The Great Barrier Reef (and More)

It's been a little while since I left Adelaide.  I've been in South Australia for about ten months now and decided it was time to do a little bit of holiday-ing on my working holiday visa. Where to? Cairns in northern Queensland, with my main priority to see the Great Barrier Reef.

Welcome to Cairns

I got into Cairns Monday afternoon. After quickly dropping off my stuff, I went on a little stroll around town. Although definitely a tourist hub, Cairns is beautiful.  There's a boardwalk that runs along the water, shops and restaurants everywhere, and at this time of year, the perfect temperature to be comfortably warm (but still quite humid).

This is a bit deceptive.  There wasn't really a beach and the small patch there was had signs warning of crocodile attacks.

The Lagoon.  Due to the lack of/deadly "beaches," the city built the lagoon slightly inland and immune from crocodiles.  Free to the public as well.

I had a very weird first impression at the hostel.  From every hostel I've ever stayed at, to claim a bed, you put something on it or make it look like someone has used the sheets.  I found a bed that had nothing on it and no sheets so I made the bed and headed off.  Later when I came back, a girl was in the room claiming the bed I had put my stuff on was hers. She was pretty calm about it but I got death glares from another guy in the room (who turned out to be just a *gem* of a temporary roommate), even after offering to find another bed.  Not quite sure what the hostility was about but alright.  All the Australian hostels I've stayed in have been a bit odd like that.  Besides the uptight people, the hostel was pretty basic but in a great location.

After waking up very early on Tuesday, I walked to the marina to catch my boat to the Great Barrier Reef. The company I went with was a last minute decision but I saw they capped their participants at 20 whereas most other companies could have upwards of 100+ people. They were also one of the cheapest, claimed their boat had the lowest carbon footprint among all the tour boats, and owner operated.  Apparently you can take the kid out of Portland but you can't entirely take Portland out of the kid.

There were only 8 of us on the catamaran along with 3 crew.  The ride out to the reef was a bit slow but no one was in a rush and it allowed the weather to clear up by the time we got there.  It was about a 2 hour ride to the reef.  Our first snorkel spot was at the Upolu Reef.  It was absolutely incredible! There were so many colorful fish, amazing designs in the reef, a few stingrays, and some massive giant clams.  After lunch we headed to another spot which I thought was even better than the first.  One of the crew went with us the first time to point out anything significant but we got to go on our own at the second location.  

The Great Barrier Reef

On the way back, we got the finest glass of goon, some fruit, and a delicious cheese platter. We briefly saw a whale in the distance shooting water from the surface. If you're ever in Cairns and want to see the reef, Reef Daytripper was awesome.

Wednesday morning, I made my way to the train station to catch a ride on the Kuranda Scenic Rail.  It's basically an old train that takes you through the rainforest up to the little town of Kuranda.  Along the way, you get an audio commentary about the construction of the track.  It was definitely overpriced but the views were stunning and the history of the track was interesting.  I got lucky in that I had the entire seating row to myself which allowed me to move side to side and spread out a bit.  If the train had been full, anyone not sitting by the windows would have been in for a bad time.

Choo Choo

Barron Falls

When we arrived in Kuranda, I walked around town a bit, dodging the masses of selfie sticks, and eventually decided to go on a little hike. The trail started through the rainforest, ran along a river, and finished back up in town.  It was beautiful and easy enough I could do the trail both ways in thongs (although my feet are absolutely destroyed with blisters now). The actual town was a little too much for me. Dozens of overpriced, tacky tourist shops/restaurants lined the streets.  There was a tightly packed market area filled with bohemian-esque stalls which was neat to explore but decided against getting my hair dreadlocked. Maybe next time.  

I eventually gave in to hunger and grabbed a sub par pie at the bakery. I overestimated how much I'd be able to do for free in Kuranda and after doing the same hike in reverse, ended up sitting around for a fair bit before I was able to head back to Cairns.

On the way down, I rode in a cable car suspended over the forest. Once again, the views were incredible. Queensland really is a beautiful state. There were a few stops along the way you could get out and look at viewpoints. The cable car was much faster than the train and only took about an hour, stops included. After waiting forever at the end of the sky rail for the shuttle, I headed back to the hostel.

