Future millions

I'm convinced.


Totally convinced that this is how I shall make my millions.


I am going to do it through PINKBERRY!
This delicious frozen yoghurt is sadly missing from Australia.

I must be the first to bring it back home. It will make me millions!

Growing fatness

I have been surprised by a lot of things in New York. Never did I expect to find a city that so completely enthralled me.

One of the biggest surprises has been the food.

America gets a pretty bad wrap about it's food overseas. The view of America is that the food consists of fast food and not much else.

This is so far from the truth.

In New York at the very least, I found a range of food truly astounding and the quality to be far higher than other places I had been.

This was a place where you could find anything from food out of a cart on the side of the street to fine dining at some of the most expensive restaurants in the world.

I found myself eating tacos from Mexican bodegas, chicken and rice from carts on the street, hot dogs at baseball games, amazing sandwiches from delis as well as some incredible meals from fancier establishments.

Food like cheesecake from Carnegies that was enough to give me a heart attack.
Or a Ruben from Katz's that was enough to give me a heart attack!

My definitive favourite food in my entire stay in New York were the bagels, cream cheese and smoked salmon out of the Jewish delis.

In particular, I grew to love the smoked salmon and sturgeon in scrambled eggs served with a bialy and cream cheese from Barney Greengrass'. The combination of the smokiness of the fish with the cream cheese was a lethal combination. Topped off on a crispy and chewy bialy, is there anything better?

I'm not quite sure how I'm going to handle life without them being readily available to me anymore.
Even the burgers in New York were pretty special. Sitting in a diner, the burgers are served promptly and taste far better than any burger I've ever had. They take them seriously in this country and use good meat for their mince ("ground meat") unlike back at home where only the poorer cuts are used.

Even the process of ordering food seems more fun!
Surprises never stop in this city.

Famous things

Wandering through the sites of New York is like taking a journey through my own personal television and movie watching history.


It feels as though every street I turn down brings me onto the scene of some movie/series/sitcom that I watched at some point in my life.


Even sitting on the subway, I get the distinct recollection of old episodes of Seinfeld.


As I walked around the Downtown part of Manhattan, I found myself in Wall St was pretty amazing.
It was far smaller than I expected, and due to the "Occupy Wall St" movement, there were lots of pennies on the ground.

At night, nothing changes either. The skyline of New York is so familiar. I almost feel more at home wandering through these streets than I do back in my actual home.
It helps that this is a rather pretty skyline as well. The Chysler Building really must be one of the most beautiful buildings ever made, whilst the Empire State Building stands as a monument to America and its achievements.

It almost felt cliched, turning the corners to see more monuments so engrained in popular culture.

I have to say that I liked it though.

It was fun seeing them all. I was even tempted to buy some of the tacky souvenirs for tourists like the Statute of Liberty headwear or some of the terrible photos. Thankfully, I thought better of it and decided against it.

The Met

This is a big museum.

I always thought that the British Museum was big, but I was clearly mistaken.

You can definitely tell that a museum is truly enormous when you encounter a sizable section dedicated solely to Chinese ink blocks.

And that is before you consider that Chinese garden that has been completely recreated within the building.
Or the old Indian temple that has been relocated into one of the halls.
It seems as though the Met has attempted to take a slice of every single period of humanity's artistic history and present it for the public view.
Literally any time period.
Any style of art as well.
It is a strangely disjointed museum, full of so much incredible sights and displays, but without any real coherence or theme.

It just seems to be an attempt to show the public EVERYTHING.
There are of course, amazing items of display.

I found my Mondrian, which made me happy.
However, what struck me the most was still the sheer size of the place.
It overwhelms and it is almost overbearing.

I found myself spending almost the entire day in this museum, and it required a fairly quick pace (with little to no breaks) to cover the majority of it.
It is impressive, but I am not sure I like it. There is something lacking in subtlety and in clarity. The approach of having so much on display may please some, but for me, I prefer the more considered approach of the British Museum.

Waxing lyrical

You do some stupid things when you're travelling sometimes.

I shall tick this off as one of those stupid things.

As Pete, Ros and I were picking up some bus tickets as part of our New York explorer pass, we found ourselves next to Madam Tussaud's.

