Back

My back is getting worse again... rather quickly...

Crap...

We are 16 again!!!

Serious. After months of walking and bussing I bought a car. It is totally like we are sixteen again. How amazing it is to just drive Uptown (Downtown) instead of waiting for the bus.

We are sooo cool without a radio and without automatic windows. We rock...

16 again...

Cook Luck...

I just won a 55$ ticket to a networking event... heh...

A Day of Studying...

1 Part Long Days of Studying + 1 Part Cheap Seafood + 1 Part Awesome =

p.s. What is the average of Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom? I'll let you figure it out...

Bermuda Shorts Day!!!

For those of you who don't know, yesterday was the last day of classes for university students at the University of Calgary making it the annual holiday of Bermuda Shorts Day (BSD). Usually I would be in attendance, but with my not attending U of C this has posed to be a challenge.

Either way, things sounded as amazing as ever. Successful engineering pancake breakfast, then the 6th Annual BSD Beer Mile, followed by sofa races and an afternoon at the beer gardens.

I will not elaborate too much but I highly recommend checking out the following links:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/Students+loose+Bermuda+style/2918482/story.html - Bermuda Shorts Day

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/calgary/story/2010/04/16/calgary-university-uofc-bsd-bermuda-couch.html#socialcomments - Couch Races

http://www.cbc.ca/video/player.html?category=News&clipid=1471037386 - Couch Race Video

http://www.calgarysun.com/news/alberta/2010/04/16/13615026.html - Couch Race Photos

Based on how this has been skewed in the news there have been a lot of interesting complaints from people who are not related to the situation at all... I think they should remember that this is an annual tradition and if you are not directly impacted by it let it go. If you are adversely impacted by it then you definitely have a right to complain, but the rest of you... go grinch your own lives.

Jesse Cook

The Imperial Theatre

So, Jesse Cook was/were in Saint John on Tuesday. It turns out that most people my age don't actually know who Jesse Cook is, and for the benefit of those few, he is an extremely talented and famous Canadian flamenco guitar player.

Seeing he was in town I was able to pick up a ticket and make it to the show. First thing first, the Imperial Theatre is amazing. Evidently it is almost one hundred years old and it definitely shows. It looks like it belongs in the 1800's.

I sat down beside a lovely lady and we mingled a bit before the concert (thus my knowing the Theatre is almost one hundred years old).

Concert started and it was amazing. They played and played and played some more. We hit the intermission and then returned. Now, instead of just sitting and watching like many concerts, Mr. Cook (oh thats funny to say) requested that we all stand to have a giant Rhumba party. This was in response to how usually you get one person would just stand up and start dancing, and then be humiliated when they opened their eyes to see everyone sitting. So, to avoid that we all got to our feet and had one big Rhumba party.

Okokok... I did not dance, but I stood there and was in the vicinity of people dancing, and thus, the Rhumba party.

I was sad to see the show end but the performance was good. We stood and applauded for the encore, and stood, and stood, and stood, and stood for like... forever. I was starting to wonder if they would come out before the crowd gave up and just as I seemed to wonder that they appeared.

The show was good, but the encore was amazing. Jesse Cook is known for a cover of a song called Fall at your Feet, and it was in the encore that this song appeared. Let me give you the image of what they saw. The guys (Cook and his band) came out from behind the curtains and Jesse was handed a different guitar. His regular guitar plugs into an amp, but this one was solely acoustic. The guys walked to the front of the stage where Jesse sat, his backup guitarist stood on his right and the rest of the guys stood (without instruments) on his left.

I have never seen anything like this.

He asked us without mic, "Can you hear me?" We could. "Good, this place is probably better for this kind of thing anyways."

It looked like two instruments with the two guitars, but they produced a full sound. The violinist turned to vocals and the other two guys created full percussion with just their hands and feet. It is kind of funny, as I listened I did not notice, but the clapping and stomping creates a full percussive undertone that adds depths and breadth to the piece. The singer has a certain quality that fits very well into the song, especially with his incredible ability. As always Jesse wows.

It was just amazing to see the guys standing there. No amps. No mics. With two guitars, and few clapping hands, and a voice they filled the Theatre with music.

Here is a video of the live performance:

This video is the official music video for the song, the movie is not as impressive, but you can hear the song much clearer:

I had bussed to the concert, which is fine, because I tend to bus everywhere and my seat neighbour was aware of this. It just came up that I was a student, and I am sure she could guess. 10 o'clock rolls round and the concert is ending. About to head out my seat neighbour offers me a ride. I am fairly certain that it was not on her way, but still, she offered nonetheless. I was happy to expect.