With nothing planned for Thursday, I decided to head to the botanic gardens.  Botanic gardens seem to be in every city in Australia and they never disappoint.  The gardens were a fair trek from the city centre but it was worth it.  I probably ended up walking a little under 15km throughout the day.  

Start of the Red Arrow hike

Later that night I noticed an outdoor projector screen setup across the street from my hostel and saw there was a free showing at 7 so I grabbed a spot in the grass and enjoyed the film.

Checkout was at 10 Friday morning which left a fair amount of time to wander around the city.  There wasn't much else to do besides dodging the sun as much as possible since I have the fairest skin in all the land and didn't want to get sunscreen-ed up for a flight home.  One of the art galleries in town was doing free entry for the month of September so after an ice coffee, I took a peek inside.  A few hours later, it was time to head back to Adelaide.  

Now it would seem like a simple task for a shuttle to pick someone up and take them to the airport but apparently that's not the case for Sun Palm Transport.  I booked my pickup the day before and received a confirmation email minutes later.  At around 3:15 on return to Adelaide day, I decided to give them a ring seeing as they were 15 minutes late.  The wonderful girl on the other end of the line said I had booked the shuttle an hour prior and they called me when I wasn't there. Now that seems a bit odd seeing as my confirmation email says 3:00 and I had my phone on me the entire day with 0 missed calls.  Better yet she "didn't know" when the next shuttle was and wouldn't refund me [still working on getting it refunded].  I quickly found out Uber doesn't run in Cairns (boo) so had to call a cab.  Luckily the airport is close to the city and Australian airport security takes approximately 8 seconds to get through.  Not the best way to end the trip but it all worked out and I made my flight.

Bye bye Cairns

This was a fantastic little trip but I have come to the conclusion that I'm done doing solo trips, at least for a while.  It's great doing whatever you want whenever you want but once an activity finishes and there's nothing to do the rest of the day, it can get a little lonely. Although it's easier on the wallet, I'm also not one of those people who can grab a beer or sit down for food on their own, which, after a long day of activities, is a nice thing to do. From now on, someone's coming with me on trips.  That aside, Cairns was a great place to visit and I will for sure be back to see the reef again.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Travelling: Planning A Trip Part 2

Here's part 2 of planning a trip.  Once again, this turned out to be very long so I cut it down as much as I could.  If you missed part 1, here it is.

Before You Go:

Packing

Clothes ~ This is going to greatly differ depending on if you're going abroad or staying in country.  Let's say you're going international.  Assuming you did research on the country you're going to beforehand, what will the weather be like when you're there?  If it's a place that is hot year round, bringing a heavy jacket is not necessary.  If it's winter time and the temperatures average out to be freezing, you probably won't need shorts and thongs.  Especially with international travel, a lot of people tend to over pack.  A wise piece of advice I was given before going to Ireland was to lay out all the clothes you think you'll need and only pack about half of them.  This also depends on the type of travelling you're doing.  If you're doing the backpacker thing for weeks or months at a time, less is more.  If you're going on vacation to a resort, you could pack a little extra (but try and leave space for bringing back souvenirs).  In both situations, be aware that you have to carry whatever you bring.  A good clothes packing list includes (of course this also depends on what you'll be doing): 

• 2-3 pairs of pants                
• 3-4 shirts
• Nicer outfit for special occasion    
• Socks 
• Underwear
• 1 pair of everyday shoes and possibly 1 other for nicer occasions
• If staying in hostels, shower thongs and a microfiber towel will make life easier

Packing Sucks

Toiletries ~ If coming from the US, it makes life a lot easier to simply put any liquids into a checked bag otherwise you'll have to take size restrictions into account and deal with taking them out at security.  You don't need to pack every little toiletry you think you may need.  Especially if you're going to a fairly well established country, everything you can buy in your home country will be available at your trip location.  When it comes to smaller bathroom appliances like hair dryers, there's a high chance it won't work in the new country anyways so might as well save some space and buy a local one if you can't live without. 

*Side note, pack nail clippers.

