my kind of town, Chicago...

Tonight, I met some amazing people. In 6 hours time, I leave for Chicago...

so many places, such little time...

Last night it rained. And it rained. And it rained. It was the sort of rain that keeps you awake. I fell asleep and got a few hours sleep, but once I'd heard the rain once, that was it. It was just incessant rain. So, I think I've got the point across that it rained. Today, it was warm. The warmth + the rain = HUMID. I decided to go into Brooklyn to see the Brooklyn Museum and the Botanic Gardens. Once there, and it was a half hour walk from the Washington Ave stop on the G train, I decided I wasn't really in the mood for art, so decided a stroll round the gardens would be in order. It turned into quite a relaxing walk, and although it threatened to rain, with a few spots now and then, it never got heavy. Although with the humidity, walking through the Tropical section didn't feel too different to the outside world. Having had a late breakfast, I didn't really notice the time, and suddenly it was about 4pm and I hadn't had lunch, so I headed back towards Washington Ave and got a slice of pizza on the way. I'm up early tomorrow morning, around 6am, to catch a flight to Chicago so I can catch up with Patsy and her parents. (I worked with her in Victoria where the SEE shop was located in the same building as the Big Bus Company, she happens to be home visiting her parents for a few days and invited me up, how could I refuse!!) After that, who knows. I've been looking at some couchsurfing options, and where to go on the I80/90 out from Chicago, possibly South Bend (I like the name), Toledo, Cleveland, Buffalo, then onto Boston, New Jersey, back through New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington DC, Athens, Memphis, New Orleans......there are so many places...and such little time...

Zone and out...

So, I've pretty much zoned out for a few days. After arriving in New York on Wednesday, I kind of suddenly switched off late Thursday afternoon. Partly as a result of the 22 hour day I had on Wednesday, partly because it was all of a sudden very real that I was very far from home, and also because it's been quite a year for me so far, what with my break up from the band and working lots to finance this trip. So not only did my body feel knackered, I think my brain did too.

Lucky for me Phoebe's apartment, where I was staying for a few days, was perfect. Not far from Central Park, near the 4, 5 & 6 train on 86th Street, and with a HUGE television and two friendly cats (one of which was HUGE), I was in the perfect place to zone out. And zone out I did. I walked around a lot, especially Central Park, and also Carl Shurtz Park on the east side of Manhattan, overlooking Brooklyn. I watched films on the HUGE telly. And on Sunday morning, I watched Stoke v Man Utd on Fox, on the HUGE telly. Did I mention the telly was huge? Yes. Quite apt too that Hernandez scored the winning goals, as he is relatively speaking from down the road. In Mexico.

Having zoned out, I got on with walking more, this time in lower Manhattan. Up the west side through Battery Park City, and then back across through Ground Zero. I went up the Empire State Building and was truly wowed by the view, and today I went to Liberty Island and Ellis Island. I thoroughly enjoyed the Statue of Liberty, but it was the Museum on Ellis Island that really blew me away. Learning about the immigrants who arrived in New York between the 1890s and 1950's was amazing, and really gave a taste of how New York, and many other American cities, have become what they are today. Oh, and on the boat to Liberty Island, there was a guy holding his coffee in his right hand and pastry in the his left, and WHOOOSH, a seagull took his pastry from him. Funniest thing I've seen in ages. The look on the guys face was priceless.

Peace. Love. And all that jazz.

Dxxx

Empire State of Mind...

View from the Central Park Reservoir...

View from 86th floor of Empire State Building...

Day 1 & 2

And in the blink of an eye, London becomes New York. On the morning of Wednesday October 20th, I awoke in London and travelled to Camden to tie up a few loose ends. By the evening, and into the early hours of Thursday, I'm enjoying a couple of Blue Moon beers in a Brooklyn apartment. My flight was reasonably harmless, a slight delay as some non-appearing passengers' bags were removed from the plane. Dinner was consumed, some red wine was quaffed, and Toy Story 3 was enjoyed on the miniature screen ahead of me. And then London became New York. My Journey from JFK into Brooklyn involved the Airtrain to Jamaica Station ($5), and then a weekly Metrocard ($27) to cover the rest of my stay NY. The J train took me to Broadway Junction, followed by the L train to Grand Street, and my destination of Ainslee Street. Jen had kindly prepared me 2 bottles of Blue Moon and some carrot and humous dip, as we idly chatted into the early hours.

It's now 9:40am on Thursday, and feeling reasonably fresh, today I am going to look into getting a cheap netbook and mobile phone, and meet a friend whose flat I am staying in for the next four nights. But first, more important things. The words breakfast, blueberry and pancakes spring to mind...

Chez moi...

This is my home.

Contained within the fabric of this bag will be my worldly possessions for the next 6 months. As I move from city to sofa, pillow to plane, and coach to coffee shop, it will be my companion, never far from my side (or back). Having slightly tweaked my itinerary, I will now be spending New Years Eve in San Francisco, before heading to New Zealand, then towards Fiji, Australia and Japan. Here is my current itinerary in all its glory:

London, England to New York, USA: October 20th 2010

San Francisco, USA to Auckland, New Zealand: January 5th 2011

Christchurch, New Zealand to Nadi, Fiji: February 13th 2011

Nadi, Fiji to Perth, Australia: February 25th 2011

Sydney, Australia to Tokyo, Japan: March 23rd 2011

Tokyo, Japan to London, England: March 30th 2011

I now begin my final week chez moi, until well into next year...

The horizon gets closer...

In little under two weeks I board flight BA179 to New York, leaving behind me 7 years in London since I returned from University in Manchester. When I returned from Manchester I had no idea what the future would hold for me. Somehow, I found myself involved in a band and, as history has a habit of doing, time just flew by. I am immensely proud to have been a part of our debut album, and equally sad to no longer be a part of Hatcham Social. No matter what, I will always see myself as a member of the band, just a silent member, no longer actively involved inits music. On leaving the band I knew I had to get out of London, and started my plans to travel America. That plan grew. And grew. And grew. I worked. And worked. And worked. And for months and weeks the horizon of my departure seemed a long way away. Now that horizon is fast approaching, and in little under two weeks, I begin a journey that will take in the USA, New Zealand, Fiji, Australia and Japan. My flight home lands at 14:25 on Friday March 25th 2011, but I certainly have no plans to be on that flight. Where will I be? I'll tell you on March 24th 2011. From now on, this blog will be my portal out into the world. My eyes represented through words. My thoughts represented in quotes. My feelings represented in prose. I hope my friends and family will follow my journey with me...