Walked a lot

Woke up at 7am to start the day early. Brought along granola bars and packed in the bag before we left for our sightseeing in NY. When we went out and walked along Broadway, the streets were still quite litted up..

Today, we would be exploring some parts of Midtown Manhatten where we are staying and to go Central Park for a nice walk, then attend a museum just next to the park as it is free for the last hour from 445pm to 545pm.

First, dropped by at Bryant Park. There is a small ice skating rink in it. Spotted ice along the park..

The weather in NY is not as cold as I expected by still quite chilly when the wind blows at us. It is usually about slightly below 10 degrees.

From the park, I could see the Empire State Building, made famous by "King Kong" movie..

Just next to the park is the NY Public Library which is a very huge library with nice deco. It was once ranked as the largest marble structure ever built in USA.

Then, we went to Grand Central Terminal where there was a nice marketplace in it selling fresh produce, a large foodcourt and lasershow in the ceiling. Its ceiling has constellations of the zodiac streaming across.

There are interesting buildings in NY...

Went to see Chrysler Building as it has nice deco which is the headquarters for Chrysler Automobile Empire.

Went United Nation Headquarters after that. However, the place opens to tourists and we were too early. So, we took a walk along the area and I got a hot choc to warm my body up as we played with the squirrels...

I offered the squirrel some of my hot choc to keep them warm as well. There were like 3 squirrels at least that wanted to drink it...

This park was just next to UN but it was no open..so we just hung outside the park and admired the squirrels who were not afraid of us...

This sculpture is in the park..I like it as the sun was at the background which help emphasized the cross..

As we were walking towards UN, there was writings on the wall ...

When the gates finally opened, I just wanted to take some pictures of the sculptures and surroundings as we were not interested to have a tour of the place. Moreover, it would costs us US$11.

Sculptures in United Nations..

Another interesting building with cool fluffy clouds as we walked along the streets..

Our next stop was at a hotel called "Waldorf-Astoria Hotel". It is a very nice hotel with great deco and class.They have this in the middle of the lobby...

What can you make use of in a grand hotel like this?? Nothing beats visiting the restroom! So that was what CT and I did and boy, I enjoyed the toilet as there was a fireplace, sitting area and steps to a corridor which leads to individual rooms. In the room, there is each a sink and toilet bowl. So, everything is quite private which I like...

Dropped by at St Patrick's Cathedral for its Gothic style design.

Then, went to "The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA)" Gift shop. Did not see the museum as we did not want to pay that much and moreover, we might not appreciate. I made it a point to go to this gift shop as I knew it would be interesting...and indeed, it was. They sold things like solar powered bag which you can charge your phone, listen to MP3 etc on the go.. Shops like these have cool modern technology stuff which I love. So, I found the gift shop a museum by itself already- for FREE!

Then, we walked to "Sony Wonder Technology Lab". This is another free entry but I must say, it was good!! The place closed early because of Christmas Eve. If not, I would def stay longer as you can play computer games, act as a environmentalist researcher,a director, writer etc...it is lots of fun in the lab! There was even a 15-30 mins video show in a high-definition theatre featuring fishes in the sea.

Can you see CT's face in the screen? Before we enter the lab, we were made to personalise our own Sony card by taking a picture and typing our name in as well as recording our voice. So, each time we play something, we scan our card and start playing. Very fun... CT was acting as a researcher to track hurricanes and deploy firemen in areas where hurricanes are most likely to hit. So, it was not only educational but fun!

The Sony Building has a huge Spiderman climbing on the wall. I love action heroes..so I went gaga when I saw that..

Walked past Trump Tower after that...made famous from "The Apprentice" which I quite like the show as I learn how they manage their projects and stress. Quite interesting building with trees placed on the steps at the side of the building. Can you spot them?

There are a lot of Trump buildings in NY. We were quite grossed out by how Trump seems to want to own the world by his properties.. We realised that all his properties seem to look the same- big, black, gold...boring design I must say. However, the only different design is the Trump Taj Mahal Casinos he has in Atlantic City, New Jersey. That one cannot be black and boring since you want to attract gamblers..so that one is quite colourful and attractive.

Walked to Central Park after that. It is a huge park covering about 40 streets..so, we couldnt cover the whole park. Went to only the front which already took us 3 plus hours. Many take their dogs for a walk and exercise a lot in this park. During Christmas time, Central Park is famous for its ice skating rink.

This is the entrance to the park...

They have street performances in Central Park, lots of trees, horse carriages..There is also a carousel in the park which has the most wooden carved horses in US..

Went to the ice skating rink and saw so many people in it. We did not go as we did not know how to skate and were not comfortable with so many people looking and laughing at us fall. I was afraid I would cause everyone in the rink to fall as well when I crash into them..haha

Passed by lakes and ponds. It was frozen up..so cool. There were ducks..probably freezing.

After walking so long in the park, we finally went to the "American Museum of Natural History". We went there purposely at the last hour as it is free. We did not want to pay as we know it is not worth spending that kind of money to just look and see see. So, during the last hour, we enjoyed just looking at the dinosaur and diff extinct fossils, African, Asian, Primitive Mammals, Reptiles, Amphibians and lots of diff kinds of primates. Very interesting as I love extinct animals and dinosaurs. I told CT how I wish I could live in the dinosaur age. I would def take lots of pictures with the dinosaurs..but then again, I may not be alive long if I do live in that era.

I love this fossil the best as it looks cool..It is called the "Megaloceros", known to be the biggest deer ever lived.

There are a lot more interesting ones which I would put up on my US trip photos website soon. After museum, it was dark and cold.We walked all the way from 81st street to 50th over street for dinner. It was a long 30mins walk. We had a great dinner. CT treated me to nice Indian food for this Christmas Eve night. It had good ambience and great curry.

Looks great, doesnt it? Ordered lamb curry, a potato cauliflower dish, rice and naan. In Singapore, it should be much cheaper but beggars have no choice since we are in US and there is curry...price doesnt matter. Costs us about US$30.

After a great dinner, we took a walk back to 45th street where we stay, looking at the sights and colourful lights along the way in Broadway. Stopped by few souvenir stalls to take a look and to defrost.

In NY, there are lots of limousines and nice ones like the hummer limousine. I have learnt a lot of things ever since I have came here in US and one of them is "Hummer". It is a cool tank looking SUV. From the picture above, you should be able to spot it at the bottom left. This one is a limousine version. So, it is a very long Hummer.

Hope you learn a lot of things from reading my blog as much as I have learnt a lot from my journey in US.

Went back hostel at 9 plus pm. Legs were killing me...very very sore.