I’ve had one of those weeks where every day felt like it was Friday. So I am relieved that it finally is – and now I can look forward to my weekend plan of cleaning up Prospect Park with New York Cares and heading to the Museum of the Moving Image. There will also be …
Read MoreTag / City
May 27, 2014
…visited Libby
I’ve called her Libby for years now, but we really don’t know each other well enough to be so informal. We first met very briefly five years ago when I was roadtripping around the U.S.. I was traveling on my own so I asked a stranger to take a photo of me and Libby together, but for some …
Read MoreApril 16, 2014
…took a food tour of the Lower East Side
New York is constantly evolving, and nowhere is a better example of this than the Lower East Side. While it was once filled with immigrants crammed into tenement houses, now there are swanky coffee shops and hipsters. But while most of the area has drastically changed, some tasty relics remain. I’ve previously toured businesses and buildings in …
Read MoreApril 3, 2014
…dined at a ‘Victorian Establishment’
One area of the city I do my best to avoid is Times Square. Ask any New Yorker and I’m sure they’d say the same. It’s loud, overrun and it burns my eyes – but it also means that I’m short on suggestions for what to do up there. But Ryan started working in the …
Read MoreMarch 28, 2014
…got lost in the clouds at Central Park
It’s nearly April and winter’s still lurking. Just as I thought I’d be able to pack my winter coat away last week, it began snowing again. But last night, I wandered up to Central Park and realized they’re getting worse weather than the rest of us – because one section of the park is completely beneath clouds. This cute …
Read MoreMarch 24, 2014
…got my caffeine fix at the Coffee and Tea Festival
Most people I’ve met here moan that they don’t have a coffee IV hooked up at all times. And I get it – waking up at 5.45am every day and then staying up late to make the most of the city can take its toll. Thankfully, once a year, the city invites New Yorkers to …
Read MoreMarch 15, 2014
…was tricked by St Ann’s Church
When I’m walking north, I always do my best to avoid the madness of Union Square. One recent route took me along 12th Street between 3rd and 4th avenues, where I spotted this gorgeous church – St Ann’s – snug against the other buildings. But something wasn’t quite right. The buildings behind looked almost too …
Read MoreMarch 11, 2014
…made cupcakes at Butter Lane
When I lived in Manchester in the UK, I had a gloriously large kitchen – it was new, sparkly and it inspired me to cook. But four years on, and I’m living in a (very pretty) shoebox in Manhattan with virtually no kitchen. So as you’ve seen before, when I have an urge to cook, I quite …
Read MoreMarch 7, 2014
…visited Japan (in Grand Central Station)
I’ve never been to Japan, so today I tried to cheat by visiting Grand Central Station, where ‘Japan Week’ is underway. But somehow I left with even less knowledge than I went with. Ryan met me at Grand Central – about three minutes too late to save me from being hit on by a boy …
Read MoreMarch 5, 2014
…was dazzled by Kinky Boots
In a small corner of Northampton in the 1990s, there was a generations-old men’s shoe factory struggling to stay on its feet. One day, with its closing imminent, owner Steve Pateman received a phone call from a transgender shop owner he’d never met before. ‘You should be manufacturing women’s shoes built for men,’ Sue Sheppard …
Read MoreFebruary 19, 2014
…laughed my way through a murder mystery
Remember a couple of months ago when I went to a terrible, terrible murder mystery? The event, which was held in Midtown, was the only thing I walked out of all year – and whenever anyone asked, I warned them never, ever to go. Auntie Susie didn’t like that. My blog’s number #1 fan had …
Read MoreFebruary 18, 2014
…took a walking tour in the LES
This weekend, I got a treat – Heather arrived in New York City! Heather and I have known each other since we were six – and I think we’re still pretty much the same today: an unchanged sense of humor, an unparalleled ability to chat rubbish to anyone who’ll listen and penchant for kiss chase. Today …
Read MoreJanuary 27, 2014
…checked out the Museum of the City of New York
