Oh, hi, Fedora!

I was waiting for my bus to Albany that was running from West 34th street, right in front of Macy's. I had a plenty of time but I was so tired that even the pretty show-windows of the most famous American store couldn't drag me inside (it is usually not the case 99% of a time). So I was just chilling sitting on the bench. Who have ever visited New York knows that this part of the city is insanely crowded. Sometimes it is a little too much, even for me. So, I was sitting on the bench and eyeballing people =) During those 40-50 minutes that I waited I realized that in this trend-setter city there are three "must have" things this season: fedora hats, maxi dresses and flat ethnic sandals. Wanna be trendy? Get them! =) I myself have a straw fedora hat and I enjoy it, but maxi dresses and ethnic sandals... eh, not a big fan!!!

Online stores that can help you become a part of this urban fashion:

Fedora hats: http://www.hatsinthebelfry.com/category/womens-fedora-hats.html
Maxi dresses:pretty much any store, try www.macys.com
Ethnic sandals: www.zappos.com and many others
And of course, universal www.ebay.com and www.amazon.com

My silly friend featuring my hat =)

Enjoy!

Zee

Ferry trip to Manhattan

On Friday me and my relatives decided to stop marinating in Neponsit and go have a little fun in Manhattan. I was very excited about it because the vehicle that we had picked for our trip was pretty unusual (at least for me, a girl grown in steppes) - we took the ferry.
The beginning of our trip started with "a little" hectic morning. Both my aunt and her sister-in-law have infant babies and they were running out of time packing their stuff. Everybody was already nervous and became even more when my aunt realized that her husband forgot to leave her car's keys... Thank god, they had another car we could take although it was after a crash, and literally 10 minutes before the ferry was supposed to leave I was trying to help and get a grip on the whole situation. By the order of my aunt I quickly pulled the car to the front, helped to load everything in the trunk, and there was me with no NYS license and no seat belt fastened (it was broken) driving everyone to the port, rushing but trying to keep everyone, especially the babies safe. In all this rush I even got an ''industrial trauma" =) - a bloody scratch on my toe, but I survived =D. We were just on time at the port so everyone exhaled with a big relief when at 7-30 am the ferry took off with us on its board. Our way from Neponsit to Downtown Manhattan took only an hour.

The weather was perfect, and we all were enjoying it hanging out on the deck. On the way we passed the famous Verrazzano Bridge that connects Brooklyn with Staten Island, then Statue of Liberty, and Brooklyn docks. But the most exciting part was a view of slowly approaching skyscrapers of Downtown. Traveling on the ferry really demonstrated new views of the Downtown Manhattan.
Shortly after ''American Princess'' delivered us to Downtown we had breakfast, then split so that me, my aunt and her baby were together. We had a plenty of time until 5-40 pm, when the ferry was going back to Neponsit. We decided to start with Money Museum right on Wall street. It was small, but very informative! Afterward we headed to an ominous place - Tiffany store. I got something and that little piece cost me a fortune! But I couldn't resist! =)

Bull and Bear - symbols of the Wall street...

...and their meaning

Later we passed Ground Zero and ate a nice lunch at a small Japanese restaurant somewhere in the East Village. After us that place looked like after some disaster - you know how little kids eat =D Late afternoon we were near the Apple store also in the Village, which we foolishly decided to visit. We totally forgot that a new iPhone 4 had come out a couple days ago, so everyone in that humongous line wanted to become a lucky owner of such a device. I wanted to see it too but there was no way to stay in that line.

Spring street

Old Alfa Romeo

Making friends =D

We skipped the store visit, walked around the Village a bit more then went to Broadway and caught the taxi because it was time to head back. For some reason the taxi driver was giving this weird attitude as he was doing us a favor taking to the port. A slap in the face might would have gotten him back to reality but I decided to let him live =D.
When we got to the port we realized that there was a lot of people wanting to get on the ferry. It really was a day of huge lines. But we got our tickets and got home safe.

Ticket line

In order to not waste my time in NYC as we got home I took a quick shower because ferry traveling made my skin salty and sticky, and I felt a little yucky and then I rushed to the cinema to watch a new movie ''Knight and Day''. It was the very first comedy Tom Cruise ever starred in and it came out very funny, especially in a tandem with Cameron Diaz, right. So, go watch it! =)
After I came back home I realized how tired I was, so I just crashed on my couch and felt totally zenned out. It was a great day!

Reminds me someone =)

Zee

A little bliss - Neponsit, NY

This Wednesday after I sent R to Kenya =) I decided to stay at my aunt's house that is located in Neponsit, NY - probably the farthest southern point of New York City. Technically, Neponsit is a part of Queens although I used to believe that it was Brooklyn... So, in order to not to infect other people with such an ignorant misconception, there's a map =) It is pretty close to the JFK, but the only trains that run here are A and S. Yeah, it's a whole different story how to get here.

