Happy New Year from the Northern Hemisphere!
My holidays were spent in New York and Boston and it seemed like one huge adventure just to get there. Canadians don’t really think twice to travel for days on end to get their destination. So 22 hours by bus is no great deal by Canadian standard. My main problem was the bus system which does not reserve seats even if you have a ticket. This meant I turned at the Halifax bus station 6.30am for a bus scheduled to leave at 7.15am. I was very pleased to be the first there and guaranteed a seat, especially as 3 people were left stranded in Halifax as the bus reached full capacity. It was the same story in Moncton as 12 people were standing in the isle for a 3 hour journey to Bangor, USA! Thankfully my Kiwi charm ensured I had a seat. It was a very interesting experience, especially the border crossing to the US. We were all interrogated by customs and 8 of us were told to go inside for further questioning and finger printing. Even though the woman beside me was Canadian they were suspicious of her encounter with a
man she was about to meet through the internet. We left 2 people at Bangor; one elderly man was handcuffed for drug possession and one woman thought she could get through with an expired passport. Still at customs 2 hours later, I was beginning to panic as it was more likely I'd miss the connecting bus to Boston and New York. Once again, the Kiwi charm worked wonders and the Greyhound bus waited 40 mins for me. Kirsten and Lynley were awakened with me stumbling into the hotel room in the early hours of the morning.
I’m pleased to have been to New York before as I felt comfortable finding my way around and had plenty of time to absorb the atmosphere. Just walking around New York provides its own entertainment….a cat busking by a hot air vent, people dressed up as toilets advertising the best place to “go”.
The streets were humming with sounds of Christmas, 5th Avenue was all decked out in sparking colours and Macy’s shop window did not disappoint. Even the constant pedestrian traffic jam by the Rockefeller centre to see the famous tree was worth the wait. New York was surprisingly warm after
Canada and I could walk around quite happily without a winter coat. Unfortunately there was no snow, unlike Halifax which I later learnt had many heavy snow storms while I was away.
I grew a strong liking for hot salted pretzels from the hotdog stands, bagels for breakfast, and the New York style pizza. The group, Kirsten, Lynley, and Buffy spent a lot of time dining extravagantly and indulging ourselves more than what a backpacker is accustomed to. Dinner at Gordon Ramsey’s was unforgettable and I could not fault their service. All eyes were peeled during Christmas Dinner in the exclusive Hudson Restaurant (along with Wayne and Sandra) to see which celebrity would be out. Or in Kirsten’s case which magazine photographer to talk to, and Lynley gracefully danced the night away (never partnerless) while other young women enviously wondered how she did it…I’m yet to find out!
Ice skating in central park was amazing. A pity about the crowds of people and skating clockwise (anti clockwise is so much easier). New York provided the first time I’d been skating outdoors. Central Park played Christmas music while we skated around, and around, and around amongst tall trees and
even taller Manhatten high rise buildings in the distance. I also skated in Bryant Park, The Pond, in front of the library a couple of times.
The art galleries were equally crowded and exhaustive. I spent many hours at the Guggenheim, MET and MOMA. And only came out when my feet were about to give way or the gallery was about to close. We also saw a Broadway show, The Colour Purple. We got excellent seats thanks to Wayne and Sandra standing in line for a long period. The musical was gospel style centralised around themes of remaining good, honest and loving in order to survive.
Although we were staying in Times Square, Times Square is not the place to spend New Years unless you enjoy standing in one place for 10 hours without any means of going anywhere! We (Kirsten, Lynley, Shane, and Rupali) took a gentler approach and dinned at Thalia and spent New Years around the bar. Outside was a constant stream of people walking up and down 8th Avenue as we were only a block away from Times Square. Although, they closed Times Square off very early and no one was allowed in and
there was no returning if you decided to leave. Earlier in the day I ventured into Times Square but didn’t get far as I became trapped in a “mosh-pit” type environment and was pushed from all angles. So I was more than happy to watch the chaos outside and on the TV screen above the bar. We later went to a house party and my head was not good the following day! My last day in New York was spent in bed in the hotel room recovering!
My stay in Boston for 4 nights was very relaxing after New York. This part of the trip I experienced on my own and stayed at a hostel in Back Bay. This area is very chic and has many designer stores similar to those on 5th Avenue, NY. Everything is within walking distance and it was very, very quiet. For example, there were only 4 people on my tour through the Museum or Fine Arts, and only 3 people on the tour through the Public Library. My highlight in Boston would have to be listening to an organ concert by Frederick Teardo, at Trinity Church. The church, built in 1877, is one
of Boston’s most visited attractions and sits opposite the public library (which has large Sargent Paintings) in Copely Square. I also walked the Freedom Trail in temperatures below 18F which was icy cold. I’m sure I became sick due to that. The Freedom Trail, 4km, took most of the day and includes visiting 16 historic landmarks. In Boston, the people were very friendly and it felt like I had known perfect strangers for years. I took a liking to the readily available seafood and had New England clam chowder, Portobello mushroom stuffed with crab meat and even a garlic flavoured snail.
I moved apartments on my first day back in Halifax and am now only 3 blocks from work. The snow is still persistent and we are now in for the coldest period of the year. This Saturday the temperature is predicted to be -18 Celsius and that’s not taking into consideration the wind chill!
It was so wonderful to spend Christmas with friends and I miss you all so much!
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