Winter wonderand

 Today I got my white Christmas in New York City - it was magical and fun for the first 5 minutes and then it was just cold and wet.

 I soldiered on through the snow and made it to the NYC Ballet theatre in the Lincoln Centre to see The Nutcracker.  It was a sweet holiday season ballet. Thankfully I caught the subway home..... walking in the snow and sludge is not that much fun.

Christmas

Christmas in New York City  tick!

Today is my Christmas day, most of you readers are just waking up to boxing day and maybe some serious shopping.  There is no snow here in the city but it is cold and pretty quiet at my end of town.

Christmas Eve I had decided to head to the Rockerfella centre to go to the top of the rock for one of the best views of the city... I got to the Rockerfella centre to find that every tourist in town was there - duh!

There was no way I was fighting that crowd so I soaked in the atmosphere for a moment and headed out of there.  I can go another day.

We only get Christmas day off work  here so back to work for me on the 26th - I am dead tired from my weekend at Niagara so I had a huge sleep in, went to the movies and ate some pie  - a perfect day for me really.

Merry Christmas to you all and thank you, thank you to all my family and friends who emailed, vibered and  sent me cards and little  surprises - I am truly a lucky girl.I got to speak to my dad and that was the best Christmas present of all. xx

Niagara

Last weekend I took a trip to Niagara Falls... did you know it was half in Canada  who knew?

 First there was a 9 hour bus trip which was great as I got some serious snooze time in a seat on my own and I got to see a lot of the US countryside of which most was full of snow - there is my white Christmas right there-  tick!

 Once at the falls we toured both sides (American and Canadian) with the most spectacular falls being the horseshoe falls best viewed from the Canadian side of the water.

 It was also probably the coldest I have ever been - the paths were icy and the air was heavy with the mist from the falls - I seriously thought I had frostbite when I had to take my gloves off to take a photo.

 These are just photos and never as good as the real thing but really these falls are pretty spectacular and loud, you really need to visit them in person to appreciate them.  It is off season due to the weather but I think the snow, ice and cold added to the wonder and beauty of this area.- apparently once every 50 years the falls actually freeze over, that would be amazing to see.

A long ride from NYC but well and truly worth it and I can now say I have been to Canada!  Boston, Washington, Philadelphia and Chicago are next!

Romantic commute

Last night I caught the Ferry to Staten Island to have a sleep over at a friend and her partners home.  It was a freezing night but regardless it was a perfect way to see the city in all its glowing glory - the days work issues were long gone as we soaked up the winter night delight.  I am sure if you rode the ferry every day to and from work it would not be so exciting but to me it was a romantic journey at the end of a working day.
Sorry about my devil eyes - red eye reduction not doing its job!

To Astoria with Love

Today after work I met a friend in Astoria Queens for a mid week feast.  We went to this Greek Tavern where to my delight my friend knew the owner

 His name was Andy and apparently that is his boat below

 We both said we did not want that much to eat so a healthy greek salad and some kebabs would be fine.....

 OMG - lets just say Andy must have thought we had both just returned from a 40 hour famine... the food amount was huge and of course OH SO DELICIOUS!!!

 We did what we could and as is the normal practice here got the leftovers to go (after a roar of laughter when the Aussie girl asked for a doggy bag - a simple 'take to go' would have been suffice)

 Just as we were about to leave after paying the pittance bill Andy sent over some baked custard..... how did he know I love this more than life.... how did he know, I could have cried, I was so full but managed to inhale this amazing delight - thank you Andy,  you have never met me before but I love you!

 Next a stroll was in order and of course Astoria Ditmars is a gastronomical delight - it is full of all things food and dessert - I could only look in this window... next time.

 Astoria is now my second favourite part of NY that  I have seen - Manhattan first, a quaint suburb full of culture and all things delicious.  It was only 20 mins on the subway from my job in uptown Manhattan. Maybe a little bit of Preston if I had to compare?

 Lots of decorated houses for the holiday season

And of course a giant santa and snowman and me in my puffa jacket  -  it is like wearing a doona and oh so warm and cozy.

Astoria Ditmars, we love you and I will be back. xx

Culture Club

Today was a cold wet day in NYC so I decided to get some indoor culture.  I hit the Guggenheim and MET museums.  These are not my photos, the weather was bleak and grey so not worth pulling out the camera  - I am a little over being a tourist and you can't take photos in the museums mostly.  

 Gugegnheim - amazing building and I was lucky enough to see the Picasso Black and White works.

 The MET - full of all things art - sculpture, paintings, furniture, textile and their amazing Christmas Tree.

I was lucky to catch the Matisse and Andy Warhol exhibitions which were both pretty impressive to me who does not know a lot about art but am gaining an appreciation.  There was also an exhibition which showed manipulated photography before photoshop existed - people were so clever and it was done with not computer in sight.

So today there was no shopping, it was all about the culture and the persistent rain.

Otherwise back to work tomorrow  - working for the man like most of you - nothing too exciting to blog about that so yes blogs are getting light, the holiday is definitely over but I am off to Niagara Falls next week so I am sure I can indulge you in a little of that adventure if I don't freeze to death there. xx

Back on Board

Finally I am feeling a little better and have been able to get out and about...

 An after work stroll to Rockerfella centre and the famous Christmas tree that was lit in pomp and ceremony last week.

 Freezing temperature but does not stop the tourists!

 This city sure knows how to do Christmas and the holidays

Next onto Bryant Park where the ice rink was being swept - the rink looked like a mirror

My destination was MOMA - it is free entry on a Friday night so for a saving of $25 that had my Friday night written all over it.

 Like everything else in NYC I had to line up for the free ticket but 25 minutes was a good line up!

 There was an interactive projector room where anyone could dance or move on a platform and their image would come out with some crazy effects - it was mesmerizing, could have sat and watched how people reacted for hours.

Next onto the galleries... now I don't proclaim to know anything about art so I went in with an open mind and snapped a few pieces that somehow appealed to me ... No justification needed, I just likes the look.

 I actually especially liked the architecture gallery.

 These were metal which I thought was cool

 The famous 'scream' - a lot smaller than I would have thought

Now onto Saturday where I took a private subway ride (one stop) with my destination being Queens

 Went to Rego park shopping centre and another area called Queens centre

 Above is a look at some of the normal apartment living that is fairly consistent around the Queens neighbourhood.

 Sunday took me on a ferry ride to Staten Island

 A free ride that actually gives you one of the best photo opportunities for the statue of liberty

 Went to the Staten Island mall by bus which gave me a good look at Staten Island neighbourhood - pretty suburban really and quite old looking, not many modern buildings.  Of course the crazy lady sat next to me on the bus and recited her shopping list to me for about 20 minutes.... I always attract them God bless them.

 Arriving back into Manhattan - no sun shine today, in fact rain pretty much all day.

 Finally a walk throuh wall street on the way home, even wall street decorates for the holidays!

So 2 more boroughs have been visited and ticket off my list - only the Bronx to go but really I have no plan to go, you only have to watch the news to be a little worried about the bronx!