Return of the WiFi

Hey hey!

WiFi is a gift. And now I have a reliable connection. Just saying. 

Times Square! I've spent a lot of time in Times Square in the past two days. M&Ms world, Disney store, the red steps, tkts. It's all so close and all so amazing. I'm now having me opportunity to be a tourist and see whatever I feel like seeing. 

I absolutely love Times Square. Even though I consider myself a very small city girl, I love how busy it is and I love the lights of it at night. The only thing I find particularly annoying is that there is no shade during the day. 

On Wednesday (yesterday) after carting my stuff uptown 12 blocks cause I didn't want to bother paying for a taxi, I then made my way to just see Times Square before lining up for tkts tickets to attempt to see Kristin Chenoweth in On the 20th Century. During my wandering I went through the M&Ms store (3 levels) and ducked into Hersheys (1 level) and the Disney Store (2 levels).  There is no shortage of stuff. I have managed to control my budget but when you have the option of buying only purple M&Ms it's a must. 

(Disney Store Tangled theme Escalators)

I spent a while enjoying the atmosphere of the place while sitting on the red steps before lining up for a ticket. And I got one. So after resting my feet shortly in the late afternoon I headed out to see and meet (at stage door) the spectacular Kristin Chenoweth. The show was incredible. Less show-tune than expected but brilliant nonetheless. 

During Act 2 a faulty fire alarm went off reacting to smoke machines and so the show had to be paused for 15-20 minutes. Luckily there was no need for evacuation and so the lead male (Peter Gallagher) came out and talked to the audience. After given the all clear, they continued on. 

At the stage door Kristin Chenoweth signed both my playbill and her autobiography (that I had purchased before the show). Absolutely incredible that I actually got to meet her. Such a big fan. 

Today I saw just a big more of Times Square and some of the area around Jess' apartment. (I also had my first street cart food). Without realising how far I was walking I managed to walk the same 12 blocks with ease (which is a plus in the saga of not completely screwing up my foot). 

I've also managed to have (individual) Skype conversations with my family (and Morgan). The difference between just messaging and then being able to see and hear them was wonderful. Miss everyone at home and love getting to hear from anyone. 

In the evening I joined Jess and some of her friends on a trip to a favourite bakery before walking through the NBC buildin and then up around the edge of Central Park. Then together Jess and I Skyped Kathryn and James Harding and then Emma and Blake Woolard. So good to see so many friends in one day. 

I look forward to the extreme tourist days to come. 

NYC. 

Justine  

Columbia, Brooklyn, MoMA and Pie

Hey hey 

Sunday! The search for more people to catch up with continues as I managed to score some time with another fellow Aussie, Bethany Neville. 

Bethany showed us around morningside heights and Columbia. We had lunch at Chipotle and just had a really good time catching up. 

After the day, Naomi and I headed off to The Book of Mormon. And wow. The theatrics are incredible. Acting was astounding and the show was hilarious in so many cringeworthy brilliant points. 

Then again I stayed at the stage door to meet the cast including 'Elder Cunningham' who was fantastic. The entire thing made such an excellent end to my first week in NYC. 

Monday, we went to Brooklyn. Making a stop at the pie shop that has inspired Dad's wonderful pie cooking escapades. Unfortunately though from the variety of pies I've tried in NYC. The little pie shop on the block I've been staying on definitely wins. After pie though, we walked through Prospect Park and then used trusty Starbucks WiFi. 

In the evening we had dinner with Andy and Fe, more wonderful Australians. The evening was fantastic. We went out for dinner and it was incredibly eventful. A building under construction on the opposite corner from where we were sitting outside had the second floor collapse. As I was facing the other way, all I heard was creaking the then a crash. We turned to see dust everywhere followed by the emergency services follow up. Very interesting to see the evening unfold as we all sat there and ate fried chicken. I had such a good night with Andy and Fe and hope to catch up with them again while I'm here. 

Today! We finally made it to MoMA. The whole place was really interesting to see. The exhibition on Yoko Ono was fascinating and exceptionally different to things I've seen before. And then I saw Van Gough Starry Night. Wow. I've always loved the peice and so seeing it was really really cool. 

Naomi goes home tomorrow. It's literally been a wish come true to see this lovely girl in person again. She's going to do amazing things and I can't wait to keep in touch as she heads off on her next step. All the best for college and beyond lovely.

Rushing out of Starbucks as they close. Thank you places with free WiFi. 

NYC. 

Justine 

Random Musing #2

Hey hey. 

So I figured that with my forced day of inactivity I would spend some time writing another post of thoughts. Now a lot of these thought posts will have some very obvious connection with the theme of a journey and travel (funny that) but I also have other themes in mind that will hopefully present themselves as I go. 

I've generally had a pretty basic sense of spacial awareness; the gift of judging distance has usually lain with other members of the family. I must admit my judgement of distance on a large scale (travel distances) is not much better than that of trying to fit all my books on my bookshelves. 

