...we get up early to get the famed Cronut again and walk in lower Manhattan in pouring rain. To my dismay they upped the price and changed the recipe. It's lemony with pink glazing now and I don't like it. But Tamara does. And maybe because of all that we can still get them despite arriving late.
...we muse on how easy it is to tell a local from a tourist at every pedestrian crossing where all the ones in the know cross on red (which is permitted, providing there's no traffic) while tourists obediently freeze waiting for green (well, here it's white actually)
...I still don't learn how to tell apart different coins: dimes, nickels, quarters, dollars etc. I just throw the clerk a bunch of them and trust he won't screw me. They all look the same to me
...we find out why at every stop the train conductor leans out of his window and points his finger to the ceiling. Wanna know why? Google is your friend
...we wonder why despite having been told New York was a rat city, all we see in the streets are chipmunks. Not that we complain..
...we shop till we (almost) drop at Century 21 sample sale
...we visit the Guggenheim - the famous spiral ramp is closed so you have to use the stairs but all the old paintings are still there and it's $10 cheaper! And no, I still have no appreciation for modern art
...we stroll down Central Park with our shopping bags and take some beautiful pictures on one particular bridge (the Bow Bridge), where we spend about half an hour because someone is always insisting on getting in our frame!
...we spent a lovely evening at the Met. This place is ginormous!!! So we only do the antiquities real quick and vow to return someday because the collections are truly impressive (think a full Egyptian temple shipped to and reconstructed in NYC!) Luckily it's pay what you wish at the Met so despite the suggested $25 fee we pay $10 each.
...we eat pizza at Don Antonio at 50th St and it is as good as I remembered it from last year.
...we muse on how the formerly ubiquitous cyber cafes all but completely died out in the city landscape. Luckily you can still browse (free) or print stuff (for a fee) in public libraries
...we take a night stroll around Times Square and meet a kid with his hand all covered in blood. When he tries to lick it off, his older pals shout: don't eat your blood dummy! You'll get pneumonia!!!