Destination Poland

I am terribly excited about this trip in Poland as it is my first trip to Central Europe. I am currently visiting my good friend Susan (Zuza), whom I met 4 years ago when I moved to London, and we shared a flat together in East London.

I landed in Lodz yesterday afternoon but we decided to go to the stables as Susan has been riding for years. It felt so good to exercise and breathe unpolluted air! It took me a while getting used to Susan’s horse as it is so big… I am only 5′1 after all!

Susan leaves in a beautiful house close to the airport - I have to say that most of the house I’ve seen so far look amazing.

So what are my first impressions of Poland? The Poles are very friendly and welcoming - a guy started chatting to me at the airport but as I couldn’t understand a word of what he said (I can just about say 4 words!) he offered to be my interpreter until my friend arrived!

Poland feels very different from the rest of Western Europe. It reminded me of Portugal to a certain extent… a country that’s still quite poor but going through major changes. The roads aren’t great and there are currently no motorways.

We’re going to Lodz this afternoon, Krakow at the week-end (leaving tomorrow morning at 5am - ouch!)  and Warsaw next week.

More later

New York - the Big Apple

I’ve never been a big fan of the US. When I was studying modern languages at university in France, our tutors told us that we had to write and speak either British English or American English. The choice for me was petty easy considering I had spent all my summers in the UK since I was 14. 

I decided to take my mum to NYC last year; mum is an English teacher and our passion for English speaking countries runs in our veins.  

We flew to NYC on 03/15/07 but despite the jet lag we wanted to make the most of our day. We came out of the airport and the smell was there – the same smell that made me fall in love with England. We jumped in a taxi with the coolest taxi driver in the world! When he found out it was our first time in New York, he said in his strong Afro-Caribbean accent ‘Welcome to the Big Apple’ – this so reminds me of the movie, Pretty Woman – ‘Welcome to Hollywood. Do you have a dream? What’s your dream?’ J  

Our hotel was Midtown which is great in terms of location but no so great in terms of restaurants. So here’s my first tip – if you want decent food, check out the Villages – far less tourists, better and cheaper food. By the way, the portions are HUGE so take it easy on the ordering ;) 

After dropping off our bags at the Milford Plaza, we decided to go to Times Square which was only a couple of blocks away. The lights and athmosphere were awesome.

I can’t say that NYC is beautiful when you’re at ground level, but the views from the Rockfeller Centre and the EPS are simply breath-taking. A friend of mine had spent Christmas in the USA and told me to go on Top of the Rockefeller centre to see fantastic views of NYC. We found the Rockfeller Centre (Top of the Rock) but couldn’t find the Top of The Rock Observatory entrance. We eventually found the entrance 3 days later!

Back at ground level, grab a coffee from Starbucks on the ground floor, and watch people skating on the Ice Rink. On the west side of the rink/plaza is a large gilded statue of Prometheus recumbent, supposedly bringing fire to mankind.

Here’s my next tip – If you want to go on top of a skyscraper, go to the Rockfeller Centre rather than the Empire State Building. You’ll get fantastic views of Central Park and you’ll see that the EPS is right in the middle of Manhattan on the Fifth Avenue.The entrance of the Rockfeller Centre is located on West 50^th Street, between fifth and 6^th Avenues. Saying that if you also have the opportunity to go on top of the EPS do so! It is the tallest building in NYC since the destruction of the Twin Towers on 9/11. 

Tip: For most touristy attractions I would suggest you buy your tickets in advance from your hotel – it can be cheaper and it’ll save you having to queue everywhere. I would also suggest you book a Dowtown Tour (or Uptown depending on which area of the city you want to visit) on a double-decker bus. They let you hop-on and off depending on what you want to see and the tour guides are amazing.  

