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"It's up to you.. New York, New yorrrrrrk"... the time has come for the last leg of our trip in America in New York City baby!!!!Saving the best city for last... The most excited I have been to visit a place everrrrrr! I knew since seeing it on films that I was going fall in love with NYC.. Now I want to move here!
After leaving Boston on a 4 hour train journey filled with monotone Americans talking about Oysters and such, and taking in the lush views of New England, we arrived to New York just as the sun was setting to an a amazing view of the sun setting on the Manhattan skyline. Penn station and Madison Square Gardens was our stop in the "bright lights big city.. That's where we gotta go".. James and the giant peach fan right here, not afraid to admit it either!
Right, not sure if anyone remembers but back in California, we did a tour and met fitty Texan, Jack. Well, he was only visiting NYC to see me.. I like getting my own way and a date in New York City is not that much to ask is it?.. Anyway, I met him on my first night and we headed out to get some drinks and some very tasty sea food in Queens. Rated one of the best restaurant in Queens!
Day two, me and Jack did some exploring of NYC. We hit Central Park and walked around there, weather was lush and was amazing to finally see Central Park after watching it on Friends about a zillion times.. We visited the fountain and we threw a quarter in to make a wish.. Let's see if Simon Cowell will propose! I've got my fingers crossed! I tried to persuade him to get on a boat and sing to me but he wasn't having any of it! We seen the friends fountain, sex & the city hotel and took a walk down 5th Avenue to the rockafellers centre and visited Times Square! My excitement arose when I spotted Jasmine, a winner of America's Next Top Model... Where was Tyra when she needed to be there?!
After a hell of a lot of walking we got some traditional New York Pizza and walked down to the river front by the apartment to see Manhattan skyline and washington bridge lit up at night before chilling out to a very screwed up Aussie film, Apoclyte, or something along those lines. Unfortunately I take full responsibility and chose a terrible film!
Thursday day started with meeting Josie and failing to get tickets for ground zero... Before the three of us took a ferry to the statue of Liberty. Jack thought it would be funny to feed the seaguls, and seaguls for sure are not stupid and stuck by the boat for the whole of the journey! Made it to the island without a bird pooing on any of us and walked around the island to see Lady Liberty and an amazing skyline view of Manhattan! Was very impressive, if slightly chilly out on the island!
After that we headed back on the sub with the very polite VoiceOver.. "mind the closing doors, please".. So much more polite than the woman on the tubes in London! Tonight was the night I have been waiting for.. Date night in NYC to see The Lion King.... And oh my god, the show was the best show I have ever ever ever seen! The cast, costumes and singing was incredible.. Was gobsmacked. After the show finished, we went to see Jack's friend, Mike, who works for NYPD in Grand Central Station... It's lucky he's got contacts as we managed to sneak our way up to the back passages of Grand Central to have a look over the whole station and learn some inside info. We then went for some food at a cute Irish bar off Times Square, a drink in Hell's Kitchen and a few more drinks in a Scottish Bar. At dinner, Jack bet me that the waitress was Irish, me be me was adamant that she was American.. Turns out she was Irish. Disgraceful that I don't know an Irish accent when I here one!
While we were walking down one of the blocks.. We spotted about 4 rats around one big.. I almost jumped on Jack's back.. Scared was not the word!
The start of the weekend came.. And Friday consisted of nothing but lying on the sofa watching the travel channel and Man v Food! Nice to have a chilled out day after walking the length of NY for the last two days. However, Friday night was about to turn crazy. I headed to Josie's with a bottle of vodka in hand and Jack went to meet some guys from contiki for the night.
Three hours later after pre drinks.... New York experienced a very drunken Liz & Josie..! We got in a cab and just got him to take us to a busy place.. I'm guessing it was Greenwich village. The bar was mega funky and met some Essex guys.. Good to chat to the Brits again! From what I can remember.. We crazy ass danced, met some news presenters, who offered to take me out on a date and being put in a taxi by the bouncers at 4am..