Did you know that ‘Manhattan’ comes from the native American term, ‘Manna-hata’? That The Bronx was initially called ‘Bronck’s Land’ after a wealthy emigrant, Jonas Bronck, who acquired it from tribes? And that ‘Brooklyn’ was first called Breuckelen, named after the town in the Netherlands by Dutch settlers? Well, I didn’t – until I went to the …
Read MoreJanuary 16, 2014
…fronted a rock band
When I was 11, my sister Charlotte, our friend Lara and I started a pretty great band. While it didn’t have a name, it did have an interesting sound: Charlotte on the drums, me on the keys and Lara on the violin. We penned a surprisingly dark song for our tender years and set our …
Read MoreJanuary 11, 2014
…watched a play at BAM
Before I did a new activity every day last year, the one thing I always made sure to appreciate was the theater. So now that I’ve got a bit of respite from playing the tourist, I thought it was time to rekindle my love. Meghan pointed out that there were cheap tickets for King Lear at …
Read MoreDecember 9, 2013
…saw the Rockefeller Christmas Tree
Tonight I headed to the city’s most iconic Christmas landmark: The Rockefeller Christmas Tree. Ever since 1933, the 100-ft tree has lit up the base of the Rock in Midtown and now it towers over flitting ice skaters and swarms of aimless tourists. Its lights were switched on last week and today was my first …
Read MoreNovember 15, 2013
…visited a Buddhist temple
One of the busiest, noisiest spots in the city has to be the Manhattan side of the Manhattan Bridge, where there are queues of traffic and plumes of delicious pollution. But bizarrely, it’s also the location of one of NYC’s serenest places: a Chinese Buddhist temple. The temple sits on the corner of Bowery and Canal Streets and …
Read MoreNovember 12, 2013
…watched Radio City’s Christmas Spectacular
When I met a Rockette at Radio City earlier this year, I promised to return soon for their lauded Christmas Spectacular. Today, with the help of a friendly Groupon, I beat the holiday crowd and settled down for the show. Apart from high kicks and glitzy costumes, I wasn’t too sure what to expect. And …
Read MoreNovember 11, 2013
…browsed the Winter Village
I love Christmas. I love the songs, the food, the decorations, the smells. And this year there’s extra cheer because, for the first time in a few years, I’ll be able to head back home to England for Christmas with my family. I’m already looking forward to it, so I am more than ready to …
Read MoreNovember 9, 2013
…took Ryan Gosling on the Staten Island Ferry
Today I went on a long-overdue date with Ryan. No, not that one. Ryan Gosling, of course. New York is crammed with celebrities – I’ve spotted Meg Ryan drinking a cuppa, Jennifer Aniston browsing labels and Kelly Ripa heading home after the gym – so occasionally you’re going to be introduced to a recognizable face. …
Read MoreNovember 8, 2013
…went to senior prom
While I enjoyed the benefits of a British education – itchy kilts, carb-crammed dinners, netball matches in the icy rain – there’s one thing I missed out on by not going to high school over here: Senior prom. We had parties, sure, but nothing on the same scale as they do in the U.S. Tonight Ryan …
Read MoreOctober 22, 2013
…saw Stomp
Stomp was first performed in 1991 in Brighton, which is the nearest city to my childhood town – and as it happens, the show is my neighbor here too. I finally decided to head to the Orpheum Theater in the East Village to see it tonight – and I’m very glad I was given this second …
Read MoreOctober 21, 2013
…drank at McSorley’s – New York’s oldest Irish tavern
As a Brit who’s also enjoyed a beer or two in Ireland, I’d like to think I know a real pub when I see one. A lot of bars here in New York claim to be Irish but I’ve never seen any half as authentic as McSorley’s – the city’s first Irish tavern. This East …
Read MoreOctober 20, 2013
…visited Greenpoint’s rooftop farm
When I first visited New York in 2009, my first impression was woah, this place is vertical. Even though the buildings spread out more the further you get away from Manhattan, residents still need to make the most of every inch of possible space. So while people in the country enjoy acres of green land …
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