Michael Jackson

I remember the day I fell in LOVE with Michael Jackson. He was performing the half time show for Super Bowl XXVII. It was 1993 and I was in the third grade. I was AMAZED at this man’s talent. Over the next few years, I grew completely obsessed. I collected any media I could. I had a videotape in the vcr, ready to record in case MJ was on TV. I begged my parents to buy me all his CDs, videos, EVERYTHING. I even read his unauthorized biographies! TWO OF THEM! I was in elementary school!! My obsession was so deep that I even begged my parents constantly to take me to Neverland Ranch. Mind you, this was in the middle of all the controversy surrounding MJ. And it didn’t phase me! Nothing did!

Anyway, years later, here I am, still totally in love with Michael Jackson. I was absolutely SHOCKED to hear about the news today. Like Michael’s many, many fans, I’m heartbroken. He was an amazing, talented man who will be missed.

(It's an inside joke)

Michael Jackson

August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009

My sister’s visit

My sister came for a visit and it was one of the MOST epic weekends I have EVER had in NYC. I will spare all the details and share photos instead. Enjoy!

Me and John Krasinski

He's so good looking!

This was definitely taken before we had too many drinks..

At the Delancey

This was basically my expession the entire time because my sister asks WAY TOO MANY QUESTIONS! Hahaha

At my apartment

Salsa dancing at S.O.B's

Dancing at Marquee

Our new German friend

Ground Zero is in the distance

The WTC Cross

In front of the Trump Building

NYSE

She dosn't even drink beer!!!

After bloody mary's and a TON of beers, I started hitting on older, married men. HAHA! OH ERIKA.

It was a very fun weekend and I seriously needed a good week of sleep just to recover from everything. I’m glad you had a great time, Sister!!!!!! Come back soon!

<3

E

The UK!! (Part 2 – London)

Like I had mentioned in the Scotland post, Rachel’s cousin let us stay with her in her London home. THANK YOU, BRENDA!!! She is an amazing wife and mother! Her children, oh my god, seriously, they’re so smart and HILARIOUS.. not to mention gorgeous! More on that later.

Anyway, it was really nice of Brenda to let us stay with her because the hostel was really wearing on me and Rachel. Granted, our hostel WAS nice and clean, but one can only wear flip flops in the shower for so long. Plus, it was kind of a pain having to fit all your belongings into a little locker. Whatever. It added to the whole experience and I don’t regret staying in the hostel. It definitely made us a lot more appreciative of Brenda’s house. We were like, “WOW, we can walk around barefoot????” Hahaha. Also, it was nice to leave our things open and trust that no one would steal our belongings.

Our first stop was to check out the City, where we’d see City Hall, Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, etc. Check, check and check!

City Hall

Tower Bridge

Tower of London

More Tower of London

The great thing about London is that it’s a bit like New York in that it’s densely packed. So although it is a big city, it’s actually not as big as one may think. You can easily walk from one neighborhood to the next, and like NYC, sometimes it’s a bit tough to tell when one neighborhood ends and the other begins.

Monument to the Great Fire

St. Paul's Cathedral

Oh, hello

We went to the Covent Garden Market and man, it totally reminded me of NYC’s Soho except with street performers. Somehow, both Rachel and I managed to be part of this magician’s show. I’m pretty sure this man pulled me into his show because I was wearing a dress.

HAHA the street performer berating me

He needed audience participation to demonstrate what he wanted the little kid to do.

"And at this point, Francois, the important thing to remember is to NOT look up."

Click on this link (it will open in a new window) to watch the video of the street performance. It was recorded sideways and I’m not sure how to rotate the video, so you’ll have to tilt your head.

Rachel had been recording the performance from across the way so after it was done, she had to run back to me. Haha, unfortunately, it interrupted the guy’s show. So, he took her and some random people from the audience to take a “family photo.” So funny!

Happy family!

