Superbowl fever

Last year I came to New York just after the Superbowl was over and many people in Australia and the US commented on this - "Oh man, you missed the Superbowl!

Frankly speaking, I was not too bothered. I just never understood this American football nonsense. But this year New York was playing, so even I had to admit it was a big deal - the New York Giants took on Boston's Patriots. There was a lot of rivalry in the office and on the streets. One group of men marched up Wall Street singing "Patriots! Stop corporate greed! Go Patriots!"

Lizard and I stopped to watch them in disbelief and we both exploded with laughter when a Police Officer looked at the men then turned to us and said "Those morons!"

The ads are a pretty big deal and leading up to the game people are talking about how much they cost (millions per minute) and what they will be about... in fact, for many people, it seems the advertisements are a bigger deal than the actual game.

When the Giants won the city went crazy... I enjoyed it as at work there was some friendly (but merciless) teasing of our colleagues who studied in Boston.

On Tuesday there was a Parade down Broadway to celebrate. When I was walking to work the fans had already began to crowd around. They were cheering and euphoric. Some subway stations and roads were closed in the downtown areas, causing a hassle for commuters. I was lucky in that the Police were allowing commuters to travel west across Broadway at Wall Street - those of us crossing the road stood out as we were not decked out in the Giants blue. Some the fans pointed at us and shouted "Look! Patriots fans!"

I loved it! No... Not a Patriot fan - just a person with a job. Hilarious. This sure is a crazy city!

Miss, you love your shoes don't you?

Yes I do! I love my boots - so when my exasperated shoe repair man rang me up on Tuesday and said it was time to give up on them I was devastated. "There has to be a way to fix them?" The man scolded me over the phone,

"Miss you cannot treat your shoes like this! The stitching is all undone! The soles are completely worn... It would be better to buy new boots!" He sighed, "You love these shoes?"

"Yes, they are my favorite!"

"Ok, I will do my best. It seems Miss, that sometimes we abused the things we love the most."



Wow... Deep... He came through too. In less than twenty four hours I picked up the boots and they were better than new. I think even the support was better. I slipped them on and practically danced to work where I spent the morning showing them off. That afternoon it was snowing, it was late and there was a long line of cabs outside the office trying to tempt me - but they had nothing on my boots... I happily walked home!

My boots originally belonged to my Mummy. So the story goes, when she was pregnant with me she traveled from Malaysia to London and was struck by the change in weather. Her feet were so cold, so my father's Aunty helped her to buy a pair of boots. She loved them as shoes should be loved and eventually handed them down to me. Quite frankly, at sixteen, I was not impressed and back they went into the cupboard. Four years ago I stumbled upon them and was delighted by my find. I tried them on... perfect. They looked funky and they were super comfortable.

They are on the warm side for an Australian winter but that didn't stop me from wearing them - when I came to New York last year they were wonderful! I have explored the city in them and they hold the memories of all of the adventures I have had. At the same time they comfort me as something from home. How could new shoes compete with that!

I guess I am just enthusiastic about my boots... Or as my colleague would say "more like delusional!" Looking forward to taking the rest of Mum's shoes collection to Minas Shoe Repairs!*



*Mummy - this is a hint that you should bring me more of your shoes!

Undercover at a traditional gentlemen's club

Perhaps the most sophisticated place I have been in New York, or rather, my life is the University Club on 54th Street and 5th Avenue.

The University Club is an exclusive social club dating back to 1861 and was found by a group of college friends. The club was traditionally gentlemen only and was one of the last of the clubs in Manhattan to let women in. It is hard to become a member. Firstly you need to fit a list of requirements (for example be educated and blah blah blah). Secondly, you need a letter of recommendation from six people in the club. I have heard that this is kind of hard because the people in the club don't tend to socialize with people outside of the club! I have done some research to try to find out the dues, but they are undisclosed. From the grandeur inside it is quite obvious it is not cheap.

