Blogs from Brooklyn, New York, New York, United States, North America - page 8

The heat wave is continuing - it's still hot, but not topping 103 degrees like it did earlier this week. The heat advisory ended yesterday, but my newly acquired heat rash has not. Needless to say, the scorching temperatures have put a damper on a lot of things - even going for groceries was a task I'd rather not do again. It was time to do laundry this week - I loaded up the cart, and hauled it to the laundromat that was reccomended since its larger and has air conditioning. Of course, I chose one of the hottest days to do this, and the laundromat is about 9 blocks away. After saving quarters for over a month now - the laundromat doesn't even take them, so I had to purchase a "card" to use in ... read more

So, I layed low with Olive both yesterday and this morning so she could have some playtime. She's enjoying her new toys and treats I've found for her at some local places. She's now fully used to climbing stairs and she's enjoying the backyard and the freedom to smell around. This morning, she had some young neighbor boys barking at her, which then prompted a conversation between the barking boy and Olive since she had to respond. In the early afternoon Saturday, I hopped on the N train, heading to Union Square - my favorite place in NYC. The plan was to meet up with Anne later at the Strand, my favorite bookstore. I sat down on the train, there was a blonde, eastern eurpoean girl sitting next to me. She turned to me, map in ... read more

Alas, my mashed potatoes! Dinner in midtown - Virgil's BBQ, home of the BEST mashed potatoes on the planet. I took the D express train and I got to Times Square in 30 minutes. I'm fitting in - getting into the subway with book in hand. I think I can get more reading done here than in Chicago for sure. Times Square has changed quite a bit since I was here last year. Mayor Bloomberg has had one side of Broadway blocked off permanently so people can walk in the street, sit at tables and enjoy Times Square. Needless to say, there aren't as many cars then - it's quieter, and really just plain weird to be sitting at a table in the middle of the chaos. For those of you wondering, because I did, this ... read more

Yesterday morning, we took the subway to Brooklyn and had a walk through the little neighbourhoods and along the promenade. It was fairly quiet and very leafy where we were and a lot of the promenade is currently under a huge revamp to make it into a sports and recreation area. The views from the promenade of Brooklyn of downtown Manhattan, the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges were spectacular. After walking around for a while we decided to head along the Manhattan bridge which gave us a great view of the Brooklyn Bridge and brought us to the main island in the middle of Chinatown. Compared to Toronto's chinatown, New York's is really, really Chinese!! There were a lot of restaurants and shops selling tat, as well as many fruit and veg stalls. The whole place was ... read more

I just thought I'd see if this old thing would still start up alright before I take her on the road again. If you are reading this because you got an email as a result of an old subscription to the blog, now is your chance to say 'I hardly remember this guy, I don't care where he's going next' and unsubscribe. If you are reading this blog for the first time - welcome! Here is where I keep my friends, family and various random internet readers up to date on my whereabouts while I travel. I update when I can, with photos when possible or even videos when possible, wherever I find a good, cheap internet cafe. Thanks to a gracious graduation gift from my parents, I've got a new camera so you can look ... read more