We went to Picadilly Circus just to use the Barclay’s ATM. Seriously. OOO, electronic ads.. we don’t have any of those in Manhattan at all.

Picadilly Circus

We found out that admission to the British Museum is FREE, so we rushed over just to see one thing, the Rosetta Stone.

The British Museum

The Rosetta Stone

We also hopped on the London Eye to get a view of central London.

Westminster Abbey

The London Eye

Waiting for the London Eye to move

Believe it or not, we did a TON of our activities in 1 day. We were exhausted that night but dragged ourselves out to meet with a friend near Picadilly Circle. Now, I don’t know if Americans know this, but holidays in general are serious business in Europe. Basically everything is closed down! I learned that the hard way when I went to Spain. Anywho, the night we went out, it was a Bank Holiday AND a Sunday, so I was pretty doubtful of open clubs and/or bars. We managed to find a sub-par lounge; the crowd was interesting but the company was good, so it was still a decent night.

Some lounge near Picadilly Circle

Also, I don’t know if anyone knows this, but the tube is closed from approximately 1 am until 5 or 5:30 am. I had convinced Rachel that if we were out past 3:30 am, we should just stay up and wait for the tube. Rachel agreed. Unfortunately, somehow we managed to take a cab back home instead. And even more unfortunate was that our cab driver took us to the wrong stop. We figured it wouldn’t be a bad walk since he dropped us off at the train station before our own.. but you know how those things always go.. we ended up walking more than an hour back home. At least we got to see the English countryside at sunrise, right? Right???

What a beautiful morning..

We were scheduled for a bike tour around the Royal Parks later that day but missed it since we only managed to sleep for 2 hours. We spent the day shopping instead. The next day, however, we were well-rested and ready for our bike tour with Fat Tire.

Fat Tire bike tour

Fat Tire is the only bike tour allowed to bike through the Royal Parks. Rachel and I HIGHLY recommend it. Our first stop was Kensington Garden & the Palace, where Princess Diana once lived.

Kensington Palace

Royal Albert Hall

Wellington Arch

Biking!

We biked past Buckingham Palace during the changing of the guards and managed to catch them during the procession! Guards were yelling at people to clear the path but, as was our new tradition in London, we needed to take a quick jumping pic.

Quickly, before the guards make us move!

I like their qtip/fro/helmet thingies

We stopped in Tralfalgar Square to have a quick bite to eat and a tipple (that’s British for a drink). We could’ve gone to the National Gallery (free admission!) but we decided to eat, drink and relax instead.

National Gallery

Trafalgar Square

I got a flat tire in my bike so our tour guide needed some time to replace it. In the meantime, Rachel and I messed with the guards.

They hated us

Because we kept taking pictures like these

More biking!

We managed to have a pretty rocky tour (2 flat tires and 1 fall) but overall, I thought it was the highlight of the trip.

On my last day, Rachel and I went to Harrods to grab some food, buy some tea and see the Diana & Dodi memorial. First of all, WOW @ Harrods. It is BEAUTIFUL. It’s a HUUUUUGE department store. And their food hall is AMAZING. I grabbed a salad to eat on the way and also some tea. Man, they have a huge selection of tea.. of everything, actually. Coffees, teas, chocolates, etc. Anyway, second of all, the memorial was somewhat of a let-down. I was expecting something beautiful and magnificent, not something small and cheesy on the basement floor of this beautiful department store. Oh well. I took a photo anyway.

@ Harrods

I had to take the tube to the airport and I swear I thought I was going to miss my flight (I hate airports) because the trains were taking FOREVER. Well, obviously, I made my flight and had about 30 minutes to spare. Woohoo!

Brenda’s kids are so cute and precocious and they’re also a big thing I’ll miss in London. Fortunately, Brenda and her family will be moving to Baltimore this summer. Anyway, the funny thing is I think that Rachel and I had more fun staying in & playing with them than experiencing the London nightlife.. it’s those English accents, I swear!

