What to do in New York CIty!

Thanks to all my fabulous GLAM members - here are the suggestions I've received for my New York jaunt on Friday.... sooo much to do. So little time. Argh!

• Do the Hip Hop Tour through Hush Tours
• Eat at London in Times Square
• There is a wicked rooftop bar called 230 5th, which is located at 230 5th ;)
• Do a (rain)dance for me in Times Square Kell....even use a hula hoop if ya want...John
• Take the staten island ferry, its free and gives you a great view of lower manhattan.
• Hang out in the meat packer district. Its awesome.
• Go see the Yankees if they are playing.
  Do The Accomplice- http://accomplicetheshow.com/- a great 2-3 hour scavenger hunt through NYC.
• Do the Sex and the City Tour...you even get a muffin from the Magnolia Cafe which is to die for, you go to SJP's house in the series which so cool. The tour covered some great site seeing and was a great laugh.
• Don't forget to pop into some Karaoke bars...they actually do have some great talent.
• Take a helicopter tour over NYC..
• Go to a club called the cutting room, owned by MR Big himself. Chris Nolfe, Ladies night friday night, you actually might meet him.
• Take a carriage ride around central park
• Go to" Maze" gordon ramseys restaurant.
• Go and see the gospel singers in harlem.. do not get off the bus! Trust me.
• Buy shoes from everwhere they are so cheap (nine west etc) $40 per pair!
• Victoria secrets - STOCK UP!!!
• See The Late Show With David Letterman. Tickets are free. They pre-record during the day and from what I've heard it's hilarious.
• There is also the Sex and The City shopping tour.
• Get to the Sullivan Room. Best Dj's and coolest club in NYC.
  Go and see a taping of "The Insider" that's filmed there isn't it....hahaha. What a classy show that is.
• Check out soho for clothes.
• 8th street for shoes.
• Roof top bar on 5th.
• Meat packers district is great for for clubbing.
• Katz deli in the lower east side for a pistrami on rye (the best sandwich i ever ate)....
• Catch a water taxi from any of the piers its a great way to see the outside of the island (we walked to eastside then got off in battery park n walked up broadway (plenty of shopping).....
• Around 2nd 3rd ave (sorry can't remember the street) lots of little dress shops with local designers - my girlfriend had a ball....
• Go to a bar called Cube

A Fish Out Of Water

Have you ever felt like you've been thrown into a hidden camera scenario, where you're sure the joke is just about to be revealed so you just need to stiffle your laughter and play along? This is my life right now.

Since arriving in Chicago a few days ago, what I've seen of the American way of life is straight out of every sitcom, drama, TV show I've ever seen.

I'm waiting for reality to kick in, but I just don't think it's going to!

I think the fact that I've been taken to so many cool places helps with the illusion too, but even the small things, like people saying "Shut Up" to each other when they're impressed with a story, or surprised but the outcome, makes me giggle.

Where I'm staying is fabulous. Lincoln Park is just North of the city, and is right along the side of Lake Michigan (the third largest lake in the Great Lakes chain). My apartment overlooks a gorgeous 'Central Park' style area, which borders the lake, but the view is similar to that back home in Adelaide - that of an ocean. I'm still struggling to believe it's a lake. Seriously. The beaches, volleyball, boardwalks with thousands of joggers and cyclists also doesn't do much to change the illusion of this massive body of water. But enough about nature. Let's talk about my specialities - shopping, food and drinking!

The day I arrived, Dave, my supurb tour guide and fellow Aussie, took me to a great little bar which was a short walk from the apartment called Zuppa. Complete with beer garden out the back, this experience allowed me to sample Bud Light and some other hideous beer while trying to combat my jet lag. At least we provided some amusement for the staff who couldn't believe I'd come straight off a plane into their establishment. Go the Aussie spirit.

We also stopped past a little cafe, almost diner style, which provided us with the largest choice of meals and the most ridiculous portion sizes I've ever seen.

