Brand New New Yorker on Location: Eastern Europe, Vienna

Vienna was still as gorgeous as I remember.  I first visited the city when I was 14 as part of People to People Student Ambassadors (in which you are supposed to be an "ambassador," but really it's an excuse to travel on your parent's dime).  honestly, I think it may have been a little young to send a 14 year-old on a three week trek through Europe because all I can really remember from the trip is spending countless hours in a bus, eating pringles (and not much else since European food was still "weird" to me at this point), listening to the Pure Moods II CD over and over (don't judge), and spending the only few hours we had in Zurich in the chocolate shop (Teuscher) - which was beyond completely worth it.  but I can say that I remember Vienna having a lot of big, pretty buildings.  and my memory definitely served me correctly, as Vienna wasn't any different than what I remember.

(Rathaus, Vienna's City Hall)

we arrived in the city a-ok from Prague, though it was a little bit before we could find our hostel (after walking in literally circles for a good half hour we came to discover that our hostel was literally just around the corner from the train station.  awesome).  the hostel itself was really cool and a very nice, clean place to stay.  it even had it's own bar in the basement (complete with a free drink on your first night of check in)!  Furi Kuri and I kind of each did our own thing in Vienna - which was probably one of our better decisions.  I wanted to do the more classical visiting of the palaces and see all the fancy jewels and such (hey, I live on the UES for a reason) while Furi Kuri wanted to do more of the artistic, off-the-beaten-track scene.  so we split up agreeing to meet at a certain point later in the day (which didn't exactly work out according to plan when I waited at the designated meeting spot for 4 hours before dragging myself back to the hostel only to have her come back there about an hour later saying she got lost and ended up at the wrong church - now if you know her, this is not a surprise to you).  while Vienna was gorgeous and I loved all things royal there, it definitely wasn't my favorite city of the trip.

(Schönbrunn Palace)

however, we did take a day trip to the Wachau Mountains for a bike ride and wine tasting tour.  and no, we didn't end up in a ditch somewhere, clutching a wine bottle by the end of the tour - although that would make for a really funny story.  it was more along the lines of have a tasting of these three wines at this vineyard, hop on your bike to this vineyard, have a tasting of these few wines, bike, wine, bike, wine.  we did have lunch stuck somewhere in there too.  and we made some great friends along the way!  towards the end of the day we hiked up to the Durnstein Castle ruin that apparently at one point held Richard the Lionheart captive.  it honestly didn't look too much like a castle, but it was definitely up high enough on the mountain to provide a gorgeous view!

 (some of the wine we got to taste)

 (the ruin at the top is Durnstein Castle)

[view from (almost) the top of the castle]

now our trip wouldn't be one of "our trips" without a little adventure.  and although it seems like Vienna was smooth sailing, she was saving it all for the end.  we had to catch a train to Budapest at 7:45.  by the time we left, dropped everyone else off, made it through crazy traffic we arrived at our hostel at 7:30.  we still had to get our luggage out of storage, run to the train station, wait in line to buy our tickets (no mom, we didn't do the "right" thing and buy them before), and legit run on to the train probably seconds before it pulled away from the station.  however, we were smart enough this time that when we bought our tickets we got seat reservations instead of risking the chance of sitting next to a large, smelly eastern European man that is trying to have a conversation while you are clearly giving him the signal of "I-have-my-head-phones-in-for-a-reason-so-I-don't-have-to-talk-to-anyone."  which of course they never understand.  le sigh.

p.s. - I didn't end up buying a bottle of wine to bring back home with me because I wasn't schlepping that halfway across Eastern Europe.  however, I did end up getting a bottle of this tequila, cinnamon, and chili stuff that's actually really good (and it was a really small bottle) and a bag of rabbit shit.  yeah, you heard me correctly - rabbit shit.  it's actually dark and milk chocolate mixed together in a little ball that probably could pass as rabbit shit, but it tasted soooooooo good.  so needless to say, none of it made it home. 

Brand New New Yorker on Location: Eastern Europe, Prague

I have been planning this vacation for years.  what originally started out as a two month trek across western and eastern europe was eventually whittled down to a three week jaunt through eastern europe with nothing but my backpack, camera, and my crazy, but lovable, friend by my side.  (actually you should check out her blog, Furi Kuri Travels, as she is quite entertaining.)

before I can even begin to tell you about my adventures in the first stop of my trip (which was Prague btw) I have to share the story of my adventure to even make it to that side of the world.  so being the cheap ass that I am I was extremely stoked when I found an airline ticket for this trip that was only $800!!  I booked it right away obviously, without paying much attention to who I was flying.  big mistake.  my flight was on Aeroflot Airlines (the Russian airline) and I vow that I will never, never fly this airline again.  here's a run down of the adventure:

- the flight was supposed to leave at 7:00pm, but at 9:00am that morning they had already delayed the flight to 9:00pm
- had to stand in line for TWO hours to get my boarding pass (thank god they delayed the flight then or none of us would have made it on the plane)
- the plane of course didn't end up actually taking off until 10:00pm
- we arrive in Moscow at 2:35pm and my connecting flight was leaving at 2:45pm - which I tried explaining to the flight attendants to see if they would allow me to sit closer to the exit and the response I got was "just talk to someone when you get off the plane."  thanks.
- plane lands and everyone jumps up in the aisles to get off.  I explain to these two Russian women behind me that my flight is leaving in 10 minutes, to which they proceeded to tell everyone else in the aisle my situation so I was legit crawling over people to try and make it as close to the exit of the plane (meanwhile my carry on bag strap had broken at this point)
- I get off the plane and RUN to where I have to check in/go through passport control to get to my next flight and when I finally stop panting and catch my breath (hey, it was a long way to run) to explain to the woman my situation she tells me my flight was delayed until 5:15pm.  thank you jesus!  I have never in my life been so grateful that a flight was delayed.
- got my boarding pass and made it to the next gate, which, by the way, wasn't even my gate at all.  my plane moved and of course no one made an announcement to this change.  wait, I lied.  they did make an announcement - however it was in Russian and since I don't speak Russian (except for the word thank you - the only word I know) it was interesting to figure out where I had to go.
** as a random side note I would like to point out that the airport was stock full of hundreds of duty free shops (not even kidding), which doesn't make any sense because I swear Russia doesn't want anyone visiting their country since they make it EXTREMELY DIFFICULT to get a visa (ridiculously difficult actually).**
- got on the plane to Prague for what I thought was only going to be an hour flight - completely forgetting about the time changes and also not realizing how far away Moscow actually was - and four hours later I was in Prague.
- I seriously saw 6:00pm three times in one day and couldn't tell you what time it was, what day it was, or heck probably even what my name was by the time I landed in my first destination.
- by this point I'm hours late and my friend and her husband, S. Monster, had been waiting at the airport for me since I had no way of getting in touch with them to let them know of the flight delays (read: I didn't bring my phone with me on this trip) and when I get there, my luggage didn't.
- had to report my lost luggage to the airline people who said that a flight was coming in from Moscow at midnight and that my backpack would probably be on there.  and when it came in, they would deliver it to me.  she asked me for the name of the hotel I was staying in.  didn't know the answer.  asked me for a number I could be reached at.  didn't know the answer to that one either.  at this point I think she was a little frustrated with me and gave me a number to call with my information once I knew it.
- walked out of the baggage claim with my broken carry on in my arms and gave my friend a GIANT  bear hug when I saw her.  at this point I just lost it.  (hey, it was a stressful however-many-hours I had just been traveling through three different countries and countless time zones.)  however, five minutes of bawling my eyes out later and I was good to go!  :)

I hope you found that story entertaining.  I do anyways when I look back on it now, at the time of course I did not find any of it remotely hilarious.  now I can get on to the adventures in Prague.  :)

first thing we did in Prague was take a trip outside the city.  we hopped on a train to a little place called Kutna Hora that was about an hour outside the city to see The Church of Bones.  yeah, you heard me right.  a church made of bones.  I mean technically it was a church first, then a family bought it (didn't know anyone could own a church), during the plague there were so many bodies lying around that the church was converted into an ossuary (where they store bodies), and then for some odd reason someone thought it would be a fantastic idea to take the bones of some 40,000-70,000 skeletons and make art of them.  not my idea of a good time, but I guess whatever floats your boat...

(bone chandelier)

we did the general sightseeing things - Old Town, Clock Tower, Charles Bridge, and Castle.  (so cool because they definitely invoked the sense that you were transported back into the middle ages.)  we saw the city's TV antenna tower complete with bronze babies crawling all over it.  you heard me right - crawling babies.  it was pretty cool far away, but up close the babies just looked extremely creepy.  we went to one of the coolest bars I have ever seen.  apparently they change the decor every few months when the people in charge just get tired of what's up on the walls.  we went also went to the oldest brewery in Prague - U Fleku.  you didn't have a choice in what you drank there because as soon as you sat down they plopped a mug of dark beer in front of you.  normally I don't drink dark beer, but let me just tell you that this was seriously the best beer I have ever had in my life.  hands down.  no joke.  the place also came complete with a two man band - a tuba and an accordion.

 (beer at the beer hall)

 (TV antenna with crawling babies)

(skyline view of the old castle in the city)

funny enough, one thing I really remember from Prague is that not ONCE did we eat any sort of typical Czech food.  we ate Mexican (twice), amazing Italian, some pizza, and we even stopped at a Starbucks (I know, I know but I was dying for a frapp and it's the only one I had the whole trip).  we did also partake in the Prague nightlife and ended up going to a place that didn't even open until 4am.  that was only one night however, since I am old now and can't party like I used to.

