BIRTHDAYS IN NEW YORK

A HOT JULY?

Tim and I were both born in July, which makes us winter babies.  Each year we celebrate our birthdays with family and friends in the not too cold Brisbane winter.  For us, birthdays are all about Splendour in the Grass (music festival) celebrations and enjoying the opportunity to wear our winter best for the two short months that it is actually cold enough to wear them.



Tim & I in our typical winter birthday attire



July in New York couldn't be more different, as it is the peak of summer.  It is weird to get your head around, but it is every bit as hot and humid in New York as it is in Australia.  How can a city that gets snow for six months of the year get so freaking warm?  The past couple of weeks have been between 90 - 100 degrees fahrenheit each day (approx mid to late 30's in celsius).  The main difference is that the peak of the heat is between 4pm and 7pm and not 11am and 3pm.  Here the sun doesn't set until 9pm, which means the heat continues to punish you well into the night thus making airconditioning a must for sleeping.

Us in New York - its too hot to wear anything
more than tank tops, shorts and raybans

Fortunately we have aircon in our little Chinatown pad.  The bad news is that the system is twenty years old, sounds like a small plane landing and uses copious amounts of electricity.  I kid you not, the cost to run airconditioning in our tiny one bedroom apartment is a whopping $200 per month.



The world's least energy efficient air conditioner



TIM'S BIRTHDAY
Breakfast - We kicked off the day with brekky at Fiat Cafe.  Our fellow tart, Dave discovered this local gem during his stay in NYC.  On more than one early morning visit, Dave was lucky enough to spot actor Gabriel Byrne.  Fiat Cafe, true to its name is adorned with pictures and ornamental baby bambino cars. 

The cover of the menu

Strangely it is one of the only cafes in our neighbourhood that opens before 9am.  The eggs benny at Fiat Cafe only cost $6.50 - wow!!!!  In fact, the eggs benedict and iced lattes were so good, we even went back for my birthday breakfast.

Cash only - no credit cards

Dinner - That night we went to Butter at Astor Place.  Both Tim & I are fortunate enough to have birthdays that fall during "Restaurant Week".  Twice a year, in January/February and June/July, there is a unique opportunity to experience some of New York City's finest restaurants for a fraction of the usual price. Throughout the city, restaurants participate in "Restaurant Week" where they offer a three-course lunch for $25 and dinner for $35. "Restaurant Week" is a great opportunity to try out a restaurant that may usually be out of your budget.



The main dining room where the back wall
is a glass image of a rainforest

The corridor leading into the main dining room



Weekend - Tim's birthday fell on a Wednesday this year so we kept it PG-13 on his actual birthday, then ripped it up with the rest of the NYC crew that weekend at the Bushwick Walkabout Festival.  Fellow Aussie Paul A told us about the Bushwick Walkabout.  For only $10 we got entry to the event and free beers and vodka until it ran out, which was about 8pm at night.  Bargain!!! 

The Bushwick Walkabout Festival was held at the Brooklyn Fireproof,
a large gallery and cafe/ bar space in Brooklyn http://www.brooklynfireproof.com/

Note the picture of Ayers Rock on the poster. 
Makes you think this is an Aussie festival, right?  Wrong.

Lucy & Paul



Tim, Yosie & Les

This is either Arpline or Grandchildren (I think)

1+1 = 2 but calling your festival a "Walkabout" and using a picture of Ayers Rock on your posters doesn't mean that the event is in anyway affiliated with Australia. The bands were local, the booze was american and the organizers were from Brooklyn.  Go figure!

The "tooth" incident - For those who don't already know the story... Tim and Les kicked on after the festival, with disastrous results.  After one too many free-pour shots Tim and Les were horsing around and a drunk hug combined with a poorly timed sip of beer resulted in Les loosing half of his front tooth.  To Les's credit, he remained freakishly calm in light of becoming a snaggletooth.



Oh ow spaghetti-o!
To this day Tim still doesn't remember doing this to Les.



Thanks to the talented team at the student dental college, Les's tooth
was fixed the next day and his dazzling smile was as good as new.



