Welcome to New York! One again it's been a while since the last blog so I may have to gloss over some smaller details, but they'd probably be boring anyway... Here we go!
The Greyhound arrived on Sunday afternoon and i bundled up my bags and headed for the subway. I'd been told this was an incredibly easy and comprehensive system and being a veteran of the London tube i figured i'd have no trouble. Although not being too difficult i spent some time catching the wrong train and changing at a number of stations, backpack in tow, before i made it to my hostel in Brooklyn. A number of people have asked what part of Brooklyn i stayed in, i tell them the bad part. I'm not sure if my area was actually dangerous but it was probably the largest culture shock i've had since arriving in the states. The hostel itself is alright, although two bathrooms catering for four floors has been an interesting situation.
The next few days i spent wandering around Manhattan trying to get to know my way round the city. When i first stepped out of the subway i was amazed! High rises literally as far as you can see. I think it's crazy that Manhattan is only 3 miles wide and 11 miles long and yet it has the population of Queensland and seems soo much bigger, i think, just because you can't see where the high rises end. It's very impressive. In my wanderings I've seen the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, Grand Central Station, Broadway, 5th Avenue, Madison Square Garden, Carnegie Hall... It goes on... Times Square was also one of the first places I visited. It's crazy! Like super busy all the time, neon lights everywhere, even the police station has a flashing sign. I wonder if it's a rule in Times Square. I also caught a glimpse of Will Ferrel exiting the theatre where they shoot the Late Show with David Letterman. New York so far is massive and has a distinctive energy, i understand why some people never leave this island.
On Tuesday the Super Fags were reunited when Justin arrived in New York. He stayed in a different hostel in a nicer area of Brooklyn. We went out into the city and had a walk around and then hung out in the park and discovered the joys of bouldering!
That night Justin headed home and i met up with James and Jake (for those who know them) we hit up some bars in the East Village, known also as Alphabet City because of the streets Avenue A through D.
Next day Justo skated into the city and we checked out Soho, a really kool area, a little more built up then the East Village. We looked at a bunch of little galleries which was interesting and also a great way to get out of the heat. It's soo hot here right now and humid to the max! That evening we headed back to the East Village and visited a couple of cafes (we walked past but haven't stopped in yet at the Life Cafe from Rent) and had dinner in a kool little Italian joint where the waitress sat down with us to discuss 4th dimensions and hypercubes... Oh, i forgot to mention that we saw a movie (Friend with Benefits) filming a fake flash mob in Times Square that evening starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis, who were there amongst the crowd of dancing extras...
Next day i headed off by myself and spent some time in the park. Then i headed down towards the West Village. The more suburban areas are lined with brownstones and trees. I even wandered past Carrie Bradshaw's stoop, where they filmed Sex and the City, apparently they had to pay $60 000 every time they shot there. Her fictional address is actually on the Upper East side. The West Village, also home to Washington Square, is a little more upmarket than the East, but still sooo many little bars and restaurants. I love it here... Is that obvious???
Next few days we hung around in different areas eating at number of places and we even went out one night in the West Village. We visited to Stonewall Inn which is important, as it is the birthplace of the gay rights movement after the Stonewall riots occurred...
sometime. Another highlight so far has been the Bethesda fountain... It's in a few movies and things and is really pretty and quite tranquil, it's become one of my favourite spots. I also explored the High Line, a park that has been constructed on old raised railway lines. Also fun places are the Hershey's store and M & Ms World, the latter is three floors of shopping most of which is merchandise and not chocolate.
On Monday we both checked out of our hostels and made our way to our new place in Woodside Queens... This area seems a lot nicer and we spent the afternoon exploring. That afternoon Julianne arrived! The official hag of the super fags! We had dinner at an Indian restaurant in the area and then had a small day out in the city the next day, where we visited F.A.O Shwartz toy store home of the famous 'big piano' from the movie Big... So many places that I've seen in movies, which as I've said before is how i know what to look at when being touristy. Our new place is nice enough although a little cramped and very warm... Now that everyone is here we can finally start doing fun touristy things... New York is ridiculous in the best way and I can't wait to start seeing shows and visiting museums and eating at lots of kool places... That i'm sure you'll hear about...