Medication is another thing to be aware of and I'm going to throw it into the toiletries category.  Restrictions vary country to country but to make things simple, if it's not essential, don't bring it.  Any drug must be kept in its original container/packaging, only the necessary amount for the length of the trip should be brought, and although not always required, a doctor's note/prescription should accompany any medicine just in case. Nothing screams "drug smuggler" to boarder security as much as large amount of pills in an unlabeled Ziploc bag.  It's important to declare medicine (if required) before going through customs.

Outlet/Power Adapters ~ Outlet adapters are a must if travelling abroad.  Different countries have different electrical sockets and an adapter is likely needed to be able to plug in home electronics.  This is an easy thing to figure out by doing a quick Google search of "outlet adapter for country."  Adapters can be bought online or in store.  The cheapest ones I found were on Amazon.  You only need 1 or 2 of these unless you plan on bringing heaps of electronics.  To save some space/money, remember that if you bring a computer, you can charge many electronics via the computer's USB ports which means you won't need as many plug adapters.  Another thing that makes life a lot easier (and if you have the luggage space) is to bring a power strip from your home country.  That way you'll only need 1 adapter and can plug in your electronics like normal.  

USA to Australia Plug Adapter

On the topic of adapters, you likely are not going to need a voltage converter.  Yes, an adapter is different than a converter.  The voltage strength of outlets differs between countries which means electronics from your home country will likely not be powered correctly without a converter.  This is what causes things like hairdryers to "fry."  The good news is most electronics nowadays that require charging come with a built in power converter.  You know that little white thing for your iPhone you plug into the wall/USB to charge your phone?  That's a power converter  The brick looking thing on your laptop charger?  Also a power converter.  If you have an electronic that you think already has a power converter, look at the writing on it.  It will likely say something along the lines of "Input: 100-240V."  That means it can take any voltage between 100 and 240 volts which, I believe, covers every country in the world that uses electricity.  No converter needed.

Laptop Power Converter

Laptop ~ A laptop is by no means necessary but it sure can make things easier.  Between backing up pictures, looking up directions, and staying in touch with people, I like having access to a laptop.  Although I love it, my normal laptop is a massive Dell and I'm pretty sure it weighs about 30 pounds.  That might be a slight exaggeration but it is very heavy.  Before coming to Australia for the second time, I discovered the wonders of the Chromebook.  A Chromebook is essentially a very cheap laptop that is mainly used for the internet.  I could go on and on about Chromebooks and why you should/shouldn't get one but I can't recommend a Chromebook enough for travel purposes.  I have the Acer CB3-111.

Logistics

Tell Your Bank

A very important thing to remember is letting your bank know you're going abroad.  If you all of a sudden start trying to use your credit/debit card in, say, Switzerland, your bank is almost for sure going to freeze your account and reversing it can be a pain.  All you have to do is call your bank and tell them your travel dates and where you'll be going and they'll put a note on your account.  Some banks let you do this online.

Make Some Copies

One of my worst fears traveling is losing my passport or bank cards.  Although there's no way to entirely prevent this from happening, if you make copies of your cards/passport, it will make things a lot easier if the unfortunate happens.  I carry a copy of my passport in a separate bag from the original and give my parents copies of my bank cards.

Cell Phone

Alright.  Let's chat about cell phones, more specially smart phones.  There are some very cheap/free ways to use your phone abroad and some very expensive ways to do so.  

The most expensive and, for lack of a better word, stupidest way is to simply use your phone as normal (assuming it has roaming capabilities). Do not do this.  You will have a heart attack when you see your bill. It's pretty easy to find stories online of people being ignorant about travelling with their phone and racking up tens of thousands of dollars in cell phone bills because of it.

