We took our first (of many) Greyhound bus from NYC to Washington DC.
The bus was pretty full but not unpleasant as some have made us think it would be. Here we would be trading our shoebox apartment at the Upper East side for a 8 bed mixed dorm (cos thats all they had). It was clean and conveniently located close to most attractions.
Ilda's experience at HI washington
First someone stole bed... i was supposed to have the bottom bunk but this dude, i found out his surname was smith, took it.
so im like whatever, ill just take the top bunk.
he was so disgustingly messy and has all his stuff everywhere, undies included.
Anyways, one night - some of us (mainly lina, me and this other dude) get woken up by smith and his bed buddy that he decided to bring back to the room.
so while the 6 of us are asleep they're going for it shamelessly. .
i was so horrified and stunned that this was all happening just below me, i didnt know what to do but block my ears, pray for sleep and hope that they would be done soon.
I was just thankful that I couldnt see anything... poor lina woke up, looked around and saw a big massive butt sticking up in the air. She was busting for the loo so she just stormed out.... I mustve fallen asleep at one stage cos I didnt hear her leave, only heard her come back.
so the next day, we all just walked around likie zombies due to lack of sleep except for Fiona, who slept like a rock.
anyways, we were dreading sleep the next night but luckily he's checked out!!! never been that relieved before.
Just wanted to share this wonderful hostel experience with you all...
so yes.....LOL that pretty much overshadowed our DC experience.
*****
We did the usual touristy things, visit the White House, which looks much smaller in real life than in movies.
Stood where Martin Luther King Jnr was when he delievered his "i have a dream" speech.
I even got the opportunity to walk across the pond (it was half frozen over) infront of the U.S Capital building (the american version of Parliment House).
The highlights for DC was seeing the declaration of independence, and trying to see if there was any writing on the back (national tresure fans know what im talking about) Lina got in trouble coz she was leaning too close trying =p
Also a visit to the spy museum was a real treat, before you enter you have to remember an alias and they give you a mission to complete during your visit.
its a very interactive museum, loads of fun and lots on interesting information about spies - they're all around us, so you never know who's watching you!!
And lastly visiting the Smithsonian museum.....for FREE!!
we saw the hope diamond...beautiful.
the air and space museum where we learnt all about the wright brothers and all things aeronautical.
DC just felt like a larger version of Canberra, with more cops and lots of free museums. =)
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
The Big Apple!
Greetings from the Big Apple, the city that never sleeps.....which is SO true.
Like all the other cheapskates out there, we opted to take the chinatown bus - fung wah- highly recommend them. u save $5!!! =)
Our first impression of new york city?
good ol' chinatown. where the air smelt like.....bus fumes mixed with other funky chinese smells.
We asked the grumpy middle aged woman where we could get a cab, she pointed us in the right direction - the road-
We flagged down our very first NYC taxi to take us home - 232 east 82nd st.
Once we arrived in our basement shoe boxed sized apartment, a thought occurred to us......how on earth were we to fit 6 ppl in this tiny tiny apartment?
i kid you not when i say TINY. it was the size of 2 small bedrooms and a bathroom u could barely turn around in, but its all about the location....so we sacrificed space to be 3 blocks from The Met and central park.
The other girls joined us later that day - jennessa, belinda and poi - bearing gifts of stolen teabags, sugar sachets, salt and pepper and packets of sauce. From them we learnt the art of stocking up on free condiments.
Surprisingly the apartment seemed to comfortably accommodate 6, we slept 2 on the couch, 4 to a bed packed like sardines head to feet, and had to work out shower times, in the end it worked out well....we were nice and cosy =)
NYC is such an amazing city, you will never go hungry here, everywhere we walked there food from giant pretzels to hotdogs, gyros to baked nuts, small delis to Starbucks on every corner.
Lina's birthday was celebrated at superb Japanese buffet - Ichi Umi- for $18.50 ate sea urchin, salmon roe, at least 10 different types of freshly made sushi, tuna tartar, steamed seasoned crab, ramen/udon noodles, seabass, siu mai, gyoza, spicy sashmi salad, oysters, shrimps, clams, miso/ crab soup etc, the food was divine, the waiter was very attentive and we never felt pressured to leave, so had a very satisfying 2hrs lunch.
Vanessa's dumplings in chinatown was another favourite place of ours. $1 for 4 dumplings! bargain!
They also had hot soy milk for $1, peking duck sesame pide bread sandwich for $3.5, dumpling/noodle soup for $3.
