Summer in NY - Blah...

So it has been a while yet again and the only thing I can say is, I wish it was spring or fall or winter. Anything but the summer that has brought numerous heat waves with it, along with the lingering smell of trash in our apartment. Our living room window faces the trash bins right in front of our building. We are on the first floor so all sorts of smells float around sometimes. It's one unpleasantness we have to endure in our otherwise pretty awesome apartment. In the last few months, we've been busy working and haven't had too much time to enjoy the city but on the weekends we do make it a point to head out and do something.
We finally managed to make it to the MET and I went again last weekend when it was ridiculously hot and I was burning up at home. I could go to the MET every weekend, it is that awesome. I'm sure I've only seen a third of what they have to offer and I'm looking forward to my next visit. This last time I checked out the Egyptian exhibit and waited in line for an hour to see the Alexander McQueen fashion on display. I apprecited the clothes and costumes but the entire exhibit and compositions were a bit too freaky for me. I'm not into the whole romantic gothic look he was going for and paired with creepy music, dark lighting and moaning sounds being thrown your way from every corner, I walked through the whole thing in five minutes. It reminded me very much of that movie The Cell with JLo, if you've seen it. That movie was creepy too so if you've seen that, that's the feeling this exhibit had.
Besides the museum we've been going to the park and plopped down a few times to read and picnic. That was before the heat waves. And we got one bike (yes, two would be better) and have been riding that to Prospect Park in the mornings.
We also discovered more bakeries in Chinatown and found what we dubbed Mango with Crack, a steamed mango-flavored dumpling filled with mango mousse, covered in coconut flakes. The name says it all.
Let's see what else the summer has in store for us, other than more heat and stinky garbage.

Happy Spring

Can't believe spring is here, crazy how time flies. The weather thankfully has been warming up and even though it's still raining sometimes, it's mostly pleasant enough to go for a walk sans the jacket.
We got to know a couple of neighbors a bit more and found out that one of them is a cat sitter on the side. We are located in the most pet and kid-friendly neighborhood of Brooklyn so he takes full advantage and has been cat sitting for 20 years. Apparently one can earn a lot of money doing that since people who live in New York travel a lot. That makes sense. Let's see if my next blog entry mentions any cats or dogs for that matter.
We've been meeting new people thanks to one particular friend who painfully tries to mix everyone he knows in hopes of some merry-making. Sometimes the new people jive with us sometimes they say two words in as many hours. The funny thing is too that the people we meet are so diverse and do totally different things. For example we had dinner the other day with a radiologist who is also a pilot on the side (yes, he's got too much time). Not someone we would usually run into in SD, or maybe we would? Don't think so.
We've also seen the wedding and Middle East news along with everyone else and that's about the most TV we've watched last month. We have been going out to dinner/drinks with friends on the weekends a lot and trying new places. So far, nothing to brag about. Hoping next weekend we can finally make it to the MET which we still have never been to. Guess we have different priorities. I'll let you know if we end up there.

Warm weather activities

Today we had an actual summer day. It was over 70 degrees outside and we had the chance to munch on our usual cheese and salami snack in our yard. Yay! I'm sure that won't be so fun once the summer actually hits and everything inside and outside feels like a sauna. For now, we are enjoying the lapse into summer.
Last weekend we met a co-worker for dinner which was nice and delicious and attended a going-away party at a bar for the photographer friend. We also walked the city all day on Sunday looking for cool signage to take pictures of so Mark can use it for work reference and bought a painting from a poor schmuck painint on the street. He needed the money and we like supporting local artists.
Also had the chance to get the torturous Chinese massages again and for once even Mark thought they went too far this time. We are still sore.
Went a couple of times to the park last week as well since it's only about 10-15 minutes away from our place and it was packed. Whoever said that NY is not a place to raise a family obviously hasn't seen the gazillion families in every neighborhood and especially in the parks. I suspect in the summertime, there won't be a single green patch left to sit on. Heard that people bring their grills with them and it's a huge bbq where everyone shares. Can't wait to see that.

Stores and restaurants details

It’s April already and our days are just flying by. Not sure where, but they’re flying.

We have been making new friends, going to new places, eating new food and generally having new experiences.

