An apple a day....

I should have taken my own advice, I have been down and out for the past day with a pretty bad head cold, and apart from an extended sleep in yesterday, it was still full steam ahead here in NYC.

Went to the Frick Collection, this is a mansion built on 5th Ave by John  Henry Clay Frick it is the most amazing building, it was built for him in 1913 and his intention was to have it left to the state  after his death as a museum along with his very excellent art and furniture collation. If you come to new york it is well worth a visit, and you can get a free audio guide included in the admission price. www.frick.org

Also walked along the high line, this was an old elevated freight train line which was abandoned mid last century and instead of dismantling it they have turned it into a sort of park, it is quite interesting to walk about part of the city and it has a great view out to the Hudson.  www.thehighline.org

Did the Museum of NYC today, and managed to while away 4 hours there! A wonderful place to get the history and stories of NYC and they have a great book shop too!

But all theses physical and intellectual pursuits can leave a girl wanting something for the other side of her brain, so where else but down to 34th St, the fashion district for a bit of credit card therapy!

I scored some sweet buys today,
a very sexy pair of leopard print shoes by Aerosoles, which mean they just don't look good, they feel great on your feet! Who says fashion can't be comfortable..

and because it is summer at home I could not go past these nine west sandals, and then you know how it us, if you get the shoes, you need the matching handbag and then the ear-rings to complete the ensemble, so voila here it is!

It was crazy in the city, we stayed in town and had dinner with Meaghan and Damian in a Italian place, while waiting in front of the Plaza hotel I took this photo, I thought the moon looked so lovely above.

So twinkle twinkle, this little star is off to bed, be back soon....

A bite of the Big Apple

I am beginning to wonder how many more cliches I can make of NYC before I go home!

We have been so busy, I have worn out my boots (so sad, I will need to get a new pair!). Yesterday (Boxing Day which is not celebrated here, but it was a sort of holiday because Christmas was on a Sunday) Vince and I walked from our house in 120th Street down to Columbus Circle at 58th Street, which is quite a hike! We went though Central Park and then along Central Park West to the Dakota building, which I do not have to tell you what it is famous for, do I? Here is a pic I took from Central park showing the manhattan skyline

It was surprising that the Dakota did not seem as awe inspiring as it was the first time I saw it, maybe I am beginning to get blasé in my middle age!
Anyway Columbus circle was very crowded and it was getting cold so we ducked in to a Starbucks and warmed up and then took an adventure on the M7 bus which almost delivered us directly to our door. The location here is excellent for transport, we have 3 express buses ( that I have counted and ridden on so far) plus 2 subway lines, and only a 10 block walk from central park. I highly recommend this area if you are planning to stay for any length of time here. Below are some pics I took on Christmas Eve, I bought some lovely roses from the local market, and made the living room all cosy and pretty, the tree is downstairs in the TV room, this house is huge. I made a video but for some reason I cannot upload it, so I might put it on Face book for anyone who is interested in seeing the house.

From kitchen looking towards dining area and front sitting room

Looking back from sitting room toward kitchen

Today we had a family day, Amy and Elaine went to the Natural History Museum, and the rest of the gang we went to the NYC public library, it is an amazing building, when it was built it was the largest marble building in the USA and the staff had to be given special rubber shoes because of the hard marble floors, ( I can attest to that, I am nursing some sore feet myself this evening!).
Stopped off to watch the skaters at Bryant Park, here is  a snap

We then caught the subway down to China town and met up with everyone and had some dim sum for a late lunch, it was delicious but the service was a bit dodgy and then the waitress accosted us when we were leaving because she said we did not leave enough tip!  We did leave what we thought the service was worth, but I hate this whole tipping thing here, it becomes not a reward for good food and service but an expected part of any transaction, I say just pay everyone a decent salary and leave tips for the extraordinary, like we do at home! That is my homily for today.

We spit up after lunch and Verity and Ingrid went to get their nails done, Here is a sample of Verity's

the rest of us went for a very brief shopping trip to Century 21, ( the boys in the family could only stand 1/2 hour!) so you can be sure that they will be another expedition there.

We had a lot of rain this afternoon which made walking around a bit of a pain but we managed to get the subway back home and now we are all here, safe and sound.

so what tomorrow holds, I am not sure it will depend a bit on the weather, whether it will be an indoor or outdoor day,,,,, stay tuned!

Twas the day after Christmas!

and people are just starting to stir here.

Verity is off to do some museums, Vince and I plan to go walking through Central park and perhaps drop in at the Frick museum, as for the others they haven't surfaced yet so not sure what their plans are.

So you ask, how was yesterday?

