The Purple Penguin

To see the art of course. And to see art concentrated go to the Uffizi which is what we did today.

Up early(ish) after a good night’s sleep and had breakfast then off to the museum. I bought the tickets on the web so had a voucher. Top tip: you need to take the voucher to door three to get your tickets before going to door one to enter the museum. If you go straight to door one you will be sent away to door three. And door two is the entrance for people who have to buy a ticket and that queue is very very long indeed. Also, if you have a bag you will have to leave it at the cloakroom. Which means if you have a ridiculous amount of camera equipment (as Joe does) you will be left juggling it while the very nice guard laughs and gets you a clear plastic bag. Because you are leaving the bag in the cloakroom. Which is free.

We ended up not taking all day as the museum is slightly smaller than I expected and bits are closed off due to renovations. But the art is wonderful. Unfortunately Titian’s Venus of Urbino is in Tokoyo so I didn’t get to see it, but that was the only main piece that I wanted to see that I didn’t get to see. The rest was there and wonderful. The roof top terrace for coffee/hot chocolate is wonderful and Joe enjoyed taking photos from there.

Which reminds me – if you aren’t seeing the photos it’s because he’s had trouble loading them on the site. They will eventually be up there!

We spent the later part of the afternoon walking to the train station (the long way round) stopping in San Lorenzo to see the tombs of the Medici (but didn’t really get to see the major works because parts were closed off which was disappointing). But saw Lippi’s Annunciation which was nice. We were headed to the train station to work out when we have to leave tomorrow to catch the train to Paris. So only one more day to wander around Florence. If the weather is nice we’ll go over the rive and walk up to San Miniato al Monte and Piazzale Michelangelo.

I think we have one of the best rooms in the hotel and also have access to the roof top terrace with views of the Palazzo and Duomo which is lovely at night all lit up!

Well we made it and for some photos check out Joe’s Panoramio section. Or his Google web album.

First stop St Pancreas which is lovely. I had my first real walk and gawp around the station since it’s been redone and it is quite nice. We also got to see a Harris hawk and it’s handler taking a break from chasing pigeons away. Lovely way to get rid of pigeons.

The train ride to Paris was uneventful and we got the RER to Gare du Lyon and then walked. Had a sandwich in a very nice little sandwich shop and then waited. And waited. And waited a bit more. At least we were in the nice lounge, as our train was about half an hour to an hour late. When they announced the train (well, the attendant in the lounge came in and said ‘it’s there, the only train out there, have fun!’) we joined the throng waiting to get onto the platform. And waited a bit more as a whole horde of children in red baseball caps were ushered onto the train.

When we were finally allowed on and found our carriage it was nice and we had a good dinner on board. As usual however, very little sleep and up early a bit worried we’d miss our stop. Turned out we could have stayed asleep as the train was about 2 hours late into Florence! Still, we were due in so early it didn’t much matter. We found the hotel after a lovely walk (the city is beautiful) and they held our bags as we headed out to explore (as it was too early to check in). (More on the hotel in a bit.)

We walked around the city until about 3pm and saw (as I remember it) the Duomo and Campanile, the Uffizi, the Palazzo Vecchio, Ponto Vecchio, loads of churches and bell towers, loads of lovely houses, loads of little streets, and just loads of everything. The only place we went into was the Cappella Brancacci inside the Basilica di Santa Maria del Camine to see the frescos by Masolino, Masaccio and Lippi.

After all the walking we headed back to the hotel (by way of the hordes of tourists on Ponto Vecchio) stopping on the way for an ice cream (a must have, it was lovely). Got taken to our room which is lovely. The whole hotel is beautiful, but the room is wonderful. We have a little balcony, with table and chairs shielded from the wind, but standing up you can see the river, the Ponto Vecchio, and beautiful views out over southern Florence. Out the other window you can see the tower of Palazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi. Lovely. So we really do have a room with a view!

So now getting ready to go out for a bite to eat (once Joe has his photo of the sunset and Ponto Vecchio).

Went to the Destinations show in London and walked around dreaming about travel. Picked up far too many brochures; no way we’ll do everything we picked up but it’s fun to dream.

So plans for the moment include a long weekend in Florence (Kathleen thrilled and Joe bored), Caribbean for a conference (Kathleen working, Joe playing), possibly Copenhagen, and the chance for a cruise around northern Norway.  And someday off to Antarctica so Joe can photograph penguins.

Which is probably spelled wrong but so it goes. We had a long weekend in Paris. Not doing much but seeing the sight, taking in the late autumn sun and enjoying the food, beer (Kathleen: wine), and just generally chilling out.

