My friend Abi is heads to NYC… I wish she would take me with her, but her clothes and shoes are far too important and there is no longer space for me in the suitcase.

The view from the top of the rock...

First of all, catch the supershuttle bus from your airport into town.

Then, don’t leave home without your streetwise map! +/- a subway map.  Know your boroughs.
Then get a 7-day subway pass for $28.  And a simcard for about $25 if you wish.  On a solo trip, you may need to make a good couple of local phonecalls.   And lookup Prive,  NYmag and Dailycandy for sample sale news…

Here’s a map Derrik made of our trip.  Create your own map, paint your own picture and discover your own pieces of New York.

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Century 21 – Bargain shopping at ground zero…(I picked up loads of tights, shoes and jeans at slashed down prices here)

Then there’s Sephora/Old Navy/Macy’s/Bloomingdales…or Woodbury Common for the ultimate outlet store shopping trip! (Save an entire day out, book a bus)

B&H – the NYC superstore near couple blocks from Penn Station, for all your electronic needs, also found online, but if you’re curious about the jewish efficiency, and their business process and how smoothly an institution could be run, you have to visit the place.

The Container Store may make you go a little breathless, with its nifty storage ideas and is a little bit cuter than ikea.  Less furniture, more solutions.

Wholefoods for groceries, and Trader Joe’s right next door to it, at the Union Square store.

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Gorgeous donuts found at the Doughnut Plant

Doughnut Plant – 379 Grand Street NYC

…which is steps from Full City Coffee for a sit down and wifi/magazine/books/jazz absorption session…You could have your donut here too, and try not to hug everyone in your hyperglycemic trip.
Everything in manhattan has been licked by the Zagat team, purely because of how self contained the island is.  If it is not zagat rated, it’s probably dodgy.  Or in chinatown.  Or both.

Speaking of chinatown, there are several things you have to do there besides eat chinese food and catch the cheap-bus to Washington/Boston/etc

1. The chinatown ice cream factory, with all sorts of chinesey flavours.  Red bean, Coconut, Pandan, Lychee etc…  You can even get the T-shirt!

2. S1 for 6 dumplings, in a shop tucked away in a corner, your lucky day if you find it, with just a scibbled cardboard sign for directions down the alley.  In the hold in the wall you’ll find three ladies on a dumpling production line, and some standing space.  Pork dumplings, but they smelt bloody delicious, and attracted what i saw to be a discerning crowd of NYC old-timers.

3.  Try to learn some chinese before you go!?  I thought I landed in HK when i rocked up there on my first morning, jet lagged and amidst the 7am market-spree, and despite my chinky looks it wasn’t chinky enough to blend in.

Empire Diner at 10th&W22nd

At Katz Deli enjoying a Kosher hot dog!

Katz’s Deli at the Lower East Side where Harry met Sally.  I stumbled upon that, was overjoyed with the kosher hot dogs, felt a strange familiarity with the diner… then a couple months later it clicked.  Try a pastrami washed down with a cream soda.

Cupcakes at the renowned Magnolia Bakery at 401 Bleeker street.   A must for a cupcake fan!  And I discovered Red Velvet flavour in NYC.

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Check out the usual suspects:  The MoMa, and after that grab a chicken/lamb on rice at the Gyros on 53rd&6th…Only after 730pm though, before that, there are imposter Gyros shops.  It is to die for, and every new yorker must know this.  Beat the Queues by rocking up early, or you will auto-digest by your turn in line, sniffing gyros delish smokes.  I asked for more white sauce…

"More sauce please..."

PJ Clarkes, the best burgers I’ve ever tasted.  After sitting through ‘La Boheme’ at the Lincoln Centre.

Crooked Tree and their buckwheat crepes…near the dumpling man, st marks square.

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Carnegie Hall – catch operas, various orchestral performances here.
The Guggenheim a must see, and a traipse up and down the spirals.  Gorgeous to just look at from the outside.  And then a gorgeous all-day breakfast place Sarabeth’s nearby.

www.barbesbrooklyn.com is where we’ve got Stephane Wrembel le french virtuoso, and Shawn vouches he’s the best guitarist, ever.  Park slope, Brooklyn, Sundays.  Probably best after your Di Fara Pizza on the Q line to Ave J.

Shawn lives in Brookyn and will give tours on the weekends, he pipes up.  He’ll drag you to Barbes.

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Last of all, don’t forget to come back despite how much you’d want to frivolously find a job there waiting on tables and baking cupcakes all day.

Music lifeline…

spotify – the best!  No social networking.

Last.fm – reliable and i’m scrobbled.  Also provides similar artists and concise biographies and reviews.

mixtape – playlist heaven

rolldabeats – massive playable catalogue of DnB tracks, all avail in hard copy

dogs on acid – DnB mixes

rinse.fm – underground radio with a lethal dose of dubstep

But to swim upstream is the challenge of Pisces – and the only way he ever finds true peace and happiness.  Taking the easy way is a trap for those born under this Sun sign, a glittering bait that entices them, while it hides the dangerous hook – a wasted life.

Linda Goodman, in “Sun Signs”

driving hunter valley's vineyards, July 2009

This boy is patient with my impatience, and I love him to bits.

It’s nuts but I haven’t updated since July!  That pretty much means I also haven’t touched base with my inner thoughts since way back then, and life is far too hectic!

I’ve since been to Melbourne and to Sydney to see my beloved sis…moved from the pretty little Canterbury to the bigger harbour-front city of Portsmouth, and am on a general medical training programme and very fortunately got to do critical care while at it.

Partying with new + old friends here!

Really enjoying the work at the critical care department here, all swish and shiney and new…and with a lovely bunch of consultants heading teams of highly trained nurses and docs. Next up:  Hellish acute medicine, followed by chilled out elderly care from April onwards.

my living room, connaught house

While here I’ve been to Florence to present a neurology poster I’d been working on, beautiful experience in travel, and also the meeting of minds about minds, at the congress! Made some good friends while there.

EFNS 2009, Firenze

More conference stuff!

Been fussing about visa so keeping fingers crossed about that at the moment…

And more solid about taking a year out next August 2010!  ie.  Definitely doing it!  There is so much more potential in my life and I need to take that time out for the balance!  For now it’s concentrating on my general medical training and some exams out the way…and next year I cannot wait to zone out and regather.

Right now its membership exams + Work

Next year it will be Family, Friends, Love, Music, Creativity, Neurology

I cannot wait!

found this young dude while trying to get in on venetian snare’s techno setup (no luck yet)

and also an interview from one of my favourite composers Mark Isham

Been listening to Bon Iver on a psychotic loop thanks to Superdupersupei.  Subsequently, I did a psychotic google search and found more!

Stumbled upon Jon Hopkins, who is a pianist, composer, and taught himself the ins and outs ot studio recording.  He is my new musical idol and i’ve also been looping his new album on spotify.  Ah spotify…

Question is…will it be available in the UK? It’s a dream come true for non-TV watchers like me, in my quest to become more TV friendly.

til the end of August! Must go!

A fabulous playlist of gorgeous songs from Shawntheplant, who incessantly tries to lure me to NYC yet again. As if i need luring!