I love the maritimes. It is not everywhere where that would happen to you. She saved me ages as I would have to wait for the bus and then take it home.

Thank you!

Home, and in bed, all I could hear was the strumming of that perfect guitar made by the fine hands of a craftsman with a seven year wait list... the concert was amazing.

All ye heathens in my generation who do not know who Jesse Cook is... you have missed out.

p.s. This version is done by James Blunt, and is one of my personal favourites...

New York, New York, Day 4

Up early as usual, checked out, and on the bus. It was my last day in New York so I did not have any huge plans. The bus fought its way through the traffic and into the city. I was on my feet and following my maps. Subway. Why, oh why?

I found the station, I mean, it wasn't that hard... I mean, it too great feats of, well, something and it was grueling and, whatever, I found the subway. I looked at my map and I knew which lines I needed to take. To me, all of the lines look like they go the same way so when a train came I hopped on. This, perhaps, was not the best move. I looked at the little indicator bar as to where we were going and it was some place that I had never heard of. Crap. So, the next, and first, stop came and I got off of the train. Luckily I was still on that main train corridor and I had not gotten too lost yet. I waited for the train that I was "supposed" to take and then got on... again.

This time it was the right train, and as I looked at the indicator bar thingy it told me so. Uptown and away until I got to the stop for the Museum of Natural History. The subway station is actually inside the museum which was rather convenient for me as it was just about impossible to get lost.

Museum of Natural History

I was off of the subway and into the museum. At this point I had identified a trend in New York museums, and that is that they are all enormous. That in mind I started looking for... anything. It was a good thing that I had no other things to do that day because I found myself looking at stuffed animals (like... real animals... but stuffed) and neanderthal bones. I was looking at the formation of the earth, and geology, and gemstones (oh how I love gemstones, anyone who has known me since I was a child can attest), and meteorites. The meteorites were actually fascinating. They had one in the museum that was a little smaller than a Volkswagen (the old ones not the new) and to support it there was a structure going down out of the museum and into the bedrock. It looked about how I thought it should, as a melted piece of space rock, but man was it cool.

Yep... thats a blue whale alright... uh... how did they get it in here?

They say this happens in real life... but no one has ever seen it... ever...

Stampede!

Alright, so it has been highlighted that I am a geek... back to how those who know me can attest. Anyways, I was deeply fascinated by the look at the homo sapien and the neanderthal. This will spurn a short story, when I get the time, regarding the overlap of these two species. It seems to be pretty clear that we killed them out, like just about everything else on the planet (including ourselves), and that seems to be worth writing about. Almost as if we were the species to win, but would it have been better if we weren't? Everyone has their own opinions on that I am sure, but I for one, do not necessarily like the direction this world of ours is headed.

Wow, that was a mild tangent. Back to the plot. I spent a few hours in the museum and then had exhausted my ability to internalize dead stuff and rocks. I went back out into the world, and into Central Park. It was right across the street so that was rather convenient. I had seen the lake with the row boats earlier, but I wanted to see the other lake that I saw from Rockefeller Center. I was much closer now so I was able to walk up to it. The breeze hit the water and cooled off and it reminded me of home. I will be able to return one day.

The Big Lake in Central Park

Renewal

The flowers were out and I got a few photos and then had to make my way back. It was afternoon and I only had a few hours left. I made it to another subway station, and miraculously did not get lost as I headed back downtown. I stopped at Columbus Circle and then continued on foot.

Triumph

I found a nice "hole in the wall" pizza joint and sat down for a relaxing meal.

For Mell

Walking. 8th Ave. Times Square. Reading the New York Times in Times Square, then 42nd St, and the bus.

Waiting. Exhausted. I heard the war stories of other travelers.

The bus arrived and we boarded with a deadened enthusiasm.

Adios New York

A long ride home filled with "Step Brothers" and "Up" and very little sleep.

The bus arrived at 7:00ish am. By fluke timing of the city bus I made it home by 7:30ish am. In bed by 7:31ish am.

Up at 11 am.

Class at Noon.

Overall, it was a great trip. The price was right and the memories will last a lifetime. I did not see everything in New York, after all it is a big city, but I am young, and I have time.

Till then New York.

Cook Luck

For those of you who know me and my family, you know this fact but for those of you who don't, I will fill you in.

