Cyclones at Coney

Last night went for a walk in park at dusk, saw a few guys pitching with a baseball, and a couple walking a cat on a lead! Crossed the road and took photos of the Manhattan skyline in the sunset, a couple of which turn out fairly well. This morning we go to drop off some clothes at the laundramat, then come back and make and eat a hearty brunch. Afterwards we head out to Coney island and it is like the American equivalent of Skegness and has a similar feel. It isn't particularly warm or sunny today but the beach is quite busy. We make our way up the promenade towards the pier. I notice a cargo ship sailing towards the docks, just like one I spotted in Belgium a few years ago when I was working on the ships. There is a steady stream of large planes descending into JFK overhead. A group of guys play salsa drums along to a backing track, while a lively guy with milk-bottle glasses dances erratically in front of them and gestures to an imaginary partner.


We went on the 'Wonder Wheel' and got a good view of the island as well as the city skyline again. Saw a cruise ship sailing out towards the open sea. We go to Appleby's for some food and meet Keith's friend Jessica there. There is a tank with two small sharks swimming in it. We go to the baseball game, the Brooklyn Cyclones vs. the Connecticut Tigers, and get presented with free jerseys on the way in. We sit and talk and I half watch the game. I have no idea what is going on but I enjoy it all the same, the atmosphere, the lights, the music, the bursts of excitement, the sea breeze in the evening, the dusk and night gradually setting in, the disused 250ft-high 'Parachute Jump', glows behind us.

Wake up early and go out to Coffee Lab. Sit in the window and watch  people walking small dogs past. Hear another Bastille song playing on the stereo.

Rock and stroll

Have something like a regular nights sleep. Sitting on Subway see a young Asian woman with a mint-green top and headphones, which are presumably playing a humorous radio show or podcast, as she smiles periodically. Either that or she is prematurely demented. Get to the Rock and have coffee. Friendly staff again, and take my name, as before. Ascend the Rock. Take photos and see people from many different back- grounds, and hear a variety of accents including Yorkshire and Liverpudlian. Get hustled but come away with some good quality baseball caps. Bite into a revolting sandwich but get it exchanged. Go into the Museum of Natural History briefly and see the replicas of dinosaur skeletons. Half expect the Allosaurus to suddenly spring into life and begin hopping around the hall. Cross the street and get crapped on by a pigeon, walk through beautiful scenery in Central Park. Sit by the lake and a family come up with two young children, one points at the water and says "that's disgusting!" Consider staying there for a long time, but right then a large dog comes and walks into the lake right in front of us so we move off. Walk up the path and see turtles swimming in the water. Get the Subway down to West 4th in Greenwich Village and see a woman busking skilfully with a xylophone. Walk up to Washington Square and walk through it. See a guy busking with an upright piano. Past the fountains and the archway that looks like a smaller version of the Arc De Triomphe. Stop by Electric Lady studios and take some photos. Somehow take the wrong train on the way back and take an unscheduled visit to Harlem.

A dip in the Atlantic

Awoke this morning after only a few hours' sleep to more unfamiliar bird calls some of which seem vaguely tropical, others that sound like birds of prey. I hear the occasional blast of a ship's horn in the distance. Images of Time Square flash in and out of my mind as I lie awake, I listen to some heavy post-industrial techno on my MP3 player. As I nurse an aching head and an empty stomach, I contemplate the tumultuous weather forecast and look forward to the prospect of witnessing my first American thunderstorm.

The garbage truck beeps as it backs up and I think of a song called 11am by Incubus. After lying there for what feels like a small eternity I drift off to sleep, and awake a couple of hours later to hear the familiar sound of Lew and Keith's voices. Takes me a while to come round. After getting up we take a walk down the road for coffee and I plump for a Nutella Latte which is tasty but very sweet.

Go to Rockaway Beach, and can now say that I have paddled in the sea on both sides of the Atlantic.

The storm eventually rolls overhead and Keith and I go and stand in the entrance way to the building and observe it. It is relatively brief but fairly spectacular and the thunder is very loud.

NYC dishes up a slice of humanity

Slept for 12 hours, needed every second of it. Woke to the smell of coffee, low voices chatting happily from the kitchen, shafts of sunlight catching the walls.

