Imperial fail

Wanting to be a bit fitter and healthier I went with Kat to the gym at lunchtime. I figured a good treadmill run would be a nice way to get back into exercising again. So I hopped on and warmed up with a little walk and then cranked it up to the speed I used to run at. My fitness must’ve really slipped because I had to dial it down a bit and by time I got to the part where I walked I was knackered.

Thankfully my walking part gave me a bit of clarity and I realised that, being in the States, the treadmill was probably giving me readings in miles. It was a forehead slapping moment and totally explained why I was finding it so difficult.

I kept on going as usual and when I got home I converted everything into kms and was shocked to find that my average speed (including walking breaks) was faster than my usual running pace! No wonder my chest is still burning 5 hours after the fact!

124 days ago

running errands

Well today I actually managed to get up, showered and dressed before 1pm. Miracle!

Errands

I head out on my bike and went and bought myself a 1.5TB hard drive from Best Buy, a few things from Walmart and a stuff travel pack from REI.

Planning

I also managed to buy Canucks tickets for when Rhys and Sharyn are going to be in Vancouver. Woo! Better get me some rioting gear

I’ve also found the hostel in Vancouver where I’ll be spending part of my time.

Now to research South America…

Food

We went out with Justin and Shannon for yummy Thai food. Thank goodness they give you doggy bags in this country because I barely finished half of my meal! Thai red curry with chicken, of course. I asked for the medium but it was quite spicy. Champagne problems.

128 days ago

donuts, 80s and science

Jeff and I head to OMSI for their night time 80s night. And what should we run into on the way there? None other than the Voodoo Doughnut van parked up outside the building!! I got a Bavarian cream filled donut with maple frosting… drool!

Also waiting outside the building was a DeLorean:

We were waiting on Amy to show then we head for food. Yummy yummy brisket slider for me:

Then it was some bad dancing to 80s music then to the science-y part.

They had a whole set up of 80s computer and arcade games plus a whole bunch of non-80s science-y stuff like a foetus exhibit which used real dead foetuses – not the lightest of subjects. We played with water exhibits, ball exhibits then me and Jeff played Connect Four using robots:

After testing out the earthquake machine and jumping around on the wobbly bridge to “Don’t Stop Believin’” (the original version, thank dog) we had a go on the Pogo Moon Hoppers:

It was my first time on one of these. Weird to say the least. And I do not recommend attempting it in flip flops…

130 days ago

bike

Well, I never thought the day would come but I am now the proud owner of this bike:

Zack at Walmart was really cool and got three bikes off the rack for me and helped me size them up. He even came over once I ha left the store and helped with a squeaking noise it was making.

I haven’t ridden a bike on a regular basis since I was 13 so I never imagined I would end up buying one! So now – after a few bits and pieces have been tightened – I have a little run-around to get me to Walmart and various other shops in the area without walking for 40 minutes. Hooray!

Source: Walmart.com

131 days ago

in search of a bike

I have only ridden a bike four times since I was 13 and used to ride to school. All these times have also been in Europe: Brussels, Amsterdam, Berlin and Landskrona.

I have enjoyed cycling each time and while browsing Walmart.com I found some cheap bikes. And as usual when you’re looking for things you get suggestions pop up of things you “might also be interested in”. And that’s how I found this: a bike with a cup holder. A fricken CUP HOLDER!!!

Source: Walmart.com

133 days ago

eating Portland

What are a girl and a guy to do with a free day in Portland? Well… when Jeff and I found ourselves in downtown Portland waiting for Kat to do some research at the library we decided to eat Portland.

Our original plan was to hit the food carts but all we could find open that was remotely appealing was the mini donut cart. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing! We opted to share 8 because we had a big day ahead of us.

The weather decided to turn on us and it started raining so we went in search of yummy yummy hot chocolate at Cacao. My spicy hot chocolate was SO good and consisted of: 72% Arriba dark chocolate infused with cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, ginger and blended with milk, cream and coconut milk

Now wandering around in the rain/drizzle/cold in search of food doesn’t sound like the most exciting of tasks but when you finally get to a place along the waterfront that has rocking chairs outside the walk really is worth it. Add to that the fact that you get to have cheesy garlic fries and there really is no complaining:

Walking back to meet Kat we went to a frozen yoghurt place which was somewhat of a heaven. You not only got to choose your flavour of yoghurt (oh my dog) but you got to add whatever toppings you wanted. I started out nice and easy with an apple pie flavoured yoghurt (oh my dog) with caramel sauce, granola topping and cinnamon.

And what ride home wouldn’t be complete without a bumper sticker that reads: Uncle Sam Wants You TO SPEAK ENGLISH”

133 days ago

girlfriends are a pain in the ass

Today we went to a dog park and walked around for two hours with the puppies.

It was fricken hot and apparently we’re meant to be enjoying the weather as it isn’t meant to be this hot at this time of year. I’m a whinger so couldn’t wait to get back in the car and chuck the aircon on

Polish grandmas are the best

Tonight we went to a Polish festival where we ate cabbage rolls and sausages and Kat and Jeff drank beer.