Well, we started with Gospel Church at the Greater Refuge Temple on Adam Clayton Bld, just down from the Apollo. It was HUGE, they had security guys just like in nightclubs, and  inside it was a big as a picture theatre ( including the seats that go up when you stand up!).

Anyway it was wonderful, the singing was amazing I felt moved to tears at time, after all I am a christmas carol tragic!  The lovely lady who has rented us the house,  Erdene took us, and we were made so welcome by the congregation, they asked all newcomers to stand up and then welcomed us with clapping and a welcome speech. The whole church has such a lovely feel, a lot of happiness and singing and dancing. I reckon I could almost be dragged back to church again if it was guaranteed to be like that.

Then it was back to the house for THE LUNCH! And for those who were sweating on my juniper berry gravy, it did make an appearance on the table, Good ol USA, home of fabulous grocery stores that sell almost everything!

The grilled  lobster tails with garlic and parsley butter  were probably the hit of the day and Verity came to the party with a pumpkin pie, chocolate dipped fruit and a peanut butter cookie creation served with ice cream, All delicious!

And Santa did make it to NYC and everyone had a lovely day. We went to bed at 8.30 all exhausted but happy for our first christmas in NYC.

Here is a picture of us all ( except Megs who was sleeping in ) on the way to church we are on the stoop of our house.

Not a Snow White Christmas!

midday christmas eve..

Weather report:

Weather for New York, NY

32°F | °C

Sat

Sun

Mon

Tue

Clear

Wind: N at 4 mph

Humidity: 54%

41°

31°

49°

34°

43°

32°

47°

36°

:-(

we all slept in today ( except for Verity who was up early to go and grab some bargains) I blame it on the 50+ blocks we walked yesterday.

Today preps are in full swing for the BIG DAY. My sister Michelle and her family have arrived and are ensconced in their penthouse down town and I believe a visit to FAO is underway as I write for her 9 year old twins, what a great Christmas trip for them!

A visit to the wonderful 2 storey supermarket to get out last minute supplies and then some cooking

Lunch menu for tomorrow:

Nibbles first

Grilled lobster tails with garlic butter

Roast free range chickens

Roasted Pork Loin with Juniper berry ( if I can find them) gravy

Assorted roast vegetables

the girls are doing desert  (Verity tells me she is still researching  her contribution) and Ingrid is going a pumpkin pie. all very USA.

And the boys are in charge of the drinks so I hope a few quality champers will be provided  (vince?)

So we're off to have our very own Merry Christmas! Hope your day is wonderful too!

Foot note..

You will recall in a previous episode that my significant other had a minor accident at the hotel in NYC and we had the whole CSI experience.

Well just to let you know that they ( that is the hotel, not CSI) rang today to see how he was ( code for "we hope you are not going to sue us!") I am hoping that it will translate to lots of extra reward points on my Marriott Account ( I hope they are reading this!)

We have walked all over east village today and found a gourmet supermarket just around the corner from us it is so big it has 2 Floors!  We have planned the Christmas day menu, but you will have to wait until tomorrow's post to see what we are going to cook.


BTW: I think it it highly amusing that a blog site spell check does not recognise the work blog! Go figure!

Merry Christmas!!!

Globetrotters in Harlem

Well, we are in the house. The neighbourhood is very nice, a lot of old town homes which are being done up. There are a lot of good food places, cafes, delis and markets we ventured out yesterday and went to our local market and stocked up for a big old family cook up last night. It was really nice not to have to go out to a restaurant and just cook and relax in our house.

Anyway there  is so much to do haven't go much time to blog, Amy and I are about to go out to the gourmet deli and look for some inspiration for our Christmas lunch.

An apple a day....

NYC: the big apple, not sure which one it is, a granny smith, a fuji? I think most likely a Pink Lady.

Arrived safe and sound, ensconced in the Marriott East Side for 2 nights before we go to our house in Harlem.

things I did today,
went walking around 5th Ave, I can't believe there is supposed to be a recession here,  there were people everywhere and spending money. The decorations are amazing, not not awesome, which is a word that is far too over used here!


My significant other spent the afternoon shopping, I went along as his personal stylist.
We went to FAO Schwartz and I couldn't get out of there fast  enough, it was so hot and crowded, that is the trouble, it is not that cold, but they overheat everything here inside, currently it is about 60 degrees Fahrenheit here.

I took some pictures, I will add them later, but for my friend Baby Macbeth, I saw this dress from Stella McCartney and model in the window and thought it was just like you!

It would not be a day without a couple of fox paws, here is my list for today.

