Contactable via mobile now!

My Blackberry Storm arrived in the post last night and after spending a couple of hours activating and setting up my account, I now have a new mobile (with all the perks of the bb of course)...

Will give out my new number soon :)

My previous Virgin mobile was a prepaid phone with limited features...which included the inability to text/call international numbers, as well as not being able to receive international sms.
But now....problem solved! Yay :) The firm will also let me keep the bb after I leave, so this should be good...byebye Virgin mobile!

Now....if only I can work out how to link my personal email to the bb...

Excitement!

The Killers concert tomorrow night!!! AAHHH...and just realised I haven't been listening to the new album recently....darn it! Not that I don't like it or anything...just been quite slack. Oh dear...will do a crash course tomorrow. Hahaha otherwise I won't know the songs during the concert! But have been checking out the set list from their recent shows....and looks awesome!

Wish I wasn't going alone though...boo.



Met up with Kei today (like finally!) and it was probably a good thing she wanted to confirm the date. Cos I thought we were meant to meet up last Sunday night and had messaged to cancel cos I extended my stay in Philly....and she had thought we were meeting tomorrow night....and then when I said I wanted to go to Chinatown to check out the festivities, I meant today...but she thought it was Monday (when it was actually CNY). So....we finally got to meet! haha

Good fun...she told me there was a JCrew sample sale...so off we went! There was like a massive queue outside the building (looks like some dodgy old office building...) but the queue moved quite fast (thank goodness...cos it was FREEZING outside). Once we get in, we have to navigate the narrow stairs and manoeuvre around the people leaving the sale. Once we get upstairs, we queue up for the coat check, and head on in! Unfortunately nothing caught my fancy (or hers)...so we left fairly quickly. As we left the building, the security guy (who monitors the queue and lets people in) was having this argument with some guy in the queue...and was like "YOU ARE NOT GETTING INTO THIS BUILDING!" *cue angry man shouting some response* "COS I AM IN CHARGE HERE AND I GET TO DECIDE WHO GETS IN...AND YOU'RE NOT!"...*more angry shouting from man in queue*...haha this was quite amusing indeed.

Took a subway to Soho but realise a few stops down that we were going the wrong way. So we hop off and cross the platform to catch another train back....it was COLD. The wind...brrr...
Gets dark, so I suggest we head back uptown to Times Square, where we walk around a bit...then I suggest we take a photo with some NYPD officers...who were more than happy to oblige. When I asked "who's going to take the photo?", one of the officers yells out to a random across the way to come over....when the perplexed man does, the officer is like "can you take a photo of us with the ladies here". Haha, too funny. The kind man obviously doesn't refuse the officer and takes a couple of shots for us. I should post it up...but it's late and I'm lazy. Maybe later :)

After Kei returns to her home (in New Jersey)...she tells me that there's a Cole Haan sample sale which started today...and would have been good....but she didn't check her emails! So I might go down and check out the sale tomorrow morning. Hope I wake up early though...have work to do (been rather slack the past week...cos have been feeling very tired...probably cos of the flu :(...) and also have to be ready for the concert at night!

Hmm...was planning to go to bed like 2 hours ago, but got distracted by TV (TruTV is awesome! hahaha...world's dumbest criminals and speedsters...) and the family called too.

Happy Moo year to all!

Under the weather...

I think I'm coming down with the flu. Or something.

It started with a cough...usually at nights when I'm trying to get to bed, or early in the morning. And just today, my sinuses acted up. Stuffy nose, feeling feverish, etc.

My team member was saying..."gosh, you're starting to look quite terrible"...so we ventured out from Purchase (where the client is) to Rye CVC Pharmacy for some cold/flu medication, which was about 5 miles away. The journey there was quick and easy as she dropped me off at Rye station the previous night. However, the way back proved a little trickier.

New York is amazingly full of highways, many of which intersect each other. I think we took like the Interstate 287, then cut out to 120...or something like that. But going back, we were going the wrong way, missing the turn to 120....and when we circled back, we couldn't work out whether we were supposed to go North or South. And the GPS on her Blackberry wasn't working..!!! And being the newbie to town, I was of no use at all.

