Amazing Views

OK, so that last entry was for the 14th June and the following is for the 15th June. Because it automatically logs the date in and I was late putting it in. Anyway....

Did I mention my blisters yesterday? No? Well, I have blisters developing on both little toes which is proving to be a bit of a hindrance, but will soldier on as there’s lots to see and do!

First things first...... Empire State building. A short subway ride and we were standing at the base of the mighty beast. After hearing horror stories of people queuing for hours to get in through the front door let alone up to the top, James and I had decided to beat the crowds and get there early doors, even before the doors officially opened, but they were happy to let all the eager folks straight in and up the lifts to the top of one of the worlds most amazing landmarks. And afterwards what could be better than grabbing a nice cup of fresh cawfee from the local Starbucks. OK, so it’s a bit cheesy and touristy, but hey, we ARE tourists! And we ARE cheesy!

The view from the Empire State Building

A quick stop back at the Vanderbilt and we tried looking for accommodation in our next-but-one stop, Washington DC. A quick search on our most-visited website www.hostelbookers.com and we had booked a place in no time....one more thing not to fret over. A quick SKYPE back tot eh folks in good ol’ Blighty and we were on our way to Downtown. Not to see Wall Street, not even to see Little Italy, or Little China, but to an Irish pub to watch the football. Yes, we are in New York and yes there may have been other things we should have been seeing or doing, but we are English through and through so it seemed like the best course of action. A shared Beekman’s BLT and “French Fries” later and it was time for kick-off. After a slight scare by the crafty Swedes we were celebrating, with about 3 other people in the entire place also supporting England....for reasons unknown, as there was no discernible accents to speak of.  

A quick check of the now-fraying map of Manhattan and James suggested an amble through Little China and Little Italy. I wasn’t sure just how little these places or the people would be, but I agreed nonetheless and we set off, at an amble as me blisters were crying merry hell! And as we had bought some sushi for dinner from the local Korean place (who also sell a mean can of Asahi, although that does pale into comparison when compared to the behemoth of a can of Corona I got from the Duane Reade last night.....which I got ID’d for BTW) we didn’t feel the need for having a sit-down Italian meal.....or buying loads or various tat from the other side of the dividing road through both Little areas.

Come on England!

The idea was to nosh the sushi, neck a beer, shower and hit the Rockafella for a night-time view of New York. That idea didn’t come to fruition though as the aforementioned blisters needed some time sans footwear and I think that generally speaking the last couple of days may have caught up with us slightly, so we have indeed feasted on sushi and Japanese lager, plus blogged, uploaded and (of course) checked Sky Sports News for the latest football caveats. Friday will be a “mop-up” day of one/some/all of the following: Rockafella Center, Seinfeld Cafe, the Chrysler Building, Katz’s New York Deli, Greenwich Village, Flat-iron Building and the Bronx. But not the Bronx.