Cooks are lucky.

One might think, sure, ok, "Cooks are lucky" but how do you really know? Well, we know, because we have a tendency to win free stuff all the time. Like, when I was in band, someone from my family won a prize at almost every concert! I will admit, not all of those family members were Cooks, but, it is the Cook aura of luckiness.

I will be honest. We don't seem to win anything huge, as I have yet to see a new car roll into the driveway, or the house fill with money as we win the lottery, but we win. I mean, a free poinsettia, or gift basket, or ipod never hurt anyone, right?

I have continued the trend today. The cafeteria had a contest where when you bought a pop you would get a stamp on a card. With five stamps you could submit the card with your name on it for a draw. The final draw was evidently called today, and I won!

This is kind of funny. Over my year at school I probably spend $30ish on Pepsi at school and now, I am the proud owner of a $150 ipod dock!!! Woo-Hoo!!!

So, I am still working out the logistics of how I do not have an ipod, but I consider that kind of... trivial.

Ipod dock, yyeeaaahhhh!

Still Coming: New York, New York, Day 4 (Probably tomorrow)

New York, New York, Day 3

Why on Earth is it always so early? Up. Breakfast. Bus.

By the time we got to Manhattan it really was not that early, but the process is just so... arduous. Getting there early we thought that we might try and avoid the crowds by getting a start on the day. The first thing on the menu was to go to Rockefeller Center. There we could pay $21 and go up to the "Top of the Rock." From there we could see all of New York. We had heard that it might be busy, so we went to the ticket booth first thing. Well, it wasn't busy yet. They said that we could go up in 15 minutes, so we wandered around Rockefeller Center and waited. The time came and we went inside. Like well herded cattle we were ushered in around and to the elevator. The doors opened and we were speedily raised to the "Top of the Rock."

Central Park

There are three floors at the top of Rockefeller Center, and we managed to cover them all. The view, was, well, spectacular. We could see all of Manhattan and beyond. Looking at the photos now it is interesting to see how much ground I actually covered on my trip, especially with my inability to use/aversion of subways.

Back to the point - spectacular.

Empire States Building and me!

Another express elevator ride later and we were back where we started. With different plans my travel companions and I split up. I followed my handy subway map that I acquired... somewhere... and hoped on the nearest line going downtown. I am proud to say that I, for once, did not get on the wrong train, or get lost.

I arrived in Soho. Soho is a quaint little shopping district with more boutiques then large department stores. This might have been a little more interesting to me if I had any intention of shopping, but, it was still a beautiful place for a walk. The day was warm and I had no where to be so I took my time. I was looking at the shops to see if anything caught my eye but I did not have my hopes up because I was in New York, and well, I am a little... thrifty.

Soho

Now on my feet and somewhere in/on Manhattan there was no stopping me. I walked from the subway to Soho, then through Soho, then I just kept on walking. "These boots were made for walkin'..." Anyways, I walked my way to Canal Street as suggested by my personal guide and approached Little Italy and Chinatown. On approach I remembered something about eating the street food in that area and subsequently remembered that I was hungry. It was like, hey, remember, lunchtime! So, walking down Canal Street I found some street meet. Chicken kabob on a bun... mmm... uh... have you ever thought about the logistics of eating a kabobonabun? It is actually quite difficult. You are like, hmm, I am gonna eat this just like a hot dog, and then you are like hrghm... stick! stick! stick! Whatevs. I managed to eat it somehow, and it was delicious.

On my left, Little Italy.

Little Italy

On my right, Chinatown.

Chinatown... so not as cool as China... but still cool

With a left, and a right, I made my way through Little Italy and then into the depths of Chinatown. This might have been a little more impressive, but when they say Little Italy, they mean Little, and Chinatown... well, once you have been to "China," "Chinatown" is a little less spectacular. It was still worth the trip, and it still let me see more of New York without taking a single train.

My feet kept going as I tried to find the Brooklyn Bridge. It is a rather large bridge so you might not be able to understand my "trying" to find it, but Manhattan is also a rather large island. I found myself standing near the water on the South side of the island. From there I could see the Manhattan Bridge, and the Brooklyn Bridge. Oh yeah, I could also see Brooklyn. I could also see a camera crew and a dark, brooding, and pouty male model posing in the springtime sun. Special. I walked around a bit and got my photos (see below) but somehow managed to actually be a long way from the bridge. And the walking started again...

