TRAVEL DIARY

      

      

      

      

So many delicious flavours - just ask Dennis and Paul!

      

      

      

      

      

      

There is a long, bitter rivalry between Crumbs and Magnolia’s bakeries for who has the best cupcake in NYC. I’m team Crumbs (think exciting seasonal flavours and extra extra icing) but Zak is team Magnolia (original flavours like chocolate and vanilla with super rich icing).

     

     

     

Dylan’s candy store - full of overpriced American candies. Here i am (in what appears to be a pajama shirt - don’t know why i thought that would be a good idea) in front of a giant gingerbread house. Woo.

     

     

     

     

     

     

Bryant Park - home to a free ice skating rink, ice bar, mysterious fountain that doesn’t seem to freeze over and the NICEST public bathrooms in NYC. Not even kidding, these were amaaaaazing. I seem to have lost my photos of them (yes i took photos of a public bathroom)

     

Random old men playing chess inside the Bank of America building.

     

     

A Shake Shack outside, under the stars (which you cannot see in NYC or anywhere less than an hour away because of all the lights reflecting)

     

Cheap Japanese in East Village. Such an adorable neighbourhood!

Of course we chose the coldest day of the season on record to go to the zoo (which was entirely outside). I feel sorry for the animals, they literally have to put up with -15 degrees!

      

Zak being cold.

      

The coolest sea lion ever - he literally swam right up to us to say hello.

      

      

      

This is my favourite zoo because they legit had 6 different types of sloth. Hello heaven.

      

Baby giraffe says hello! I want one so bad.

      

Having a D&M.

      

Zak looks so happy..

      

      

The cheekiest Red Panda in the world. His attendant person came down to try and feed him and he wouldn’t come down - it was honestly one of the funniest things i’ve ever seen i wish i’d filmed it!

      

The depressed polar bear. Maybe it was too cold for him…

      

I love you Shake Shack, and your deliciously calorific cheese fries.

      

      

I am terrible at putting up photos, probably because I’M HAVING WAY TOO MUCH FUN YO. Sooooo yeah, these ones date back to December 10th…

      

Making Gravlax (smoked salmon). It is literally the most delicious thing in the whole entire world and once i’ve mastered it i am making it everyday in Australia!

      

      

The adorable outdoor shopping centre at Christmas time.

     

     

THE MOST DELISHUUUUUS ICE CREAM IN DA WORLD!!!

     

Eggnog with Tim tams - America meets Australia in a deliciously calorific combination.

      

      

      

      

      

      

      

Grand Central is actually the coolest place in the world, it’s so massive and extravagant! Plus it has a Magnolia’s cupcake bakery! There is this little hallway downstairs where you can stand on opposite sides of a crowded room and talk to each other through the walls. It’s amazingly creepy what the architects could do back in the 1800’s! Also creepy, the guy behind me in the last photo turned around .12323 seconds after the photo was taken and grabbed my ass. I wanted to punch his lights out!!!!!!!

     

     

     

     

My new favourite burger place, so delicious!!!! And sweet potato fries/onion rings nom nom nom. NYC does good burgers (and pizza and pasta and sushi and bagels and every other food type!)

      

Me being unimpressed while Zak did his last minute Christmas Shopping (literally last minute, we were out shopping Christmas Eve till 11pm!)

      

      

      

Street food on the subway, nom!

      

Happy as larry!

      

~10% of the presents that were exchange between the Niazi family over Christmas. They go all out! The smell of fresh pine filled the house for weeks, so nice!

      

      

      

Don Peppe’s from Entourage - delicious authentic Italian food (i have eaten so much Italian food!) If it’s good enough for Vinny Chase it’s good enough for me!

      

Zak eating frozen yoghurt in front of the street stalls on upper west side Broadway.

      

      

      

Crumbs Bakery is almost solely responsible for the unknown number of kilos i have gained.

     

Shake Shack 5th Avenue East Side.

     

     

     

     

Literally every second tree is adorned with coruscating lights, giving the city a sort of magical glimmer. Like Hogsmeade at Christmas time, without the snow!

     

     

    

    

Rockefeller Centre.

     

     

Sak’s 5th Avenue.

     

THEY COPIED THE SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE!!!!