From right to left, Allen, Emily and Alyssa

Alyssa's so fearless! Seriously! Brenda would just exclaim, "Alyssa! You're so crazy!!" Hahahhaa

Aw, cousins!

That about wraps it up. Anyway, the UK is amazing! The next time I go, I want to see more of Scotland, particularly the Highlands (where my momma lived for a wee bit) and outside of London.. or maybe even more of central London, I don’t know. I don’t have any major trips planned (yet) but I do want to go to Prague and Berlin this winter.. we’ll see. Sorry again for the super delayed updates! Hope it was worth waiting for

<3

E

1 year anniversary! And THE UK!!! (Part 1 – Scotland)

On May 4, 2009, I passed my one year mark of living in New York City!!!!! Happy anniversary to me! 1 down, many more to go.

Anyway, I just got back from the lovely United Kingdom. Rachel and I took a quick trip out to Edinburgh & London. Again, it was sort of a last minute trip. Rachel’s cousin, Brenda, lives in South London with her husband and 3 ADORABLE children and offered to let us stay with her during our visit. And I figured — if we’re going to go THIS far, might as well check out Scotland, too!

So Rachel and I met at Newark Airport. DUDE, we were on the SAME flight (she flew in from San Francisco). Talk about luck! We managed to sit with each other AND score an empty seat between us!!! It would’ve been a decent red-eye flight but the kid next to me across the aisle stayed awake and TALKED the entire frickin time. It was cute at first because he had such a heavy Scottish accent but you know what? That brogue can definitely wear on you after, oh, I don’t know, the first hour. Regardless, it was an easy flight and I’m really thankful.

We got to Edinburgh, Scotland around 8 am and didn’t really have an idea of what to do. Our hostel room wasn’t available until noon so we had a few hours to kill. It’s in Old Town, next to the Grassmarket (pretty great location, if you ask me), by the way. So Rachel and I wandered the streets a little, walked down Royal Mile and when it started sprinkling (Scots don’t believe in umbrellas, BY THE WAY!!), we headed down Princes Street to go shopping. Edinburgh is pretty. It’s REALLY old and my mind could not wrap around that fact. The streets in Old Town are all cobbledstoned and the buildings are all gray and.. I don’t know, it’s gorgeous. Edinburgh is also very hilly. They have these little shortcut alleys called closes. They’re kiiiiiiiiind of creepy. They’re just stairs from one street to another.

The Royal Mile

One of the creepy closes! This is NOT a black & white picture, by the way!

Scottish Parliament

Of COURSE we had to go see Edinburgh Castle. I’ve never seen a castle ever! The views are amazing.

A view of the castle from the gardens below

What an odd sight -- a parking lot in front of the castle.

The Royal Apartments

What a view!

I got stuck

Rachel and I

In our downtime, and because our hostel didn’t have wireless internet AND I brought my laptop (due to work responsibilities–what can I say, I’m addicted to my work), Rachel and I used the free internet at one of the nearby pubs. Um, how amazing is that? DRINKING AND FREE INTERNET???

Rachel was happy!

After a few drinks and getting our internet fix, we were both pretty happy!

Anyway, our first night in Edinburgh, we went to the Beltane Fire Festival in Calton Hill. It’s a Pagan fire festival that celebrates the start of summer with a HUGE FIRE. And lots of naked dancing. Seriously. That was an interesting night, to say the least. We met some great people and that’s always a plus.

Don’t let the summer festivities fool you–it was COLD! We were lucky that it wasn’t raining that night (miraculously) but it was still ridiculously cold!

The view from Calton Hill

The Beltane Fire Festival.. before they got nakie

Haha look at that woman's face!

Naked pagans!

Fire!

There was one thing I REALLY wanted to do in Scotland–eat shortbread. I am not even joking.

YUMMY

You can't fake that kind of joy.

And I really wanted Rachel to try some haggis (I couldn’t because I don’t eat red meat.. or anything gamey).

