Friday followed with Halloween. We went to watch the Parade but were a little too late to get a good spot. There were literally millions (two) of people crammed along the streets all dressed up in their costumes and it was really exciting to see. Even though we couldn't get right up close to the parade we did manage to see a little of it. We spent the rest of the evening walking along the street watching everyone in their costumes all getting a little crazy. It a bit like the atmosphere on NYE in Sydney only 10 times as many people and every one is dressed up. It was a fun night and we topped it off by eating a Ben and Jerrys Ice-cream Sunday before heading home. Yum!
The NY marathon was held on Sunday so we headed down to the park to watch the runners cross the finish line. It was so inspiring to see everyone who had just run 40 km still look so full of energy. Having said that there were some people that looked like they were about to pass out. Apparently a couple of people died later that evening, which isn't an unusual occurrence!
We had planned on spending Monday wandering around Astoria in Queens however after getting on the subway heading in the wrong direction we ended up at Battery Park. Instead of trying to go back in the other direction we decided to catch the Staten Island Ferry. Since neither of us have any interest in visiting Liberty Island this was a good way to get a view of Manhattan from the water. It's free to ride the ferry and sails right past Liberty Island on the way a much better idea in my opinion than spending the $20 to get someone to leave you stranded on Liberty Island with nothing to do.
Then of course came Election night on Tuesday. The city was buzzing all day. Buskers were working the name Obama into there songs which seemed to work a treat for the guy that got onto our subway car that morning. He must have got at least $7 just from our car for the one song he sang. We took the 7 train to Queens as far as you can go to check out the "International Food". It's interesting how in about 20 blocks the area can change ethnicity not only in the people that inhabit the area but also in the ambiance. Our first stop was Flushing which is home to a rather large Korean and Chinese population. We were told that this would be the place to get authentic and cheap Chinese food. One subway station further were Mexican restaurants everywhere and I especially liked all the music playing in the street. One interesting observation was that the street sellers would be speaking perfect albeit heavily accented Spanish and then immediately switch to perfect New Yorker accent when speaking to a non-Mexican, what was even more interesting was that a lot of the sellers were not Mexican at all but African-Americans. After walking out 30 blocks we came to an Irish neighbourhood and after having just been in Ireland it was funny to see pubs that look almost identical to the ones we had see over there. We stopped here funnily enough for some Thai food which was pretty average but very inexpensive (I guess that's what you get for eating Thai in an Irish neighbourhood). We continued to follow the train line where the scene then starts to change into India, the Mexicans and Irish disappear only to be replaced by women wearing sari's and the smell of Indian food. I bought one of the best samosas I have ever had before hopping on the train back to the city.
We arrived home later that day and watched Colbert and John Stewart cover the election. At about 11pm it was announced Barrack Obama had won the election. The streets erupted in a roar of excitement which we could hear even from our apartment even though it is set away from the street. The city feels like it has just been injected with hope, and I think I have even noticed some smiles on peoples faces instead of the usual straight faced look directly at the ground New Yorker.
NY dresses up for Halloween
Jannie forgets to depresss button - complains that there is always a three second delay when using her camera
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4 comments:
You really were in NYC during a good period of time. We thought of you guys as we watched the election special too :) The daily show mentioned the smiles on peoples faces :). Feeling elated just reading about it. Have a great week.
Been looking for work?
So glad you're having a great time :)
We sat up all night last Tuedsay with 3 PC's monitoring various views of the US Elections, and celebrated with you, at 5am :)
Go see Wicked on Broadway! We saw it in London the weekend before last, and it was fantastic - to the point where I want to come see the New York version when we visit!
Haven't really been looking for work there isn't much around, and im not sure we want to live here in the winter...its so cold, but im sure you understand living in Ireland! Think we might check at the west coast and come back when the weather warms up.
Jannie, a 3 second delay is enough for anyone to get depressed. I understand completely. An end to all three second delays! In fact, let's have an end to all 3 seconds, and just have no time at all - it has all the time in the world in it. Jack, you always were a theme-park ride enthusiast and it is lovely to see that some thing never change! Both of you, and everyone, red Dreams For My father, Obama's book. I'm sick of all the right wing election commentary saying 'Who is this man?' 'President who?' He's the first president-elect to have written with such candour and a genuine writer's ability about his own formation as a - no, not a politician, but a human being, a mensch. Out of his 'mutt' background, he carries such interesting questions about identity, community, and what 'change' really is (it's about being able to change yourself). I find him amazing - can someone like this lead something like the present disaster into some sanity? It's at least possible.
love love
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