1 Jul 2015: A night at Made in Mexico and more

1 Jul 2015:

That evening, I rushed back to the hostel so that I could attend one of the hostel's activities to visit a Mexican and Latin pub. Visiting pub has not been a norm for myself and it was a stepping out of my comfort zone.

The hosts from the hostel brought the group of us who had signed up for the pub activity to this pub called "Made in Mexico".

I was more of an observer and less of a participant at the pub. I listened to the music. Food was good. I ordered a Morelia fries.

Made in Mexico
3950 10th Avenue
New York, NY 10034
http://www.madeinmexico.nyc

***

After visiting "Made in Mexico", our hosts brought us to yet another pub.

By that time, I was too exhausted to even enjoy the music. Interesting, I heard people playing with firecrackers outside this other pub. Most of the people stayed on. I left a little earlier with a few other friends who stayed at the hostel and it was already past 2 a.m. Out of my comfort zone, it was, to be up so late and in a pub,

A night of Mexican and Latin music indeed.

1 Jul 2015: Caffe Palermo

1 Jul 2015:

While I was walking about Little Italy in New York City, I came across Caffe Palermo. I was told that this cafe is famous in the world for its cannoli and other Italian specialties.

I ordered a ricotta cheese cannoli. It tasted fresh and delicious. A lovely treat for the evening. The cannoli was USD$4 before tips.

Caffe Palermo
148 Mulberry Street
New York, NY10013
http://www.caffepalermo.com

1 July 2015: Gimme Coffee

1 Jul 2015:

While I was visiting New York in July 2015, I decided to check out a few of the cafes. I visited an outlet of Gimme Coffee at the Manhattan area.

Service was great! I ordered a cup of cortado. A cup of cortado is essentially an espresso with a small amount of warm milk. The ration of coffee to steamed milk is between 1:1 to 1:2.

After a lovely cup of cortado, I could not resist ordering a cup of espresso. This is one of the cafes that I will recommend for coffee in New York.

At this cafe, I met a lady who gave me several recommendations of other cafes that I could visit in New York City. I felt thankful for the recommendations given.

Gimme Coffee
Manhattan, Mott Street
228 Mott St
Manhattan
New York

Pay Forward: A Better World, One Meal at a Time

Dear friends, please join me and a few of my friends to support our campaign to Pay Forward for a meal. Together, we can build a Better World, One Meal at a Time.

More details of the campaign can be found here: Pay Forward: A Better World, One Meal at a Time.

1 July 2015: Metropolitan Museum of Art

1 Jul 2015:

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is the foremost art museums in America. Affectionately known as the "Met", its collections spans across cultures of America, Europe, Africa, the Far East, and the classical and Egyptian worlds.

I had spent almost an entire day there. There is a cafeteria at the basement of the museum that offered meals that could be below USD$20. I would rather spend money on more visits to the museums so I decided that getting a decent enough meal would do.

One of my favourite galleries was the special exhibition titled Van Gogh: Irises and Roses. This exhibition showcased four of the works by Vincent Van Gogh. The exhibition brought together the series of four paintings of spring flowers. I felt touched to see all the four paintings displayed side by side each other, in the order that they were painted by Van Gogh. It was insightful to see the relationships between these four artworks.

There is an online lecture that was held in conjunction with Van Gogh: Irises and Roses. Here is the link: http://www.metmuseum.org/metmedia/video/lectures/sam-van-gogh-irises-and-roses

Also in this museum are other works by Manet, Monet, Cezanne, Renoir and many more. As for the guided tours, I think visitors who are clear with what are the specific paintings that they would like to see could consider giving the guided tours a miss out of pure interest of time. I however have found the audio guide to be very handy even though I did not have the time to run through every single item in its database.

Metropolitan Museum of Art
1000 Fifth Ave at E 82nd St 
Subway: #4, #5, #6 to 86th St
http://www.metmuseum.org

30 Jun 2015: Jerry's Grand Tour

30 Jun 2015: I had the great pleasure and privilege to attend the Jerry's Grand Tour organized by HI New York City. For a reasonable fee of $10 per person, this tour takes its guests to some of the key highlights of New York City. It was also during this tour that I have made new friends.

