Day Nine

Today was laundry day. I found two coin operated laundrettes on the web: both in opposite directions. To make this a quick trip, I left Karen behind to rest the knee and to do some shopping.

Closest one first: only a 12 minute walk. Got to my destination only to find a building site and a demolition in progress. Grrr...people who don't update their website. Second choice: a 15 minute walk from our hotel (basically a 30 minute walk from where I was). Eventually found it, and was given some help by a kind latino lady who also made me a coffee. One and half hours of washing later, it was a quick walk back to the hotel.

Had drink and nibbles at another Irish Pub (next the other one) before heading off to see Matilda the Musical which is based on the Roald Dahl book. The lyrics and music were written by Aussie Tim Minchin. It was brilliant. The girl who played Matilda would have been about 9 or 10 years old, and appeared in the majority of play. The other children were also very good. All were exceptionally talented. Where did I do wrong....that's right I have no talent. Would love to see it again if it played in Australia.

Day Ten

Today was what New York City is all about.....shopping!!! We booked bus tickets to Woodbury Common shopping outlet which is located about 40 miles out of the city. All the big brands are here (Prada, North Face, American Eagle, Gap, Hugo Boss) and there are a lot of good bargains. I had hoped to buy a Hugo Boss suit (about $250) but I was a one size too big...they don't stock BFB size (Big Fat b******). We made some incredibly cheap purchases, generally around 60-70% off retail. They gave us a discount booklet on arrival which gave another 10-15%. We're planning to mail our purchases home by freight. It'll be cheaper and less trouble than travelling with them for the rest of the journey.

All round it was a successful day.