Given that I've hung up my work boots for a while, the 'Friday-feeling' has somewhat lost its momentum, but not this morning, oh no! Today was a big morning, it was the grand opening of the Sephora store at the end of my street and you can imagine my excitement when I read the sign on the door last night that the first 100 people to arrive at 8am would receive gift vouchers worth $50-$1,000!!! Unfortunately this story does not have a happy ending. Dragging my sorry self out of bed at 7.30am (I'm just not used to these early mornings) I head out onto the windy streets only to be faced by a line that goes around the block and beyond. Kicking myself - how could I be so naive to think I was the only one to have read the sign's small print - I head home to share my horror story with Jonny who chucks me a $10 bill for my efforts as he rushes out the door to work (see above). Sephora here I come!!!
Now on to the important stuff...
Since arriving back from our mini-break to Brazil for Johnny and Maisa's awesome wedding, NYC has definitely descended into autumn and just in time for the halloween festivities to begin - boy do these yanks love Halloween. For the past two weeks, it's not been surprising to find a giant pumpkin, Alice in Wonderland or even a family of unicorns sitting next to you on the subway - literally any costume will do.
Last night we thought we'd get into the spirit of things by heading down to the West Village to watch the annual parade. It was absolute madness as we battled the crowds and NYC cops blocking the streets to take a peek. Alas, most of our time was spent in the Amity Hall pub, where Jonny announced he had just eaten the best burger he's had so far in the Big Apple. Bold statement! (good work Sarah), but my bumble bee buddy Liann and I did get serenaded by Maverick and Goose as we left, so all good.
Getting into the spooky spirit of things, this week a couple of the girls and I headed to Harlem for a free walking tour. Despite one paranoid fellow tour attendee telling us to 'watch our bags', the experience was anything but spooky. Harlem (or NoHa as they're now trying to call it as the area becomes more gentrified) is pretty cool, it has some amazing architecture and is of course home to the Apollo theatre, where stars like Ella Fitzgerald and the king of pop MJ were discovered.
The Apollo
The stars
The Abyssinian Church (great for gospel singing)
Halloween wouldn't be Halloween without a pumpkin or two, so Liann and I also took a trip to the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx to check out the Haunted Pumpkin Forrest, only to be greeted by this fella (see below), oh and a giant melon, of course!
This weekend brings even more excitement as my gorgeous friend Sarah has organised a 'Hag' do (stag and hen do) for Jonny and I on Saturday night before we head back to the UK in a couple of weeks. We're going to a German beer hall in Brooklyn, which you can imagine got Jonny's vote. Check it out: www.thekbh.com