The free way is to simply turn your phone to airplane mode and keep it there for the length of your trip. This way you can still connect to WiFi (meaning you can use the internet/apps) and won't get charges from your phone company (this is what I did in Ireland).  Of course with airplane mode turned on, you won't be able to send text messages, call people, or use data.  However, there are numerous apps that run off WiFi and allow you to do these things. My favorites are Viber, which lets you call and text others with it, and Messenger which lets you video call/voice call/message people with Facebook.  Other popular options are Whatsapp and Skype. If you have an iPhone, you can still send iMessages and use FaceTime as long as you're connected to the internet.  Another potential downside to relying on WiFi is not being able to use map functions while out and about.  There are some apps that will work offline and provide you with maps.  I haven't used any but have heard good things about PocketEarth.  While talking about offline apps, Word Lens is great for travelling in a country with a different language.  You take a picture of a sign/menu and it will translate it to another language (I just checked my phone and apparently Word Lens is no longer a thing and has been replaced by the Google Translate app).

If you still want/need to be able to use a phone as normal, you're going to want a local, prepaid, SIM card. First, you'll need to unlock your phone.  An unlocked phone allows you to put any SIM into your phone whereas a locked phone won't accept any SIM card besides the carrier's.  At least in the US, this can be a bit of a hassle.  Most companies won't allow you to unlock a phone until the contract terms are up.  If you are able to get an unlocked phone, take it to your destination, buy a local SIM card, and insert into your phone. Bam. Your phone will work just like it did in your home country.  In terms of what SIM card to get, that could be a whole post in itself.  To keep it short, I'll just say do some Googling about best prepaid SIM cards in whatever country you're visiting.  I only pay about $23/month and have 2GB of data and unlimited calling and texting using Amaysim here in Australia.

If you don't want to deal with getting a local SIM card but still want to save money, many phone companies have international plans.  These are going to save you a lot as opposed to roaming but they can still be expensive.  All you have to do is let the phone company know and they can get you set up, if available. The cost will depend on your phone carrier.

Print Out Your Details

Not an essential step but printing or writing out details such as your accommodation address, directions, transportation confirmations/itinerary, and anything else you may need in the travelling process may be beneficial.  For example, on a lot of incoming passenger cards you're asked for your local address.  Having this handy will prove helpful.

Final Steps:

Educate Yourself

Now that the big things are dealt with, try and learn a little more about the place you'll be going!  Find out more about the history.  Figure out some local social norms/etiquette (I always look up how tipping works).  If going to a place where they speak a different language, learn the basics like "please" and "thank you."  In my experience, little things like these not only help you but it makes the locals appreciate you more.

Especially if you come from a country that has a heavy influence around the world (e.g. the US), try and brush up on your home country as well.  Chances are very high someone will ask you about your country's governmental policies or history and it doesn't look very good when you have no idea yourself.

Double Check 

A few days before you head off, double check everything!  Make sure flights, ground transport, accommodation, visa status, and anything else you've already booked is good to go.  It would be a bit of a bummer to find out your flight was moved up 2 hours or your hotel booking never actually went through the day you leave.  It never hurts to print off boarding passes at this time, too.  Also, make sure you have your passport.

Enjoy the Trip

That's it!  All of that work is done and now the only thing left to do is relax and enjoy your upcoming adventure.

- - - - -

Wow that was long.  I've got some good updates but those can wait until next time. Have a good week!

That's all for now.  Bye.

Travelling: Planning A Trip Part 1

Trip planning.  Some people love it, some people hate it.  It seems like those who aren't huge fans of planning trips just don't really know where to start.   I could probably write an entire book on this so will be greatly condensing and splitting this into two parts.

The basics:

Figure out where/when you're going

This is probably the most important thing in planning a trip.  If you don't have a place to go, you're not going to be taking a trip.  Do you want to stay in your home country or venture internationally?  Domestic travel is likely going to be easier but I would do international travel over domestic any day.  If you have no ideas but want to go somewhere, ask around! When I made the decision to study abroad, I had no idea where I wanted to go.  After asking some people, I settled on Dublin which turned out to be a perfect fit.

Part of figuring out where you want to go is knowing when you would like to be there.  Take into account local seasons, when other people will likely be travelling, and major holidays.

Get a Visa? (for international travel)

This should be the first thing you look into once you figure out where you want to go.  A visa is basically an approval of the country you're going to allowing you to be there.  Many places require visas and many do not. Some do what's called a "visa on arrival" where, as the name suggests, you get a visa at the airport when you arrive, whereas some countries require you to apply beforehand.  

