I can't believe I forgot about it, but the day I went to Central Park and FAO Schwarz I also visited The Cathedral Church of St John the Divine . It was amazing. It's a massive building, apparently the size of two american football pitches and the statue of liberty could comfortably fit under the done (without her pedestal). It's unfinished and looks like it won't be finished until 2050 due to various funding crises and a big fire but it is remarkable, not only for it's vastness but for the beautiful stained glass windows and peaceful mini chapels (my terminology [View Full Entry]

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You can’t help but wonder if you're actually welcome when you travel to the USA. We’ve been since 9/11, but the security just seems to keep stepping up and up. It starts with a series of questions at the check in desk. When did you pack your bags? Where have they been since you packed them? And so on. We didn’t get seated together. I wasn’t expecting to, having tried to check in online the night before and not being allowed to. Also, our travel agent seemed to have already pre-booked all of our seats on the other flights we took, [View Full Entry]

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Planning a trip to New York City to see the lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree? The tree lighting ceremony is traditionally held on the first Wednesday after Thanksgiving. This year’s 2009 ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday, December 2, 2009. There is so much to see in the city during the month of December even if you can’t make the actual lighting ceremony the tree is up throughout the month of December, the Rockefeller Ice Rink is always a hit and shop owners across the city have pulled out all the stops for their storefront displays. Hotel rooms are hard [View Full Entry]

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Back home in Brooklyn, NY, sitting at my kitchen table with a turkey in the oven, I can't help but feel more thankful than ever. Yes, it's three days after thanksgiving,...but what good does it do to show gratitude and thanx for everything we have, only one day a year? Even as I sort through my mail and the stacks of bills, wondering if can scrounge up enough $ to pay rent on the 1st, I feel blessed. Warm and cozy with the smell of turkey in the air, my wonderful friends due to arrive shortly, bringing more food to share, [View Full Entry]

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Doug and I both had a really great Thanksgiving break! We both visited with our families, even though mine ditched me for Texas, but met up in the evening to play games with Karen and Jonathan. All four of us got up bright and early and took the train from Milford into NYC. First, Karen and Jonathon took us to Bryant Park to walk around for the start of Jonathans food tour! Well it actually started at Grand Central, but Doug and I shared a delicious crepe, and a hot waffle with Doug's first try eating Nutella. After Bryant Park, we [View Full Entry]

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Conditions are harsh in this part of the world, yet you'll never hear a New Yorker grumble about temperature extremes. The city certainly knows how to embrace a season with a celebratory twist. Summer brings free concerts in the park, picnic-rug delivered cupcakes and rooftop martinis. Fall worships reddish-golden maple leaves with gruesome pumpkin heads and sparkly skulls. Winter is all about Christmas trimmings on steroids, from the 250kg Swarovski crystal star topping the real-live pine Rockefeller Christmas Tree, to outdoor ice-skating rinks bathed in the glow of a billion fairylights. [View Full Entry]

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My next stop on my trip was New York City. I only had one day in town, but, my host, Kirk, showed me several of New Yorks landmarks. The first we saw from the roof deck on the top of his apartment - The Empire State Building. The 102 story building is the tallest building in New York State, the 3rd tallest in the United States, and 15th tallest in the world. To get to the next location we rode the subway. Very few people have cars in New York City so everyone rides the subway or takes taxis. In just [View Full Entry]

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Today we ventured to The Bronx, only because it is where Yankee Stadium is. The Subway was an interesting trip, few shady characters, but great system. Heaps better than the crappy trains I put up with everyday. Got to the stadium well in advance of our tour, so walked the streets. I felt extremely uncomfortable, but Andrew was good. Bit of a role reversal for us. Anyways, went on a tour of the new Yankee Stadium. It was the inaugural year for he stadium, which is built next door to the old one. Very state of the art facilities. Went into [View Full Entry]

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As I said in the last entry, my appointment at the Korean Consulate was on Monday. I went into the city solo to interview for my Korean E-2 Visa, the visa which is given specifically to English teachers. It was pretty easy to find the place; I did I quick map search the night before I left. For those of you who might be looking into teaching English in Korea, the Korean Consulate in NYC is on the NW corner of Park and 57th. I got there about ten minutes prior to my appointment, and brought the appropriate paperwork along with: [View Full Entry]

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Today we bought a day-ticket for the NY-Subway and went first to Bronx to drink a coffee and have a walk along the zoo park. Afterwards we went to Queens and in the end to Brooklyn. We had a beautyful sunset on "Jamaica Bay", before we went back to Times square and our bus terminal for the last time... [View Full Entry]

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