It's a gorgeous day and I feel in the mood for NY icons and shopping. Today I'm going to explore midtown with all it's famous sites and then succumb to retail therapy.

First up a walk around the Chrysler building, and then inside the foyer to admire the beautiful lobby and the wood inlay elevator doors. It is all offices, which is a shame, image how beautiful an apartment would be overlooking the nickel gargoyles. Then onto the New York State library. It's smaller than it appears in movies, but much more beautiful and intimate.

Next door is Bryant park, which was heaving with office workers eating their lunches at wrought iron tables amongst the spring flowers. While the trees are still bare, all the daffodils and jonquils have flowered so the park has patches of colour.

I continue on to my lunch destination, A Voce, a Michelin starred italian restaurant in Time Warner square. I am the only one not doing business deals, but that leaves me free to enjoy the view over Central Park, and appreciate the fact you can eat a lamb and fetta and farro salad, with a side of nettles, potato and Parmesan, and complimentary home made ricotta and foccacia, followed with an expresso for the princely sum of $35 plus tax.

The shopping centre is upmarket, but has one particular clothing store that has beautiful things made from organic fabrics (but you pay for it), a kitchen store that will have Curtis stone cooking there tomorrow, and a whole foods on the ground floor! I now have ingredients for dinner!