This place kills david and cammys/ bobs kitchen/ shanghai dumpling house/ JG dumplings.
Peter Lugers steakhouse was voted the best steakhouse in NYC 26years in a row, with numerous reviews to back it up, established in 1887, they have been delighting the carnivores of NYC for over 100yrs.
So with reviews like that, it was a MUST try. we made the hike to Brooklyn to try this Michelin guide recommended restaurant.
Our waiter was a cheerful old man who tended to our every need, before we even knew what they were!
Water as soon as we were seated, took our photo without being asked, a second serving of bread once we were finished with our first - bread was so yummy, there was herb bread sticks and onion roll- refired steaks which were a bit raw and served them with fresh fries and more complimentary chocolate coins once we finished ours.
The steak was good, tender and precut, it was crunchy on the outside yet juicy and soft on the inside.
Very satisfied
And lastly.....NYC bagels and pizzas. YUMMMMO!!!!
NYC is a very exciting city, lots to see, lots to do and lots to eat!
There were buskers at every subway station some very good and some horrid.
The people are helpful but they are definitely blunt and brisk. We found it quite entertaining that they would tell u off whilst helping you - ie at the greyhound customer service counter, worker to customer waiting in line "You do want a bus ticket dont you? hurry up and come on over here so i can set you up with one. well do you want to go or not!??"
quite amusing to watch.
The only negative i can think of, was the cold -9 -7 heck even -2.......way too cold!!!!
Like all the other cheapskates out there, we opted to take the chinatown bus - fung wah- highly recommend them. u save $5!!! =)
Our first impression of new york city?
good ol' chinatown. where the air smelt like.....bus fumes mixed with other funky chinese smells.
We asked the grumpy middle aged woman where we could get a cab, she pointed us in the right direction - the road-
We flagged down our very first NYC taxi to take us home - 232 east 82nd st.
Once we arrived in our basement shoe boxed sized apartment, a thought occurred to us......how on earth were we to fit 6 ppl in this tiny tiny apartment?
i kid you not when i say TINY. it was the size of 2 small bedrooms and a bathroom u could barely turn around in, but its all about the location....so we sacrificed space to be 3 blocks from The Met and central park.
The other girls joined us later that day - jennessa, belinda and poi - bearing gifts of stolen teabags, sugar sachets, salt and pepper and packets of sauce. From them we learnt the art of stocking up on free condiments.
Surprisingly the apartment seemed to comfortably accommodate 6, we slept 2 on the couch, 4 to a bed packed like sardines head to feet, and had to work out shower times, in the end it worked out well....we were nice and cosy =)
NYC is such an amazing city, you will never go hungry here, everywhere we walked there food from giant pretzels to hotdogs, gyros to baked nuts, small delis to Starbucks on every corner.
Lina's birthday was celebrated at superb Japanese buffet - Ichi Umi- for $18.50 ate sea urchin, salmon roe, at least 10 different types of freshly made sushi, tuna tartar, steamed seasoned crab, ramen/udon noodles, seabass, siu mai, gyoza, spicy sashmi salad, oysters, shrimps, clams, miso/ crab soup etc, the food was divine, the waiter was very attentive and we never felt pressured to leave, so had a very satisfying 2hrs lunch.
Vanessa's dumplings in chinatown was another favourite place of ours. $1 for 4 dumplings! bargain!
They also had hot soy milk for $1, peking duck sesame pide bread sandwich for $3.5, dumpling/noodle soup for $3.
This place kills david and cammys/ bobs kitchen/ shanghai dumpling house/ JG dumplings.
Peter Lugers steakhouse was voted the best steakhouse in NYC 26years in a row, with numerous reviews to back it up, established in 1887, they have been delighting the carnivores of NYC for over 100yrs.
So with reviews like that, it was a MUST try. we made the hike to Brooklyn to try this Michelin guide recommended restaurant.
Our waiter was a cheerful old man who tended to our every need, before we even knew what they were!
Water as soon as we were seated, took our photo without being asked, a second serving of bread once we were finished with our first - bread was so yummy, there was herb bread sticks and onion roll- refired steaks which were a bit raw and served them with fresh fries and more complimentary chocolate coins once we finished ours.
The steak was good, tender and precut, it was crunchy on the outside yet juicy and soft on the inside.
Very satisfied
And lastly.....NYC bagels and pizzas. YUMMMMO!!!!
NYC is a very exciting city, lots to see, lots to do and lots to eat!
There were buskers at every subway station some very good and some horrid.