It's just sausage, really

She liked it!

We also hiked up Arthur’s Seat.. well, actually we hiked up one of its crags. So here’s the thing. There’s this massive cliff that’s about a 45 minute hike up to the peak and we wanted to see it. There are a few ways to get there and even though we were told how to do it, we kind of just winged it. Okay, I lie, I winged it and Rachel just followed me blindly. Hahaha.

This is not Arthur's seat. It's just one of the crags

THIS is Arthur's Seat. About an additional 30-45 minutes of hiking through a valley and up that massively steep incline.

Haha who else is going to pose like this while hiking? Oh Erika.

Check out the background!

Edinburgh's so green

Finally reached the peak of the CRAG.

I look dangerously close to the edge, don't I?

We spent our last day just wandering around some more. We didn’t explore as much of Edinburgh as we could have.. the public transportation is KIND OF expensive. It was either 3 pounds per bus ride (ridiculous!) or a stroll in the rain.

At the gardens below the castle. Rachel's happy w/ her cotton candy!

Another view from the gardens

Some plaza

On our way to see a waterfall

It was somewhat of a let-down.

Princes Street

I’ll detail the London portion of my trip in Part 2, which will come soon, promise!

<3

E

Peanut takes the subway!

Dogs aren’t usually allowed on the subway unless they are in a carrier but I think MTA employees & the NYPD have more pressing things to worry about than pets & their owners taking the 4/5 uptown.

I’ve taken Peanut on the subway before and because I was worried about breaking the rules & paying the fine (which I heard is $25), I’d carry him in an oversized Ikea bag. You know, those big ugly blue ones? Peanut is a small dog but he’s not small enough for those tiny carriers they sell @ Petco.

Just before I left for Spain, a couple friends and I took Peanut to Rockefeller Center to see the Christmas tree. I had just started taking Peanut on the subway and he was surprisingly well-behaved in that bag. This was seriously the ONLY thing he’d fit in! Believe me, I tried! Alyssa and I went to the pet store one day to look for a decent carrier. He was too big for the largest one!

HAHAHAHA, he’s so cute. Look at him! He was so unhappy trying to fit in that carrier!

Anyway, I’ve seen owners carry their pets on the subway so I figured it’d be okay for me to do the same. I always bring the Ikea bag JUST IN CASE someone gives me a hard time. No one’s said anything negative yet, so woohoo!

Peanut definitely attracts attention on the subway. He’s so frickin nosy, though! All the new scents drive him wild and he just HAS to sniff EVERYTHING and EVERYONE. For the most part, people don’t care and are understanding. The other day, though, we were on the subway and he would NOT stay still. He was trying to smell the woman next to me and she got pretty irritated.. oh well.

He’s such a good commuter!

Sometimes we’ll take cabs and I think he enjoys those rides more because he likes feeling the air on his face. Honestly, I’m not trying to brag or anything, but I’m so lucky to have such a great dog. He’s so smart and he’s acclimated to the move so easily and quickly, it’s amazing. Peanut is one in a million! And he knows it!

John Krasinski!

I am a HUGE fan of the US version of “The Office” (isn’t everyone?), so you can imagine how I felt when I ran into Jim Halpert himself.. that sexy, sexy man. He was sitting with his dog outside of this bar I like in Tribeca. We chatted for a few minutes (mostly about dogs). He’s so polite and handsome!

Running into him was definitely the perfect start to an EPIC weekend. More to come (soon, when I can actually come up for air).

<3

E

PS – don’t we look really good together? Hahahha! And NO, my hand is NOT on his thigh!

Still catching up..

Sorry for the much delayed blog posts! I’ve been SO busy since I got back from the UK. It’s been a month since I got back and I still haven’t gotten around to blogging about it NOR have I washed my clothes from the trip (ew, gross).

I promise I’ll write a lengthy post soon. For now, here are two teasers from the trip.