Why not go in we thought.

It really wasn't great.

Not great at all.
This became abundantly clear to us when we found that one of the best exhibits was probably the Sponge Bob Square Pants.

However, there are always a few gems to be discovered in the filth, no matter how much filth there is.
So it was nice for me to sit and have a chat with Woody Allen.

Play ball!

I am unsure how or why, but I managed to become a huge fan of baseball while I was at university. There is something about the game that captures my imagination and intrigues me with every at bat and with every pitch.

This is odd considering there isn't really any baseball in Australia and I have never been to a baseball game in Australia.

However, now that I was in New York, that would change!

I found myself with Andy, Pete and Ros at Citi Field for a game between the Phillies and the Mets!

This was fantastic for me on many levels.

Firstly, I'm a Phillies fan.

Secondly, the mighty ace of the Phillies, Roy Halladay was pitching.

And thirdly, the Mets are very very bad, making the chances of a Phillies win high.
It was great fun.

Sitting at the game, in good seats, eating hot dogs and cracker jacks.
It's clear how this became the great American past time. It is a relaxing and enjoyable day out.
At the seventh inning, we even got up to sing "Take me out to the ballgame". The fanfare, the pageantry, the food, all of it combines to create something that just doesn't seem to be there in a cricket game.

It also helps when the Phillies win!

Drinks on the skyline

I'm finding it hard to control my growing obsession with New York. Every extra moment I spend in the ciy seems to present me with more to be marvelled at.

After Andy finished work one night, we wandered down to a bar that had opened up not too long ago.

Even this was something that was amazing. As we got to the roof and ordered our drinks, it was clear that this place had a view that was to be marvelled at.

As well as I could with my camera, I tried to capture the view.

We quietly enjoyed our drinks, looking into the distance at the skyline that seems have more to do than any place I have ever set foot into.

The Bodega

Having wandered gawking and gasping at the sights of New York, I was hungry. Andy had come home from work and decided he knew just what was needed.

He told me to get my wallet and to make sure I was cashed up.

Not being completely sure about whether he was joking or being honest, I grabbed my money clip and stuffed it full of cash.

As we walked down 10th avenue, I still wasn't sure whether Andy was telling the truth or not.

Suddenly, he turned abruptly into a fairly non-descript little Mexican bodega. I only assumed that he wanted to buy something quickly. However, instead he continued to move into its depths and I soon found myself in a Mexican restaurant.

This clearly wasn't going to be the expensive dinner I had been cautiously prepared for.

Three soft tacos cost me effectively the change in my pockets.

And it was good!

It was so good! Better than any of the faux Mexican food that I've eaten back at home! Packed with flavour and perfectly encased in a couple of pieces of the soft bread.

It's the Late Show

Ever since uni days, I have loved the Late Show.

David Letterman's sense of humour is strangely appealing to me. His irreverence and sarcasm in particular have always been something I've found to match my own personality and tastes.

Many a night, I found myself slowly fading into my sleep in my university dorm whilst listening to Letterman's opening monologue and finally switching the television off once he had finished with the nightly top ten.

To find myself standing in line out front of the Ed Sullivan Theatre was something else.

Waiting to go in to see the Late Show LIVE sent shivers down my spine.

As I slowly went inside, I felt almost like a little kid again, waiting to open my Christmas presents.

The guests for the evening were Nathan Fillion and Larry Miller which was pretty great. The musical item at the end was played by the Jayhawks.

Just seeing Dave in person and his interactions had made the trip to New York completely worth it!

The High Line

One of the first things I found on my wanderings in New York was the famous High Line.

This is the culmination of a modernisation project of the old raised railway tracks that ran through the Meatpacking District and Chelsea.

Instead of demolishing these old railway tracks, they have been converted into a raised public walkway and gardens.

I think it's a fantastic idea.
The area has been transformed by the High Line. An area that was once industrial and run down has become a focus for development, with the High Line drawing people in.
It's just such a New York thing, something so out of place in the a bustling city that seems to fit in so perfectly.

New York state of mind

As a child, New York was a place that I always wanted to live. It seemed to be a place so full of life and activity that never stopped.