It's a hell'uv'a town...
Josh... (w. Justin and Julianne)
I think i mentioned towards the end of the last blog that i was sleeping on a boat, that's correct! I arrived in Boston at 8 in the morning feeling sufficiently groggy and sleep deprived. I'd arrived in yet another time zone and was now keeping track of four different ones, which is slightly confusing. I got my luggage and managed to find a bus to the trains. The office for the boat is was staying on didn't open til 10 so i sat and waited trying to catch up on some sleep. I finally checked in, left my bags in the office and headed off. This boat situation was interesting. Because the boat sailed during the day so people could take cruises, the overnight guests weren't allowed on board during the day unless they'd paid for the cruise this meant being out all day until the boat docked usually at 9 in the evening. Couple this with tiny cabins, showers in closets and no wifi, i'm not sure if the boat adventure was the right choice. But it was at least an adventure.
My first day in Boston i mostly wandered around trying to get my bearings. The city is quite old worldly, i think the idea of Boston is mixing the old and the new. Old town and national heritage meets high rises. This is pretty much the vibe of Boston. It's the most condensed city-like place i've visited so far and unlike Seattle and San Fran is not a grid city. This makes getting around a little more difficult. The old architecture is really pretty, lots of red brickwork, churches and vines. There are two major parks in the middle of the city. The Boston Common and the Public Gardens. The Gardens are well kept with a pond and the commons are more expansive. I stayed in the common for a little while before heading on. I wandered through the theatre district and inside the public library, which is huge and has painted ceilings and lion sculptures. They had an exhibition of old tourism posters that i had a look at. Probably the tallest building is the John Hancock tower.
This massive high rise made entirely out of reflective glass so when you look at it from certain angles it almost looks like a continuation of sky, weird. The end of my first night in Boston, i sat at the pier and literally waited for my ship to come in.
On my first day in Boston my camera battery was dead and so i had to spend some time retracing my steps and taking photos the morning of my second day, i also had to stop into Starbucks for free internet to blog. Today i also ventured down to the Charles River and walked along the promenade. That night i watched a really god production of Othello in he Boston Common, it was free and really good. Also Othello is an idiot and the guy playing Iago sounded a lot like Jack from Will and Grace, which was kind of hilarious.
Day three and I was off to Harvard!! It's only a short train ride from the city. I wandered around and looked at the library. There's a sign on the door stating that only those with Harvard student ids will be et into the building, i guess otherwise it would constantly be filled with tourists. The campus is smaller then i expected it to be, but with some awesome old buildings. I'd removed it from my iPod but i distinctly felt like listening to Legally Blonde while i was there... Cambridge, the area around the campus itself is very kool. Similar college town vibe with lots of little shops and a good place to sit down. I think i had lunch but i can't remember. That night i walked some more and unknowingly stumbled into the North End. I had no information about this area but it must be highly populated by Italians because there are heaps of little Italian restaurants and today there was a festival happening in the streets. I bought some pasta andwandered. These guys were lifting a statue of the virgin mary on poles and dancing to a marching band, strange but entertaining.
On my last day in Boston i started the day exploring the Quincy markets. I ate Chowder! Which is really good. And watched a bunch of buskers. These two guys with guitars who called them selves Cahill were really good and this guy was juggling swords on a tightrope held up by audience members, petty kool. Possibly the most exciting thing about the market was finding a Christmam store. It's open all year round and sells Christmas decorations and plays carols! Best idea ever! I also walked down to the end of Pearl St, supposedly (according to Wikipedia) the site where the Boston Tea Party is suppose to have happened... I dunno. I hung around in the city til late trying to soak up the atmosphere, also because the boat didn't dock til 11pm that night, sigh. When i got back on I had a surprise roommate in my cabin. I probably won't stay on the Liberty Tall Ship again. I enjoyed Boston although I'm glad i wasn't staying any longer i sort of ran out of things to do very quickly and couldn't find a bar i wanted to go into... oh well... The next morning i de-boated (?) and headed for the bus terminal where i hopped on a Greyhound headed for New York!
Josh...
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