After checking in and a leisurely lunch which amazing ended up with Kathleen having creme brulee for pudding (cause Joe ordered it) we went to the late evening opening of the Louvre. Went to see the Mona Lisa, then just strolled around being amazed by all the works of art. Well, Kathleen was amazed, Joe just went umhm every now and again.

Next day we did the main sights: Arc de Tromphe, Trocodero, Eiffel Tower, and a walk down the Seine. Stopped off and had a wonderful lunch in probably the only non-smoking restaurant in Paris, before wandering through the hell that was Paris’s main shopping area on a Saturday afternoon. Kathleen leading the way and just happened to find Cartier (Joe wouldn’t let me go in). We went into one of the main department stores and Kathleen managed to find the French Rugby Team 2008 Calendar. Lots of balls.

Went back to the hotel for a bit of rest before heading out for dinner and the France vs. New Zealand match. Found a neat little place that had a large screen TV behind the bar and finished dinner before the match started. A very good match; however, the French team wore clothes. Wandered back to the hotel to the strains of La Marseillaise and the occasional Swing Low Sweet Chariot. Not much sleep that night.

Sunday had the hotel guests from hell during breakfast – worst of the British or ‘how not to be a British tourist in Paris’. Loud and rude and yelling at the staff. However, we got extra coffee while they got ignored. We wandered up to Montmartre where we had a look at the artists and their works. We purchased a rather tacky Christmas ornament. After which we had lunch and then got our bags and headed home.

Next month Eurostar leaves from St Pancras so much easier to get to from work. It may be time to start thinking about having dinner in Paris when we can’t be bothered to cook!

Otherwise known as shows, food, and walking. Oh and that Shakespeare bloke who apparently had something to do with the town I guess since his name is on just about everything. A friend and I went up on Saturday morning and came back on Sunday afternoon and had a great time in between.

 We went up to see The Penelopiad at the Swan Theatre. I’d never been in the Swan and it’s a lovely space. I haven’t been to the Courtyard Theatre either and having now seen photos I want to go! But we decided since we were going up to see the show we might as well hang around and see a bit of the town. We got lucky as well and the weather was wonderful. We finally have summer here.

 The show was, well, uneven. There were some directorial and design decisions that just should not have been made. One local reviewer was dismissive of the script, but the script was actually very good; it was the directorial decisions that were on the dodgy side. There was some very strong acting and over all it was enjoyable, but there were a few moments that were just unfortunately cringingly awful. Actually the review in the Guardian by Michael Billington really says what I want.

After the show we wandered around Stratford. Walking to the theatre we realised the Bulldog Bash was going on as there were hundreds of bikes around, most parked up along the waterfront. So after the show we had a look at the bikes and headed up to the birthplace of that poet bloke. Got tickets for the three properties in town and went through the house and gardens. We saved the other two properties and the church for Sunday. Seeing the town and houses was fun. The church is lovely, the houses are well kept and interesting, and a lovely time was had. Generally though we just took it easy, took our time looking around, and lazed by the river watching the boats and swans.

Lovely weekend and really must do it more often. Hmmm, the RSC are doing every one of the History plays, all in order, over a week or so.

So breakfast had and now down to work, the first set of antennas is up, the office rearrange we now configuring the server and the first access point. The weather is not wet almost sunny.

Right, the trip was in May 2007 (for those of you who have stumbled on this) and I’m now finally getting around to posting our top tips!

New Yorkers are friendly: Almost too friendly! We were almost afraid to open our map, not in fear of a mugger thinking we were tourists and thus easy pickings, but because if we got the map out we’d have someone come up to help out. Which was nice most of the time, but there were a few times we were just picking a route, seeing what we might want to see. And the helpful people would insist on telling us what to see and where to go. But other than that, don’t ever be afraid to ask someone, especially when coming up out of the subway. Even native New Yorkers aren’t always sure which direction to go when they get out of the subway! You may want to consider having a small compass on you. As the roads run n/s and e/w and are helpfully numbered it’s very easy to find your way around; however, just coming out of the subway it wasn’t always easy to know what direction we were facing.

Travel: Unlike most of the rest of the US you don’t need a car in NY. In fact, a car would be a handicap. We landed in Newark and took the train to Red Bank, NJ and after the wedding took the same train back directly into Penn Station, NY. Just note that there were two Penn Stations, one in NJ and other in Manhattan! The transport system is quite good.

