NYC - Part IV

So, we decided to take a break from the big city and head to the smaller towns in NJ. We first stopped and breakfast at the good ol' IHOP where I had some very delicious Chocolate Chip pancakes!!

We first arrived in Princeton after a very scenic drive through the state. Princeton is a very small town and very historic. We popped in and out of the shops and even visited the campus. I love seeing old architecture and the campus was filled with it. We even saw a wedding party getting their pictures taken there. We even stopped for some yummy ice cream where the people who worked there were very excited to take some quarters off our hands.

After Princeton, we headed to Lambertville, NJ where it borders with Pennsylvania. There were some cute little shops there, including a very tempting chocolate shop - in which I was very well behaved and bought none of! I did manage to buy this cute little ornament (atleast that's what I'm making it out to be) of a cat made from jingle bells.

We walked all through Lambertville and crossed the Delaware River over to New Hope, PA where it was just as quaint. We stopped in at a restaurant that backs onto a pond that served Thai-Mexican and American food. It was a nice way to cool down while sipping drinks.

We drove home very tired and came home to some strawberry daquiris and a belated birthday cake pour moi. It was delicious!!

Photos: a building on the Princeton University campus; Steph along the bridge from NJ to PA with Delaware River behind.

NYC - Part III

We headed into the city again for the second day, but this time we had a tour guide with us - my aunt!! We headed straight down to SoHo and checked out this market that is open every weekend on the streets. There was food and clothes and jewelry everywhere!! We got to check out one of my aunt's favourite store Anthropologie. It is such a cool store!!

We headed into Little Italy and grabbed some lunch and made our way into Chinatown. There was lots of fish everywhere so we didn't stay too long. There was also a bucket of frogs. Everything was still alive to prove the freshness of the food. After asking several people for directions, we managed to find our way en route to the Brooklyn Bridge. This seemed like the hottest point in the day and there was no shade to protect us. We walked up the bridge until the first pedestal and soaked in the view.

We walked back and along the pier and made our way to the famous Staten Island Ferry. After waiting through cancellations and delays, we finally made it on the ferry as the sun was starting to set. It was a gorgeous site!! We took the subway towards downtown and walked along in search of food. We got off the subway at Grand Central Station and it is so big and so busy!! I attempted to take pictures but the lighting was really dim.

My aunt really wanted to show us Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, but by the time we reached it - it was really dark. It was a beautiful fountain and seemed like a very romantic spot. We ended up seeing these people setting it up with little tealights to help out their friend who was proposing to his girlfriend that night!! We decided to head back to Penn Station to head back to NJ and grabbed some dinner through the several fast food restaurants that were offered.

Photos: a shop in Chinatown; Brooklyn Bridge; Statue of Liberty view from Staten Island Ferry

New Computer

I'm so excited to announce that I have finally made the next big step and bought a new computer. I've had my laptop since before I went to university and I think it's time has come to go to computer heaven. We made the big purchase Saturday and are absolutely thrilled with it!! We're still working on setting up our own preferences and figuring out this whole 'Windows Vista' stuff. Hopefully I won't have to buy a new computer for a very, very long time!!!

Now I have no excuses not to blog quicker as I have a super-quick non-frustrating brand new computer!!

NYC - Part II

We head off on the train from NJ into the city and immediately realized how hot it was in the city!! We headed to Macy's for some shopping and was overwhelmed by all the floors. I fell in love with the old-fashioned escalators (it doesn't take much to amuse me) - they were very unique and authentic.

We then headed off to Bryant Park and grabbed some lunch. It was very relaxing in the park and it would be a great place to go if I worked nearby. After perusing the map for several minutes, we realized that the place we were looking for was right next door: The New York Public Library. It is such a beautiful building both outside and inside.



We then walked up 5th Avenue towards Central Park and checked out Rockefeller Centre and Plaza but we didn't go up for a sky view. We tried to get a tour of the NBC studios, but it turned out that we were too late in the day and the last tour they were showing would only be of one studio. We continued on 5th Avenue but it had started to downpour, so we headed into F.A.O. Schwarz to check out the giant piano and other fun toys. It was really cool to see the giant Harry Potter characters made of Lego and the Star Wars Lego all life-sized.