New York City, when presented on a map, to me always seemed very big. In fact the whole of the USA seemed huge compared to what I was used to. But when I looked at comparison maps of the USA and Australia, I was mind blown to see just how large my home is. (Naomi keeps saying that it's because we've got a huge stinking desert in the middle of the country that people avoid living in, which is a fair enough reasoning in my opinion). Anyway, when looking at a map of Manhattan, things seem a little smaller than I originally expected, and now when I'm here walking those mapped streets, 'a couple of blocks' really doesn't seem that far. Until, of course, you do a full day of walking, or two or three. 

So I guess what I'm getting at is that the perception of distance and travel varies greatly with your situation. 

As I flew away from Australia and the little picture of the plane travelled further and further from home, it didn't really strike me that I was so far away. But now that I'm here, seeing things I only see on TV, home is a very long way away. (Though luckily with the use of technology I'm able to keep in good contact with people at home). 

I've also noticed that the same sort of thing applies even when walking through Central Park. When you first look how far you have to go, it's daunting and scary and you'd honestly rather take the quicker way of catching a taxi, but as you walk it's no where near as hard as you thought. Looking around you and seeing what is happening in life is beautiful and really interesting. I've learnt to pause when I need to, but pause minimally as if you stop too much or too often then you're less inclined to keep going. 

I've also found that destinations can be incredibly rewarding, not only by what's there when you get there but if you look back it's really impressive to see how far you've come can really just be worth the achievement. 

NYC. 

Justine 

Exploring NYC

Hey hey. 

So we've now been in NYC for 6 days. I'm loving every minute of it (except those minutes devoted to dealing with my foot) but more on that later. 

Wednesday was Katherine's last day here, so we spent the lunch time in Central Park having a picnic. Katherine and I were still astounded by the existence of squirrels on mass and took every opportunity to take photos. 

We then spent the early part of the afternoon walking up 5th Avenue. We saw Tiffany & Co, an awesome glass box entry to the Apple store (not pictured), an awesomely large Lego store and a building with a lot of American flags. Before long, Katherine had to leave to make her way back to Australia. 

I had the evening to myself so I used the opportunity to see Avenue Q. The show was Off Broadway, but multiple members of the cast had starred in the show while it was on Broadway. I was absolutely blown away by the sheer talent of the actors as a number of them voiced numerous characters. One guy voiced at least 4 different puppets with amazing differences. Talent. 

On Thursday, we had the chance to see the conversation labs at the Center for Jewish History, thanks to more awesome connections. I found everything really interesting as we talked to Felicity about her work in paper conservation. 

Thursday night we went to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Even 5 minutes into the show we could tell why it won the Tony for best play. The actors were awesome, the use of space was spectacular and the set and technology of the show was absolutely mind blowing. Naomi and I walked out agreeing that the show reminded us that theatre wasn't just entertainment, it was art. 

We finished the night with another trip to the Stardust Diner where we managed to get seats in the center of the room so the staff were singing right around us. 

All in all Thursday evening has been a massive highlight to my trip so far. 

Friday was spent at the Met and in more of Central Park. This time, Bilbo managed to score a few good views as well. 

The Met was huge. There was no way we were expecting to see everything, so we prioritised a few of the different galleries including medieval art, musical instruments, arm and armour, ancient Egypt and some Chinese outfits. (for further photos and information on a few things we saw, message me your email and I'll send out a bunch of photos) 

We walked a lot through Central Park, managing to see a fair bit more than previous visits, but there is still so much more of it to see. There is such a difference in feel when walking in the Park as apposed to the rest of NYC, everything is incredibly green and beautiful. It's like another place all together. 

In the evening, we got last minute cheap tickets to the Polish National Ballet. We ended up in the first row which meant we couldn't see their feet but the experience was overwhelming. I'm so glad that we took the opportunity to see something different and we definitely weren't disappointed with the experience. 

Today (Saturday) has been spent in the apartment as my sudden increase in walking had unfortunately lead to some injury of a tendon in my foot. So we've had to back up and chill out for the day after having it checked out this morning. But nevertheless I will persist with my exploration even if it has to slow down and involve minor bouts of walking. 

NYC.  

Justine 

New York City

Hey hey

I made it to NYC!!! 

I'm here. It's incredible. It's exciting. 

Posts will be less common in the coming weeks as my search for WiFi becomes a little more difficult. But I'll do what I can. 

We flew in Monday evening after multiple delays to our flight. But we made it and arrived to a really lovely apartment of Naomi's uncle. When the weather permits, we're able to see the Statue of Liberty. A little bit. 

Our first night here we went to the stardust diner (home of the singing wait staff) for dessert. The night was heaps of fun and we got to spend it with Katherine. 

Tuesday started my first full day in NYC. The three of us spent the day time in the Museum of Natural History and then walked through part of Central Park. I felt like I was walking into movies and TV shows the entire day. New York really is what I was expecting and it's just amazing. 

Broadway. I made it. We went and saw Hedwig and the Angry Inch (starring Darren Criss) and wow. Walking through Times Square to the theatre was so exciting. The show was amazing. Tiny cast, Darren, lead female (Rebecca) and the four members of the band. But it was spectacular. 

