And the best thing about New York city...

And the best thing about New York city... could well be the coffee!

Arrived yesterday after a fab night with Jesse at the Green Mill jazz club in Chicago - where we got to sit in a groovey old style booth and listen to / watch a band called Swing Gitane (i think) which played a mix of swing, jazz and Spanish style guitar music - and consisted of 2 guitars, a piano accordian, double bass and violin. Tres cool.

The trip to NY was blah - the United Airlines computers were down at the Chicago airport and the check-in queue stretched the length of the terminal and then double backed on itself. Fortunately everything was working by the time I got to the top of the queue - with just enough time to get my boarding pass, have my carry-on luggage and shoes checked by security and get to the gate where they were just starting to board the plane. Arrived in NY about 2pm and was at the hostel by about 4pm.

I've managed to rearrange my bookings so I have 5 nights in the one hostel - which is basic but clean and sells Lavazza coffee - and for $30 a night I get bed, breakfast (bagels, afterall this is New York), linen and towels - and a share bathroom. This means I dont have to spend Sunday moving from one end of the city to the other - although I now miss out on staying in the East Village - but thems the breaks. .I decided today that I dont need to do everything possible in New York and rush around like a mad thing (when did I get this grown - up???). So I'm going for the immersion experience - and if I dont get to the top of the Empire State Building or on a ferry trip around the island, well it doesn't really matter (and besides I did all that in 1992!)

Yesterday I went for a walk through Central Park (the hostel is right next to the park) down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (hereafter referred to as The Met), walking past people playing team baseball, walking their dogs, sunning themselves (its gloriously hot here! Three cheers for summer!), jogging in packs, a Shakespeare in the Park style performance and at least a half a dozen squirrels and all sorts of birds that I dont recognise. I had late lunch in a cafe on Madison Ave - and watched New York in peak hour traffic.

Today I again walked through Central Park to The Met (saw more squirrels and several tortoises in the park). Had brunch in another cafe on Madison - eggs benedict - which I have some strange notion are a very NY thing - but I could be making that up!. And then to The Met where I spent all day. And when I say all day I mean all day. I entered the building at about 11am and finally left about 7pm. I went on three separate one hour guided tours: American painting; Highlights of the Museum; Impressionism and Post Impressionism - as well as wandering aimlessly and with some purpose through the maze of the museum. And around every corner was another masterpiece - oh look there's Cabanel's Birth of Venus; Singer Sargent's Madame X, Manet's several paintings that used Victorine as his model; an authentic full size relocated Egyptian temple; a Caillebotte painting of river and bridge in France somewhere, Monets, Cezannes, Van Goghs, Whisters, Jean Beraud, Cassatt, Morisot, El Greco, Seurat, Jeff Koons.... the list is endless - and so seemingly is the collection. And I have all these photos of paintings which is silly because they will all be in books - but I somehow needed to have a photo - as a record of me and the painting being in the same room maybe...

And when I realised that I couldn't see everything in the one day that I wanted to, well I joined the museum. Normal admin prices are $20. Annual Membership if you live more than 200 k away is $50 - and it includes The Cloisters museum at the other end of town (normally $20 entrance) where I plan to go on Sunday morning. So all I have to do is drop in one more time and I am ahead - and they will be sending me a quarterly magazine!

Had a drink in the Cafe BAr at the Met this afternnoon - where $10 got me a beer, mixed olives, a seat overlooking the main hall and a string quartet playing classical music.

Had dinner tonight in a French bistro - onion tarte, salad, red wine and a decent cappuccino! Yay New York!

Other things that spring to mind:

I got "carded" (ie asked for ID) twice in Chicago!!! And I know they are extreme about underage drinking over here - but really! Actually I couldn't stop laughing!

I was stopped in the street here (NY) yesterday and asked for directions! Obviously my tactic for looking like I know where I am going is working!

And Johnny Depp was in Chicago filming a Probihition era Gangster movie - and we saw a street dressed up for the film - but sadly not Johnny himself!

I have photos - but will have to post them later, as my camera cord is upstairs. Hope everyone is well - and thanks for all the blog comments. Good to know that someone is reading!