Bek's Birthday

The day - Mum and Dad, oh how I love thee!!!  Thanks to online shopping and the internet, your parents can spoil you just as much from the other side of the world as they can at home.  At 1030am I received a hamper containing fruit, cheeses, biscuits and of course chocolate and then at 2pm another delivery arrived, this time containing a dozen balloons including one that sings happy birthday.

My desk at work adorned with gifts from my parents &
my workmates from the Women's Prison Association.

 

My workmates spoiled me too.   They surprised me with flowers, Hershey's chocolate, a hand-made card and Pommes Frites for lunch.  Pommes Belgian Frites in the East Village is a NYC institution.  It stays open till 330am on weekends and sells nothing but hot chips.  They make up for the lack of variety in food items with what they offer in the way of sauces.  They sell over 30 different types of sauces and dressings, which range from vietnamese pineapple mayo to irish curry.  My favorites so far are wild mushroom mayo and ketchup (layered together). 

www.pommesfrites.ws/

The night - I had been itching to try out the tasty delights of Mexican Radio since we lived around the corner on Mulberry Street.  Mexican food is my favorite cuisine and I truly needed the frosty goodness of frozen margaritas on what ended up being the hottest July day in the last forty years.

www.mexrad.com/

Despite our stretched finances Tim still spoiled me too.  To supplement my extremely limited footwear wardrobe, Timbo bought me two new pairs of shoes.  Its hard to go from having access to forty different pairs of shoes at home to living on seven pairs here.   

Owww, sparkly!

I got into the bad habit of wearing haviianas to work (an office no no).
Now I am just as comfortable and fractionally more dressy.





JUST BECAUSE.....

Thank you to Mel B for gifting the most ingenious birthday present, in the most hilarious package.  Mel very generously purchased a years subscription to Time Out magazine which will be delivered to our apartment each month.  And being the graphic design goddess she is, she photo-shopped Tim & I into an image that was previously Scarlett Johansson and Liev Schreiber.  What more could a girl ask for after being given the body of Scarlett Johansson for her birthday?

What a dapper looking couple we make

IT'S GOOD TO BE GAY IN NEW YORK

AN IMPORTANT DAY IN HISTORY

A bill permitting same-sex marriage was passed by the New York state legislature yesterday (June 24).  This historic vote now makes gay marriage legal in the state of New York.  The bill was passed 33-to-29 votes shortly before midnight and the law will come into effect in 30 days.

THE MERMAID PARADE

June 21 was the first official day of Summer, but a few days beforehand we celebrated early at the annual Coney Island "Mermaid Parade".  http://www.coneyisland.com/mermaid.shtml

Thanks to Walt Disney every little girl dreams of being a mermaid.  For some, that dream never dies and once a year this dream becomes a reality.  There may be glitter where there should be scales and paper mache where there should be fishtails, but the participants put on a good show.  The simplest way to describe the Mermaid Parade is to think of the Sydney Mardi Gras, without the 6-packs abs.  Where Mardi Gras is mostly gay men, the Mermaid Parade is mostly women of all shapes and sizes.

Shirts are optional but everyone wears pasties and a smile.

Pretty in Pink



Kill Bill fish-heads



My favorite mermaid

Best-dressed couple

As a girl who sometimes suffers from her own body-image issues
(who doesn't right?), I would like to pay respect to all the curvaceous
mermaids who could teach me a lesson in body confidence.

Not to be outdone by the ladies, the gentlemen, although represented in smaller numbers made their presence known.  Dressing like a sea creature appeared optional for the lads, as most simply wore whatever fancy dress costumes they wanted.

Alice in Wonderland

Joan of Arc

Bubble Boy

The drummer wore an Aussie flag

Easily the best costume of the day.  Bumblebee was more sweaty than
meets the eye.  The poor guy had to keep stopping for water breaks.

JUST BECAUSE.....
We thought this poster really summed up the day well.

WELCOME TO CHINATOWN

It's a Small World After All

We may have only moved two blocks away, but turns out we have changed continents in the process.  Once you cross from Mulberry Street to Mott Street, beneath Grand, you leave Little Italy and enter Chinatown.