About half an hour later...we make it back to 120 North...back to Manhattanville Road. Funnily enough, it was the exact same route which we turned away from because we had this gut feeling that we were supposed to go South. So much for following your instincts.

Haha.

The medication made me feel worse immediately after...but to give it some credit, it kicked in a few hours later. I'm still a little woozy and really want to go to bed...but I haven't really done very much work. And my laundry is currently in the dryer. So.....back to MTV and E!....trashy TV time! hahaha

The streets of Philadelphia

The firm booked me a return flight to Philadelphia for the Assurance START training which was held at The Westin Philadelphia. What I failed to realise was....New York is so close to Philadelphia, it takes a lot longer to fly there than to take a train instead. But since I don't have my corporate AMEX yet, I just left the booking as is. It took me about 4.5 hours door to door....with total flight time of 27 min! Grrr...spent a while queuing up to get my boarding pass, paid $15 to check 1 bag in, queued to go through security...then waited to board the plane. Had to go onto the tarmac cos the plane was so small. It was FREEZING! Anyway...after taxiing on the runway for about half an hour...the plane finally took off. After arriving in Philly, had troubles locating the taxi stand (despite following the signs). And no one seemed to know where it was.....Fortunately I bumped into another lady who was from PwC (it was the laptop bag...and her looking as lost as I was). We finally found the taxi stand (with the help of some airport staff member) and continued to The Westin.

Turns out she's from the NY office too! And we ended up being on the same table during training (coincidence!) Ms. Luxembourg (as Albie, the South African, called her throughout the week) is really sweet and has promised to recommend some good places to go to in NY. :D

I was supposed to call Aman to arrange to meet up on Sunday night (since his apartment was a couple of blocks away) but my retarded Virgin mobile doesn't let me dial international numbers...so I resorted to using the hotel phone. At the end of the week, I found out that the 30 second phone call cost me US$32!!!!!!! Grrrr...that's AU$50. VERY expensive phone call indeed.

Can't wait for my Blackberry STORM to arrive.

Anyway, training week was immensely fun! Met loads of nice and entertaining people...from various offices around the US, as well as secondees from around the world (South Africa, Africa, Ireland, Luxembourg, etc). We went out for dinner every night and had drinks after as well...I mean...we did have an allowance of US$35 per night for dinner. So might as well use it :)

Continental Midtown had yummy cocktails and swinging chairs (for tables of 2 only...unfortunately)...Drinkers' Bar had nice friendly bartenders...the Indian restaurant near 2nd Street was awesome...Ruby Tuesdays was pretty mediocre...Heat was good fun (the college crowd helped I guess..but not good when SA's bag got stolen :(....)...

Woke up EXTREMELY late on Wednesday though...cos we had been out for drinks and I forgot to set my alarm. Truth be told, wasn't feeling so good after the multiple shots/hard liquor...and then finishing off with a beer drinking game. The beer did me in. Got back around 1ish and slept through til 9.30 am!!!!! Good thing was I had no hangover, slept more than I had in weeks...but was sooooo late. Worse of all...Albie was also late! He sits next to me and this S. African dude just didn't know how to make a quiet entrance. He walked straight into the room and apologised to the instructors and the class (everyone told me it was hilarious). And after that, the instructors also noted that I was still MIA. And didn't seem to believe Albie when he had no clue where I was (ahem. Like no, I was not in his room). That aside, I woke up at 9.30am, contemplated for 5 seconds whether I should wash my hair...and thought...what the heck, I'm late...no point being late AND looking like I just rolled out of the rubbish dump. But hey hey...only took me half an hour! I am impressed.

And I also managed to make a quiet entrance...thanks to Aman who decided to ring me after noticing that I was MIA. Good thing everyone was sort of preparing for the case study and some were making tea etc...so not everyone noticed me come in. Haha...Albie couldn't believe how no one noticed.

But anyway, I was better prepared on Thursday night (before we went out to the club)...I set my alarm, packed most of my stuff so I could check out on Friday morning...and then went out! We were out til about 3 am (the club closed at 2 am...so we technically got kicked out at closing time)....and I did wake up late (8am....and we start at 8.30am). But I think I am getting the hang of this....I showered, dried my hair AND packed...in half an hour! Turns out there were quite a few others who turned up later than I did...and quite a few struggled through the morning. Haha...