How do you know if you need a visa?  If you're from the US, the government made this neat website.  Right now the US passport along with the UK passport are the most "powerful" passports in the world, allowing entry to 147 countries without a visa. Some visas take a long time to get whereas others are almost instant so make sure to apply for the visa well in advanced.    

Make sure you don't book flights/accommodation before your visa is approved.  If for some reason it's denied, you will have spent a lot of money for nothing.  It's pretty rare but I've read a few stories of people booking flights and then having their visa denied and being unable to get a refund.

Accommodation

For me, figuring out where I"m staying is step 3.  If you buy plane tickets and then find out every hostel/hotel is booked, you're in for a bad time.  If you're like me and got paid just above US minimum wage, hostels will be your best friend.  There's a bunch of different hostel booking sites but my go to is Hostelworld.

If you aren't so much about the hostel life, I have used Hotwire with good result. While in New York, we were able to stay in Times Square for a very reasonable price using Hotwire.  The only catch is you don't know exactly what/where the hotel is.  They show you once you purchase but this could be a deterrent for some. Although I haven't used it, Airbnb has become popular as another cheaper accommodation option.

Transportation

One of the biggest costs of travelling is likely going to be transportation.  Planes, trains, and automobiles (and boats) are all at your disposal but for purposes of keeping this from turning into a novel, let's assume you're flying.  You're going to want to use a flight comparison site.  A lot of people swear by Kayak but I'm not a huge fan.  I never find the lowest prices.  My go to is Skyscanner.  Keep in mind some airlines don't advertise their flights on comparison sites. For example, Southwest hardly ever appears in results and they often are one of the cheapest US domestic airlines.

Once you find a low fare, check directly on the airline's website and see if it's the same price.  If it is, book it through the airline.  If you go through a third party, making any changes can be a major headache. Sometimes it will be cheaper to go with the third party.  In that case, do it.

In terms of when the best time is to purchase airplane tickets, this page sums it up nicely.

When flying extreme budget airlines, be careful when booking.  These airlines charge for nearly everything. They often will add additional costs in the online booking process and unless you notice, you will be charged more.  Checking a bag, picking a seat, trip insurance, and priority boarding are common things the airline will add for you by default so make sure to deselect anything you don't want.  After all the additional fees, sometimes it's better to book a more expensive ticket with a nicer airline and have all the "extras" included and it will work out to be roughly the same price as the seemingly cheaper ticket.  

Also, be aware of boarding pass requirements.  For example in Europe, if you have a non EU passport and fly Ryanair, you have to go to the ticketing gate and get your boarding pass stamped.  They won't let you on the flight if you forget to do this. Simple solution to avoid any unpleasant experience?  Read everything when booking and when you print your boarding pass.

Thanks generic Wikipedia picture.

Next Steps:

Budgeting

I did an entire post on money so I'll keep this short.  Before you start figuring out exactly what you want to do when you get to your location, you need to know how much you're willing to spend/able to save before the trip.  Even if you're going the more frugal way, know you're still going to need money.  Travelling isn't going to be fun if you only have funds for food/accommodation and nothing set aside for activities.  I saw a quote the other day that said something along the lines of "pack half the amount of clothes and double the amount of money you think you'll need."  Wise words.  One thing I'll mention again that I said in the money post, make sure to take into account expenses from home that can't be stopped (e.g. student loan payments) and work those into the budget.

Activities

Now that you know where/how/when you're travelling, what are you going to do?  No matter how "go with the flow" you are, it's a good idea to at least have a general idea about things you want to do.  I tend to make a list of the big must sees/do and try and tick those off.  From there, I figure my day out when I get to the location. A great resource for finding things to do is TripAdvisor.  The best part about TripAdvisor is the forums.  Whilst travelling in Europe, I read many message boards about activities for the places I was going. The forums are great because it's people who have actually done the thing giving their opinions.  The forums are also insanely helpful in figuring out public transportation which can sometimes get a little confusing depending on the location.  

Another great resource which I didn't utilize until Australia is Reddit.  There is tons of information on Reddit but be warned some people on there are "travel hipsters" which can be annoying.  Also, make sure to use the search bar before asking a question because it has likely already been asked and people hate when you repeat questions.