Manhattan (left) and Brooklyn (right) Bridges

Bridges

Come to think of it. I walked a lot. Oh well, it was probably good for me... working off a big mac or two... Right...

The Brooklyn Bridge is very high. That might seem obvious, but I mention that the Brooklyn Bridge is very high because that means that the road leading up to it had to be very high. Which meant that it could not be near the water, because the water was very low. I, of course, was near the water, and thus, very low. Uphill. Walking. Uphill. Long walk short, I found where the Brooklyn Bridge started, and I fearlessly began to walk. And walk. And walk. It is a very large bridge. I took my time, as with everything, crossing the bridge and was sure to block bicycle traffic so that I could take some fantastic photos. The Brooklyn Bridge is a very famous landmark, actually one of the wonders of the world I believe...

Brooklyn Bridge up close and Personal

Brooklyn Bridge

Across I went and into Brooklyn. My plan was to get to the nearest subway station and then hop a ride back to Manhattan. That would be great, cross the famous bridge, and back on track without missing a beat. Well, I actually didn't have a map of Brooklyn and I missed a beat. I tried to follow a map I found on a tourist sign, but my lack of knowing where I was, and lack of ability ended up getting me lost... Shocking.

In how I travel there are many mixed blessings. I travel with my gut. This has two meanings. One, when I think that I should go somewhere or do something I have a tendency to do so. I feel as if its the PTB (Powers That Be) telling me that I need to see something to help my progress on my path through life. The other leading with my gut is that well... I have Clink guts... Anyways, the Clink guts were not a problem, and neither was the following my gut. What was the problem is my natural state of ataraxia with regards to becoming lost. It is actually part of how I travel. Some of the most amazing things I have ever seen were in a state of... lost. So, I was right on track. No map, and lost in Brooklyn.

I did see some amazing things. There were beautiful parks and some very significant war memorials. I continued on in hopes of finding something spectacular or a subway station that led back to Manhattan. I think it too about an hour and I was close enough to a landmark on my Manhattan subway map that I was able to find a train leading to the island. Great one might think, but the problem is that if you are lost you really cannot be picky about getting found. I took a subway, but I am not really sure which. I was taken to Manhattan... but I was not really sure where. Again... it is a big island.

Subway

Arch-thingy

I climbed the stairs to the surface, and I wandered. I have a generally acceptable sense of direction, and seeing big buildings where I thought I wanted to go I made off... on foot. I am not sure what I found, but I found a spot where the street was closed, and a police officer told me that I could not go that way. I found a big... arch... thing... and I found a gorgeous gorgeous park (City Hall Park?). We had arrived and could see the blossoms on the trees, but finally they were beginning to open. I took my time walking to blossom filled pathways taking photos, and leaving footprints.

Blossoms - Note: More of these Photos in the Album

Eventually, through the graces of my guts and the god of lostitude, I made it back to the site of the World Trade Center. I was hoping to see the museum thing today but when I arrived I was told that the last tour group had gone through... ten minutes prior. Crap. Oh well, there is always more to see.

I knew that I was near there courthouse where they film Law & Order all the time, and since I had the time, and evidently the will, I tried to find the courthouse. This was kind of a challenge since, I don't really know what it looks like, and I was still pretty much lost, and well, I didn't know where the courthouse was. Time to call a friend. I cracked out my blackberry and messaged my guide of a friend in Saint John. In no time I had results and was on my way to the courthouse.

Faux Courthouse

This was great, except there was a slight issue. My directions were a little generalized, and my knowledge of what the courthouse looked like was, well, limited. So when I found "a" courthouse I was ecstatic. It was where it was supposed to be and it was pretty impressive. Fantastic. I took my photos, and then was on my way.

Walking. Walking. Walking. Then... wow. Now that was a big courthouse. Aw crap... still lost, and evidently the courthouse I just saw, though beautiful, was not the one I was looking for. "This is not the courthouse you are looking for," I could hear Obi-Wan say. The good news is that I have a very large memory card for my digital camera so I was able to take photos of both courthouses. The other good news is that I still was not pressed for time.

Courthouse

I took my photos, was adequately awed in the courthouse's presence, and then was on my way. the day was running late and I had to meet my travelling companions in Times Square. I hoofed it over to Broadway and began walking. I stopped along the way for photos, and to write in my journal the events that had transpired and then I continued.