My boss is a member and I have been lucky enough to have been to the club on two occasions for team events. Both times we have gone on Wednesday night for the seafood buffet. Both times my boss has been a little anxious, giving the speech to the team: "Please dress appropriately... don't wear... ummm, just dress nicely. Just because it's a buffet you don't have to go crazy - this is not the last time you will see food. You can always make two trips..." The Australian translation of this speech is simply: "This is not Sizzler guys!"

The entrance hall to the club is amazing. It is a huge space with exceptionally tall ceilings, kind of different to my Nanna's bowling club! The people are similarly glamorous - it is quite an intimidating crowd. Older men looking sharp in their suits, wives in arm in designer clothes with fancy hair and jewelry. Noodles commented to our boss "I don't think I will be like this when I am older." When he questioned why she simply replied: "More cats."

On our most recent trip to the we started with a lecture from Gretchen Morgenson from the New York Times. She spoke about her book Reckless Endangerment which is about the recent crash of the U.S. economy. Very relevant and and extraordinary opportunity to hear her speak in person. She had some very interesting and controversial points which certainly made for interesting dinner conversation.

Despite eager to debrief the lecture none of us could wait to eat. As soon as it was over we headed up to the dining room. It was quite a funny moment when it came to wine selection:

Waiter: How many people will be drinking?
Boss: Well Zubi will be - who else?
Me: Wait! What! Why assume me? 
Boss: You're Australian aren't you?
Me: Ahh


The food at the club is incredible! Everything tastes amazing and fresh. The dessert section is to die for - limitless quantities of every fancy treat you could dream of. Cheesecake, chocolate mousse, strawberries, tiramisu...

Going to the club is like going to a whole other world, and I am sure, like me, my colleagues will continue to work hard in the hopes of being invited back.... I really just want another piece of the cake.

Las Vegas

What better way to start the new year than a trip to Las Vegas? Everyone knows that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but it's such a fun place that I have to dish.

Last year Noodles, Lizard and I planned to spend our first long weekend of the year in Vegas. We would leave on Friday evening and return home Monday - when Friday came around we were super excited to be leaving New York. It was so cold - we could barely even handle walking from the office to the taxi rank.

The flight to Vegas was long and we arrived late at night. The city was impressive - especially the skyline at night. As we waited for a cab we we could see the Eiffel tour and the Empire state building in the distance - it was exciting and it was fun!

Vegas!

Hyped up, the three of us squished into the back of the cab and our driver, a sixty plus woman with giant hair and matching earrings seemed a little concerned. "Doesn't one of you ladies want to sit up front?" Lizard was quick to answer - "No, we're a tight knit group!"

We made it to our hotel, The Cosmopolitan, and I loved it. It was very suave - Shinny, hip and just plain trendy. There were girls in half dresses littering in and out and there was a bar in the lobby which was over flowing with people.

The design of the reception was very interesting - there were giant monitors with changing screens - it started with a fall theme, then bookshelves, then flowers. My favorite was the image of people trapped inside the pillars. This one was a little saucy and only came on after hours.

We did not have to wait long to check in, which was a welcomed relief after stories of crowded Vegas receptions.

We were so lucky as our room was upgraded to an impressive suite. There were two bathrooms, two televisions, a balcony and a giant bath! I took the roll away bed and Noodles and Lizard shared the gigantic king sized one. It would easily have been big enough for the three of us, but Lizard insisted on making a barrier in the middle of the bed. Quite funny after her declaration of love in the taxi!

There was a master remote for all of the lights and televisions (yes, plural) on Noodle's night stand. She tricked Lizard into thinking that the lights in the bathroom were controlled by clapping. Every time Lizard clapped Noodles would turn on the lights. I was in hysterics - but the best part was that for the rest of the weekend Noodles would turn the lights on for us whenever we clapped. Great!

The view was beyond anything I imagined. We could see right down the Las Vegas strip - the lights, the hotels and the Belagio fountains made for a stunning skyline.

By the time we settled into the room it was very late in New York time.... and even later in Sydney. I had only been back in the States for five days and I was beginning to feel time zone challenged.