One of the first things that we did before the start of the tour was to get a Metro card! I remembered that we took the subway and travelled to many places. Jerry, our tour guide, brought us to Garden of Eden where we could get take-away lunches at pretty affordable prices. A place for delicious food at affordable prices.

The tour took us to Brooklyn area. We visited the promenade of Brooklyn Heights and were treated to good views. Jerry shared with us about the geography of the New York City. Eventually, we made our way to the Brooklyn Bridge Park before we crossed the Brooklyn Bridge.

Brooklyn area.

Brooklyn Heights.

Brooklyn Bridge Park

Brooklyn Bridge

Soon enough, we were at the Manhattan side. We caught glimpses of the City Hall, and visited the City Hall Park. We also caught glimpses of the Municipal Building. Eventually, the tour brought us to the World Trade Centre. Wearing a comfortable pair of walking shoes will be essential for this tour.

New York City Hall.

World Trade Centre.

Our tour stopped by 225 Liberty Street where we had a short tea-break. Our next few stops brought us to Wall Street where we caught glimpses of the exterior of the New York Stock Exchange. We were on our way for a ferry ride to Staten Island that will allow us to change a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty. I had enjoyed the ferry ride very much.

New York Stock Exchange

Statue of Liberty

For the evening, we visited Chinatown and was at the area known as Little Italy. Eventually, we visited a place known as Haveli at 100 Second Avenue for a dinner of Indian food. For a five course meal, each of us paid US$12. This is a pretty value-for-money dinner in a restaurant setting.

We had dinner at Haveli.

After dinner, there were more to explore. We visited the Grand Central Station and experienced the grandeur of this building. We also caught a glimpse of the Chrysler Building and visited Times Square. There was a special treat during the evening's section of the tour and this shall be a secret kept till one attends the Jerry's Grand Tour to learn it for themselves. By the time the tour had ended at Times Square, it was past midnight.

Grand Central Station.

Chrysler Building

Many thanks to Jerry for an extremely informative and delightful Jerry's Grand Tour! This tour is worth recommending for anyone who likes to walk and explore New York with a group of new friends. Be prepared to walk for more than 12 hours!

Jerry's Grand Tour
Hostelling International New York
891 Amsterdam Avenue
New York
NY 10025-4403
http://hinewyork.org

29 Jun 2015: HI New York City

29 Jun 2015: When I visited New York City in June and July 2015, I chose to stay in an international hostel. Firstly, it was cheaper than staying in a hotel. Next, an international hostel offers many free programmes and activities to meet fellow travelers. I chose to stay in HI New York City which is located a few minutes from the nearest subway and located on Manhattan's famous Upper West side.

Checking in to the hostel was a fairly smooth affair. I felt thankful for an easy time checking in. The lobby of the hostel was inviting and provided spaces for guests to take their seats.

On my first night at HI New York City, there was a Welcome Party at the hostel. I did not know anyone, and I felt rather out of place at the hostel's Welcome Party initially. Attending the party was an opportunity for me to open myself up to meet new friends. Attendance to the Welcome Party was free. The meals at the welcome party were available for a reasonable fee. I thank HI New York City for the hospitality.

HI New York City
891 Amsterdam Avenue
New York,
NY 10025
http://hinewyork.org

Getting around New York City with a MetroCard

The fastest and affordable way to get around New York City is using the user-friendly subway. The amazing thing about New York's subway is that it is opened 24 hours a day. New York City never sleeps because its subway works 24 hours around the clock. However, please be mindful of any track maintenance notices or changes to the subway's services.

I have learnt that to get around using the subway, it is very helpful to take note of the following information:
1) The number or letter that identifies each train route.
2) If it is a route in Manhattan area, pay attention whether the train is running uptown (i.e. North) or downtown (i.e. South).

Each trip on the subway costs $2.75 and is payable by MetroCard. The MetroCard works on buses too. However, please take note that when taking buses in New York, the buses only accepts coins. While I was in New York, I have two generous and kind ladies to take for giving me some US coins when I found myself short of coins to travel to the hostel on my very first day in New York. I am touched by their kindness and generosity.