Times Square at Night

Almost as fun as China

We met in Times Square and then had a lovely Asian supper at a Vietnamese Restaurant. We walked around a little longer, where I got some night shots of Atlas, and then returned to the bus. On the way there things got a little interesting. We noticed a very very large police presence. There were cops everywhere, and I mean everywhere. They were stopped on just about every street corner and were waiting in numbers. They had the dogs out, and some of the police even had their whackemathingys out. We did not know what was going on but kept about our business.

I saw a few things, but I did not know what I saw. We heard mixed reports of gang related incidents, and this is what I have been able to piece together. It appears that it was some gang initiation thing. The gangs hit the streets and then who knows. There has been little information about it, but this article sheds some light on the situation: http://www.aolnews.com/crime/article/times-square-melee-evokes-memories-of-new-york-citys-darker-days/19430030

Back on the bus it was a quiet ride to Jersey...

New York, New York, Day 2

Up early. Why oh why is it that on these trips we go to bed late and get up early. I imagine anyone that looked at the movies and photos of New York, New York, Day 1 can see what this kind of stuff does to me. Mind you, I am still at an advantage for my natural ability to need less than average amounts of sleep, but still... why oh why?

We made it into the city by 10 am... ish... Off the bus and onto the feet. We were dropped at Port Authority, which was out pick up location for the entire weekend, and which also happened to be a very central location. My companions and I were headed to 5^th Avenue, which was very easy to get to from where we were. Step step step down 42^nd Street and we were on our way.

42nd Street

I did not have a guide book for New York, but instead I had my own personal tour planned for me. It covered most of the things that I would like to see, and included maps with walking routes of how to get from one site to another. Port Authority to 5^th Avenue... en route, New York Public Library (scene of the bust wedding in the Sex and the City Movie). Step step step and there it was.

My travelling companions were in a hurry so took the Library at a quick glance but I was able to take a leisurely stroll through it. There is just something about the way they do things in New York. I have been in Libraries before, and they are just rooms with some books, and some computers, and you know... librarians, but this was a whole new level of... library. My words cannot possibly do it justice, but I believe that my point-and-shoot can. Grandiose is the best word that I can think of to describe it... that or... mondiferous (world-ly).

New York Public Library

Continuing down 42^nd St, I did manage to find 5^th Avenue. 5^th Avenue is where the good shopping is. I was supposed to head up 5^th Ave on my way to the Museum of Modern Art. On the way I could see all the famous stores, take a photo of people waiting in line to buy the IPad (released that day), and generally just see New York. So, I walked. I saw the stores but then I saw something more important.

Rockefeller Center

Atlas Shrugged is my favourite novel. It is also a very famous novel, and one based in New York, about a certain kind of person. It is a kind of person that has an indomitable spirit and who has the will to create. This is the kind of person who built New York; this is the kind of person like Ayn Rand, or John Rockefeller Jr. I found Rockefeller Center. This to me was probably the most important thing that I could have seen in New York.

“Prometheus, teacher in every art, brought the fire that hath proved to mortals a means to mighty ends.”

“Knowledge and Wisdom shall be the Stability of thy Times.”

Across from Prometheus rests a slab of stone, and cut into it are the words of John Rockefeller Jr. His words say it all:

I Believe

John Davison Rockefeller, Jr.

I believe in the supreme worth of the individual and in his right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

I believe that every right implies a responsibility; every opportunity, an obligation; every possession, a duty.

I believe that the law was made for man and not man for the law; that government is the servant of the people and not their master.

I believe in the dignity of labor, whether with head or hand; that the world owes no man a living but that it owes every man an opportunity to make a living.

I believe that thrift is essential to well ordered living and that economy is a prime requisite of a sound financial structure, whether in government, business or personal affairs.

I believe that truth and justice are fundamental to an enduring social order.

I believe in the sacredness of a promise, that a man’s word should be as good as his bond; that character — not wealth or power or position — is of supreme worth.

I believe that the rendering of useful service is the common duty of mankind and that only in the purifying fire of sacrifice is the dross of selfishness consumed and the greatness of the human soul set free.

I believe in an all-wise and all-loving God, named by whatever name, and that the individual’s highest fulfillment, greatest happiness, and widest usefulness are to be found in living in harmony with His will.

I believe that love is the greatest thing in the world; that it alone can overcome hate; that right can and will triumph over might.

Before moving on, there was one more thing I needed to see, and it was the most important thing that I could have seen in New York. I found my way there, and took a moment to absorb it all.

Atlas: the man to carry the World on his shoulders... Atlas... or John Galt?

The most important by far.