Figure Out Local Transport

Now that you have all of these fun things planned, how are you going to get to them?  This doesn't have to be figured out in advanced but it can sure relieve some stress as opposed to attempting it day of.  Many cities have tourist attractions in the city center which means walking is a viable option.  However sometimes you'll need to take public transport.  Like I said, TripAdvisor is a good resource but also just do some Googling. Many cities have websites dedicated to public transit information.  Downloading city transit apps is also a good way to be in the know.

If public transit isn't for you, taxis can be very expensive so look for alternatives like Uber or Lyft (in most major cities).  Of course the easiest option is usually to just hire a car.

-----

That seems like a good stopping point.  Part two is here.

That's all for now.  Bye.

Auld Lang Syne

New Years is kind of an odd holiday if you really think about it.  Nothing magical happens between December 31st and January 1st but it somehow always feels like the end of an era and the beginning of another.

For celebrations, a group of us gathered at a friend's house to bring in the new year.  There was food, drinks, games, and good times.

2015!

2014 was one of, if not the most, craziest years of my life.  There were some extreme highs and some extreme lows.  It marked a major shift in the life that I knew and forced me to start almost completely over.  I try to keep these postings light but have a feeling this one might be a bit heavier.

So what big things happened in 2014?

• Despite going borderline insane due to being enrolled in 21 credits, I had my most fun semester at CSU of the time I was there
• Was able to have a fantastic time traveling across the country from New York City to LA (where I finally got to experience Disneyland!)
• Got to see some of Canada for the first time and made some (hopefully soon) travel goals
• Graduated from university.  That still hasn't really hit me yet
• Mentored and made a noticeable impact on a 10 year old's life
• At least for me, made what I hope to be a lifelong best friend from the other side of the world who has been through an eerily similar amount of identical life experiences/situations as me
• Lost one of my oldest friends but still think about him often
• Had to say goodbye to my two best friends and all the other people I got really close with after 3.5 years living in Colorado.  I think about them everyday and miss them terribly
• Moved back to the Northwest
• Even though the process was long, I got a job that was number one on my list
• Started writing this weekly blog which is both fantastic and frustrating.  It's great to look back at something for every week and see when I had nothing to write about or when the ideas were flowing

What will 2015 bring?  I don't really do the whole resolution thing but I do like to set some goals.  What might those be?  I don't want to give away too much so those are just for me.  

Hope everyone had a memorable year and that 2015 will be just as eventful.  I've got a feeling this is going to be a good year.

Happy New Year!  

That's all for now.  Bye.

Empire State Of Mind

Surprise!  Apparently I'm blogging again!

In case you weren't aware, I wrote a blog about my study abroad experience in Europe last year.  I kind of miss blogging.  I've started up some new blogs a few times over the last few months but haven't been happy with the content and never published them.  I decided I'm just going to go for it and see what happens.  I thought I'd start the first post out with a bang.

So I'm in New York.

It's CSU's spring break this week and I'm spending the first part of it in The Big Apple.  It was kind of a spur of the moment decision to buy a plane ticket to New York but it's a place I hadn't been and the opportunity presented itself.  I flew from Denver to New York with a layover in Chicago on Monday and met up with my good friend Vlad who was fulfilling his lifelong dream of seeing Lebron James play with the Heat in Miami a few days prior (more about him later).

Following a series of unfortunate events with Vlad's flight from Miami to New York, we were finally able to meet up and take a bus/subway to our hotel.  Our original lodging had fallen through only a few days before we were supposed to get here which stressed me out like none other but we managed to find a place to stay.  We were literally around the corner from Times Square which let us be the ultimate New York tourists.  After checking in, we walked around the overwhelmingly bright and crowded Times Square

Consumerism at its Best

On Tuesday morning, we caught a train headed down to Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan.  From there, we walked up to Wall Street and Ground Zero.  The 9/11 memorial consisted of two amazingly crafted fountains dug deep into the ground where the towers used to stand.  Forming the barrier up top were etched names of those who were killed in the attacks.  Although I remember the event happening quite well, I didn't realize how big of a deal it was at the time.  I tried to imagine what it would have been like to have been in the city that day but could not wrap my head around it.