The people are helpful but they are definitely blunt and brisk. We found it quite entertaining that they would tell u off whilst helping you - ie at the greyhound customer service counter, worker to customer waiting in line "You do want a bus ticket dont you? hurry up and come on over here so i can set you up with one. well do you want to go or not!??"
quite amusing to watch.
The only negative i can think of, was the cold -9 -7 heck even -2.......way too cold!!!!
Monday, January 4, 2010
boston
The flight from San Francisco to Boston was an enjoyable one indeed, one that we all wished lasted alittle longer, 15hrs perhaps instead of the lousy 5hrs.
Why you ask?
We were upgraded to first class! =) big leather seats, real cutlery and a yummy cheese platter.
Anyways, we landed at Boston airport under a blanket of snow, it was gorgeous, snowflakes everywhere we looked.
The news reported that a blizzard had hit the eastcoast however it mostly affected NYC, so we were expecting Boston to be cold and snowy but boy.....did we get the shock of our lives.
COLD....was an understatment.
The snow was up to our shins but it was fresh beautiful powder, which we had alot of fun frolicking in.
Later that day we walked around Boston common (the major city park) and saw kids tobogganing and snowboarding down the hill. Even saw a lady drag her kid along the path in a fire engine red sled - very cute!
DAY 2 :
We attempted to walk the freedom trail (a tourist trail which lead you to all the important historical buildings in boston) we made it past the first building, only because it was on the way to the subway station >.< we couldnt hack it, our faces were numb!
So after deciding that it was too cold to do this walking tour we made our way to cambridge, the home of Havard university.
As soon as you step out of the subway and into the streets you feel as if you have been trasported to another place (a wiser place), almost like stepping into a story book.
Mixed in with modern shops and cafes were red brick conlonial buildings, swirly black iron gates and snow everywhere.
DAY 3:
'battttttttttter up!' anyone guess where thats from?
baseball!
our last stop is the home of the red sox and at 98yrs old the oldest baseball park in the United States. While we visited, the park had an ice rink in the middle for the NHL winter classic and for public skating for Boston residents.
A highlight (and coldest part) of the tour took us to visit fenway park's Green Monster - the best and most dangerous seats in the house. Why is it dangerous you may ask? During batting practice - it is estimated that a ball gets hit all the way to the green monster every 15mins? Many have attemped to catch the ball flying at them with a hotdog in one hand. There were stories of broken hands & noses - OUCH! And so now, they've hired EMTs to permantely patrol that area.
sorry juds, we kept our eyes peeled but didnt spot boston rob and amber (survivor and amazing race).
Why you ask?
We were upgraded to first class! =) big leather seats, real cutlery and a yummy cheese platter.
Anyways, we landed at Boston airport under a blanket of snow, it was gorgeous, snowflakes everywhere we looked.
The news reported that a blizzard had hit the eastcoast however it mostly affected NYC, so we were expecting Boston to be cold and snowy but boy.....did we get the shock of our lives.
COLD....was an understatment.
The snow was up to our shins but it was fresh beautiful powder, which we had alot of fun frolicking in.
Later that day we walked around Boston common (the major city park) and saw kids tobogganing and snowboarding down the hill. Even saw a lady drag her kid along the path in a fire engine red sled - very cute!
DAY 2 :
We attempted to walk the freedom trail (a tourist trail which lead you to all the important historical buildings in boston) we made it past the first building, only because it was on the way to the subway station >.< we couldnt hack it, our faces were numb!
So after deciding that it was too cold to do this walking tour we made our way to cambridge, the home of Havard university.
As soon as you step out of the subway and into the streets you feel as if you have been trasported to another place (a wiser place), almost like stepping into a story book.
Mixed in with modern shops and cafes were red brick conlonial buildings, swirly black iron gates and snow everywhere.
DAY 3:
'battttttttttter up!' anyone guess where thats from?
baseball!
our last stop is the home of the red sox and at 98yrs old the oldest baseball park in the United States. While we visited, the park had an ice rink in the middle for the NHL winter classic and for public skating for Boston residents.
A highlight (and coldest part) of the tour took us to visit fenway park's Green Monster - the best and most dangerous seats in the house. Why is it dangerous you may ask? During batting practice - it is estimated that a ball gets hit all the way to the green monster every 15mins? Many have attemped to catch the ball flying at them with a hotdog in one hand. There were stories of broken hands & noses - OUCH! And so now, they've hired EMTs to permantely patrol that area.
sorry juds, we kept our eyes peeled but didnt spot boston rob and amber (survivor and amazing race).
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