some photo's of my new room before my suitcase starts to explode all over it! (This family also have the two cutest dogs, a Chow and a Pug, which I look forward to walking at least once a day...photos to follow!)

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Foodie Friday

So, technically it's not Friday anymore in my home time zone or my holiday time zone...so let's pretend we're in California :)

So far NYC has not disappointed in the food department...I do fear for my waistline after 6 weeks of this kind of eating, but I figure I'll start eating salad every day once my travelling companions go home (yeah right!).

We started the feeding frenzy in a diner in Chelsea for a classic brekkie of omelettes, pancakes and french toast ( I didn't eat all this myself!!). Delicious!

The Famous Cozy Soup and Burger on 4th and Broadway has very friendly Greek staff and did a delicious split pea soup (highly recommended) and this yummy taco salad, apparently a diet friendly option...


Our wonderful guide on the uptown tour recommended Restaurant Row for lunch. We had a super scrumptious lunch at Yum Yum's Thai restaurant, which looks like this...


Sitting in Yum Yum's enjoying one of my favourite pastimes, people watching, I spotted Mr. Big!!! I was completely starstruck...thankfully mamma mia and flip flop were a bit more on the ball and he was gracious enough to have his photo taken...


This just made our trip...he really is very handsome in real life! I used to be more of an Aiden fan but Big really pulled it out of the bag in the end :)

We've also eaten in the Killarney Rose off Wall Street, a nice low key pub for a quiet pint and a chat with the friendly barmen. My dad's friend worked there for 33 years and has some great stories from his time there!

The Dao Palate was a great find on Flatbush, near the 7th Street subway in Brooklyn. It is a pan-Asian vegan restaurant...get the ribs if you go there, it sounds so wrong, but tastes so good! We were just about the only people there...


Close to this is the Burrito Bar and Kitchen which do a mean fresh guacamole and apparently Antonio's do good food but I haven't tried it out yet. And last but not least Jake's Saloon in Chelsea for a fine feed and a chinwag :)

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

The wheels on the bus....

So, after the trip to the local subway we decided to try out the bus for our next adventure into the city (it was closer than the subway and it turned out to be at the corner with the police station). The start of the journey was a bit worrying with a streetscape of boarded up houses, cages around doorways and signs in the windows saying 'stop killing, start living', but as always and with most cities, it's not the people on the bus you have to worry about.
I am a huge fan of public transport (when it is working right) for more than just environmental reasons...I like to avoid road rage welling up inside me, I usually get my bit of exercise walking to and from the bus/train, and best of all is the public theatre it presents you with, and this bus journey certainly did not disappoint!
We were a couple of blocks into our journey when we see a guy in an electric wheelchair parked up waiting kerbside for the bus to stop. The bus driver stops the bus, asks mam to move out of her seat because that is where the wheelchair goes, and then opens the rear doors. As soon as she sees the guy she starts shouting at him that he is at the wrong bus stop and that she can't possibly get him on the bus because the kerb is too high. He is obviously dissapointed because, as we have just found out, this bus is not too frequent. Then she starts shouting all over the bus and telling all the other passengers that he is a lazy bum and he knows what stop he should be at...'all he gotta do is push a button and he be there'! She's like, 'he knows this kerb is too high, why's he even at this stop?' The poor guy is then racing down the sidewalk trying to get to the next stop, the bus driver is cursing him all the way back to her seat and then speeds off, leaving the poor guy for dust...you just couldn't make it up! I hope he got himself to wherever he was going...

This is us at one of the bus stops waiting for our carriage to take us home on a crisp cold night in Brooklyn...

Mr. John Lennon and The Beatles

We saw this in Central Park, with flower/vegetable arrangement thanks to the self-proclaimed mayor of strawberry fields...



And down near the South Street we saw these guys looking very dapper....

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Homestead

After an uneventful flight (apart from one woman saying loudly that they don't usually announce emergency procedures during landing, causing great worry among the other passengers), we arrived in JFK and contacted our landlord for directions and where to meet the keyholder.
We were renting a fancy penthouse in Brooklyn and really looking forward to it. After being sent to the wrong place, and a couple of phonecalls to the landlord, we arrived at our destination. The cabby was p*ssed to say the least, but we didn't care, we had more to worry about!
The lady at the airport said that the neighbourhood was dangerous and very segregated, boy, she was not wrong! Walking down the street we were like beacons...we definitely were standing out in this neighbourhood. The 'super' arrived to give us our key...he looked like an extra from the Wire and wore his hoody up the whole time, even when we were inside the apartment! He also told us to order in, that there were no restaurants open (at 7pm), which didn't fill us with too much confidence.
The apartment was great though, and we survived a trip to the corner shop and the chinese, so, so far so good.
In the morning our trip to the subway confirmed the fact that we were a novelty in the area and there was lots of this....


...and the accompanying whistling sounding out in the nightime...cosy :)

We practised our most relaxed/bored faces and got the subway like pro's hoping not to draw attention but understanding all the while that that would be impossible...but we arrived safely in the lovely neighbourhood of Chelsea. We got a massive american breakfast in Malibu diner, contemplated life outside the Chelsea Hotel, where some of the best minds have contemplated life, and ended our day of touring with a delicious pizza in Lombardis in Little Italy, the oldest pizza place in the USA.



The first time I visited NYC my dad was with us, today would be his birthday and it is our first one without him, so I just wanted to say happy birthday dad, we miss you every day xxx

New York, New York, so good they named it twice!

On the plane, I was watching this...



...and singing this (out loud)...

New York!!!!
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
There's nothing you can’t do,
Now you're in New York!!!
These streets will make you feel brand new,
the lights will inspire you,
Let's hear it for New York, New York, New York

...and looking forward to this...

Monday, February 14, 2011

♥ Coconut Love ♥


Last night I used the method I found in The Green Beauty Bible to deep condition my hair. I loved it, very relaxing for your scalp and relieved the tension in my head after a day of visiting and travelling (thanks for the duck eggs Michael!). Instead of the hair oils they recommended I used organic coconut oil which I bought in the Dublin Food Co-op . I was like a kid on Christmas Eve...I put my shower cap on and went to bed, hoping that my newly highlighted hair would not feel like straw in the morning...and so far, so good...it feels really healthy and smooth...I hope my ♥Valentine♥ likes it.

I hope you are all having a sweet day of love, for yourself or for another xxx

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Countdown...

So, it's been a while since I posted anything, a lot has happened...I won't go into it here, but life will never be the same...
In an effort to make the most of the short time we get on this world, I have decided to hit the road and try out my dream of being in New York for more than a couple of days. So off I go, for almost 6 weeks!
Follow me on my adventure and hopefully it will be fun for all of us xxx