To say that it is a nice place is to say nothing. I love coming here because it is quiet and fresh. You get surrounded by nice houses and THE OCEAN!!! Yes, I think that this is the best part about Neponsit! People from around the area come here on weekends to get some sun and weekends is the only time when the beach is crowded. Three blocks keep me away from the beach, but it's a 5 minute walk (which is nothing) and I'm all ready to get embraced by the salty waves of the Atlantic Ocean... Isn't it a bliss? I can easily picture myself living here - morning runs along the beach, barbecues with family in the yard, swimming at night and beach parties with friends of course!!! =) I love water - it always calms me down and puts my thoughts in order... I remember, one fortune teller told me that my totem is a dolphin, maybe she was right! =)

A road to the beach...

Neponsit is interesting for me as for a person fond of architecture. Although there's nothing too special here, the diversity of houses is quite funny. You may found so many different styles - from a huge Victorian mansion to very modest little country houses. Modern is present as well! It seems like every household cares about the way their house and yard look because landscapes of some houses are simply fantastic!!!









All this is great! However, there is always at least one downfall to everything and beautiful Neponsit is not an exception. Such a remote location from the rest of the city sometimes makes my life hell! It takes more than an hour to get from Manhattan to Neponsit if using public transportation (first subway, then bus), which I despise!!! I don't know how about you people but when I use , say, a bus, there's ALWAYS one person who stinks INCREDIBLY, one person who seems to be deaf because the volume of his/her voice raises WAAAAAAAAAAAAY above the levels of decency, and of course there MUST BE a group of teenage girls who squeal, laugh and peep like crazies... Oh, well... But when I finally get to Neponsit, jump in the bathing suit and head to the beach I realize that it was worth it... =)

My little angelic brother =)

Zee

Father's Day in Mohawk, NY

This last Sunday it was Father's Day weekend, which I spent in a small country village in upstate New York named Mohawk and it was great!!! Mohawk is only an hour away from Albany and the road is usually quite smooth if you're driving a car. But because the weather was just right, and me and R. are so brave, we took his 990 cc Harley Davidson to get there. So, when we got to our destination point our faces were numb as well as our butts, and my mascara was all over the place because the wind hits the eyes terribly, even if you're wearing glasses. However, we were happy that the trip was safe.
Upstate NY is a very interesting place. Those, who visited only New York City or Long Island, or any other cities down there don't know that upstate New York is a lot different. The first thing that caught my ear is the accent - I always wonder about accents because I'm a foreigner. I do not speak English well enough to describe the specifics of it, but it is definitely more recognizable in women talk. I'm not sure if I like it, but I don't mind it at all.
Second thing that everyone appreciates right away - the nature. Upstate is famous for its forests, which are especially beautiful in autumn. When you're on the highway, thick green foliage of trees run along it, attracting your attention to their beauty. Short part of the road was running along the bank of a Mohawk river. Not too wide, but again, beautiful. Several springs and endless creeks add to the upstate beauty, simultaneously bringing clear water to the locals. I guess I will purposely omit the stories about wild animals that are everywhere: birds, snakes, deer, foxes, chipmunks, and even coyotes.

Rooster - symbol of a countryside

During our visit we went for a short ride around the area. Although Mohawk is only an hour away, its difference from Albany is drastic. If Albany is a Capitol City where a big part of population works for the government, Mohawk is a country place where people live in their own houses, possess some land and are more likely to be involved in construction and farming. I like going to the countryside because it is quiet, beautiful and calming. Down below you can see the pictures of the garden. Add to that singing birds, ability to tan whenever you want (and even naked =), fires that you can have dark chilly evenings in a warm company of your family and friends, and barbecue parties whenever you want! Doesn't it make you want to live in the country? =) I was lucky to experience all that!

Rose

Garden decorations

But I have to say, the most important thing about upstate NY is people. They are mostly hard working and seem to be simpler that usual townspeople, but it can get tricky. Women are great housewives and spend a lot of time taking care of the houses, but men here are special. There's this quite sensible attitude that they can give you. It's not that they are rude, but they have quite sharp tongues, if you understand what I'm talking about! =) Here and there you can see men of all ages covered in tattoos riding motorcycles. Bikes are big in upstate NY. You must have a nice big shiny bike to be a really COOL guy. It is no surprise at all that these tough guys worship Harleys. Sport bikes or as they call them "crotch rockets" are trash =). A real man drives Harley. Period. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to take a picture of those rough guys with their girlfriends on backseats (which would be quite problematic and dangerous being on the backseat myself=) ), but I was enjoying the company of the best one of them the entire weekend. =)

This is what I'm talking about =)

The Bike Ride!!! =)
The video was recorded on my iPod nano! Love it!

Zee

Bright idea on a gloomy day!

It's a pretty gloomy day today. Probably it was one of the reasons why I decided to start a blog. You know how it feels in days like this. All of a sudden you start thinking about everything in your life, beginning from the color of nail polish and all the way to how unimaginably important is the role of the family. But not only the weather pushed me towards writing but also various events that are filling my life in America and making it great!!!

I thought this blog would be a great mean for expressing my random thoughts and sharing the most memorable events of my life!

So if you're interested, welcome on board and let's start this journey!!! =D

Zee