Now am sitting on the Subway enjoying an iced coffee, there is the usual mixture of people, a girl with beach clothes and headphones talking to herself, a guy preaching offensive gibberish in a loud voice down the carriage. Cross the river on the Manhattan bridge. Go to Union Sq. Barnes & Noble, Flatiron, standing on the corner of 5th Ave, stopped at Artichokes for pizza, and half-way through our meal see a drunk guy fall over. Walked along the Skyline for a few blocks. At Grand Central Station I get goose-bumps as I walk up the steps into the main concourse. It feels like I'm home. Talking walls. Walk down 42nd St.  See a guy handing out money by the public library. Turns out to be what appears to be a social experiment. Sitting in Bryant Park. Feel the gravel between my toes.  Watch small birds bathing in the sand.

 The more I acclimatise the more I realise the vast scale of this city, and just  how populous it is. Also the number of beautiful women from all walks if life. Head to Times Square and see some topless women with American flags painted on  them and a guy dressed as Spiderman approaches a jew, shakes him by the hand and greets him saying 'Salam Allah Aleikum'. Surprised to hear a song by Bastille in Starbucks. In the bedlam of 42nd St. Subway Station in rush hour hear strands of an unidentified piece of classical music in my head.

Sent from my iPhone

A walk down the Promenade

It clears. The heat descends. Discovered paracetamol does not exist in the States, or at least not in the pharmacy we visited. On the subway, smells just like the tube. Get on a train and is welcomingly cool. See a man with breasts. Go through a station with several platforms, reminds me of Bank in London. Another train runs parallel to our's. Lew and Keith reminisce about celebs they have seen in NY: Lucy Liu, Bjork, Andy Johnson. Head out into town. Shop, smorgasbord, rocks, beach, posts, skyline, basketball, Dumbo: Downtown Under Manhattan Bridge Underpass. "Doyet Coke". Pecan and Butter ice cream. Worth waiting for. A woman is meditating on path. Walk up to Manhattan bridge and went into a store which has PG Tips. Had a protracted subway trip back to the apartment due to engineering works. A man on the platform briefly diverts the attention of those hurriedly rushing past with spinning tops that play tinny music that sounds like a poorly remixed version of Axel-F, and emit bright multicoloured lights and laser beams. He seems devoted to his cause but appears to be lacking in people or sales skills.

The first morning

Went out early for a walk and to search for coffee. Saw the bay in the mist and an army building that had a communist appearance. Past some railway sidings. Wandered down the blvd and saw a Chinese woman dancing in the street. Found a convenience store/coffee shop. Saw some familiar brands and some less familiar ones. Spoke to an older lady and told her my first day in US. She has a Scottish friend who she impersonated. Discovered that I like hazelnut cream. Went back and turned around. Went out for "cwaffee" and breakfast at a local restaurant. The kind of place where I expect Al Pacino and his henchmen to come rolling in at any moment, the place falls silent and all eyes turn to them as they walk over to their permanently reserved table and sit down. Drink Lime Rickys, which are actually very tasty, however the pancakes are less so. On way back see and hear a Cardinal bird atop the priest's house.

The voyage and the arrival

On the flight, and it is light at midnight (UK time) Standing in queue in an airless corridor ...  Chatter... Olivia... flirtation, laughter, anticipation, uncertainty. Excitement. Woman faint. Steward says he works there but knows nothing.  Taxi hurriedness. Feel nauseous from the smell of perfume and sleep deprivation. Driver skilful but wild. Lights and scenery fly past. Verrazano bridge in cloud. Liberty salutes us in distance. Arrive and pull up. Warm Greetings and enter bohemian building with artex walls. Parisian style Architecture and fittings. Meet our hosts, exchange pleasantries, sit and play banjo. Look at pictures of beautiful gothic structures. Eat some hot kettle chips, talk in cockney accents. Feel delirious. Go to bed. Awoken from fitful dreams at 3am by someone making a snack in the kitchen across the hall. I am famished. Eat the remainder of dark chocolate. Now am wide awake. My body is yelling for more sleep but my brain is saying it is morning. Go to window, see a large black and white cat across the street, hear the pre-dawn call of an unfamiliar bird. See cabs glide past in the rain. Listen to what sounds like ballroom dancing without the music in the apartment upstairs. Listening to Warning Sign by Coldplay in my head.

Notice the icebergs.