Making Our Money Go Further

Despite the smell, it is actually very handy being so close to all the fresh food markets in Chinatown.  Now that we aren't shopping at Wholefoods (expensive but delicious Organic Supermarket) we are actually saving approximately 1/3 in groceries.  Last week we purchased oranges, broccoli, lettuce, potatoes, capsicum & celery for the grand total of US $3.40.

And last weekend we discovered a great hangover cure - spicy noodle soup and steamed dumplings at "Excellent Dumpling House" on the corner of Lafayette and Canal Street.

Deciding on what to have for lunch is such
a difficult decision when the menu is 10 pages long

Like Stewie Griffin, we like it when there are
pictures of the food on the menu

Yum!  Spicy chicken noodle soup for only $4.95

Super-stars of Chinatown

As a way of embracing the culture, Tim & I have taken a keen interest in the singing super-stars of our neighbourhood.  These are all genuine performers with upcoming gigs.  Now we just have to decide which one to attend.

Father's Days concert

This is my absolute fav!
He looks like a Wiggle from outer space

Don't be mistaken.  These guys are not hairdressers, they are
Taiwanese Mandopop rock band FIR.  Checkout their smash hit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PqSFtPxVY8



Our local music and dvd store -
most of the selection are non-English speaking artists



Korean karaoke anyone?




Just because...
We finally found it.... Cool Hwhip.  Whilst gently rummaging thru the freezer at a house-party in Brooklyn we stumbled across Cool Whip, as seen in Family Guy.  This one is for you Viz.



You can't have pie without Cool Hwhip!
Watch the full clip at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lich59xsjik&feature=related

Cool Hwhip - with the emphasis on the hw

THE NEXT CHAPTER.....

Moving to New York - the how to guide

Step 1 - Travel to NYC on the 90-day visa waiver

Step 2 - Find jobs


http://www.wpaonline.org/



Step 3 - Fly to London to finalize your E3 working visas

as part of the visa process, Australian's who travel to the United States on the visa waiver must leave the country to re-apply for a new work visa (outside of US and Canadian borders)

Step 4 - Apply for social security numbers and the wait 6-8 weeks for Homeland Security to determine whether you are a threat to national security.  Does anyone else think this is redundant considering our work visas have already been approved and we are living on US soil? 

Step 5 - Find the perfect NYC apartment

Our bedroom door adorned with Tim's favorite New York sites:
Brooklyn Bridge, Flatiron Building & the Chrysler  Building

Step 6 - Breathe.... then pinch yourself because this is actually happening

It's hard to believe that all the little pieces to our New York puzzle are finally coming together.  It certainly hasn't been easy though and given the opportunity to do it all again with the knowledge of how hard it is..... we might still be at home with our beloved family & friends.

What's That Smell?
We found a sweet little 1-bedder in Chinatown only one block from our beloved Mulberry Street pad.  Apartment is cutely furnished and even shares some visual similarities to our Bowen Terrace place that we rented from Bec D.  However like everything in New York the apartment is rustic (a.k.a. old) , needs a little love and alot of cleaning.  We actually think this is the bermuda triangle for dust in New York.... somehow it all ends up here.  Apart from that it is pretty much perfect except for....... what's that smell?

Living in Chinatown has plenty of perks; cheap eats, an easy walk to the Lower East Side or the East Village where all the best bars are, an even easier walk to Soho where the best shopping is and I don't have to ride the subway to work because I can walk there in 25 minutes.  That said, there is one significant downside to living on a busy Chinatown block above authentic food markets..... if the food market below you sells seafood your apartment building smells like fish.  That said, our actual apartment is fine and fish-free however the stairwell is staaaaaaaaanky!!!

Yukky!!!  They sell live toads downstairs.

Casa Daley-Pak

Mum's The Word
No-one can fix things better than your Mum!  Tim & I were both feeling a little out of sorts because we were homeless and were starting to feel the pangs of home-sickness when Mummy P came to the rescue.  Mum came armed with a bag full of aussie treats; Tim Tams, Lipton Teas, Dove Tanning Moisturiser, macadamia nuts, Scotch Finger biscuits, garlic & horseradish tablets (they don't sell these here), applicator-free tampons (see previous blog), and of course Vegemite. 