Went to a Mexican restaurant yesterday (not like San Diego Mexican, more like Oaxacan Mexican) and had fried grasshoppers. Yuck. Went to a Russian birthday party over the weekend. That involved many cakes and too much booze, followed by two lazy days afterwards. We’ve been cleaning like crazy, and still staying on top of food and entertainment budgets.

Slowly we are settling into local market routine. We’re trying not to shop at just one place because of course one place specializes in something, another place in something else, etc.. Also, not sure if I mentioned this before but the grocery stores here don’t sell alcohol. There are a handful of major chains that might sell beer but that’s a rarity. We were used to going to Trader Joe’s in SD and maybe picking up a bottle of wine either for dinner or to take to a party. Can’t do that here. Here you have to look for a store that sells only alcohol, and I’m not talking about a liquor store. It’s an actual fancy store that has all sorts of booze. Some even have beer or wine tastings to round out the shopping experience. It’s really kind of weird.

Also, the grocery stores don’t stay open late and we are so used to picking up something at Ralphs late night (if a midnight snack is in order). Here you’re out of luck past 8 or 9pm. Thought in NY out of all places stores would stay open late but guess we were wrong.

Hm, let’s see what else about stores since I’m on the subject… Guess this is not related to stores but restaurants. A lot of places are mom and pop establishments and don’t accept credit cards. This is something that drives us nuts because we go out to eat every weekend and have to first make a dash to the ATM. That’s not a big deal but then the ATM fees pile up. That’s a real hassle. Keep that in mind if you come visit.

That’s it for our store/restaurant information. I’m sure we’ll have plenty more to share with you soon.

Fancy Going-Ons

These last two or three weeks have been so busy, they kind of just blur together. After taking it somewhat easy after our move to Brooklyn, we decided it was time to mingle with the locals. We’ve been out every weekend, coming back in the wee hours (and sleeping half the day away afterwards), made it a point to go to the city more (Manhattan) and had two photo shoots in our apartment in one week. A friend of a friend is a photographer and needed a place to shoot so we offered our pad since it’s not very furnished. She liked it the first time and came back again. She took photos of some small-time actresses who were very nice and we got to check out hair and make-up trickery too. I could use some of that trickery myself.

We’ve discovered some more yummy places to eat and even found a German beer garden (indoors) that serves legit German food. We didn’t have any food there since we just came from a different dinner spot but it’s next on my list.

Also got to see Travis Barker perform live in the city which was really cool. It was a short show and the venue was small but we had a great time. Went to a bar beforehand and a restaurant afterwards (3am). Jeez, I’m exhausted just writing this.

Other than that, during the week we work a lot and are hermits at home. Trying to cook all meals at home and only go out on the weekends, otherwise we’ll go broke.

We finally stopped buying stuff for the house so we can relax a bit now and not worry about going furniture shopping once again. Next on the home agenda might be hanging photos, which can take forever. We’ll see, maybe they’ll be up by the time we have our first visitor.

Chinatown

You might have heard that NY has a Chinatown too, just like San Francisco. I had heard that the one in Frisco is bigger and better but after having seen both, I beg to differ.

We went to the one here yesterday again and had the chance to check out markets, vendors, eat Dim Sum and even get massages. We went with a friend of ours who recommended the massage place. All three of us walked in and got an appointment for an hour later so we walked through alleys and markets for an hour.

It is unbelievable what you can find there. Everything from fresh produce, dried herbs and vegetables, fresh, fresh, fresh fish (and frogs), lots of bakeries and shops where you can buy Asian imports and all sorts of cookery gadgets. I was in heaven and wish we’d had more time to explore. This is one of those things I have to do by myself though, not everyone shares my enthusiasm for woks and dried mushroom varieties….

Our massages were much needed and not relaxing. Not sure how many times any of you have gotten massages but I always think of them belonging in two different categories. You either get a relaxing spa massage (with oils, soothing music and maybe even those hot river stones) or you get the therapeutic S&M massage (torturous pulling, kneading, cracking and smacking). We got the second one of course since we were in Chinatown. Come on, I don’t think you’ll ever get a relaxing spa massage in Chinatown or in China for that matter. They’re all about pressure points, acupressure, acupuncture, reflexology, etc.. The great thing was that all three of us came out of there loose and unknotted. The prices cannot be beat. For an entire hour we each paid $40 (and we tipped $10 each). That was their maximum price on any of their services. They also do all the things mentioned above (acupressure, etc.) and I’ll definitely be back for acupuncture. Hoping that once we are done buying furniture and paying off some stuff, we can go there at least once or twice a month. With all the stress, it’s nice to do something to unwind.