For any visitor who is spending at least four days in New York or takes at least 13 rides on the subway or local bus in a week, it is worthwhile to consider purchasing 7 seven-day unlimited pass for $31.

Please refer to these websites for more information on New York's MetroCard:
http://www.mta.info
http://web.mta.info/nyct/fare/FaresatAGlance.htm

Learning point: Generosity touches people's heart. When given a very achievable opportunity to give, why not?

29 May 2015: Reached New York City

29 Jun 2015: I took the 11.30 a.m. BoltBus service from Boston South Station to New York

City and reached New York City at about 4 p.m. The terminating point was at W 33rd Street and 11-12th Ave.

Here is a post to share about an incident of kindness that I had received on my first day in New York City. I had dinner at a MacDonalds outlet at W 34 Street and 10 Ave. I met two ladies who had visited Singapore recently. I asked them for directions to the hostel that I would be heading for. They not only gave me directions to the hostel, they gave me coins so that I have enough coins to take the bus to the hostel.

I learnt that in New York City, it helps to either use the MetroCard or have enough coins to get around the city. I am thankful for the generosity and kindness from the two ladies whom I had met at the MacDonalds outlet.

Leaving Boston for New York

South Station.

29 Jun 2015: Special thanks to two of my friends, YY and Emz, I learnt that other than taking the plane, another way to travel from Boston to New York, we could take an express bus. Trains are also one alternative to travel to New York from Boston, yet I learnt that they are at least four times more expensive than buses.

After reviewing the various options that were available and asking around for feedback from friends, I chose BoltBus as the bus service-provider to travel from Boston to New York. The departure time from Boston was one of my key considerations. Reliability was also another considerations.

Before heading to South Station to take the bus to New York, I took a stroll about the nearby vicinity to admire parts of Boston. I felt thankful to visit Boston.

Read: Brené Brown's I Thought It was Just Me

Title: I Thought It was Just Me (but it isn't)
Author: Brené Brown
Publisher: Gotham Books, Jan 2008

This earlier book by Brené Brown explores the concepts of shame and resilience. Based on her seven years of groundbreaking research, this book sheds light that: Our imperfections are what connect us to one another and to our humanity. Our vulnerabilities are not weaknesses, they are powerful reminders to keep our hearts and minds open to the reality that we're all in this together.

Read: Brené Brown's The Gift of Imperfection

Title: The Gifts of Imperfection
Author: Brené Brown
Publisher: Hazelden, 2010

This is a book on topics such as self-compassion, acceptance and gratitude. Other themes that were discussed in this book are courage, boundaries and compassion, love and belonging.

The author, Brené Brown, discussed what authenticity is. She developed a definition of authenticity as the daily practice of letting go of who we think we are supposed to be and embracing who we are.

The concept of the DIG Deep button was explored and discussed. She suggested DIG Deep as a practice of authenticity. DIG Deep represents:
1) Get Deliberate
2) Get Inspired
3) Get Going

I wonder if it was because I have read her most recent two books, it was relatively faster to read this book.

29 June 2015: Express bus to Boston and James Hook Lobster and Co

29 June 2015 (Mon): 

It was time to leave for Boston after spending a few days in the neighbourhood of Lynn, Nahant and Swampscott.

Special thanks to the thoughtful people at Oceanview Bed and Breakfast, I learnt that I could take the Express Bus 448 to South Station, which was the place that I have to take a bus to head to New York.

James Hook Lobster and Co

I had been told that James Hook Lobster and Co is one of the highly recommended places for fresh lobster rolls in Boston. Therefore, to experience the lobster rolls for myself, I walked to 15 Northern Ave from South Station. The fresh lobster roll was delicious. This classic fresh lobster roll is essentially a hot dog bun filled with fresh lobster meat, dressed in celery and mayo. One roll costs USD$16 before taxes and is considered affordable given its serving of fresh lobster meat.

I ordered a clam chowder to go with the fresh lobster roll. That was a lunch to remember while I was in Boston.

James Hook Lobster and Co
15 Northern Avenue
Boston
MA 02210