New York City was another milestone event in my travels; Along with diving the Blue Hole or visiting the Jack Daniels Distillery but this time not just for the location but because I would get to see some friends from back home. Maria and Aled had booked a week's holiday to come and meet us in NYC!

Arriving by Bolt Bus from Greenbelt (near Baltimore) Liann and I were thrust into the heart of the hectic New York Streets when we were dropped off at Penn Station. Now carrying our hefty bags with a tent attached we battled our way through the crowds and down into the sweltering heat of the Subway.

We had managed to book a 4 bed room with shared bath in a hostel/hotel called The Royal Park Hotel. Don't let the name fool you, it was not as grand as it sounds but its location in Upper Westside and only one block from a subway station made it an ideal base for the four of us to explore the city. The two of us arrived at the Hotel and checked in but before we knew it we could hear two familiar voices coming up the stairwell. It had been nearly four months since I had seen my friends so it was fantastic to see them.

Not really having a clue where to go in the city we grabbed a tourist map from reception and headed straight to Times Square for our first drink. As you wonder the streets of Times Square it is pretty difficult to not get hounded by ticket touts and tour guides and the four of us looking like lost sheep were prime targets. Within minutes we had been sold tickets to a comedy night at what seemed like a reasonable price and an open top bus tour/ticket deal. A little jet lagged from their flight Aled and Maria we quite happy to have a simple night so we headed back to our room after grabbing a Five Guys Burger.

The next day we got up and took Maria and Aled out for their first American Diner experience before walking through some of Central Park, which was only a few blocks away. We walked through the park trying to spot as many movie scenes as possible before jumping on the Metro downtown to the Staten Island Ferry and then to The Village in the hope for a decent bar. Walking through Greenwich Village felt very different to further uptown; Gone were the skyscrapers and flashing lights, replaced by trendy shops and bars. We had a couple of pints in a bar called The Garage and then continued to walk around the area. We were passed on the sidewalk by a strange man filming himself in a handheld mirror talking to strangers, apparently for www.happyguy.tv.

Having plans to go to the comedy night we had to have an early dinner before getting changed ready to go out. Staying in The Village we went to John's Pizzeria, one or many great pizza places in the city all with photos of celebrities adorning the walls.

The comedy club we had been sold $10 tickets for didn't turn out to be such a bargain as the two drink minimum came to nearly $20. That aside though the comedians were very good and we even recognised one of them! Anyone remember the younger aunt from Sabrina the Teenage Witch? Well apparently she is a stand-up comedian now! Anyway, after the comedy club we headed straight back to the hotel

Now I'm going to start this next sentence by saying that Maria and Aled had been a little odd, they didn't want to commit to going to the comedy store and they were very eager to get back to the hotel that night. I had just put this down to them being tired from the flight etc etc. But as it turns out they were keeping a surprise guest from me! Waiting in the lobby as we got back to the hotel was Matt, another friend and flatmate from back home. It was a complete surprise, even suspicious Facebook updates hadn't given it away. Once over the initial shock and once the greetings were out of the way it was time to celebrate. We headed back down to The Village and found a late bar which I think was actually just called 'The Bar' anyway many drinks were had.

The next few days called for some serious sightseeing! After all there is a lot to see in New York even for a whole week! The open top busses seemed like a good option, they allowed us to hop on and off when needed, gave us plenty of information as we drove around the city and the ticket included things like the ferry to Liberty Island and entrance to the Empire State building. As Matt was only in NYC for a long weekend we managed to pack the main bits in before he had to leave.

Empire State was awesome. Ok so Willis Tower in Chicago is taller but nowhere near as iconic. The 360 degree views of the most recognisable city skyline and the exposed, windy, open air observation deck made the experience every bit worth it! We were actually really lucky and hardly had to cue which made us extra glad that we hadn't paid $25 for fast lane tickets from the dodgy guy who told is that there was an hour wait!

Now Liann and I know how lucky we are to be able to do all of this travelling and see these amazing things but we were starting to have a spot of bad luck. The Mall, Washington monument and Reflection pool in DC were all under renovation and now the base of the statue of liberty was closed for the same reason. The statue its self has a pretty long waiting list to get into so we had known we wouldn't get to do that but is was a shame to not see the museum inside! Still the ferry ride and photo opportunities from Liberty Island were great and we had a beautiful hot clear day so all in all we can't complain too much!

One night we decided to leave the girls to have a night in while the three lads went or a couple of quiet drinks in the local Dive Bar (that was its name too). Just to top off the catching up with friends from back home theme we managed to hook up with Scarlett a friend that had moved to the sates as an aupair nearly 8 months ago.

Something that I had really wanted to do while in NY was to simply have a picnic in the park, so on Matt's last day we got up early to fit in a river cruise before picking up some food and drink and chilling in the park under a shady tree. I should probably have mentioned that New York was having a heat wave and the temperatures were up in the high nineties!

Seeing Matt, although only for a few days was fun and a great surprise but sadly we had to wave goodbye to him after the Picnic.

Now back to the four of us we headed out to the Meatpacking District to a bar that had been recommended to us called Hogs and Heffers. It hadn't occurred to us that as the 4th July was tomorrow and everyone was off work that the 3rd would be a big party night! The bar was a Coyote Ugly style, girls on the bar kinda' place, we ended up staying there until the early hours of the morning.

The next day (Independence day) was our last full day together so the Marcy's firework display was a nice way to end a fantastic week.

It was the first time that Liann and I had stopped in one place for a full week; we made the most of our time, saw most of the city and enjoyed catching up with Maria, Matt and Aled. Before Al and Maria had to leave we managed to squeeze in a couple more sights and saw the public Library and Union Station. We went to the whispering arch in Union Station but guess what... construction work! Back down to the two of us after parting with Al and Maria we had a few hours to kill so walked the rest of central park before catching a bus to the airport for a rather long wait before our next flight.....

Vegas Baby!!!!!!!!!