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

My favourite restaurant in the whole world it’s that good - Five Leaves in Brooklyn NY. Heath Ledger had plans to open it with a friend before he died in 2008 (i cried for weeks) and now his friend runs it in his memory. We’ve had both breakfast and lunch here and it’s absolutely incredible. The food is amazing. The people are amazing. The atmosphere is amazing. I would live here if i could it is THAT good.

     

Mini red velvet cupcakes - they give me the super human ability to shop for hours on end.

     

     

     

Hollister stores are more like works of art than a place to buy clothing. I would never wear any of the clothes from here, but the gorgeous black interiors trimmed with countless chandeliers and velvet curtains make me want to turn the place into a house! The first chandelier with the lamp shades is my favourite!

      

      

      

      

      

Staten Island ferry in -5 degree weather. Fun fun fun.

     

     

     

The very famous (and very expensive) Italian restaurant, Carmines, on the Upper West Side.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

New Years Eve; dinner, drinks and celebrations in Times Square at midnight.

     

     

Breakfast bagels from Bagels and More in Hartsdale (an adorable little town that looks like it should still have horse and carts driving through the streets instead of cars).

Literally comprised of me gathering all the snow within 500 metres and throwing 3 snowballs at Zak (there’s still not alot of snow) and then him being all smart and picking up my broken snow balls and making one giant one to pay me back. I need to google snowball fighting tips…

Not only is it finals week here, but Zak has been flown out of state TWICE for job interviews and i’m so bored i’ve been studying French. Sometimes it sucks having a boyfriend who everyone wants to hire! These photos are from last weekend (FIRST SNOW!!) when we went to a kitsch American sports bar. It felt alot like Merlottes, only without the southern accents…          

            

Zak with our deliciously greasy entree, i swear everything in America is either deep fried or 99% sugar…

            

            

Zak’s shrimp vs. my full rack of ribs. The waiter was beyond surprised when we placed our order.

            

            

Mission accomplished. Must be all my practise at the all you can eat lunch and dinner buffets at Rochester University.

            

Apparently this is what a good ol’ American sports bar looks like…

            

            

            

            

SNOW! Apparently it has been unseasonably warm (thank christ) as the first snow of the season is usually in October. I just hope it will be white before Christmas time!

My first experience in Danforth dining hall (picture the great hall but more glass and plastic and less awesomeness) as Zak is away in Philadelphia for a job interview. Whenever people stare i always think 

A) have something on my face/in my teeth/am unusually strange looking

B) they can read my mind and are laughing at my thoughts. I have an irrational fear that people can read my thoughts and if anyone looks at me, i feel like they can see right through me. Slightly paranoid? Yes. Altogether impossible? Not if my science fiction favourites are to be believed….

Anywho on to my actual dining experience. Salad, crispy chicken breast with CHEESE MASH (gods gift to Rochester) and crepes with ice cream and chocolate syrup. I would have taken a photo but felt far too much like the creepy loner who takes photos of what she ate to take home and show her cats…..i wish i had some cats to love.

     

     

The mall is a 20 minute bus trip (that only goes once a week) so i’ve pretty much been trapped at the university for the past week or so. On the first trip to the mall i saw geese, but Zak told me they would attack me if i tried to touch them so i kept my distance…

     

     

     

So pretty much the only thing i have to be excited for here in Rochester is the food. The dining hall (called Danforth) is literally the size of a food court and has 10 different choices everyday and and and and and IT’S ALL YOU CAN EAT. Needless to say i stuff myself to the point of bursting every night.

Also the other exciting thing about Rochester (and America in general actually) is the portion sizes. These berries are from Wegmans, but they are literally 4 times the size of packets of berries we get in Australia FOR THE SAME PRICE. I am on a diet of bagels, berries and all you can eat buffets. Living the high life.

Zak goes out wearing a tee and a hoodie. I go out wearing a thermals, two long sleeved shirts, jumper, hoodie, an overcoat, gloves, scarf and a giant trapper fur hat. I actually look like a ridiculous marshmallow. I wasn’t built for this weather, i swear my blood is like 10 degrees colder than everyone else! In other weather related news, umbrellas are useless in snow storms. Just an FYI…