Shellshocked, perhaps, but my eyes were still open. I did not miss St. Patrick’s Cathedral behind me, or the sights of 5^th Avenue. People scuttled about, and despite it being only elevinish in the morning there were still people everywhere.

St. Patrick's Cathedral

I continued up 5^th Ave on my way to MOMA. The line was much better than the evening before so I waited my turn and headed in. I had not heard a lot about MOMA, but I imagined there would be some regular modern art. What I did not expect was the calibre of the art. We are not talking some random unheard of artists trading art for food, but we are talking about the big names. Picasso. Monet. Van Gogh. Dali. This was not some little museum of modern art. This was the big leagues. I had the absolute pleasure of looking on Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” which is probably one of the most famous paintings of all time, and the very bizarre works by Picasso involving minotaurs and like centaurs and fawns and stuff... eaugh...

Starry Night - Van Gogh

One very interesting component was the featured exhibit of “The Artist is Present” by Marina Abramovic. The concept of this exhibit was actually shockingly close to the title, in which the artist would actually be part of the exhibit. In this case she was sitting in a room at a table, and anyone from the audience could go and sit across from her. They would just sit there and... well... look at each other. It was like the longest staring competition ever. The entire time I was at the museum it was the same little girl sitting across from her. Wow. Getting to the top floor of the museum was the rest of the exhibit. I am sad to report that cameras were not allowed, but the art there was phenomenal... and very strange. There was a naked woman sitting on a bike seat, a naked woman lying on a table with a skeleton lying atop her. There were two people sitting back to back in chairs, and two others tying their hair together. My personal favourite was where there was a narrow passageway with a naked man and a naked woman facing each other. This passage was not hidden out of the way, but was actually meant for people to use, so, people would turn sideways, suck in their guts, and try to get through with minimal... contact. It was modern art at its best and I must recommend MOMA to anyone travelling to New York.

The Artist is Present - Marina Abramovic

Those of you who have read my various travel adventures may know that I have a tendency to get moderately lost. What I mean by moderate lost is that I always know ish where I am, and yet, most of the time I actually have no idea where I am. This is not a troubling kind of lost, since I am never too far from somewhere, but it can be time consuming as sometimes it is hard to find that somewhere when you are moderately lost.

New York did not disappoint me with regards to my lostitude. It is a big city, but one where you can know where you are without knowing... uh... where you are... Right. As confusing as that was I made it out of MOMA with relative ease. I made it up 5^th Avenue and past the Apple Store where people were lined up for their IPads with relative ease. And... I made it in to Central Park with relative ease.

Line for the IPad at the Apple Store

Central Park is rather large. It is very easy to find your way in. I had my personal tour map with my route through Central Park, and I was good to go. The issue with this is that though I might have been good to go in the sense of I knew what path I was supposed to be on... I actually had no idea what path I was on.

Having a decent directional sense, and having a map in front of me I decided to forget what path I was on, and to just b-line it to where I thought I was supposed to end up. Sno-Cone in hand I dodged people and children and dogs as I passed the zoo, some lovebirds, and some musicians deeper into the fold. Again, I was not lost... just lostish. I found what I thought was a landmark, and compared it to my map. It was. I was at the Mall, a long straight stretch where the trees hang over the path. Great! I had my bearings and headed straight for Bethesda Terrace. This was a beautiful spot with a little lake with boats and boaters on it, and a statue worth remembering.

Statue at Bethesda Terrace - Central Park

Boats in Central Park

Standing at Bethesda Terrace my map had a clear line showing me how to get out of here and to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. That would be great, but I happen to have this issue with curiosity, and then I am curious I seem to generally just go with that. So off I went in the direction opposite to my map. I got to follow the lake and the boaters, and found a quiet spot where I could write. I also got the pleasure of knowing that on the TV show Castle someone was murdered right by where I was standing (fiction only). So exciting! Seeing the time pass and hearing my hungrix growling it was time for me to move on. Saying map shmap in my head I continued on the path I was on, after all, it was just a little park right? I would get out eventually... right?

The answer was yes. Eventually.

The path I was on did not lead out of the park, instead it lead me deeper into the park to where there was a little castle. I kid you not, there is a little castle thing in Central Park, though now it is used for weather or astronomical research or something as opposed to ruling over terrified denizens. I also found turtle lake. This was strange to me because I understood that there was a lake in Central Park, after all it was a big park, but two lakes? Wow. Sorta knowing where I was I made some executive decisions and tried to escape Central Park. Having little success I tailed some walkers who seemed to have a better grasp of the situation then I did and then I followed my way to freedom. I made it out, and not only did I make it out, but I was on the right side of the park.