Saturday morning, I woke with a banging headache! Bad times for me.. I skyped Josie to try and reminisce the night before! Today was a girls day full of typical SATC shenanigans. It started with a stop off for a pizza, to cure our hangovers. Then a shopping trip on Canal Street and the beloved Topshop!! Yesssss, 4 months without Topshop is like a fat kid going without fries. Next on the agenda was taking Jose to central park as she hadn't been yet.. Walked around before heading to the classy trump towers to meet my cousin Jason and his friend..
Possibly the best moment of the whole entire trip.. Jason had goodies from Mummy.. Yes, British Chocolate and freaking loads of it.. Galaxy, Cadburys, Dime Bars, Milkyway. The list goes on. It's safe to say it didn't last long!
So, we headed back with a bag full of chocolate and huge smiles on our faces! That evening, my lovely cousin and his friend took me and Josie out for a meal in a very posh rotating restaurant on the 57th floor in a hotel overlooking time square. Was an absolutely incredible view as well as cocktails and meal!
After food, Jason's drunken friend offered to sell me off to a black man for £10,000 and Josie for £50.. Charming! They then took us to a bar called prohibited before they went back to their hotel! Me & Josie were revved up for another night out, we flagged down a cab (check us out flagging down cabs in NY) and went to the meat packer district for a Saturday night experience!! First up was a cocktail bar with lots of memory chats and the strongest mojito I've ever consumed.
As we were walking to the next place, we seen a club that had a huggggeeee line.. Not a fan of queuing we weren't gonna bother going! However, being incredibly lucky again.. Two guys approached us and asked if we wanted to skip the queue and entrance fee with them as they knew a guy on the door... How could we refuse that?! Sooo down a secret door we went to the club where they bought us drinks and we ditched them.. Used and abused! the club was heaving and Josie got incredibly drunk.. Falling over like a typical Rhondda classy bird with the scars to show it! Ended up in VIP again and chatted to some very hot New York men.. Before heading home to a sleeping Jack!
Day of rest on Sunday?! Pahhh in NYC.. I wish! After a little lie in.. Me & Jack took the subway down to little Italy where we went to the first pizza place in New York City! Josie met us here before we all consumed our first alcoholic beverage of the day and a stupid amount of pizza.. Baring in mind it was 1pm, this day was about to turn drunken.
It was marathon day and according to Jack's friend, Mike it's the best kept party secret ever.. Verging on better than Paddy's day.. Time to party. We went to a bar called Salloon.. Everyone was hammered already.. Apart from us, so it was time to play catch up! We sat at the bar people watching as they all danced like loons.
A crazy ass guy kept trying to give a drink out to any girl but no one was taking it.. I'm pretty sure there was a drug in there.. But the state on him he'd accidentally roofied himself rather than the drink he was trying to give out... Serves him right ey?!
Then he gave Jack his credit card and told him to buy us drinks.. So Jack did.. As well as four beers for himself. Jack was deffo playing catch up! Me and Josie eventually caught up and the dancing was out!
I made a bet with Jack to a jagerbomb as we all know that I'm the absolute bomb at doing them! Turns out I was right and kicked his butt.. And won the bet! We also had whiskey shots bought for us by some randoms... Eeeeew!
Bar número two.. Was called.. I have no idea.. The day (5pm) was pretty blurry by this point. I remember vaguely walking to the next bar and attempting to take a detour through a hotel but failing as well as have a piggy back from Josie, with her bad leg! We met Jack's friend, mike in the bar who had just run the marathon, which is pretty impressive. Not for me, but cool none the less!
I made friends with some New York lads and the barman, who called me his Non-American friend before me and Jack left pretttttty early to go and get some Thai food! Yummmy! Jack introduced me to some cracking tunes and blasted a bit of Tom Jones before passing out!
Monday morninnnnnng, was a tough one. I was struggling badly. Arranged to meet Josie at Times Square to go and pick our Mary Poppins tickets up for that night.. Toooooo freaking excited.
That afternoon, we again had a proper SATC day strolling through union square park, broadway and finding our way to the F.R.I.E.N.D.S building! "Smelly cat, Smelly catttt"..
On our way back to the tube station.. A guy walked passed us that I thought looked famous and as soon as Josie saw him she said "Was that Stephen Sbielburg?"... Soooo I'm thinking that was my 2nd celeb spot in NY!
