I thought I'd seen my first and last cockroaches in LA. I was wrong. A little blighter was in the shower with me this morning. How many days until home again? Today was my day for the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island: I asked at reception where to get the ferry and found out it was beyond the mammoth walk I did yesterday. I was adamant at first, until I looked at the map a second time and opted for the subway. $4.50 and I was at Battery Park by 9.30. Much easi...

The day did not start well: a Norwegian man had his bare grotty feet on the chair at breakfast. Ugh. That was followed by a little Brazilian man yelling at an airport shuttle driver and then asking us all in the kitchen if he should have hit him. I doubt he could reach him. I had to change rooms too as there was a group arriving, which meant not going too far from the hostel before 12 so that I could move my stuff from one room to another. The receptionist did su...

More shopping today, but I won't bore with that. Finally got to Grand Central Station, which enabled me to find Park Avenue and Madison Avenue. It was indeed grand there, so many shops, eateries, and people, although probably not as many people as normal, it was a Sunday. Considering it's the city that never sleeps, neither Grand Central or the closed Chrysler Building attested to this. Back towards my neck of the woods and I found Bryant Park on 42nd, further a...

Forgot to mention last time the huge bites I've received from some strange creature: one under my right arm and another on my right wrist. Only remembered because I received a third bite on my left arm today. Joy. Maybe they're flea bites, as I did forget to buy shampoo today after not having to buy any this whole trip: I have been washing my hair, but my supplies were lasting me just fine. Until now. My first encounter this morning was with the giant Toys R Us ...

The weather was much better than yesterday so I was straight up the Empire State Building, if there's anything I've learnt from travelling it's that as soon as the sun comes out, you go up the monument/hill/building. There weren't many queues at all and so I was up there within fifteen minutes or so, although quelle surprise the leaflet from the hostel was out of date so I couldn't get my $2 off the entrance fee. Going up in the lift it was full of the English a...