Famished and parched I moved on to what was next in my list of priorities. Sluprees, are a delicious iced beverage consisting of a frozen syrup that has been grinded and stirred into a delectable and ingestible treat. Slurpees, or good slurpees, cannot be found in Saint John, New Brunswick, due to a lack of Macs and 7-11 stores, but, slurpees can be found in New York. At this point I was glad that I called Rogers to add messenger service to my phone plan when travelling in the United States, as I messaged my personal travel agent. Nearest 7-11 I asked, and in no time at all my contact on the inside sent me a location. Phone in my pocket and I was on my way.

Parched, was en route to being nothing but a bad dream. Famished was well... Pizza place! Wait wait. Pisa? So, I went in, and it looked like pizza to me, but was definitely called pisa. Maybe that was just their thing. Who am I to judge? I pointed, paid, and was rewarded with a delicious slice of pisa.... buffalo something... It was great, I was satiated, and in just a few minutes me and my slurpee were on the way to the Met.

In a few minutes I was passed the Scientology Celebrity Center and sitting on the stairs of the Met. My slurpee was good, but not as good as one from home. I swear that there is something different about American slurpees, it is as if they are a little carbonated or something. Oh well, it was not enough of a problem to stop be drinking it, and after it was drunk I was on my way up the stairs and into the museum.

I had been told that this museum was enormous, but I had no idea. I started with the nearest exhibit, which was Ancient Egypt and after about 45 minutes I started to wonder about where I was in the museum. I mean, I had been there for some time, I had to be a quarter done or something... nope. More like... one twentieth. Oh well. The Egypt exhibit was good to see. It was all of that stereotypical stuff that one would expect to see inside an Egypt museum, well, except the Temple. Yes indeed, it was a small Temple but there was an entire Temple relocated to inside the Met. Perhaps that gives you some idea as to the size of the museum.

The Temple inside the Metropolitan Museum of Art

I continued on to an exhibit about the United States which was actually inside a building, inside the Met. There I was able to see art from the early history of the United States. I came across this one statue that caught my eye. I do not know what it is exactly that did it, but something.

I continued onto Medieval Arms and Armour, which was everything from European to East Asian. Then up and beyond to Greek and Roman artwork. Then the art of Illumination. Then African art. Then Modern art. Then to sculptures... Sculptures. I have noticed that I have a great fondness for sculptures, and also that I have a great fondness for museums. I could spend all day in them, and oh, in this case... I did! But yes... back to the point... It would appear that I enjoy sculptures the most of all of the art I have come across, followed by paintings. After that I would say it just comes down to the general treasure and booty that has accumulated over the ages. I have many pictures of the Met, but cannot show them all here. If you would like to see more click on my “New York, New York 2010” link on the left.

I will however show you one more piece of work from Salvador Dali.

Running short of time, but not on things to see, I had to leave the Met to meet up with my travelling companions. We met outside of the Guggenheim, which was where I was supposed to be, and then headed out for supper. With a lack of energy and time we opted to return to the restaurant that I dined in the night prior. I had a different meal, but it was just as good. It was excellent.

Again, we returned to the hotel late and expected to get up early.

New York, New York, Day 1

Up early. Martial arts starts at 9:30 am on Thursdays. Weather was mild, but still, I had left my gloves at the University and carrying my bag to school was a cold endeavour. I made it there, and in little time I was in the gym. Practice practice practice, and I was in the classroom. Learn learn learn, and I was in the cafeteria. Munch munch munch, and I was on the bus.

6:00 pm. Most of my classmates returned for another lecture. Me and one other classmate hopped on the bus. The bus was only half full which would save us for the ride. It would give us a little space to try and sleep. We were on the road and on the way south.

It did not take long to reach the border, and overall we had no issues getting through. Two people on our bus were from France and took slightly longer to get through but it did not take long. The Fredericton bus had more issues. I was very fortunate to be sitting with some lovely ladies, one kindergarten teacher and one guidance counselor, who humoured my by inviting me to play a round of scrabble... I think I got dead last, but I swear I gave those two a run for their money! Throughout the trip their banter was most amusing and uplifiting.

Scrabble and Results

We continued on and stopped... somewhere. Our longest stop at at about 4 am and after we all wandered around a bit we just waited... and waited... and waited. Two things held us back. One, we were waiting for the bust from Fredericton, which had been detained at the border, and two, we were too close to New York. If we pulled in that early nothing would be open.