We went back to Ruby Tuesdays for lunch - not cos of the food quality, but because it was right next to The Westin - and bid one another farewell as they left to catch their respective flights.

I was a no-show for my 4pm flight, since it would cost US$150 to change my ticket...and the train ticket to NY was only $45. So yeah, went back to Aman's and just chilled for a bit. Truth be told, we were all tired from the week (as well as the previous night's activities)...

Met Brian (who was in Sydney last year) on Saturday night and we went to a few pubs...The Standard Tap...the a diner club "Silk City" (awesome music!!)...then The Black Sheep....and finally Brian's place. It was getting late and Brian/Sarah both looked tired...so we bid them goodnight and walked back a few blocks to Aman's. Stopped in the park across his apartment and took some photos cos we would look stupid taking those shots with other people watching us. Haha...I'll post them on facebook soon.

All in all...I have yet to try the famous Philly Cheese Steak...and didn't get to watch the Eagles play the Ravens (I think? It was the Philly vs. Baltimore game)....but the Eagles are no longer in the running so I guess not. Should be heading back for St Pat's day for the pub crawl (since Brian is Irish....thought it would be good)...but I am thinking Aman should come down cos this is costing me a fair bit too...

Ok...need to be up early again...can't afford to miss the train cos it takes so frickin long to get to Purchase, NY. G'nite now!

Back in the comforts of home!

I'm back from Philly! And no...I didn't get a chance to try the famous Philly cheese steak while I was there. Will do so when I'm back next time.

The last week was a blast...and if you're on facebook, most of the photos from our nights out are up.

I should update a little more but I think I should go to bed soon.

ps. After the extreme temperatures in Philly last week (like minus 11 degrees excluding windchill factor), I returned to New York this evening where it was a comfortable minus 2 degrees with flurries (light snow). Nice. I could get used to this.

Ok enough for tonight. Will update soon!

Brrrr...

Decided to wander out after work this evening...got into comfy gear and wandered back down to Times Square and back. And man, it was cold. Minus four degrees tonight. Hmm.

And there's a winter storm warning for tomorrow...oh no!

Was planning to go to Woodbury Common Premium Outlet tomorrow...but according to the forecast, snow, sleet and ice is expected...and travel could be hazardous or impossible. But I think this doesn't settle in New York until later in the night....But Woodbury is 1 hr away from New York, so I'm not quite sure.

Should have bought those snow boots this evening. Oh well.

Will play by ear tomorrow. If not I'll just have to explore another area via the subway I guess.

But yay! Snow :D

Will I ever get bored of this...

Day 2 was spent exploring 5th avenue proper....from Louis Vuitton (around 50-something street), all the way down to 42nd street...walking back to Times Square.

But by then I'm tired (again...jet lag has not helped my already-odd sleeping hours) and hungry...I can't bring myself to walk back 14-odd blocks as I did yesterday, so I try the subway.

I stumble upon my office (Madison Ave...corner of 42nd street), which is conveniently next to Grand Central Station. Ahah! Now I know what the building looks like....so hopefully I won't get lost when I start work on Tuesday 6 Jan.

Grand Central Station

First impressions...very grand indeed! Was reminded of the scene in Madagascar, where animals create a big scene (...and I cannot remember why they were there...trying to take the subway). Hahahaha. But anyway.

LOTS of tourists again, taking photos of the station. I go up the east balcony and snap a few shots. I mean, I AM a tourist of sorts anyway.

I go to the information counter and ask the nice ladies how to get back to 57th street and 7th avenue and also pick up a whole lot of brochures for perusal at a later date (these are still sitting in a paper bag somewhere...)

The station is massive....I get lost trying to locate the Times Square shuttle service. But the situation is easily resolved when I ask someone for directions.

The subway is...hmm...rather old and dirty. Very much like those American movies....
And I miss my stop. Darn. I get off at the next station...wondering if I should walk the 5 blocks back to 56th street. But hmm...the station is rather deserted and I am in an unfamiliar area...so I walk across the platform and catch the train downtown back to my intended stop.

Oh well. I'll do better next time.

Dinner tonight - SALAD (think I haven't had any veges since...Friday), a couple of sausages and the remaining piece of fish.

