The Ultimate Jet Setter

Today was our last full day in New York and we decided to go Brooklyn. We went to the Brooklyn Flea Market on Lafayette Street, its in a school car park and huge. There are several vendors selling clothes, vintage and new, glasses, jewellery, furniture, shoes and a few stalls at the back selling food and drink. I got a vintage black leather pocketbook style bag, and another lobster roll and real lemonade. On the way out we passed a church selling items for their church from furniture to bric a brac, tableware and jewellery. We were in an area called Clinton Hill and got a bus to Williamsburg and stumbled upon Bedford Avenue which reminded me of Portobello Road a lot. There were several stores selling clothes, new and vintage, pubs, bars and brunch places also. It's a pretty cool and trendy area, I'd recommend going if you ever go to Brooklyn. After Bedford Avenue we got the subway back to Manhattan, Chelsea specifically and made our way back to our hotel which ended bei...

Today was not as busy, firstly we went to the cinema as we really wanted to see Jobs, after that we had lunch on Park Avenue at Sarabeths. Luckily we were able to eat alfresco as we managed to get table. The menu was typical lunch/brunch menu, I got a bucks fizz (mimosa) and a lobster roll with crisps and coleslaw. It was delicious and a very nice restaurant, they also have another restaurant on Central Park South and TriBeCa. After lunch we walked to Broadway which is a bit far, we walked it before but it seemed shorter. It's about a a 45 minute walk, so I'd suggest a taxi or subway from Park Avenue. We did some more shopping on Broadway then took the subway to Central Park and walked around a bit. There are several men selling horse and carriage and bicitaxi rides. The horse and carriage rides are quite expensive at $50/£32 for 20 minutes.

Today is the last day we had to use the bus tour. We went on the Uptown and Harlem tour. The tour was about an hour and a half. The Uptown tour includes a lot of Central Park, Columbus Circle where there a few high end stores, Upper East Side including pointing out apartment buildings of several famous people including John Lennon and Jerry Seinfeld, Columbia University and Julliard Performing Arts School, we then we made our way to Harlem a predominately black area within Manhattan. We passed the Apollo Theatre which has a lot of historical significance, there were several brownstones in the area too which are simply terraced houses much like the ones in Notting Hill but evidently brown in colour. After Harlem we passed Central Park on the opposite side, the Upper West Side, and several museums including the Met and Guggenheim. We then took the subway to Broadway, the subway is pretty easy except the machine didn't want to accept my subway card every time which was annoyi...

Today we went on a boat tour, they run every hour, we got there just as one was leaving which was annoying but good in the end as we got first pick of the next boats' seats. The boat tour is for 90 minutes and covers the Statue of Liberty, views of downtown New York, Financial District, Brooklyn, Brooklyn Bridge, New Jersey and Manhattan Bridge. It was a beautiful day for a boat ride as it was really sunny so I got some good pictures. Next we made it back to Times Square to get the tour bus to the 9/11 Memorial stop. The memorial is free but donations are expected of between $5-10/£3-6, if you donate $10 you receive a wrist band but its not really anything to write home about. There is a gift shop at the same place you buy your ticket with books, mugs, pens, shirts etc. The memorial is about 3 blocks from where you get your ticket, there is security like at an airport when you enter the memorial.  The memorial is really peaceful but I also felt really sad, there ar...

                                               Today we went to the Empire State Building, we went around noon and there wan't much of a queue. It costs $27/£17 and once you finally get to the Observation Deck as there are few lifts to go up its worth it as there are amazing views of the whole city including New Jersey and Brooklyn. It goes without saying that its best to visit the Empire State on a sunny or really clear day. We picked a good day. After taking copious amounts of photos with different angles and levels we made our way back down. If you really want to go to the Empire State Observation Deck as its such an iconic part of New York then you should go but it you are not bothered or you have been to the Empire State before I would suggest going to the Rockefeller Centre Observation Deck. Its the same price, you get to see the Empire State Building and I ...

Day 3 Today I decided to go to the Smithsonian Museum, there are several Smithsonian museums in Washington from American History, National History, Air and Space to the Portrait Gallery.  There are around 15 different Smithsonian Museums showing different things. I'm not really a gallery or museum person but went to one of them as I was in D.C.  I went to the Natural History Museum which would have been great for me if I was 11. There were several exhibitions on the different animals and mammals we have in the world. All Smithsonian museums are free and there were several children running around and parents at the Natural History Museum especially. Across from the Natural History Museum is the Smithsonian Institute which looks like a huge castle. There's not much to see or do inside which was a but of a disappointment but it looks cool from the outside. Later that day I went to Jazz in the Garden at the Sculpture Garden with my fr...

Day 1 My first night in DC was pretty fun and memorable. Myself, Ashley and some of her friends went to this Irish bar called McFadden's at 24th Street NW. On Tuesdays they have a free bar on certain drinks from 8pm-9pm. Then certain drinks are a dollar each for the rest of the night in addition to 25 cent chicken wings. We stayed there for a while then headed to Ashley's friends birthday party at The Graham Hotel in Georgetown. It was a rooftop party with a really nice view of Georgetown. We ended up meeting some suits and wound up receiving some free drinks and good conversation. Day 2 Today was my day of sightseeing, I walked from my friends house in Bloomingdale to The White House. The White House was quite far back from the gates which was annoying but it was still cool. It is possible to have a tour of The White House but it wasn't available when I went. I then when to the WWII memorial which was quite cool and the Abraham Lincoln Memorial. I was looking fo...