1. Had brunch in a Jewish cafe and asked if I could have ham on my panini, NO!

2. when leaving wished everyone Merry Christmas!   (not quite Kosher)

and then the doozy,

we booked to go to the River Cafe, it is a very flash and expensive restaurant in Brooklyn just under the bridge and has a great view of Manhattan, we took Meaghan and Damian there to spend some "special time" with them.

Meg and Damian at River Cafe

When I confirmed our booking they told me that gentlemen need to wear a suit coat. Now, I am not that up with the hoi poli, ( as my mother would have called them)  but I thought that rule went out in Australia about 1980, so I made sure our "men" had their suit coats  (and ties just in case!)

Anyway it was overheated ( as previously explained) and the "Men" took their coats off,  and about 5 minutes later , the coat monitor came and told them to please put their coats on!  Funny thing was another man took the lead off the Aussies and took his coat off and also was told to put it back on.

I am not sure what it is about a coat that is so special, does it confer a sense of gravitas or does it make sure that you will not wreck the restaurant or can afford the bill? It is a bit of a strange thing as a coat does not maketh  the man, or I think Shakespeare said something to that effect. I mean if a rapper or drug dealer can wear a suit jacket where does that leave civilisation??

Saying that it was a wonderful meal and well recommended if you want somewhere special to eat in  NYC.

End of Day 1,  as I write this Significant Other has just cut his foot on a shard of glass in our room, ( not from us) and we now have the hotel detective and cleaning staff doing a CSI of our room just in case we sue!

Only In America!

FAO Schwartz in 5th Avenue

Plaza outside FAO Schwartz where I sat to cool down

Plaza Hotel where Carrie ran into Big after his engagement party

 

The BIG PIANO at FAO Schwartz

watch this space!

3 Minutes ...

3 minutes….

that's all it took to miss check in for our flight to NYC and enjoy an extended delay of 4 hours at the wonderful airport in Las Vegas.  (tongue planted firmly in cheek there!) If you are so keen to gamble you can even have a go while waiting for your bag to arrive see here it is..

Although there are some really tacky sides to Las Vegas ( men on streets handing our cards for girls to come to your hotel, and a truck driving around to tell you that there are HOT BABES waiting to meet you, yes YOU, they really want to meet you!)  there is still a lot to enjoy.

The girls wanted to go to the buffet at the Pink Flamingo ( they were hungry and hung over, that is the excuse) so we went but IT WAS CLOSED for renovations! But we got to see the real pink flamingos here they are, they are really quite amazing colours.

 Yesterday we went on a helicopter tour over Hoover Dam and to the Grand Canyon. We landed above the Colorado river and had a champers ( as you do!) and had a look around. The chipmunks come out for a look and some of your snacks, they are soooo cute! I wanted to bring one home, but I think customs may have something to say about that.

Here is some snaps and some video from the trip…….

The Colorado River from the helicopter

See us flying above the Colorado river, can see the shadow of the helicopter!

A Joshua Tree

Truly amazing!

Dinner in Paris last night! Steak Frites just as good as I have had in the real Paris

and then an early night, because we had to be at the airport at 6.15 for our flight, BUT

something the GPS does not tell you..

THE RENTAL CAR RETURN STATION HAS MOVED and is now further from the airport than our hotel was, hence the loss of the vital 3 MINUTES to get to the check in

BUT all is not bad, the time as given me the opportunity to write something for the blog.

Cause everyone knows WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS, STAYS IN VEGAS!

Our maverick Helicopter, and thanks to our pilot Nathan for a great trip!
http://maverickhelicopter27.reachlocal.net/tour-wind-dancer.aspx

So its time to bid adieu to Las Vegas, and HEELLLO Big Apple!

viva las vegas, and the rest!

Still not taking my own and others advice and have had a sav blanc here tonight, I can't believe how inexpensive alcohol is here in las vegas! Anyway that's another story for another day.

What have I been up to, well....
been to Palm Springs, and loved it! If you love mid century architecture and especially desert modern this is the place to go. We had a blast, although some of the more famous houses are very hard to see, they have their own private roads with security and gates. It is very apparent that there is a recession on here, the shops are empty, there are a lot of empty shops and not many people around.

we went on the Aeriel tram, which was quite fun, you catch this cable car which rotates 360 degrees while you are ascending and descending and takes you to the top of Mt Joachim national park a full 8500 feet, (2.5 miles I am told) where you are greeted with snow, ice and searing cold! I was dressed for the desert and found it very chilly!
Here is a video I made from my i-phone

BUT!

when you get to Vegas it all changes!

there are people everywhere, with drinks in their hands! People of all types, ages, ethnicity and sizes! I find it hard to believe that brand names like Vuitton, Chanel, Dior et al can find enough customers here but a lot of these brand names have stores in every hotel complex, so something must be working for them!

anyway it's Saturday night in Vegas, and I have a date with a hot ( insert whatever you are thinking at this moment!)  pillow, still not over my jet lag and can sleep at the drop of a hat.