We reached Central Park just as the zoo was closing down, so we just walked and cooled down with all the trees surrounding us. We walked back down 6th Avenue towards Times Square popping in and out of stores at the same time. We reached Times Square before it was dark so we were able to get photos of both daytime and nighttime scenes.


We had dinner inside this restaurant that gave the biggest portions I have ever seen. When the waiter took my food away, I swear it didn't even look like I touched the thing. We did check out the M&M store (who knew the whole store would be devoted to a tiny little chocolate?) and right across the street - we checked out the Hershey store. We did very well by not becoming chocolate-crazy.

We were very tired afterwards, so we decided to head back towards Penn Station to catch the train back to NJ. It was a very relaxing ride back, we enjoyed the sitting and air conditioning the train provided.

Photos: Central Park, inside the M&M store, inside F.A.O. Schwarz store - life-sized Harry Potter characters made of Lego, Times Square at night.

NYC - Part I

The adventure begins early in the morning when my 2 sisters & I head off on our very long drive to New Jersey - where we were spending our nights. Everything goes smoothly at the border and that's when it feels like the trip officially begins.

I attempt to take some pictures of the scenery from inside the car - but I kept getting the reflection off the window. It was really pretty and there were trees everywhere!! I started to call them fields of broccoli's.

It was a super hot day and it seemed like no matter where I was sitting in the car, the sun was always on me. We took a break in Syracuse, NY and stopped at the Carousel Centre where there is a working carousel inside the mall. We took several other stops to get gas, and to get ice cream to cool ourselves down.

We reached our destination in the early evening and brought all our stuff inside. We attempted to plan our days in the city but were unsuccessful. We figured we would play it by ear.

We headed off to the Sandy Hook Beach in NJ and was able to make it there before sunset. The water was actually pretty warm after standing in the waves (which some were very big and attacking) for a long time to pose for my photography Aunt. Everytime we thought we were done - she would yell out "Just one more..." and then she would need us for some individual poses.

Afterwards we walked along the shore and could see the skyline of Manhattan pretty vaguely. While walking the sun was setting and it was just a beautiful way to end a very long day. Very relaxing....

Photos: sign on the interstate; Steph in the Atlantic Ocean; sisters & aunt walking on the beach

My Sister's Keeper

I have recently finished reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. It is such a sad and trivial story about a family and its attempts to stay together while their little girl suffers through leukemia. I love how the author put herself in all the main character's shoes so that you could see where everyone was coming from. I ended up sympathizing with every side of the story, no matter how contradicting the characters were.

I apologize for not putting up any NYC stories/pictures as I am being frustrated with my computer, yet again. It is acting a little slow and takes forever to boot up. When I have some patience, and some determination - I will look into that. Or maybe, I'll just have to buy a new computer.

I am finding that as the summer is drawing to an end and the days are cooling off and as the sun isn't out for so long anymore - I am getting a little more sleepy-eyed and drowsy. It could be the change in weather. It could be my mind telling me it's not yet time to get up as it is not as bright as it was before. We are arriving into my favourite season - FALL! Where all the pretty colours come out to play and the beautiful smell of cool air is out.

The Big Apple

I recently spent the long weekend in NYC aka The Big Apple and absolutely loved it!! There are so many stories and pictures, I don't even know where to begin (I suppose the beginning is a good place). A huge thank you goes out to my aunt Susanna and her hubby for letting us crash in their living room!! Oh, and to their cat George too for letting us take up his space (although he wasn't so happy to share - I noticed that early on). Also thanks to Susanna for showing us around the town and giving us such wonderful experiences in Manhattan - but also to the little towns we went to visit, like Princeton and New Hope, PA. Such a wonderful host and tour guide!!

I am about ready to crash and get ready for another week of work but there will hopefully be pictures and stories up here very shortly!!!

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

I have just finished reading this story in the series of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency which I had received as a gift from my aunt back in Christmas (as I am still going through all those books). I should read all the other ones in the series as I found the characters quite enchanting and charismatic with the way they viewed and dealt with things happening in their lives. I fell in love with Mma Rowatse and felt everything that she felt and understood her logic in everything she did or said. It gives you a good input into the lives of people in Botswana and how people shouldn't spend $ on shoes and new cars, and how simple it makes someone happy (like a Pumpkin, for instance, mysteriously appearing in your front yard). I loved how she would solve all these mysteries and how she interpreted her problems.

Next book: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult