I never really got what that phrase meant, but now I know it basically means that there is no point fighting a battle you can't win.
You'd think with an intro like that, this post was going to be really thoughtful and philosophical.
It's not.
I just really liked the City Hall building in New York (Manhattan), so took a nice picture. Fact fans, the mayor is Michael R. Bloomberg, who is in his third term and founded the Bloomberg media/information company, which I am a big fan of.
I'm lucky enough to have visited NYC twice before. However, I've got a super-injunction out on the events of the first trip. The second was a 2008 holiday during which I somehow spent $95 on a Marc Jacobs headband. What a yuppie thing to do, sigh.
Both times I stayed in Manhattan, so this time I figured Brooklyn was an appropriate choice. I'm at the NYC Loft Hostel in East Williamsburg, a town apparently so trendy it feels the need to look the total opposite. I'd say ghetto-chic is being polite. Regardless, the hostel is nice - although I didn't manage to snag a bottom bunk and being the tiny smurf I am, it's a proper effort to climb into bed.
The picture below is of some of the great graffiti splattered across most walls nearby.
I took a walk today over the Brooklyn Bridge to Lower Manhattan. The views are pretty mint and it was gloriously sunny. To the right, I saw the amazing Manhattan Bridge and the Empire State Building; to the left, it's the Statue of Liberty. I'm not sure how clear these are on the photos, so take a look and see what you think. My photography skills aren't fantastic, I warn you!
So there you have it - I'm only here for a day and I think I spent it well.
As always, feel free to leave a comment or email me to say hi! I'm craving human communication, what with being a typically British solo traveller...
Han Solo had Chewie, Holmes had Watson, Paul Daniels has Debbie McGee... yes, a sidekick is the new black.
So, without further ado, I introduce you to Hammy aka Heinz, who was gifted upon me by Mumsy (yeah I'm 27 and and my mum still gives me teddies, BOTHERED). He had a bean bag inside that you could put in the microwave, but I accidentally burned it.
Pictorial evidence below (he's the one on the left). He'll be coming with me and I will endeavour to take photos of him in various cities.
How many pairs of pyjamas should I take? Do I really need nail polish? How will I stop feeling homesick? What if I get malaria? What if I run out of money? Why do I need five travel guides? What if my luggage goes missing? How do I put suntan lotion on my back if I'm alone? Who should I trust? What if I miss a flight? What if I can't get a job when I come home? Have I done the right thing? Will I miss work? What if something happens to a loved one while I'm gone? What if I forget something "crucial"? What if something happens to me? What time can I check in? Will my phone work? How do connecting flights work? Can I take the dog with me?
Today I bring you pictures and a little bit of info about Jodrell Bank, home to the glorious Lovell Radio Telescope and some of the finest sights Cheshire has to offer.
The main reason I've done this is to test out putting piccies on the blog etc etc. And because it was a lovely day I want to remember. I'm also really pleased with how these pictures turned out. It's hard to take a bad one though; the telescope is just incredible.
Jodrell Bank is in Macclesfield, which on a sunny day like today is just a treat. I actually saw a real BUNNY run across a country lane and we finished up at a gorgeous little pub called The Dog Inn, in Over Peover, which according to Mumsy you don't say "OVAH PEE-OVAH" but "OVAH PEEEEEVAH". Whatever. Mumsy will explain if you ask her.
It's awesome and I thoroughly recommend it. Fi and Woody came too and we had a drink, some crisps and petted a big furry dog in the beer garden.
Anyway, back to Jodrell Bank. We learned quite a lot about it and went to the visitor centre where there is something called an orrery - basically a mechanical model of the solar system. There is tons of info and amazing images of the planets and their moons (Titan, a moon of Saturn, is my favourite).
You can get quite close to the telescope, which is ENORMOUS and really quite awe-inspiring. When we went into the visitor centre, it was facing away from us - but when we came out it had been turned around to face us (reminding me and Fi of the dish in GoldenEye).
Mumsy claimed it hadn't moved and we'd exited a different building. For a nanosecond I considered whether the building was actually a space wormhole or some kind of time travel machine, but then realised it wasn't and had to correct Mumsy. The dish had been moved.
Toodles
x
PS. Please tell me what you would like to hear about on this blog. Feel free to comment at the bottom!
Preparation is going okay, I got myself a YHA card, loads of toiletries and bits and bobs courtesy of Mumsy's M&S discount card and asked at Boots about malaria tablets, the response to which was a big fat "computer says no". Apparently because I'm going to so many different places in south-east Asia I can only get them on prescription. Awesome.
Side note: I'm watching Britain's Got Talent as I write this. What utter drivel. It's making me sick up a bit in my mouth.
So, ANYWAY. There is not much else to do really apart from buy one of those cage-wire things for my rucksack, get a sim card for my old phone, book my first night's hostel... actually come to think of it that's quite a few things. Best get cracking!
Side note #2: This blog will be following the Adfero style guide (although editorialising is permitted and I will be spelling MIAOW the proper way, i.e. not MEOW, guilty parties you know who you are), because the place is in my DNA by this point. If anyone spots a typo or error, erm... speak to my agent. And while we're on the topic, no that's not a typo in the URL of the blog! It's Google assigning me an alternate to the proper spelling because basically I'm not that creative and someone clearly already has a blog called the same thing...
