Halfway weekend... :(

We were very sad this weekend when we realised that it was our half way point in our time out here, we never ever want to leave and desperately want to make the most of the second half of our trip and compete our bucket list. On Friday night (after getting our friday afternoon frozen ice-cream) we headed over to williamsburg for Mexican and drinks. La Esquina was recommended to us by a colleague as we wanted to try out fish tacos at a new venue and we also sampled chilli tequila and pineapple shots which were delicious. We sat next to a scrap heap of televisions in the garden with a blazing fire looping which was very cool but attracted an influx of mosquitos which apparently thought mine and Lauren's legs were very juicy. Next time- wear insect repellent!

I spent Saturday having a cool, relaxing gallery day starting at the Neue Gallery uptown to see works by Klimt and Egon Schiele. This gallery was very quaint and apart from seeing the beautiful golden Adele Bloch-Bauer I was quite keen to move on and get lost at the Met. I spent a lot of time at the Africa exhibit and also really loved all the Degas ballet sculptures for their imperfections and exaggerated poses. At every turn you see another famous piece, many of which I studied during college and never thought I would see in real life- Jackson Pollock, Rothko, Barbara Hepworth, Yves Tanguy, Andy Warhol, David Hockney, Lichenstein...........................................

We also decided it was about time we went to the "movies" and eat popcorn just because....We went to see Savages with Blake Lively, I'm not sure if it is out in the UK yet but just a heads up for reference I would say don't bother! Unless you want to learn how to look glamous and emotionless when kidnapped by the Cartel as Lively does then it might be worth a miss. 

All star dinner!

 

                 

As much as we really want to go and see a show on Broadway while we are out here an experience in Stardust Diner is second best for now. Just on the outskirts of Times Square you can eat in this all American diner and have all your have musical songs performed to you all night long! Admittedly, if you are not into musicals and you don't know your 'Wicked' from your 'Starlight Express' then there is a chance you will be utterly freaked out by this place...but if you love broadway shows then you will LOVE it here! Our waiter 'Beau' still managed to check up on us at our table mid-performance...lets hope he gets his big break onto the real stage soon. 

No sign of Tom hanks or King Kong up here

Our timing was absolutely spot on as we arrived at the top of the Empire State Building just in time for sunset. And surprisingly we barely hit any queues other that a short wait for the halfway point lift at the 80th floor which then takes you up to the observatory on the 86th floor. There is not much point explaining the view because as you can imagine it is utterly stunning and I was able to see Madison Square gardens where we have lunch every day, all the away across the Statue of Liberty and across the river to Brooklyn and Queens. It gets very crowded at the top so you have to keep patient and we were disappointed not to see any celebs at the top as there are so many photographed there once you enter the building!

Remembrance

The waterfall memorial that is in the process of being completed at ground zero is completely breathtaking. The square acre of space that the two fountains take up mimics the location of the original towers and gallons of water crash down into a seemingly infinite drop. I think the memorial is beautiful, considered and optimistic as it looks up to the new towers being built along side it. 

A walk in the park

Like most places, the best way to discover New York is to walk...alot. En route to going to visit ground zero we stumbled across this pretty water fountain in City Hall park along side a gigantic ketchup bottle. 

Itsssss t-shirt tossing time!

Its summer Friday again and this weekend I am joined by my cousin Charlotte! She spent the morning cramming in as much sightseeing/shopping as possible even in this sweltering heat and then still found the energy to make it to the Staten Island Yankee game this evening. The ferry over to the island is free which is a huge bonus as you skim past the statue of liberty and can enjoy the view of the Manhattan skyline. All week we have been looking forward to buying foam fingers to cheer on the Yankees with but sadly they did not seem to be as enthusiastic as we were and didn't sell them however the hotdogs and beer were spot on as was the entertainment from the 'cow' mascots throughout the game...t-shirt tossing competitions, ball tossing competitions, embarrassing 70's dance off on the pitch and 'cutest child' competition. 


The whole experience was completely bizarre but amazing, it felt we were in a movie with the baseball game taking place in front of a backdrop of one of the most famous skylines on the planet. Then to top it off, a pretty impressive firework display. Generally, we have concluded that baseball is not the most entertaining sport however the experience was definitely not something to be missed...