I am so proud of my Mum who equipped with her ipad 2 navigated this city like an old hat and accomplished more in 10 days than most people do here in a year. 




Walking the streets of Williamsburg

Drag Queen Bingo



Priscilla Queen of the Desert Broadway show
Are we starting to see a theme here?

Cafe Wha? in Greenwich Village
Bob Dylan had his first gig in New York here

State of Origin - Game 1 was played live at 6am
at The Australian Bar near Times Square



So much shopping at Century 21

It was a shame that our Mum's schedules clashed and they couldn't have come together.  They both share an intense passion for shopping, sightseeing and spoiling us.  Miriam and Jo start saving for your next trips together - we miss you both so much already!


Just because....
Remember the hilarious collection of images that circulated on the internet a few years ago of funny unintentional penis-shaped images?  Chances are Sam B sent you this email.

Well Tim found this bridge in London.  Unfortunately it was the wrong time of day to get the shadow, but it was definitely the same place.

FAREWELL FOR NOW, MY LOVE! xoxo Kate

This blog highlights my day to day life in NYC, not the touristy bits. You can read a travel guide for that. 

Warning : The following is both indulgent & long-winded!

TOP TIPS for an amazing 3 month stay in NYC.

1. Have one of your best friends marry a New York resident in the first 2 weeks of your stay. This makes for a ready-made-family, a joining of friends from both cultures. Local mates who will look out for you, point you to the fabulous hotspots and invite you to Sunday Brunches!! I [heart] my NYC family and am so grateful they came into my life through the adorable Quinny & Laura.
2. Don't work. Either quit your job or better still, take extended holidays so you're still getting paid. This will free your time up to focus on the more important things in life – new friends, the NYC sights and your own dreams.
3. Join a gym as soon as you arrive in NYC. Even if you haven't stepped inside a gym for 4 years! This will balance out all the drinking and eating you will indulge in whilst in NYC. It means you can fully let go and enjoy every excitement NYC has to offer and still be a few kgs ahead at the end of your trip. 
4. Share your adventure with awesome people. They will be your company & support in the harder times and your fun & laughter in the good times. If you get the opportunity, I'd strongly recommend Tim & Bek. You will feel blessed every second you have them in your life. And miss them like crazy when you leave.
5. EMBRACE the city, even the not so good things. If your building is as noisy as hell, wear earplugs. If the city shuts down at 4am, devote your bedroom to an after club hangout. If you come across unscrupulous people - stand up for your rights and protest. Failing that, just call the NYPD. They are truly wonderful (and good looking to boot)! And finally, spend time at the beginning of your stay sourcing your immediate needs. A coffee that meets your standards may be hard to come by, but definitely worth the search! (Alternatively, just pop into Gimmee Coffee on Mott St.)

I spent the last 2 hours of my time in NYC wandering around my beloved downtown local area, taking in the sights and smells I knew so well and saying Good Bye to the local community I had come to know and love. Don't get me wrong, I love all of Manhattan, but this was my world for 3 months....

DOWNTOWN.

I LOVE and feel truly at home in downtown Manhattan. It caters to all of my needs. We were blessed to live on Mulberry St, a thriving street in the heart of Little Italy (and Little Australia.) Close enough to Soho to walk 10 minutes to Broadway to buy a dress for that wedding you have coming up (!!), on the edge of China Town so you can buy fresh fish at a quarter of the price of Wholefoods, a few blocks from Canal Street where you can buy designer rip off handbags and watches. (Just don't watch the movie Biutiful first, or that will put you right off this practice) and within walking distance of Lower East Side dive bars and clubs.

MULBERRY ST. TARTS

What an apartment. What a 3 months. Tim, Bek and I had lots of visitors come stay with us. Including our much loved friends Penny & Dave for the whole month of April. Apartment 2B was like a time machine, time inside would stand still, but outside the clock kept moving. From our DJ neighbor Ted, who kept me up with his late night, post-gig parties, to the restaurant owners and waiters downstairs, and the garbage that piled up in our entry area, it was a GREAT NY experience!