Anyway thanks for reading and will post something again soon.

new modernism

Am on a bit of an architecture high after the last 2 days in LA. Pictures will come later but we have trudged all over the downtown area ( the oldest part of LA) braved the metro to get to LAX to pick up a hire car and then we did the FABULOUS tour of silver lake, a mid century modern haven.

Then I took the wheel as achey breaky has never driven on the other side before and head longed it out onto the interstate highway spending a good hour in the LA rush hour traffic ( you can't pay for an experience like that) and then cruising at around 80mph (I didn't see any speed signs, and that is my excuse officer!) and this evening arrived in Palm Springs, the play land of the rich and infamous and for the next 2 days the poor and notorious of Glenquarry.

I can't make any judgements yet as it was night when we got into town, but is has a great deal of mid century modern houses etc so I can bore you silly with that on the next blog.
You will be pleased to know the weather has cleared, and has been quite sunny about 16degrees C and only need to wear a long tee shirt.

talk to you again soon.
GG

Travel day 1 - 2

Had a most excellent flight in Qantas premium economy (just hope they read this and give us another upgrade for the return journey!

Arrived in LA to a torrential weather system, rain and snow on the mountain areas! Just like what we had left behind in NSW. I think I can see some snow on the mountains from our hotel room.

Despite our best intentions and I am blaming the weather we spent most of our first day sleeping! But went out and braved the elements  the eventually found a wonderful restaurant outside the LA public library called Pinot Noir ( trust us to find a place named after a wine!) anyway it was FAB.

 I had french onion soup and then a delightful free range rotisserie chicken with the most wonderful frites which had this very subtle garlic flavour. Vince has a dugeness crab cake with cauliflower fondue and s small salad on top of a sliced granny smith apple, very visually appealing and delicious. The service was extremely professional and the sommelier recommended a very fine Napa Valley Pinot Gris.

Came home and indulged myself with watching crappy american TV, that is a whole future blog in itself. Today we are doing the downtown area and looking a some very interesting buildings.
thanks for reading!

I'm living in the 70's ( well almost!)

Not taking my own advice, ( see previous blog) and having a drink in the Qantas Club before I fly off to the USA! Very excited as we got our requested upgrade ( thanks Qantas!) but that is not the topic under discussion today, I will save my travel exploits for another blog.

We have been frantically trying to get our house clean, tidy and bathroom renovated in the space of the last month, and those of you who have seen the chaos I have been residing in can realise what a mammoth undertaking this has been.


Well,


I am proud to announce that WE did it! The bathroom is done, bar painting, but very functional, the crap
 (read here really useful things we keep but not sure why) are in the shed in the backyard and we now have something resembling a lounge and dining room furnished with my finds on e-bay ( hence the 70's theme).

 I wanted to pay homage to the era the house was built in and it is funny that the 70's furniture is really the right size for the house, modern furniture seems to overcrowd it, but old  and lovely parker furniture fits just right!

take a look at my rooms!

Anyway I am going to fit in another champers before my flight is called, so will blog from sunny ( well sunnier than Sydney at present!) LA!

Don't drink and Blog, or email or text!

I am in the midst of getting ready for our trip to New York for Christmas, YES I am having a WHITE Christmas, miracle on 34th St, every New York Christmas cliche you can think of, I am up for it!

Just got back from the cinema I went with my movie buddy ML and we saw New Years Eve, which is set in NYC.  newyearsevemovie.warnerbros.com

It was great and a wonderful way to get into holiday mode, and dear followers, do not fret, I will faithfully blog from the big apple as my significant other (aka the Big Banana) has provided a Mac Book Pro for me to use while I am away.

But as usual I digress.......

My lovely mother in law gave me a little gift yesterday it is called the "My little Paris": the best kept Parisian secrets, http://www.mylittle.fr/mylittleparis/en/the-best-kept-parisian-secrets.html

and those of you who know me will know if it has en eiffel tower on it, I am there!

Anyway there is a little note on a service you can get on google mail to protect you if you like a drink or three or four and don't want to embarrass yourself !

I thought this was very topical given that I have come home from the movie, had a couple of sad blanks (that is spell check for sav blanc !!)   and started working on this blog.

so with out any more ado this is what you can do! 

Available on any gmail setting in English, 

https://www.google.com/accounts/ManageAccount

Bon Soir, off my to my bed chamber!
adieu.