Subway: Can be quite frustrating. There are very few maps in the stations, many stations don’t have a map at all. Many maps do not show which stops are express as opposed to local, the express trains are definitely express and don’t stop everywhere. The signs are not always easy to see or clear. It can be awkward to see where a train is going and they don’t really run east/west. And getting tickets – that’s a rant in itself. Please note that you really should have enough cash to get your tickets – the machine did not accept our debit cards and to use it as a credit card we needed to provide the zip code for the billing address. Well, we in the UK don’t have a zip code and it won’t accept an equivalent. The manned booths will only take cash and are very unhelpful (the most unhelpful New Yorkers we dealt with!)

Having said all that, once you work the system out it’s very handy. We got 7-day unlimited metro cards, which was good. You can also get limited travel cards and just top them up as needed, but I’d say go with the 7-day card if you’ll be there nearly that long. They also work on the buses and the only new ticket we had to buy was to get to JFK airport. If you aren’t going to be there that long or aren’t going to be riding the subway much the limited travel cards are good and, I believe, up to four people can travel on the same card. Each journey is $2, anywhere you go (other than the airports) and with the limited travel Metro card I believe you get a free journey or two for a certain amount. Not sure of the cost of the buses. As we had the 7-day cards I’m not sure how transfers work. Probably another reason for getting a 7-day card!

Walking: New York is an easy city to walk in. Central Park is lovely, the roads are easy to navigate, and it’s safe. Just keep your eyes open and act as you would in your hometown, take usual precautions with valuables. I even gawked a bit and we were fine. The big tourist areas are probably the safest but we never felt unsafe, even in residential areas or Central Park. A compass may come in handy just to get bearings now and again. And take comfortable shoes.

City Pass: Comes recommended, and check out the site as you can get them for several cities, including some in Canada. Though some places in NY were confusing about how to use it. The ticket would say one thing but the museum would say something different. So we just went with it. Even if you don’t visit all the attractions or an attraction is closed (Intrepid) you get good value. Remember that all the museums in NY charge for admittance (see museums later). For the cost you get entrance for several places – we got Empire State Building, Intrepid (which was closed), American Museum of Natural History (frogs!), Guggenheim, MoMA, Circle Line sightseeing cruise. It now has the Met and not Intrepid and is about $10 more than we paid but still well worth it if you want to see all these or even most of these. I can recommend MoMA and Guggenheim (just to see the building it’s worth it!)

Museums: All charge entrance fees. There are ‘pay what you can’ evenings at least one night a week, check each museum for when these are on, but be prepared for them to be crowded at these times. NY claims to have more museums than any other city in the world and this may be true. There are a lot (Joe grumbled the whole time) and there are some very good ones. I only saw about a quarter of the ones I wanted to see! Time Out usually has information on what is showing, the costs and when ‘pay what you can’ is on.

Broadway: We went to see Wicked. I booked tickets on-line way in advance of the trip. Just like the West End, Broadway tickets are expensive (about the same cost once the exchange rate is taken into account). There are suppose to be cheaper alternatives, but if there is a particular show you want to see and you’re only going to be there for a limited time, I’d recommend booking in advance. If you don’t care what you see, just want a Broadway show, then from what I saw there are cheaper alternatives. Unfortunately we didn’t do any of these so I’m not sure what information to give! But I would recommend seeing a show. Of course.

Getting to the airport: Air Train to JFK or Newark. We didn’t fly into or out of LaGuardia but from the website it is on the subway or bus routes. The JFK airtrain is free around the airport and to and from the car rental areas, but costs once you are outside this loop; Newark airtrain only goes around the terminals and to the train station. Coming into Newark we got the airtrain to the train station. Newark airtrain comes into the Newark Airport train station and from there you can get a train into NY or other areas of NJ. From Jamaica in NY you can get the airtrain to JFK airport. It was an easy journey from Manhattan – we went to Penn Station, NY, got the E train to Sutphin Blvd-Archer Ave stop, and then got the airtrain from there. There are two different E trains going to different destinations so do check the side of the train to make sure it’s going to Sutphin Blvd – Archer Ave! It is helpfully announced when you are at the airtrain stop (if you can understand the announcements on the subway. Having said that, the airtrain announcement was the clearest I’d heard the entire time I was there!)

Can’t think of anything else and this is long enough as is!

These are travel tips from are recent trip to New york, As this post may hang around in cyber space for some time this was in May of 2007.

First arriving at ether of the major airports, you can take a light rail way to the New Jersey rail / Subway network.

If you are going to be there for a few days a subway pass is really useful, we brought a 7 day unlimited trip ticket. It allowed us to use the subway and buses cost 24 $, only one major draw back we could not get the machine in the pen station subway to accept are UK cards debit or credit ?? So could only get the cards with cash.