Here are some pictures we took while walking around.

Yes, for eating 

Long time no see (or read)

Goodness it’s been forever since we’ve written. So really not much has happened since last time. Thought I’d share some NY observations with you so you get to know our new hometown a bit better.

-       The subway is convenient since you don’t have to drive, however you can be stuck in “traffic” just as well. If you take it during rush hour, there are delays because so many subways are operating at the same time so yours just might stop half-way between stations to let others pass by. So if you jump on an express train, you won’t always get there faster. Oh and they call subways “trains” here.

-       People who live here and are used to the streets and traffic are always in a hurry. If you are visiting, try to walk on the right side of the sidewalk to stay out of their way, otherwise they’ll bump into you quite a bit.

-       Brooklyn, which is where we are living, is much more mellow than Manhattan. We can take the subway into Manhattan and be there in about 10 minutes, so it’s nice to have either option. Our neighborhood is also very family-friendly and you’ll see more kids and families here than in busy Manhattan.

-       Everyone sells Red Velvet Cakes here. I don’t know what it is but you’ll find them everywhere.

-       The heater is regulated by the city so you can’t mess with the temperature of your heater in your own home. You either turn it on (at full blast) or turn it off completely. If you get too hot, you have to open the windows even if there’s a blizzard outside.

-       Trash is picked up twice a week and recycling once a week.

-       If you are getting rid of furniture, you can set it out on the curb or sidewalk and either someone takes it or the trash guys pick it up (as long as it’s small). Even if you have random house stuff you don’t want anymore such as clothes, electronics, books, etc., you can place those in a box outside and by the next day, they’ll be gone. It’s like free garage sales.

-       There are plenty of flea markets to choose from and really cool things to buy as long as you have the money.

-       Most buildings don’t have outgoing mailboxes so if you want to mail your bills or letters, you have to find a public mailbox on the street.

-       Almost every building has an intercom system so strangers can’t walk into the building without being buzzed in.

-       You can meet both friendly and rude New Yorkers. Just keep in mind that people are usually on the go and are rushing. If you respect that, you’ll have no problems with them.

-       If you are renting a place here, the rent price is always negotiable. You can even try to get the landlord to pay for certain utilities.

-       Eating out can get quite expensive. In our neighborhood there is only one McDonald’s and all others are bistros, cafes and restaurants. That means if you have lunch or dinner at those, you’ll pay over $20-30 per couple. Do that a few times a week and you’re broke.

-       In the winter, all women wear knee-high boots, along with coats and hats. It’s like the city uniform.

-       You can turn a corner and end up in a totally shady neighborhood. Always stay in crowded or busy neighborhoods if you don’t know your surroundings.

-       If you get a house phone, you will be endlessly hassled by telemarketers.

-       You are also hassled by people buzzing at your door about donations and charities.

-       There are rats, bedbugs, mosquitoes and roaches to watch out for. It’s a big city with many people and many critters. Use common sense and currently, try to stay out of the movie theaters and public seats that are cushioned, since many have bedbugs in them. If you take those suckers home, good luck trying to get rid of them. Also, there can’t be any standing water anywhere in the city because of the mosquitoes and West Nile virus. Wanted to get a birdbath for our yard and am not allowed.

-       There are many great things about the city too, it’s not all warnings. J There are many places to see, shopping to do, a gazillion restaurants to try with food from all over the world and events to attend.

-       Central Park is beautiful to walk around in in the middle of the city, surrounded by sky scrapers.

-       Public transportation is abundant and cheap.

-       People are willing to help you and you get to try food at certain markets before you buy it, think samplers.

-       There are definitely four seasons here and it’s beautiful to watch them change.

Think that’s all that comes to mind now. We’ll provide another update soon. Take care everyone.

Boxes!

