New York

After a relatively quick flight over the Atlantic but really looooong immigration queue at JFK airport, we arrived in New York. We stayed in an airport hotel for the first night as we didn't arrive till late and so got a good night's sleep and breakfast (complete with waffle batter-dispenser to make your own waffles with - yum!) before heading into the city the next morning. Because MC's stinginess and and New York City hotel prices aren't a good combination, we had opted for much cheaper apartment-style hostel and got a really good deal which seemed to good to be true....
.... and this was the sign that greeted us upon our arrival at said apartment!! So we were a bit hesitant to enter but were reassured by previous guests and a lady who lived in the building just laughed it off, and it luckily it turned out to be fine and we are still alive! And have a few more dollars in our pocket.
John being a robot at the top of the Rockefeller Centre.
Manhattan at night from the Brooklyn Bridge.



24 hour chess playing place in Greenwich Village. Thought you would like it here Dad!
The cool Flatiron building.
John calling for help.
Madison Square Garden.
Times Square.
The city from the 'Top of the Rock' (Rockefeller Centre).
Skyscrapers and Central Park from the Top of the Rock.
Yankee Stadium in The Bronx.
The unofficial self-guided Flight of the Conchords tour - Dave's Pawn Shop.
The New Zealand Consulate.
Bret and Jemaine's apartment in Chinatown.
Ground Zero. Just a big building site.
John on Liberty Island.
The Statue of Liberty.
View from the boat.
Downtown Manhattan from the Liberty Island ferry.
This sculpture used to sit outside the World Trade Centre. It was damaged on September 11 and then moved to its current site as a memorial to the victims of that day.
Wall St.
The Brooklyn Bridge, the world's first suspension bridge, connecting Manhattan to Brooklyn.
Macy's New York, the world's largest store.
Empire State Building from Broadway.
Times Square.
The awesome M&Ms shop.
Watching cake decorating at Magnolia Bakery, of Sex and the City fame.
Kiwis at the Rockefeller Centre!

Napping in the sun in Central Park. Our accommodation was pretty close to Central Park so MC got to do a bit of running in the park as well as sleeping!
Manhattan skyline from Central Park.
John Lennon Memorial in Central Park, over the road from where he was killed outside his New York apartment.
Strawberry Fields in Central Park, a memorial garden to John Lennon funded by Yoko Ono.
MC and her twin in Central Park.
Bethesda Fountain in Central Park.
The first of many hotdogs!

We are loving the USA so far, the weather has been brilliant (except for a wee freak tornado that luckily struck as we were in the Subway in New York), the people are ultra-friendly and the food is great. Our next stop is three nights in Boston before we pick up our car and the roadtrip begins!

John's food diary so far: hotdogs, burgers, fries, hotdogs, The Baconator, donuts, bagels, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, giant sodas, pizza, cookies, cheesecakes and more hotdogs. The diet's catching up on me though, my last visit to the throne required 9 flushes - a new personal best!