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.

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.