Even through uni, it all seemed a likely possibility.

Changes in the global economic situation have now made this seem far less likely.

Instead, trips like this may have to suffice.

I was in New York!

The greatest city in the world, the centre of the universe... etc etc!
It was not disappointing me at all.
The vibe from walking in this city, the activity and the constant rush of people can be immediately felt.

So much so in fact, that I don't think that I've ever been to a place that has created this much immediate excitement in me.

Delays

It's very nice to be flying off again.

The rush of knowing that I would soon be in new surrounds and out of my comfort zone was exhilarating.

Even a bit of industrial action resulting in some delays couldn't shake me.

I was more than content to merely relax in the airport and wait for the call to come through.

Cheap shot

My theory on how to win any form of bake sale or bake off is to keep it simple and appeal to people's base desires.

None of these fancy dishes, with lah di dah techniques to really do anything special other than to confuse the paying public who are really just trying to satisfy the 4:00pm sugar craving

Something with chocolate in it.

That's usually the answer, and there much that is more tantalising to the hungry eyes of an office worker than a nice, thick, slice of brownie.

Hotel nostalgia

I found myself at a strange hotel recently.


Not strange from the perspective of the hotel itself, but rather from a personal perspective.

It was a hotel that I stayed at with my parents when I was about 5 years old. My memories of this place and my trip with the parents continue to colour my thinking about hotels and what it is to go on a trip.

My memories are of a sparkling hotel with service beyond imagination. There were smiling faces everywhere and a uniformed bell boy to take our bags to our rooms.

Things have changed a bit.

It's not the sparkling, brand new hotel it once was (after 20 years, who can blame them?)

But much of the old quirks that I liked such as the inner court yard are still there.

It was a nice walk down memory lane. It was like looking at a faded photo though, it lacked the sharpness and vitality that my memory gave it.

More nuptial fun

The weddings seem to continue....

It is a constant reminder of the passing of time and that my own childhood is fading fast into my memory. Instead, there is the growing spectre of responsibility looming... the horror of it all.

However, none of that was going to stop me going to the wedding of my old friend Tammy. A wedding, regardless of what implications it may have on those getting married, and regardless of what terror it seems to create in me with thoughts of growing up, is still a fantastic party.

I've known Tammy and her family since I was a kid. Growing up as friends with her brother, I was always welcomed into their home, particularly when I was a starving uni student. Being able to go to her wedding was a great, though I found it a bit odd seeing her all grown up when I had still sharp memories of her as a primary school kid beating me at Nintendo.

Branding

I understand the power of branding. I still remember it in the classes of marketing I took back in university.

But how far can branding really go?

At what point does it move from being the "mark of quality" to being a way of tricking suckers out of their money?

I found an example of the latter the other day after having had a nice steak with Kieran during our lunch break. On our way back to the office, we walked past a store that was selling a water pipe. It wasn't just any water pipe though, it was a "Porsche" water pipe.

Who would buy this?

Does the Porsche brand really carry that much swagger that they are now deemed to be the most trusted and true makers of water pipes?

It all seems a bit much for me.

Too much?

I paid $9 for a loaf of bread the other day.

Is that too much? I think it's too much....

Even the packaging that the bread came in seemed a bit too much.
That being said, it was damn good bread.

Sitting on the bus

I think I have fallen into a rut in Sydney.

Most days seem to be relatively similar to the last and worst of all, I find myself seeing nothing new.

I've only been living in Sydney for a few years. I'm amazed that I've so quickly reached a stage where I no longer explore and no longer seek out new things to see.

I don't quite know what has led me to this behaviour. I love the feeling of being in a new place that I am unfamiliar with. There's a strange rush of uncertainty.

As lame as it may sound, I finally experienced some of the feeling of being somewhere new from being on a bus of all places.

Rather than jumping on my old bus back home, I thought I'd try a bus that went a different route.

It was deserted. However, strangely enough I felt the lack of familiarity that I had been seeking. As the city slowly past me by and shop fronts I had never seen sped past, I started thinking about the need to actually keep searching this city for some of the sites that I clearly hadn't been to.