As it was our first time in NYC so we did most of the touristy things:  

The Statue of Liberty: Due to increased security measures, be prepared to queue before boarding the ferry to Liberty Island. Walk around the Island and you’ll find 4 small bronze statues: the sculptor, Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the designer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (who also designed and gave his name to the Eiffel Tower in Paris), Eugène Violllet-le-Duc who was responsible of the choice of copper in the Statue’s construction and Emma Lazarus, an American poet best known for writing the New Colossus, a sonnet written in 1883 now engraved on a bronze plaque on a wall in the base of the Statue of Liberty.

Visitors can now experience a special insider‘s view of the engineering marvel that is the Statue of Liberty. To better understand this monumental work of art, visitors can view inside the Statue through a glass ceiling, guided by a park ranger but due to security reasons, you will have to pre-book right here.

Unfortunately we never made it to Ellis Island as we got the last ferry back to Manhattan so I would suggest you leave Manhattan at lunch time.  

Ground Zero: We didn’t really want to see Ground Zero but we ended up walking past the memorial – heart-breaking… 

MoMA: If you’re into art, the Museum of Modern Art is a must. Again start your visit early as there are the museum’s collection includes 150,000 paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints, photographs, architectural models and drawings, and design objects. 

Greenwich Village: If you’re really looking to have an awesome time in NY, you must visit the ‘village’. What an experience! There are tons of  little boutiques and fun places just to hang out and eat. The poeple are very unique and ecclectic and you feel there’s always a party going on wherever you go.

Restaurant Recommendation: Red Bamboo Vegetarian Soul Café, 140W, 4th Street, New York, NY 1002

Central Park: If you’re in New York, you must take a walk around Central Park. There are so many landmarks to be discovered.

I guess I’ll need a few more trips before I know the Big Apple inside out. New York, I’ll see you soon

My New York photos can be found here.

You know you’re a Londoner when…

You say “the City” and expect everyone to know which one.

You have never been to The Tower of London or Madame Tussauds but love Brighton.

You can get into a four-hour argument about how to get from Shepherds Bush to Elephant & Castle at 3:30 on the Friday before a long weekend, but can’t find Dorset on a map.

Hookers and the homeless are invisible

You step over people who collapse on the Tube

You believe that being able to swear at people in their own language makes you multilingual

You’ve considered stabbing someone

Your door has more than three locks

You consider eye contact an act of overt aggression

You call an 8′ x 10′ plot of patchy grass a garden

You consider Kent the “countryside”

You think Hyde Park is “nature”

You’re paying £1,200 a month for a studio the size of a walk-in wardrobe and you think it’s a “bargain”

Shopping in suburban supermarkets and shopping malls gives you a severe attack of agoraphobia

You pay more each month to park your car than most people in the UK pay in rent

You pay £3.30 without blinking for a beer that cost the bar 28p

You actually take fashion seriously

You have 27 different take-away menus next to your telephone

The UK west of Heathrow is still theoretical to you

You’re suspicious of strangers who are actually nice to you

Your idea of personal space is no one actually physically standing on you

£3.50 worth of groceries fit in one plastic bag

You have a minimum of five “worst cab ride ever” stories

You don’t hear sirens anymore

You’ve mentally blocked out all thoughts of the city’s air/water quality and what it’s doing to your insides

You live in a building with a larger population than most towns

Your cleaner is Portugese, your grocer is Somali, your butcher is Halal, your deli man is Israeli, your landlord is Italian, your laundry guy is Philippino, your bartender is Australian, your favourite diner owner is Greek, the watch seller on your corner is Senegalese, your last cabbie was African, your newsagent is Indian and your local English chippie owner is Turkish

You wouldn’t want to live anywhere else until you get married

You roll your eyes and say ‘tsk’ at the news that someone has thrown themselves under a tube train

Hello world!

Welcome to Destination World!

I am a travel addict! I have been lucky enough to travel to quite a few places in my short life. Destination World is a place where you will be able to read about my adventures and follow me around the world.

 We’re in for a roller coaster ride! Enjoy!

 Lolly

Music: Daft Punk - Around the World