Grocery shopping

...I have discovered that groceries are not too cheap in New York.

But the good thing is...there is a 24 hour supermarket around the corner from my place....and they offer delivery (in the form of pushing your shopping trolley for you back to your place) for $1! Delivery ends at 9 pm though...so I barely make it as I do a quick run through of essentials for the apartment.

I get some oil, salt, pepper and marinades..including a bit of meat. Tea, sugar, juice, milk. That sort of thing. Fruits are pricey and so are fresh vegetables. Probably something I'll miss about Australia :(

But anyway, I'm all set to cook up my first meal!

Actually, despite not eating all day....I've kinda lost my appetite...so I pan fry half my salmon steak (yum) and sit in front of the PC watching Gossip Girl (season 1...yes I'm a bit behind with these things).

Hm....what to do on day 2.....?

First day in New York

Saturday, 3 Jan 2009

Woke up at 11.30 am after going to bed at 4 am or something like that.

But wonder of wonders, are winter mornings always so bright and sunny in New York? Either that or the city is welcoming me with beautiful sunshine (and temperatures of about 0 degrees).

I get dressed, make 2 cups of tea (as there is no food in the apartment!) and venture out to soak in my new surroundings. I walk down 6th avenue, walk across to 5th avenue...shops, shops and lots of tourists. LOTS.

Don't get me wrong. It's hard to miss when every other person walking beside you has a camera either (1) in their hands, (2) around their necks. or (3) exclaiming excitedly about the sights and shops. Haha. So obviously I don't feel out of place when I want to snap photos of the towering skyscrappers, shops and what-not.



I do a bit of shopping....wander around Times Square...marvel at the sales and am reminded of how I am not a huge fan of the Australian shops (mainly due to the prices and somewhat lack of variety). GAP, Zara, H&M (!!!), Sephora....

It gets dark and I am hungry...but I keep on walking as I'm having a ball just entering the various shops and take in the sights. It's a bustling city, and all the lights! But when it approaches 8 pm...I remember that I've only had 2 cups of tea all day...so I wander back and dump all my shopping back at the apartment before heading out to the supermarket around the corner.

End of Day 1

Getting to the first destination (of many to come)

Friday, 2 Jan 2009

Even though I set aside a week to pack for the next few months, things obviously didn't get done in time...

However given that I had to pack my room up (to move into my new place), as well as pack for the US...this proved to be a bit of a challenge. As many would know, I also get easily distracted so packing isn't necessarily the easiest job for me.

Thanks to the family for helping with the packing....it all got done! (well, my room is still not packed up...but Jan and my dad are helping to finish it up...hehe)

The flight

1. In-flight entertainment - almost non-existent

Thank goodness I packed a couple of books in my handcarry. When I looked up the United Airlines website for their inflight entertainment schedule, I was surprised to see a handful of movies scheduled for my flight to the US. However this became clear once I was on board. There are NO individual TV screens for passengers....*shockshockhorrorhorror*....what was I going to do on this long haul flight?!?!?!?!!!!! And I thought Gulf Air was bad.....

Couldn't really see the puny shared screen from my seat, so I made do with the audio entertainment. The channel I finally settled on was not bad at all...however I didn't like their other channels...so ended up listening to one single channel for the duration of the 12 hr flight (to San Francisco). Sigh.

Books saved the day! Finished both the books, read the NY times, slept a few hours....wished the plane would land soon...

2. Cabin crew - looks like they've all worked for a long while

Took a bit of getting used to....there wasn't really very much service throughout the flight. And one of the crew members even jabbed me awake to tell me to put my seatbelt on. Not very subtle or polite at all. And the same lady even plonked down my tray (not so gently) to put food on it....while I was asleep! Hmm. Not very impressed. Especially not when I had to sort out my trash (plastic and trash) into 2 bags for them.

3. Food - very salty, not very appetising.

And I had to pay for food on the connecting flight to NY...?! Hmm.

Ok anyway...after a long long time....I finally arrive in New York!
Unfortunately I miss the duty free shops (think I should have bought my stuff in San Francisco...) so have to go shop for my toiletries etc over the new few days.

Phew. Tired now....