You can see Edinburgh Castle in the distance!

Walking towards the London Eye.

More soon, promise!

<3

E

Spring showers

I think it’s safe to say winter is over in NYC, even though we had the strangest occurrence of snow flurries earlier this week. With the exception of that funky weather, temperatures have steadily been above freezing for a while now. Let’s hope it starts warming up soon!

It’s currently raining so I can’t go out for my Saturday run.. I think it should clear up by tomorrow though, so I’ll be celebrating Easter Sunday morning running along the East River. Doesn’t sound like a bad way to end my holiday weekend.

I haven’t posted in a while but no worries, it’s not like my life’s been crazy lately. Let’s see.. what HAS happened? Friends have visited in the past couple weeks and it was nice to see them. And in preparation for 10k runs around Central Park this summer, I’ve been running outdoors a few times a week. It turns out I like running (as long as it’s outside). I HATE running on the treadmill. I can never stay on it long enough because I get so bored! I don’t run a lot, like 3-4 miles a couple times a week. I take Peanut with me sometimes but it’s hard to maintain a long, non-stop run with him because he likes to pee on everything. It’s easier than I thought to run 3-4 miles, though. I run on the East River running path so I set my distance based on landmarks. I usually run from North Cove in Battery Park City to somewhere in the Lower East Side and back. Okay, hm, I just realized I’m probably running ~5 miles instead, round trip. Hm, not bad!

Check out this view from Battery Park.. what a clear day for a run!! I didn’t go that day because I had ran the day before. Anyway, you can see the Statue of Liberty on the right!

Let’s see.. what else is going on.. Oh, well I’m going to Scotland and London @ the end of this month! I don’t know if I’ve told everybody that. Mommy, Daddy, I’m going to the UK this month. Whoops, sorry I didn’t tell you sooner (or on the phone). I’m going with Rachel!!! We’re going to Edinburgh for a few days and then staying with her cousin in London. Flights were CHEAP. I’m excited. Anyone have any UK tips? Please share!

So the rental market is declining (thank GOD!) and since my roommates and I live in the Wall Street area (a not-so-high-profile area to live in Manhattan) and we don’t want to leave it, we’ve decided to live together another year. We’re not staying in the same apartment, though. For the price we’re paying, we can definitely find a bigger place in the same area. I’m excited! I’m thankful I have great roommates. Here they are with Peanut.. haha, I hope they don’t shoot me for posting this on my blog.. eek!

Peanut is good, by the way. He’s the same crazy little nut. I used to sneak him into my office building (pets aren’t allowed) but I got caught one day by the jerk doorman!! “Excuse me miss.. you can go but your puppy can’t.” WHATEVER! Besides that, he’s doing well. He’s so smart, it amazes me. Oh he’s so cute! I made some space for him on my windowsill so he can stare out the window when we’re home.

What else is new! Oh, I’m YELP ELITE now! So awesome. Yelp, if you’re not familiar, is a social community-driven review site for local doctors, restaurants, bars, etc. Yelp appreciates honest reviews from its users and if a member’s reviews are consistently helpful and entertaining, the member may be awarded elite membership. Yelp elite events are pretty awesome. Free appetizers, booze, etc. The last Yelp event I went to was an off-Broadway show! FREE TICKETS! So awesome!!!! I encourage everybody to become an active Yelp member! www.yelp.com

Anyway, I should go brave the light rain and take Peanut on his morning walk now.

<3

E

Seasons in NYC.. and Britney Spears (!!)

Because of global warming, NYC hasn’t really had REAL seasons. It’s either summer or winter. This transitional phase right now is not spring, it’s like a warmer winter. Does that make sense? I know there’s a difference because I’m not living each day in my Uggs anymore.

Anyway, I saw Britney Spears last night. I went to her concert at the Prudential Center in NJ and, OH MY GOD, she was *AMAZING*!!!!!! Her show was SOOO good, you guys. She was beautiful, too! And YES, she actually DANCED and SANG.. just not the entire show. She sang “Everytime” live. OMG her show was sooooo great!!!!! I bought a tshirt (hahahaha) and some other Britney merchandise.