Yesterday we received our first shipment of SD boxes, which contained clothes, some of Mark’s shoes and a few random house things. Boy, it was like Christmas, opening boxes. Can’t wait until the other boxes arrive. At least we don’t have to wear the same outfit everyday anymore.

This Friday the couch we ordered is supposed to come in as well, so we’ll have something else to sit on other than the two dining chairs. Slowly but surely our place is coming along.

The weather is nice again and we’ve been taking advantage by running more errands. Another IKEA visit yesterday…

Not much else to report. We tried a sushi spot right around the corner from our place and it was great. Cheap too so we’ll be regulars there.

There are so many restaurants even in our Brooklyn neighborhood, we don’t have to eat at the same place twice for a while. No more same old Cheesecake Factory dinners.

We’ll let you know what other goodies we stumble upon.

It’s Snowing Again

Last night was our first night in our new home. This morning we woke up to a winter wonderland. Our bed is placed up against the bedroom window so when we looked out, everything was covered with snow. Last week it was warmer than San Diego and today we wake up to beautiful fluffy snow. It was still snowing hard by the time we got up so we went for a walk in a park that’s 10 minutes away. The park was inundated with dogs and their owners having a great time. It was awesome walking through the snow, watching happy-go-lucky dogs have a blast. I thought of Pepper and how princess would be cold. These dogs were definitely used to the snow.

Anyways, today we’re assembling more furniture and buying small things (coffee maker, etc.) at Target since we didn’t make it there yesterday.

If any of you feel winter nostalgia coming on, we’re just 5 hours away (or 8 if you are reading this from Germany).

View from bedroom window 

Typical Brownstones 

Dogs ahead 



In Our New Home!

Yes, we finally made it. As of today, we are officially moved in. We are still missing some furniture but slowly we are adding to the bed and dining table now in our possession. At least all the utilities are working, the cable and internet too and we can work from home. We are waiting for our boxes to arrive from SD and then we can really fill in the gaps.

Today we’re still going to Target and IKEA to pick up random things, and can’t forget the groceries. Boy, we’re pooped.

Think I’ll leave it at that for now. Hope everyone back home is doing well and we look forward to showing you our new home. Until you come visit, we’ll post photos.

Times Square Finally

We finally made it to Times Square. We've only been here almost a month...
It is awesome. The lights, the people, the action and the energy can't be described, you have to experience it in person. Since we were starving, we decided to celebrate our arrival at the square with Olive Garden. I know, my favorite place (note the sarcasm) but it was right in the middle of everything and dinner was actually very good. We had to wait for a table so we got wine at the bar. The waiter brought the bill before we were seated for dinner and the wine came out to $20. That's a little less than what I'd hoped to pay for dinner. Everything was pretty much $5 more expensive on the menu than at Olive Garden in SD. You pay for the location...
Nevertheless, dinner was good and we had the nicest waiter ever. The location really couldn't be beat and it was wonderful walking off the meal in the area afterwards.
Let's see, what else have we been doing since the last entry? We have been buying furniture (the delivery prices will get ya) and setting up utilities, etc.. As usual, taking care of business. We even did that on Valentine's Day. However after that we had a very affordable dinner at a Japanese Ramen place by our house and shot pool/darts also at a local bar. I can safely say that both of us had one too many beers. Hope you had an equally fun V-day. :-)

NY Pricetags, ha ha!

So it’s time to buy furniture and we haven’t made it to IKEA since the subway to or from that direction is under construction. Ah, public transportation… Anywho, today we walked around our neighborhood and Soho and popped our heads into whatever furniture store came our way. We saw some really nice things, some really crappy things and some in-betweeners. The last store we both went to was tres chic with a price tag to match. We fell in love with quite a few items, particularly a chair (normal sitting chair, not a lazy boy or anything like that) and asked for the price. The lady said it sells for $9,000. That’s right, you’re not reading a typo. She mentioned it’s the most expensive chair in the store. That’s the kind of taste we apparently have. Here I was ready to buy two, but never mind. As Mark said, that’s the price of a car. So most likely, when you all come to visit, we’ll lounge in possibly pimped out IKEA stuff. If not, it will be just regular IKEA stuff.