After the show Katherine and I went to the stage door (where we were at the front of the barricades). We waited for a fair while, but we got Rebecca's signature and a photo and then finally Darren came and we got his signature and had a really short conversation with him. He wasn't doing pictures with people along the line but the whole experience wad amazing. 

Wow. NYC. And I'm here for ages. I'm so excited and I'm already thrilled at the chance for more things to do. 

NYC. Finally. 

Justine 

Random Musings

Hey hey

So as I head off to bed on my last night in Minneapolis, I'm having a look back at my experiences so far and what I'm taking with me. 

I've really been looking forward to this trip as an opportunity to let go of things that have really been weighing me down in the last 6-12 months. My midyear adventure I hope is really going to help me look at what I find important and how to go into life after year 12. So there will hopefully be a few blog posts that instead of recounting the day, I will use as a record (for those keeping updated and also for me to look back at) of how this incredible experience hopefully helps change my life. 

Today's post comes as a reflection on walking. As someone who does very little exercise in any form, I've been noting the amount of walking that I've done this week and will continue to do for the weeks to come. 

Honestly, I've never really been a fan of walking, I've found other ways to get places or managed to avoid the trip. But walking in such incredibly beautiful neighbourhoods and places I've never been has made me realise that just walking, even just to walk, can be incredibly rewarding. Yes, I then come home very tired, but it's satisfying to know that I went somewhere amazing without the sole purpose of practicality. 

Walking places with someone is really what made me think of writing about the subject. I've noticed as we walk that it's not particularly difficult to fall into step with someone next to you, but also if you have slightly different walking paces it can become really difficult to stay in time. 

With some of the difficulties I've encountered with maintaining friendships and connections with people I've once been really close with, thus reflection came as somewhat of a revelation. To me, I realised that yes (as cliche as it is) life really is a journey. For me at the the moment it's a journey on a footpath. Not matter where I walk, some people will join me, some will leave and others walking in completely the opposite direction. For those that walk beside me, we fall into step and it can last for a very long time, there are people who have walked in step with me my entire life. Then there are others who I only manage to fall into step with for a while, a year or so. Now I'm not amazing at realising when other people's path doesn't follow the same route as mine, I struggle to try and stay in time as they change they're pace to go somewhere else. But what I've realised in the past week is that I really need to see that as ok. Some people I can manage to take a little jumpskip and end up back in step with, but others I'll just end up spraining an ankle just trying to keep up. 

This has been something that I haven't been able to grasp since I left college and I still think that I'll need a little help from people next to me to remember. But I'm getting there, I'm letting go and I'm starting to be ready to take the next fork in the road and end up with a healthier frame of mind. 

It's a bit hard, cause my familiar pathetic is on the other side of the world, but each new step is a step closer to the change in my life that I really think I need after some difficult few months. 

I'm growing, I'm grateful, and I'm so darn excited for the next step. And who knows, some walks give you excellent views. 

Last night in Minneapolis. 

Justine

New Experiences

Hey hey

So Friday involved another trip to a lake, however this time we went to one with a beach. 

Although rather weirded out by the whole concept of swimming in a lake and lazing on its beach (thanks to the wonderfully untrustworthy lakes at home) I did end up wading and really enjoyed the afternoon. We had lunch including a very simple hot dog and a BLT. 

On Friday evening we went out to see Naomi's horse, Ranger, and I watched her riding lesson. In this past week I've really loved getting to see the different aspects of life here and I'm so, so happy that I've been able to come and visit. 

Saturday ended up being a very long day, we made it to an event at the Germanic American institute, another grad party and then to part of the all-night arts festival Northern Spark. 

The event at the GAI was interesting, it mainly involved people sitting around drinking and eating as they listened to a band play German music. A comment as we left may have been something like "It would probably be more interesting if we could drink the beer."

The neighbourhood that the GAI is in though is ridiculously wealthy. The houses are more like small mansions and they all have impeccable front lawns. Partly made me realise just how young things in Canberra are, and that's even without seeing the thousands upon thousands of year old buildings mum and dad have seen in Europe. 

The concept of graduation parties initially seemed a little foreign to me. Finishing high school (year 12) in the USA is such a major event as its often when kids then move out of home an very often interstate. So as I've managed to accompany Naomi to a small handful of grad parties I've found them with such a positive vibe that it's just been so lovely to meet some new people and slowly realise what a big step college/university is. Plus we got corn on the cob. It had cheese on it. 

We headed out for Northern Spark a bit after 8, before the sun set. The festival was taking place all over Minneapolis, so there was a lot of walking (especially when we kept walking too far and having to double back). The event was a really interesting experience, I got to do a fair bit of sight seeing as most main landmarks had some sort of event happening. We called it a night around 1:30am as I was just too exhausted to keep walking through the night, but what we managed to see was really awesome. 

Just a couple of photos including listening to multiple different musicians, sitting inside effectively a large balloon and icing styrofoam cakes. 

Minneapolis. 

Justine