MY NYC FAMILY

I am blessed to have met an amazing bunch of people in NYC I quickly came to call friends. They certainly deserve a mention in this blog as they quite simply made my time in New York wonderful. Laura, Clairebear, Carly, Les, Yosie, Sophy, Evelyn, Val, Daphne, Jen, Aasha, Stephanie, Suz, Christian, Jessica, Paul and friends, Brendan, Meg & Froggy - thanks for the friendship, fun and laughter!! You're the best of the best and I know I'll be seeing y'all again soon! 

PAUL DEMPSEY

So… I may have taken Something for Kate, a little too literally. Tim and I first met Paul at the Bowery Ballroom (excellent venue btw) and were blown away by how tall and down to earth he was. For those who haven't heard of Paul, he's an Aussie muso who has just released his solo album in the US (Everything Is True). Tim and I are big fans, and my friend Claire had a crush on the drummer, so we went to Paul's gigs every chance we could get. I had a few embarrassing moments such as me air guitaring one of his intros, singing the melody IN FRONT OF HIM. (Sometimes my mouth goes before my brain.) Check out his album or better still, his gigs if you can. 

LYNS LAUNDRY (Broome and Mulberry St)

Who says money can't buy you love? When I first encountered Lyn, she was embroiled in a rather angry confrontation with a customer, fighting over whether the price of dry cleaning was $8 or $10.50. One thing I'll say about New Yorkers is they don't mind a confrontation and will always endeavor to keep each other honest. I am not really that way inclined, so when faced with this angry woman, I pulled out the big guns. A huge smile, an enthusiastic hello, how are you! And for the finale, a tip. From my very next visit, I was welcomed into Lyn's Laundry like a long lost relative. Lyn and her team went out of their way to have my washing, drying and folding done in less than 3 hours. All for approx $12 p/week. 


So what if my clothes shrunk a little more each time? I was going to the gym. I just hope she doesn't have to pull her kids out of private school now that I'm gone....

I miss you Lyn. It's no fun doing your own laundry.

PINKBERRY. (Mulberry and Spring St) http://www.pinkberry.com/products.html

Pinkberry is a bunch of franchised stores that sell fat-free, frozen yogurt. I always got the same thing: original & mango side by side swirl without toppings to go. Pinkberry visits made my heart sing a few times a week. I will confess: in times of after hour’s desperation I stole my flat mates pinkberry’s out the freezer and consumed them. (Sorry Bek, I still owe you one. But how you can keep it in the freezer for more than 24 hours is beyond me??!) 

My name is Kate, and I am a Pinkberry addict. I have the thrice- weekly cravings even now I am back in Brisbane. 

GYRO VAN (Prince Street and Lafayette Street - directly outside the Duane Reed) 

$4 of satisfying deliciousness. Will SAVE YOU in times of hangover. NYC has vans set up on the side of the road selling hot dogs, chicken kebabs (on a stick) and my favorite Chicken Gyros - a generous serving of hot chicken and salad wrapped up in pita bread. I'm embarrassed to say, the Prince Street Gyro man got to know me very well. We'd wave hello as I passed him on my way to the gym and he learned how to make my gyros exactly how I like them. With hot sauce and a bit of garlic. I recommend privacy as you eat them though, they are very messy. 

THE NAIL PLACE (Spring & Mulberry St) 

$9.50 manicures. They also do pedicures and massage. Due to the cool weather in NYC, my feet were stuck in enclosed shoes daily. This is a far cry from working at home in Brissy, where my feet are in thongs (flip-flops to you Yanks) or barefoot 80% of the time. My feet cried at the daily imprisonment, so I frequented this place. The nail ladies were sad to see me go. I almost cried when on my very last visit, they gave me a free massage, and told me they believed and hoped I would come back very soon. 

WHOLEFOODS - (East Houston & Bowery)

This was our main staple grocery shop. Expensive? Yep. But the produce was quality & organic. And they had quite cheap and delicious fresh, ready-made meals. The creamy mushroom soup is to die for. 