NYSE on Wall Street

Ground Zero Memorial

We then headed back to Battery Park to catch a ferry to Liberty and Ellis Island to see the Statue of Liberty.  Lady Liberty was impressive in person!  Our ferry tickets also let us go up on the pedestal but the line to get in was taking too long and we decided it wasn't worth waiting.  Ellis Island wasn't terribly exciting but it was neat to see the rooms where immigrants registered when they got off their ship.

Welcome to America

After getting back to Manhattan, our legs needed a break.  We had planned to head back to the hotel to catch a quick rest but were partially zoned out on the subway and missed our stop.  When we realized this and got off at the next stop, we discovered we were at the edge of Central Park.  Knowing that Trump Tower was close by, we walked to 5th Ave and saw all the stores that I could never afford.  After more wandering, we found Rockefeller Plaza and saw the ice rink, NBC studios, and Radio City Musical Hall.

Ice Rink

Radio City Music Hall

At this point, we headed over to the Eugene O'Neill theater to try our luck at the Book of Mormon ticket lottery.  Unfortunately (but not surprisingly), we weren't chosen.  At this point, we really needed a break so we grabbed some food and headed to the hotel for a nap.  Feeling recuperated, we set out to Times Square again to do some overpriced shopping.  Vlad had never been to Applebees before so we stopped into the one right off of Times Square which we realized was a mistake a minute after looking at the menu.  Prices were about $5-$10 more expensive than the normal mediocre Applebees food so we left.

After the failed lottery ticket attempt the day before, the two of us decided to go for rush tickets Wednesday morning to ensure we would see a show.  My sister, Megan, told me about rush tickets.  I had no idea what they were prior, but basically you line up at the theater hours before the box office opens hoping that you're one of the first 20ish people to get a greatly reduced ticket.  The seats are not ideal (think front row or partially obstructed view) but paying $30 instead of $300 is worth it.  We decided on Avenue Q.  The show's website was not very informative about the rush tickets and we showed up way earlier than we needed to but got the cheap tickets!

We then walked back to the hotel where Vlad took a power nap and we checked out of the hotel.  Our next stop was Central Park.  We walked around the park a bit and saw the ice skating rink as well as some scenic shots frequently used in movies.  It was freezing but the park was a nice break from the rushed city atmosphere. 

Central Park

At this point, we headed back into the city and met up with my uncle Mike.  He took us to a food cart where we got curry wurst which was delicious!  We walked around for a short bit and parted ways but it was great to briefly see him!

Up next was the Brooklyn Bridge.  Vlad and I caught two trains to the Brooklyn side of the bridge and walked across to Manhattan.  The architecture was amazing and you could see the green lady in the distance to the left and the Manhattan Bridge to the right.

Brooklyn Bridge

When we got back to Midtown, we got off at Grand Central Station and walked to the Empire State Building followed by some more shopping followed by Avenue Q.  Our tickets were for the front row which wasn't ideal for the singing but the show was a great time!

Grand Central Station

Almost every trip I took in Europe, there was either a snow storm or a rain storm.  Apparently that theme decided to stay with me in the US because when we got out of Avenue Q, it was pouring!  At this point we had nothing else to do so we got our luggage from the hotel storage room and trudged through the torrential downpour to catch the subway to the airport.
 
So here we sit, currently in the JFK airport, waiting for our 7AM flight to our next location.  Even though the only people who may read this probably know where that is, I'll keep it a secret until next week's post.

Granted we were really only in New York for two full days, the city surprised me, mostly in a positive way.  Everything was much cleaner and felt much safer than I was expecting.  The pace of life is definitely faster than what I'm used to/like.  The amount to do in this massive city is endless.  We hit up almost all of the major tourist sites but it would be fun to explore areas away from Manhattan.  Could I see myself living here?  Absolutely not.  Would I come back? Absolutely.

One more thing.  Vlad has been making YouTube videos about his time on exchange here in the US and they're pretty funny.  Here is his spring break compilation video. 

That's all for now.  Bye.