Let’s see, what else is new? Finally made it to the laundromat, hooray, clean clothes! A lot of places here have either self-service, where you do your own laundry, or drop-off service, where you drop your laundry off at the place and they wash/dry/fold it for you. Sometimes they even deliver it to your house. Sounds nice but on a regular basis, that gets expensive. So we did our own laundry, forgot softener, dryer sheets and change to actually operate the machines. We were obviously the only rookies there. The Chinese guy washing/drying/folding someone else’s clothes helped us out. We were there a couple of hours which was kind of nice because it gave us a chance to do nothing else besides read and relax. And do crossword puzzles.

Thanks for taking the time to read the latest about us. For now, that’s all folks.

Taking Care of Business

This weekend started out very busy. Now that we have the keys to our place, we have to buy cleaning supplies and straighten out the place. Thankfully it's mostly clean because it was renovated before it was even listed by the broker. Just have to clean the floors and touch up the kitchen and bathroom.
This morning we took a couple of suitcases with half the clothes and some books to the apartment. Thanks to my terrible sense of direction, we took the subway going the wrong way and ended up in a not-so-nice part of Brooklyn. Tried to take the subway going the other way and it was out of order. That’s NY for ya. After schlepping the luggage around for 15-20 minutes, we were finally able to hail a cab and make it to the new home. We had no more energy to actually clean the place so we grabbed lunch with a friend, explored the neighborhood a bit and then went grocery shopping before coming back to the old home. And that’s a wrap for today.

New Home!

We're super excited to say we got a new home, at least for one year. It's in Brooklyn and although not as big as our last place in SD, it's definitely bigger than the closets we've seen in Manhattan. Give us a couple of months and we'll be ready for visitors!

Living Room

Bedroom 

Yes, it's a yard!

Weather Report

Don't have much news to share today other than the ridiculous cold wind that almost gave me a Michael Jackson nose. Had to run a few errands and foolishly decided not to wear tights under my pants since the sun was shining. Ok, this might have sounded funny.
We always look out the window to check the weather and see how people are dressed. Today I saw sun, no umbrellas, which in my mind equalled San Diego sun. Got outside and mini frostbite set in. Don't think I've ever experienced such wind before. You know how you sometimes see people on TV walking against the wind, holding on to something on the street so they won't be blown away? That was me. I was walking with my eyes closed. And then I turned the corner and typical for city streets, the typhoon was gone. That explains why I was the only person walking on that side of the street. Guess that's something we have to learn from the locals. So I haven't left the house since I got back, not even to do the laundry...
On a happy note, Mark should be arriving home any minute now, which puts me over the moon. Can't wait to continue our NY adventures together.

Pics of Temporary Home

By the way, some of you have asked to see photos of the place we are staying at. These are the only ones I have. The first is the bedroom and the other two are the living room. It's not as clean right now since Araceli didn't move with us. :-)

Free Entertainment

Who says you can't get culture in NY without breaking the bank? Just got back from a classical concert at the Austrian Cultural Forum and it didn't cost me a penny. Except for the cab ride, which actually was a lot more than it should have been since the driver took his sweet time.
The concert consisted of solo piano pieces and a few operettas. Since this had to do with Austria (my favorite of course), it ended aptly with Edelweiss and another song from the Sound of Music. Classical concerts aren't everyone's sort of thing and I can't say that I am a regular fan, but it's nice to enculturate oneself once in a blue moon. Try not to fall asleep next time you give it a try. :-)
Other than than, just waiting for Marky-Mark to get home. He said Oklahoma City is the most exciting place ever and he wishes he could spend more time there. Just kidding. He's working his butt off and doesn't have time for sightseeing the Midwest.
Tomorrow I'm finally making the first trip to the laundromat since the building we are staying in doesn't have laundry facilities. Thankfully there's a laundry shop around every corner here.
That's it for today's news, stayed tuned.