Not much else is going on over here. I’ve just been working a lot (as per usual). No complaints there. Peanut is well. He’s currently stretching next to me.

Oh, I lost my blackberry. This is the FIRST TIME I’ve lost it. The first blackberry I had was defective, I broke the second one AND it got stolen when I got back from Jamaica and yea.. I left the last one in a cab. This will be my 4th blackberry SINCE JULY 2008. What is going on??!! I know I usually change phones every year but this is getting ridiculous. Good thing I have insurance; replacement fees are $50 versus the $400+ retail price. Unfortunately Asurion has made $100 off me (so far). I need to be more careful with my things!

Anyway, I have to get going.. gotta stop by the farmer’s market in Union Square to pick up some things for dinner tonight. I’m making BBQ RIBS. Holler!

Grocery Shopping in NYC!

Because of the sub-zero temperatures this winter (and the insanely biting windchill), I’ve traded nights out @ bars for nights in cooking dinner and watching movies. So, instead of spending my money on clothes, dining out and many, many cocktails, I’ve been buying quality groceries instead.

I LOVE grocery shopping. HUGE grocery stores are among the handful of things I miss about suburban life. New Yorkers aren’t blessed with Albertson’s and Safeways and Ralph’s around the corner. We have Food Emporium, Gristedes, Morton Williams, Whole Foods, and (one of my recent discoveries) Amish Market, just to name a few. There are also convenient bodegas scattered throughout each neighborhood. But these grocery stores (save Whole Foods) pale in comparison to the ever reliable, incredibly convenient, well-stocked and very LARGE suburban supermarkets. It’s not the same weaving through each aisle here in New York. Regardless, I’ve compiled a short list of tips should you ever find yourself searching for the right groceries in the Big Apple.

1. Typically high quality and expensive products found at Gristedes and Morton Williams are cheaper, YES CHEAPER!, at Whole Foods. There’s this jar of Swiss fruit preserves I really like and it’s usually $6-7 at Gristedes or MW. It’s less than $3 at Whole Foods!!!!

2. Similarly, extra virgin olive oil (of which I go through insane amounts) is much cheaper at Whole Foods.

3. Canned vegetables and legumes are cheaper at Gristedes and MW. It’s even cheaper if you go to Trader Joe’s, if you can withstand that crazy, hectic mob. Frozen vegetables and fruit are also cheapest at TJ’s. BTW, if you don’t know this already, there is only one TJ store in all of Manhattan. That explains the mob.

4. Sure you can go to Associated and buy discount groceries but don’t forget that it’s marked down for a reason! The sell-by dates are usually imminent at Associated, so be sure to use your fresh groceries immediately!

5. The same goes for groceries bought around Chinatown. You’ll find cheap bushels of baby bok choy, garlands of garlic for $1 and exotic assorted Asian vegetables and fruits. But because everything is RIPE, make sure you buy only what you need for that day.

6. The best quality seafood and meat are obviously found at fish and meat markets. The caveat is that the prices reflect the quality and the service, so make sure your wallet is nice and fat. Otherwise, I’d trust the seafood & butcher counters at Whole Foods and the Amish Market. Fresh is best! Sometimes I like to get my fresh seafood from Chinatown. It’s RIDICULOUSLY cheap. I cooked what I needed that night and froze the rest.

7. Farmer’s markets are good for fresh, cheap and great quality produce. Just be sure to carry cash.

8. Fruit from carts and stands around the city, particularly East Village and Union Square, are usually pretty ripe and cheap as well. Sometimes they’ll give you something extra, like a free mango or a couple tangerines along with your original purchase of grapes. Sweet deal.

Anyway, hope this helps.. as if any locals read my blog anyway.

Happy shopping!

<3

E