New York to Berkhamsted

So, this is our last blog entry. It is written one week after we landed at Heathrow and it has been a very odd week. An absolute joy to catch up with friends and family -fabulous to get Smith back, yet a dull ache at the fact that the trip has come to an end. Still glass half full chaps - next chapter now awaits - O to school - H to jewellery - J to something new.

We had a superb last four days in New York. Our attempts to be less touristy and rent an apartment outside of the touristy midtown failed owing to a little too much hope put into a scammer website. Should we not have learned by now that if it looks too damn good be true it's not true!! We laugh that we then messed up a chance of hotels in these areas seeing as it was Independence weekend and ended up in a hotel right off Times Square - prime tourist location! Still, the silver lining was that the terrace bar at the hotel had a fab view right across to Times Square - and did a very powerful G and T! H was sent here for half and hour whilst J and O did some bday prep and returned to the room half cut!

As J and H had been to NY before and 'done' all the sights, and O would not give a monkeys about a big statue in the water, we whiled away our days in Central Park and explored the lovely brownstone and iron house districts south of Midtown Manhattan. O is now fortunately well versed in cafe culture so we had some good lunches in quirky cafes on lovely leafy streets. J has now joined Hs love of NY and secret wishes for heg to become some fabulous global success in order to have a boutique in NY were hatched!!!

Our friends, Laure and Jonathan invited us to supper on Hs birthday so a lovely evening was had in balmy Brooklyn - O was delighted to catch up with Charlotte, who he now calls his 'New York' friend. Friendship was further sealed a few days later when H met up with Laure in Central Park and the kids splashed happily in water fountains on NYs hottest day in 10 years (103 degrees)

J took himself off for a bit of culture at The Guggenheim, but was distracted on the way by the beating suns rays and the prospect of this being his last exposure to baking sun. Whilst therefore taking in NYs rays, rather than its culture he was interviewed by a television station prowling the park to find all the dishevelled New Yorkers grumbling about the weather. On asking how J was coping with the heat they got 'I Love it, christ i'm from England'. We are guessing this take is still on the cutting floor!

Just before entering into Newark departures (With an extra suitcase owing to a little retail therapy!), we took a final deep intake of heat fumes and thanked the circumstances that allowed us to have taken this incredible six months away. It has been such a privilege.... (and it did help to return to a sunny Blighty!)

Bye bye www.offexploring.com/hjando ......... for now! We will be back - only in smaller school holiday allowable doses!!