Finally it's Saturday

We are so happy it's the weekend. It's been an exhausting week.
Unfortunately Mark has to travel to Oklahoma for work tomorrow and will be gone for 2 days, so I have to figure out what to do with myself during that time. Already reserved a ticket to go to an Austrian classical concert. Not very exciting for most people but sometimes it's nice to just listen and relax.
Yesterday we went to a bar a few blocks away from our house and ran into an old school buddy of Mark's. They hadn't seen each other in over 15 years and weirdly met up here. The guy invited us to go to a club where Q Tip was dj-ing. Every time Mark runs into a buddy here, we get VIP treatment, I swear. Got to the club, the line at the door was ridiculous and we went straight in since his friend knew whomever. Danced all night in our non-club gear since we still just have our suitcase clothes (thermals and running shoes) and had a blast. On the way home, stopped and had the obligatory slice of pizza and finally made it home at 4am. No wonder I slept half the day away today.
The rain also brings out perpetual laziness. Today it rained like it never does in San Diego. It rained all day and I mean all day. Went grocery shopping and it's quite different than loading up your car after going to the store. The Trader Joes' line wraps around the store twice so it takes at least an hour just to shop there and then you have to carry home whatever you bought while holding your umbrella, so you never load up more than what you can carry. That means we have enough food for about two days. After that, it's back to the store. Definitely learned to be more economical while shopping, more out of sheer necessity than will power.

Home Hunting

For the last two days we've been apartment hunting all over Manhattan and Brooklyn. This would be fine if it was the weekend, but we have appointments scheduled throughout the day and have to work every remaining minute. It's been tiring.
So far found a few nice places so we'll keep our fingers crossed that something comes through. Of course we'll keep you posted.
Other than that, we haven't had time for anything else. Trying to cook meals at home to save money but the kitchen is tiny. We're eating pretty good considering...
The big winter storm that everyone in SD asked about did not hit here. It drizzled for a couple of days and it was cold but that was it. No snow. There is a good amount of ice on the streets and we have to be careful walking. Mark continuously warns me about black ice. Nic, if you are reading this, ask Ed about it.
Since we can't ship anything to this temporary place, I'm still walking around with my only pair of shoes I brought. I think it's time I buy a new pair this weekend.
Mark is feeling very creative since being here and bought art supplies. Naturally. Not much room to draw though in our living room.
That's it for today, have a good upcoming weekend. And feel free to respond to posts here. Don't be strangers.

Fun in the snow

Sunday we finally went to Central Park again and got to see it covered in snow. For as many times as we’ve visited NY, never saw NY covered with snow. It was awesome and super awesome. If anyone wants to visit in the winter time, I strongly encourage you to do so since the park is at its most beautiful under a blanket of snow.

Since there was a blizzard the week before, there was well over a foot of snow covering the park and we had a blast running around, getting our non-waterproof clothes wet, snowball fighting and taking pictures. The highlight was definitely Mark pushing me face down into the snow. Landed superman style.

Afterwards we bought hot honey-roasted peanuts from a street vendor and stuffed ourselves with Japanese rice desserts as we walked around Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center. Freakin’ perfect afternoon.

Welcome to our first blog entry

Decided to write this (even though we’re not bloggers) due to the high demand of NY info.

We moved here last Wednesday/Thursday, in the middle of a blizzard. Took us 2 days to get here when the flight usually lasts 5 hours.

To answer some questions we’ve been asked already:

-          Yes, it’s pretty darn cold for all you San Diegans, but we acclimated very quickly and it’s actually quite nice to get fresh air. At least it’s working in favor of our allergies.

-          We’re staying in a tiny apartment for one month to give ourselves some time to search for something bigger, more affordable and long term.

-          Everything is expensive but so is San Diego. We have been checking prices of food, transportation, rent and utilities and it’s not that much higher.

      Groceries tend to be about a dollar more than back home, transportation is definitely cheaper since we don’t have cars here and our monthly subway pass costs about a hundred bucks, and utilities actually come out to the same. Same with cable/internet.

      Rent is higher depending on what neighborhood you want to live in. You can find something for $2,500 that’s tiny or a much bigger place for a thousand dollars less than that. If you rent here, you have to decide what tradeoffs you can or can’t live with. I guess the same goes for San Diego. You can live downtown for an arm and a leg or pay half the price in Chula Vista. It’s a give and take.

-          The pricey thing about NY is that there is so much to do and you want to participate in everything. Lots of activities, restaurants, bars, concerts, shows, museums, sightseeing, it never ends. So we have to limit ourselves to only doing so many things a month.

That’s it for the first entry. Stay tuned for the next one.