Hopped on the subway back to Times Square where we hit The Hard Rock Cafe for some pre show cocktails.. I had a strawberry rum lemonade.. B.e.autiful..! Then went to a cute Irish bar for one more beverage before Mary Poppins baby!
"Supercalafrachalisticexpalidocious"... The songs were out and smiles on my face! The show started and the set was amazing, almost rivalling The Sound of Music's set. However, the accents were not so spot on. Jane Banks actually deserved to be shot... To be fair, she was young and her acting was amazing, but she didn't half squeal when she spoke and none of the cast could say Poppins! I think this show would be ten times better on the westend. The singing and dancing though did rock.. And the actress that played Mary Poppins was brilliant!
I headed back after the show to meet Jack at the subway station. I'm getting a right pro at the subs.. I love NY because it's so similar too London but so much simpler and chilled out! Not as many people are in a rush. I passed out on the sofa exhausted after a mega long trek in heels!
Woke up crying on Tuesday as it was our last day in NY and last but one day in America after nearly 3 months here! ... Didn't really wake up crying but was sad that it's the last day.
The three of us wanted to visit Brooklyn so took the subway over and got off in an area that looked a bit like scabby Newport "officially named the worswt city in the UK" .. Funny! Walked around for a while looking at the very "classy" clothing before finding somewhere to eat in Brooklyn Heights, an extremely wealthy neighbourhood. We found a cute cafe, but then was ripped of by the waitress by putting gratuit on the bill automatically.. Cheeky do and so!
After consuming what felt like an elephant.. We worked our food off by walking across the Brooklyn Bridge to get an awesome look at the skyline again.. It just looks like a cardboard cut out. But I wouldn't mind walking over the bridge every day to work with that view! Drinks and desert followed to reward ourselves for the walk.. Jack was struggling in his cowboy boots and me & Josie needed something sweet to eat. I went for a cannoli, ew ew ew. Tasted like pants! Jack entertained us with some of his stories.. A donkey show in Mexico and a massage with a happy ending in Texas.. That's all that needs to be said!
4pm, we had tickets to go and see Ground Zero.. Josie had only forgotten her ID so was scared that she wasn't going to be let in. Luckily, all was fine and the three of us got to see the ground zero memorial water fountains. It was really surreal to see actually how huge the towers were and to know that they both collapsed within an hour.. Quite emotional really when your reading every one's name. Makes you appreciate your own crazy family!!
A sweet Irish Bar, O'Hara's that was almost demolished in the attacks was where we went for our last drink in Manhattan. We looked through there memorial book and were so shocked. The bar was full of police and fire department badges from all over the world. I had a Magners for the first time in foreverrrr, which went down like a treat. Magners for dinner instead of food.. Why not.. We are in the city that never sleeps after all!
Josie then went back before me and Jack subbed it.. We got the sub back, the whole way Jack "taking the mick" out of my accent and me teaching him some more British phrases so he could take home to Texas! His accent is getting better, so good he could act better than them in Mary Poppins! Taught him... "oh bloody hell"... "oh p****quot; and many many more..!
We went to a bar called beer garden bar where there we loads of different types of beer available, but of course i ordered a vodka and diet coke.. Very adventurous of me! Jack carried on laughing at me when I was talking about my village at home.. When he calls his hometown a town with 1,500 people and I call mine a village with 8,000.. He thinks I live in a hut.. We agreed to disagree on that one!
Soooooooo, all in all New York was bloody amazing and I don't want to leave. I wanna work hard and play hard here.. Maybe one day.. Eh? Nothing wrong with ambitions!
Now on a 6 hour flight back to tinsletown, LA before our lovely 14 hour flight to paradise that is Fiji tomorrow evening...
Sooooo... Three months in America can be summed up byy...One contiki tour starting with a texan and a trip to New York ending with the same texan, 3 flights, 6000 miles on a road trip, 23 states down, only 27 more to go... laughs, giggles, messy stories and situations that could only happen to Jizzzz... America has come to a sad end... In the words of David Letterman (I think) ... Goodnight America!!!
L x
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