It is a family tradition of mine to wake up early when on vacation. My father wakes so early that on some family vacations he has ended up reading in the bathroom for hours in the morning. I did wake up early in Vegas, but Noodles and Lizard were only minutes behind. I was super pumped and ready to get going. The view from our balcony was even more stunning during the day. The sky was so blue and the strip looked beautiful with the backdrop of the dessert.

Me: "Lizard, Lizard! We really are in the dessert!"

Lizard (out loud): "Yes.."
Lizard (in her head): It is going to be a long weekend...

We headed out for breakfast, then off to explore the hotels. Paris, Caesar's Palace, The Belagio and New York, New York. They were all amazing. I took lots of pictures of us with different novelty attractions. There was lots of laughter. The entire place is like a theme park for grown ups.

I loved the gondolas at the Venetian... ridiculous, but so much fun to see.

Perhaps the most concerning part about the whole place were the people walking around the street drinking beer and giant frozen cocktails at all times of the day. Bizarre!

I found it to be a very surreal place. Not only are there drinkers wandering around at all hours, the street is lined with poker machines and there are men and women who hand out cards for call girls - "Have a girl in your hotel room in under 20 minutes."

The Hard Rock Hotel (incidentally not the location of the Vegas Hard Rock Cafe) had women in bikinis dancing on top of some of the poker tables. Our own hotel, the Cosmopolitan, had dancers in tiny outfits suspended in boxes on the wall of the bar. They climbed down from their perches at the end of the night on ropes. It was random but cool - we knew we were in Vegas!

Noodles was very much taken by the video poker - she won a bit of money too. My only concern was that she freaked out when Lizard and I watched her play - "you'll ruin my winning streak!"... Am I really that unlucky?

I only lost $2 gambling. I learnt to play craps at the Flamingo hotel. The game made me feel very American. It seemed so simple in theory, but every time I tried to follow the rules I got lost. I had a chance to throw the dice... but the others on the table were not impressed by my abilities. I did not know you could be a bad dice thrower. Perhaps Noodles is right - I am just very unlucky.

Fortunately (or unfortunately?) none of us tied the knot in a Vegas. We did check a few out of the chapels though - Lizard and Noodles stood at the alter to get a feel for it. They very much looked the part... 

We stopped at a cheap ticket counter and bought tickets to Cirque Du Soleil - Love - this is the Beatles tribute version of Cirque Dy Soleil. It was incredible. Our tickets were very cheap and in the second row. It was amazing being up close and personal with the performance. The show was very engaging and the skill and quality was like nothing I have ever seen. I loved the costumes and the characters, the colour and the joy of the performance. It really made me happy and excited. Just thinking about it makes me sad that I am not watching it right now. It was the best thing ever. 

I loved it so much that the next day I brought a ticket to see Cirque Du Soleil - O. This show is performed over water and the show's reputation precedes it. It really was incredible. The stage is like nothing I have ever seen. The tricks the artists performed should not have been possible. My favourite part was the diving. The artists dove from heights and across the stage. They performed incredible movements in the air. It was amazing.

After the show, we were stopped by a promotional girl. "Girl's you must go to the nightclub in the Bank. Don't worry about the queue, just push to the front and ask for Brent. He will look after you."

We did pass by the nightclub... and the twenty five thousand people trying to get in outside. This led us to ask the question - "Which line is the regular line, and which is the one for people who know Brent?"

After a incredible weekend it was time to go home. The flight home was long. We had not had much sleep and we had a lay over in LA. However, the flight path was not the worst part of our flight. Neither were our non reclining seats. Neither was the smell coming from the bathroom. The worst part of the flight was the baby in front of us... the kid was so small and made so much noise. If he wasn't crying, his older brother was squealing... and if the two kids were quiet for even a moment, the parents would be bickering. It was not pleasant. I was tired enough to sleep through most of it - but poor Noodles and Lizard had to suffer for five hours.

It felt so good to get back to miserable, wet... Jersey. Oh man... this is when I miss JFK. It was another hour before we were back in New York City. Not that it makes much of a difference in the cab.... still, Jersey?

It was an amazing trip. I had such a wonderful time and can't wait to go back - in fact I have already booked tickets in March. A wonderful trip that I will remember for a long time!