Blessed beyond measure

New York New York

We went to New York, otherwise known as the Big Apple before we went back to Home - Singapore. We had about 3 days in New York.

The first day when we arrived, it was almost 2-3 pm after we checked into our hostel. We stayed at the Jazz on Harlem. It was one of the cheapest but with good rating hostel we could find. We have done our research on the no-no places to stay in New York and were not aware that Harlem was a place where African Americans live. No one really told us about that though. Jazz on Harlem is a neat place to stay in. However, it was pretty scary when we made our way from the train station to our hostel. Thank God that He has watched over us and keep us safe and sound.

We went to see Empire State Building on the first day. And that was a good decision because the following days there was such a heavy fog that the view might not be as great. It was real chilly and windy up there but one could see the almost the whole of New York City. It was indeed a crowded city with buildings that were so close to one another. And many tall buildings. A metropolitan city.

Times Square is a fascinating sight with so many advertisements, billboards, and neon lights. I like Times Square and Fifth Ave the most in New York City. They are the place where it is glitzy and many interesting buildings and sights. We went to Times Square almost every night.

One of the night, we had Bubba Gump for dinner in Times Square. The food was good and i personally love the concept. They use Forrest Gump concept. One could see everything about Forrest Gump and you can flip "Run Forrest Run" or "Stop Forrest Stop" to catch the waiter or waitress attention to get them to help you. It was interesting!

We went to see Flatiron building, the Grand Central Terminal Station, the Chrys1er Building, Rockefeller Centre (where you have the ice rink in witner), took a walk in Central Park (one of the World largest Urban Park), the Wall Street (the famous big bull on Wall Street and of course the New York Stock Exchange), the Chinatown of NYC, Statue of Liberty, checked out the SoHo area, and walked the Brooklyn Bridge.

We also caught a Broadway show: The Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic Theatre. It was really good! It was the longest running show in Broadway History. I enjoyed the show. Majestic Theatre interior is beautifully decorated.

The subway is not the cleanest that i have seen. I spotted a few rats on different occassion. It makes me appreciate the clean MRTs that Singapore has, once again. And if you drive in NYC, the traffic is horrible! It is better to take the Subway which is very comprehensive and well-networked.

We went to eat DimSum a couple of times in Chinatown. NYC has a good Chinatown I would say. There are places where they sell groceries, fresh vegetables and fishes. I like the Chinatown.

The last day in NYC, before we left for Singapore, we went to Woodbury Premium Outlet. It is supposed to be a good factory outlet for branded stuff and heard that it was good shopping. However I feel that Woodbury is nothing compared to San Marcos Prima Outlet and the Tanger Outlet. San Marcos has better bargains i feel.

All in all, the New York trip is good. However I feel that New York has been overhyped and did not impressed me as much as I had thought it would have been.

I wanted to post my pictures for all to see. Unfortunately my pc crashed before i could upload them and my IT dept could not help me recover them as they were not backup before my pc died on me. The good thing however is that at least i have shown the photos to my mum and bro. Some consolation there... And the good news is that Yiren still has his share of the photos. At least not all of them are gone. Next time i have to make sure i have uploaded them to my gallery before i format my memory card.

posted by Ying @ 2:08:00 PM