The Fredericton bus eventually made it, but it made it missing one passenger. Some poor soul paid to go to Halifax to get a US visa, but was turned back at the border. There goes $500 for a trip to just look at US soil. Oh well. The rest of us were together an on the way to New York.

As a side note, I would recommend never going on an overnight bus trip... ever.

So after about a zillion (at least) hours on the bus we made it to New York. Not only did we make it to New York, but we made it to New York many hours ahead of schedule. So many that we got an entire half day out of the trip... sooooo... 9ish am we rolled in.

Statue of Liberty

For those of you who have not seen New York, it is impressive. There are a great many very tall buildings, mind you, it looks much bigger on TV, but it was still impressive. Bearing in mind that New York tends to be rather busy and that this was a long weekend we hopped on a subway first thing and went downtown to the Staten Island Ferry. We took our pictures along the way, but most of the pictures happened when we were floating somewhere between Staten Island and Manhattan. From there we had a clear view of the Statue of Liberty. I would like to go see the Statue up close one day, but the lines were enormous and it would have taken hours. The Staten Island Ferry would do for now. We got to the Island and on the advice of well... everyone... we turned back. We did walk around a little, but not much. Back to Manhattan.

After getting off of the ferry we went to a museum about Native Americans. The museum was good, but it doesn't touch Head Smashed In. Being downtown it was not hard for us to walk to Wall Street. It is after all pretty famous so we wandered around a bit. We found some grub, and we continued to the site of the World Trade Center. Not much to see now, but it is the idea that counts. You can look up and imagine the twin towers that stood there before 9/11. There is an interpretive centre thing, but we opted out of entering for the time being. There is also construction occurring on the site. I do not know the details, but they are building a much better trade center there then the one before.

Wall Street

NYSE

Construction on the New Trade Center

We left Lower Manhattan on a train and made it back to Times Square. We had it in our minds to see a Broadway show. The issue was that tickets were sorta hard to come by. We had been told of a place called TKTS in Times Square where we could line up to get tickets, so that is where we headed and that is where we did. We did not know which show to see at first, but people in and around the line were talking about all of the shows and all that I could tell was that if they were on Broadway they were probably pretty good. We were in line for about an hour and a half and then at the counter. It was a very high speed operation and the pressure was on to know which shows you wanted. We wanted to see Chicago, but tickets were $120 a seat, so we threw out the name of another show that we had heard about in the line called Memphis. $80 a person and the seats were ours.

Being in line for such a long time kind of messed up the schedule. At 4 pm on Fridays the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) has free admissions. That in mind we hoofed our way there. I was also supposed to meet a childhood/adolescence/teenagehood friend who was now living in New York. We aimed to meet at MOMA. This was all good and fine except for two things. One, it was Easter weekend, and two, evidently it was not a secret that MOMA had free admissions. Without and exaggeration I believe that line was over a kilometre long.

Seeing this the plans changed. My friend and I opted to skip out on MOMA and to go for a walk. She took me through central park as we caught up, and showed me some of the sights, including Juilliard. Knowing that time was short we headed down 8th Ave and back towards Times Square. On the way there we found a little "hole in the wall" restaurant and sat down for an enjoyable meal. Very enjoyable. Like, amazing actually... wait wait... not "like" amazing... just... amazing.

We said our good-byes and I was on my way to Broadway. I made it there, found my travelling companions and we were corralled into the theater and towards our seats.

Memphis

Memphis. I did not know anything about it at the time, but it was a spectacular show. All of the actors were flawless in their performances with the singing and the dancing and the emoting and just everything. It was a show about a time when blacks stuck with blacks and whites stuck with whites. The protagonist Huey wanted to bring the black music to the whole world, and it was something he managed to do. I am not an expert on musicals, or on reviewing anything, but if you get the chance, Memphis is a show worth seeing.

Right as the show wrapped up we were on our feet, out the door, and on the way to the bus. We did not have much time, but we had just enough. In the bus, on the way out of New York, into Jersey, into the Hotel, the bed, and sleep...

Home from New York

Yep, I'm home alright, but the moment I walked in the door an enormous pile of homework fell on my head, including a presentation tomorrow. It was like it was propped on the door just waiting.

So, the Blog on New York will likely have to wait until this weekend as I must dig my way out of this mess that I've made.

Time to start digging.