PRINCE ST BOOK SHOP http://mcnallyjackson.com/

I am a huge bookworm and it was a joy to stop into McNally Jackson on my way home from the gym and soak up all the books amongst the hipsters hanging out with coffees and carrying literary conversations. They always had authors in for readings and book signings. My friend Quinny thought this was the perfect place for me to find a husband, but alas, I was too focused on perusing all the wonderful books to check out men.

GIMMEE COFFEE (Mott St between Spring & Prince) http://www.gimmecoffee.com/static/about_coffee.aspx

Tim and my favorite coffee house. Great coffee, super cool barista's, great music. Plus they are conscious of the environment and support the farmers producing their coffee beans. The only disappointment was that you couldn't sit inside with the NY Times and enjoy your coffee. 

DUANE REED

Duane Reed (pronounced Dwayne Reed) is a chemist / supermarket. Our local Duane Reed was the best in the city. From the street level, the interior looks more like a fancy department store with 30 foot ceilings than a pharmacy. Best of all it was open 24/7 and just the place to buy beer at 4am. I had a few lost in translation moments there but my favorite one was when I was there at 3am with a friend buying beer and the girl at the register asked me if I was old enough. (I never quite worked out whether they were stupid or just very compliant with the law.) I thought she'd asked me if the beer was  cold enough, and proceeded to applaud her good thinking (cold beer is VERY important to Australians) and ask if they had any colder... before my American friend set me straight and I quickly produced my ID…

SARA D. ROOSEVELT PARK (Chrystie St, Lower East Side)

NYC has hundreds of parks, and this was the one I'd most frequent. Just to sit, eat my sandwich, think about what I was doing with my life, and watch kids play basketball or hockey. It was by no means the prettiest park around. But it was a few blocks from where I lived, had benches I could relax on and read my book in peace. 

SHARK BAR (Aka Spring Lounge) http://springlounge.ypguides.net/

This bar, 2 blocks up from our Mulberry St residence, was voted the Number 1 Bar to drink at before noon. Need I say more??

We called it the Shark Bar because of the shark paraphernalia everywhere. I swear we asked the bartender every visit why this was so... unfortunately I could never remember his answer. Although we frequented many bars over the 3 months and I have a number of favorites in the lower east side, Shark Bar was definitely my constant, drop in for the last one before going home type of bar. Generally crowded with college students and late night revelers, Tim and Brendan even saw John Mayer there one night. (Brendan had no idea who he was :)


To my aussie friends, this bar reminds me of the Courthouse on Oxford street in Sydney. It has a duke box too. I have yet to be called Shark Bar Kate however. 

24 HOUR FITNESS

Thanks to my gym buddy, mentor and drill sergeant Bek, I made it to the gym on a regular basis. With the help of my personal trainer Jennifer, I managed to go from barely being able to squat (with or without weights), to challenging my friend to a squat off in Italy Sep 2011. Progress for sure! And something I'm definitely going to keep up with.

OK CUPID. 

OK Cupid is an on-line social network to make new friends or potential dates. With the help of my girlfriends, Carly, Bek & Laura (and lots of wine), we created my OK Cupid Profile. Along the lines of 'I'm a happy, outgoing Australian girl, keen to meet new and diverse people in the City.' 


Low and behold I was quite popular on the site. I'd like to say it was because the rest of my profile seduced and my picture captivated them, but in all honesty I could have just said 'Australian girl', posted no pic and gotten the same results.

So from there my NYC dating life began. I had some really fun dates, including dinners, walks, brunches, coffee, concerts, drinks, all over Manhattan. I didn't meet my future husband on the site (nor anyone I was really into), but had some great experiences all the same. As Bek told me every time I was ready to quit - it's all good training Katles...

Well done if you made it this far and feel free to contact me if you are planning a NYC trip. I'll gladly tell you about all of the amazing places in which I ate, drank and danced.


I now hand over the reigns to my beloved Tim and Bek, so they can continue to blog about the next phase of their NYC adventure.

See you soon NYC!!!

Kate xx