Next stop was the supermarket, where I quickly discovered that Rocket, Pine Nuts, all fish varities I knew, wine and pretty much everything else that I usually bought, was either not available or was called something COMPLETELY different. The exciting part of this was that I discovered that Grey Goose, Belvedere, Moet, Verve and all the other good stuff I normally like to drink was all under $35. It was like Christmas all over again.

Since then, I've been to a BBQ at someone's house I didn't know, lazed on the beach, gone for a run whilst playing Frogger to avoid the mad scramble of bikes, roller blades, dog walkers and others around here, visited the zoo across from my apartment, frequented the roof top pool here and listened to American college students tell their sitcom stories to each other, gone shopping on the Miracle Mile (fabulous street of all your favourite designer and other great stores), seen the Chicago River, gone to the Navy Pier for a Venetian Night spectacular (complete with dressed boats - which I missed - and a great fireworks display - which I saw), gone for a lovely ride on the famous ferris wheel, had a gorgeous brunch at Lot 36 (great wine bar/restaurant next to the House of Blues), gone Spanish with Paella and Sangria at a very authentic, noisy restaurant in the city, wandered the streets until I hit a MAC store, and had a variety of other fabulous adventures. And I haven't even been here a week. Oh, and here's a cracker. I've taken public transport. Yee har.

Korea. Sound of Vitality.

Korean Air is a great airline, don't get me wrong. But if you're not a steel stomached flier, I woudn't advise flying with them. After four attempts at landing in Incheon airport in a thick steamy fog, I had begun to understand how Indiana Jones felt when his planes suddenly veered skyward to avoid the mountain that had appeared out of nowhere. Luckily we had a plane full of pilgrims to bless our journey and get us onto the ground in one piece. That doesn't mean their contstant singing and clapping was appreciated over the nine hour flight, but hey, it was a small price to pay for divine protection.

Once I hit the immigration line in the airport however, my joyous feelings of arriving in one piece crept into the back of my mind as the humidity started to take control of my senses. Monsoon season. I had forgotten what it was like.

Growing up in Korea brought with it fabulous memories, but I seemed to have blocked out that suffocating humidity that July brought with it.

On a more positive note, once I had hit the main part of the airport and was dealing with my poor choice of clothing (jeans and a t-shirt), I was incredibly impressed with how helpful all of the staff were at making sure bewildered travellers such as myself made it to our hotels in one piece.

Once at the hotel, the challenges began.

There was a control panel for the toilet (with built in bidet). Let's just say that I was lucky not to get a jet of toilet water in my face while searching for the flush.

Then there was the control panel for the shower, air conditioner, lights, tv and computer. All in Korean. No pictures. I felt utterly lost, but figured it wasn't something a nice cold beer couldn't fix.

Enter "Coss Fresh, Sound of Vitality" beer.

It was everywhere, and evidently it was calling my name.

Across the road from my hotel was the "Gentle Organiser Bar" which sounded promising, so I stopped in for a quick, refeshing ale before wandering across the road to a restaurant which looked like it was straight out of a Texan Ranch. The tables and chairs were all made from thick, lumbering furniture made from tree stumps and cross sections. It was somewhat comforting so I settled in for a meal, hoping my favourite Korean dish - bulgogi - was on the menu.

Close.

Through a combination of pointing and poor pronunciation, I mananged to get "Hea Jang Kuk" (subtitled - A Broth To Chase A Hangover). I guess the foreign visitors they get must all be drinkers? Haha. Anyway, there was a Dduck Bulgogi version of this (which is actually beef), so that teamed with another cleansing "Coss Fresh", set the tone for the night.

It was raining and humid and the mosquitos ate me alive, but I enjoyed sitting in the warm, sweet air under the verandah of this restaurant and watching Incheon Airport City buzzing past me.

Familiar smells from my childhood resurfaced, sharp voices carried over the unrehersed stage show of traffic that was playing out before me, the smell of garlic, people wearing white cotton goves, and the beads of condensation running down the bottle of beer in front of me.

I finally felt like I was on holiday.