The highlights of the evening had to be doing the chicken dance and the hokey pokey (which I haven’t done since primary school) and dancing for two hours to Chevrona, a Gypsy, Russian, Ukrainian, klezmer and Balkan type band. Best song of the night: Girlfriends Are A Pain In The Ass.

Damn I love being back in this country!

134 days ago

One of us. One of us!

First thing this morning I bought a ticket to see Simple Plan in Vancouver in February. Woo! Then I walked 40 minutes to Best Buy (after waiting on hold listening to same 15 second clip of hold music) and officially joined the cult of Mac owners.

That’s right folks, I am now the proud owner of a MacBook Air. And it feels good. And light. And that’s pretty much how I spent my first day in Portland

One of the best things about Portland? 0% sales tax. Thank you!

135 days ago

last day in New York

My last partial day in New York. Pam dropped me off at the bus station which meant I didn’t have to trudge to the bus stop, army-styles. The bus driver even got off to help me put the bag underneath in the storage area.

There was no way I could lump my bags around with me all day and I also didn’t want to spend all day sitting with them in Port Authority Bus Terminal so I Googled “luggage storage” in New York and was amazed that there were still options given the terrorism threat. Schwarz Travel Services got mixed reviews but I was happy enough to leave my bag with them. For $10 it was a bargain to have my day free to roam the city. Well, I still had my 50L pack with me containing all of my geek equipment. Unfortunately this also happened to be very heavy equipment.

Disappointing New York strip steak

Going against the reviews but also not wanting to spend a whole lot on steak I went to Tad’s Steaks for their $7.95 lunchtime steak deal. I got a New York strip steak, garlic bread, choice of potato or rice and a garden salad. Even though it was average food it sure was a bargain! A guy also spoke to me while I was eating. He looked to be a construction worker. I still find it odd that people actually speak to you in New York. Living in London for three years has made me very cynical of strangers who talk to you. My initial thought is always, “Just mug me and get it over with already.”

Washington Square Park FTW

What better way to waste away my day than to sit in Washington Square Park and people watch and listen to the girls next to me talking about weight and society? I also got to see this squirrel perched on a stake:

Food

I definitely wasn’t done with the New York food scene and went back to Republic for their coconut sago pudding and a carrot and beet juice.

That turned out to be a bad idea when I was rushing around Penn Station in desperate search for a toilet that I’d visited earlier in the week! On my way there I did happen across a massive crowd outside Macy’s. They were all waiting to catch a glimpse of Beyoncé.

On my way to collect my bag I bought a New York hot dog which was actually quite yummy despite possibly not containing much actual meat at all.

On my way to JFK airport I got to go down Queens Boulevard again. I don’t think that will ever get old!

And thanks to my super delayed flight I had plenty of time to scarf down some below average sushi and sit at the cool seats with plenty of power plugs so I could charge up my dead iPhone.

I even picked up a black and white cookie to round off my New York eating experience which was highly disappointing. It was almost like a squishy Jaffa cake but nowhere near as tasty.

New York was SO amazing and I cannot wait to go back again – and next time I’ll have Jo with me, woo!

136 days ago

pastrami and Staten Island

Today I was on a mission. A mission to get a pastrami sandwich and go on the Staten Island ferry.

Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop

Once again nyc10best.com comes through for me. Eisenberg’s has been around since 1929 and thankfully it wasn’t intimidating to walk into. I sat down at the bar and looked over a menu. I already knew that I was going to get a pastrami sandwich – the original plan was to get a pastrami on rye but I forgot to mention the rye part – and while looking over the beverages section the egg cream caught my eye. I asked the guy what an egg cream was and he said that it was milk mixed with Seltzer water. That sounded horrible but I’d heard of it too many times not to try it. I ordered the chocolate version.

Once again I was shocked by the portion size – I really need to remember that I will never go hungry in this country! I didn’t even know how to attack this beast of a sandwich so instead of picking it up I took multiple photos of the monster.

The egg cream left something to be desired but it wasn’t bad. It was essentially fizzy chocolate milk. The pastrami sandwich was delicious! I made it through half of the sandwich and was stuffed full. But I continued on with the second half and didn’t even come close to finishing it. I was feeling properly sick by that point. Maybe the egg cream wasn’t such a good idea after all…

Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop
174 5th Ave (between 22nd and 23rd in the Flatiron District)

Staten Island ferry

Even since I saw the Staten Island ferry on The Basketball Diaries I’ve wanted to go on it. It swung by the Statue of Liberty too so I could kill two birds with one stone. Sweet.

The actual ride was pretty uneventful and I only made it down the steps on Staten Island before I turned back and boarded the ferry back again.

Wandering the streets

I decided to spend the rest of my day exploring the last of the neighbourhoods that I hadn’t gotten around to yet so I walked up and found Wall Street (my second visit there) and then carried on up to Chinatown and Little Italy.

Where Chinatown meets Little Italy:

Thanks to my super amazing iPhone I managed to find Gay Street too. I wondered what all those posters being sold in the street were all about.

My farewell dinner

I took Pam and John out for a thank you dinner and we had delicious Thai food. The owner was the loveliest woman and the food was cheap and oh so tasty. We even got mini banana cakes and good luck cookies to round off our meals. She even apologised for not having more banana cakes for us. What a great way to farewell New Jersey.

137 days ago