(really fun installation at one of the bars we went to)

sadly we had to eventually say goodbye to this city and head off on our adventure, which continued in Vienna.  :)

I have the best friends

one random week day I get an email from Hollywood asking me if I would like to go to the Metropolitan Opera.  to which of course I responded yes.  (I mean, honestly, who wouldn't?  it also helps that I've been wanting to see an opera forever.)  I kid you not, literally a few hours later I get another email from Hollywood that reads like this: "we have free tickets to go on Tuesday."  nice.

so the night of the opera arrives and it turns out we are seeing Ariadne auf Naxos.  I've never heard of the opera, but it was an opera nonetheless so I was perfectly content.  our seats were A-MAZ-ING.  we were almost literally in the laps of the people on stage.  and right in the center of the orchestra as well!

I was even lucky enough to score a seat behind this lady:

I mean, really?  this isn't the royal wedding.  it isn't Ascot.  WHY in the world did she think it was necessary to wear a hat to the opera??  especially since the opera is a place where everyone sits and it's already hard enough to find a viewing spot with people sitting right in front of you.  put a hat into the mix and it just makes it worse.  le sigh.

to thank Hollywood for scoring us these awesome FREE tickets to the opera, I decided I would treat us both to a glass of champagne during the intermission.  so I'm waiting in line and while waiting I end up talking to the very nice gentleman in front of me.  small opera chit chat about what our favorites were, which I of course had none seeing as this was only the second opera I had ever been to.  finally it's my turn to order the drinks and I tell the man at the bar two glasses of champagne.  while waiting I look to the left and the right of me at others ordering and notice that everyone is paying with cash.  so I asked the bartender if it's cash only - which it was and I didn't have the THIRTY SIX dollars to pay for the two glasses of champagne.  and wouldn't you know, the gentleman who was in line in front me paid for my drinks.  I didn't ask him - he just jumped in and handed the bartender the money.  I couldn't believe it.  after thanking him profusely I asked him how I could get in touch with him to repay him the money.  he wouldn't let me - said it was his treat to me and that I should enjoy the opera.  all I can say is, karma is going to come back to that man in a good way.  :)

after the wonderful free champagne, we went back to our seats for the second half of our free opera.  even though I definitely enjoyed the experience, I am going to complain about one little thing here.  this opera was legit the longest thing I have ever had to sit through!  seriously at the end of it, the two main characters were singing "I love you" to each other over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and... well you get the idea.  and now you also get a sense of what I had to sit through!  but it was a great night in the end and one I hope to have more of in the future.  :)

(a picture of what the opera house looked like from behind our seats)

p.s. - I didn't have my actual camera, so please excuse the bad iPhone photos

"free falling"

I'm sure y'all are familiar with Groupon, LivingSocial, Flockmaster, and all of those other "discount" websites.  one day Yelp was having a deal for a High Falls Stunt Class, courtesy of  Hollywood Stunts.  so for shits and giggles, my friend, we'll call her Hollywood, and I signed up.  it turned out to be one of the coolest things I have ever done.

before we were able to do any of the jumps, we had to practice on this small platform first.  they told us, just jump and land completely flat with all of your body parts landing at the same time.  surprisingly not an easy task, since I am pretty sure instinct tells you not to slam your head on anything when you fall.  but in reality (after a few tries) it hurt way less to land like they said - a.k.a. no whiplash.  I was even excited during this practice session because I was the only one who got a "perfect" from the instructor.  :)  (let me gloat a little)

then it was time for the big guns.  the first jump was about 20 feet or so.  when the instructor asked who wanted to go first, I grabbed Hollywood so fast and said we would do it that I don't think she even had time to react.  it wasn't until we were up on the platform, 20 feet above the ground about to jump into a giant air bubble/blob thing that she even registered what was going on.  the instructor was a little flabbergasted because he said that he never had girls literally rush to be first in line (what can I say?  I was really excited to try this :) )

(it's weird for me to be posting an "almost" picture of myself because I semi wanted to remain anonymous on this blog, but there I am.  climbing up the scaffolding so I can jump off it 2 minutes later)

funny thing though - I was absolutely terrified waiting up on the platform to jump.  we were essentially just standing on scaffolding and if you fell off (not in the direction of the bubble/blob) well... it would hurt.  a lot.  as soon as it came time to actually do the free fall we had been taught I didn't have a moment's hesitation.

free falling is A-MAZ-ING.  I've done my fair share of cliff jumping in my life (around the Cornell campus in NY and in Italy), but it was always into water.  so really it was just jumping off a giant diving board (with a few jagged rocks here and there).  this was something else entirely though.  I can't even really describe that feeling of just falling - the moments between when you jump and when you land.  when you feel like you could float in the air forever.

all I can say is that I am definitely ready to go back and sign up for the next level!  :)

I am a little monster

a friend of mine, we'll call her Ms. CT, texts me randomly one day that she has an extra ticket to the Lady Gaga concert and would I want to go.  to which I replied, "can a Jew really pass up anything free?" so within a week's time, Ms. CT and I were meeting at her uncle's restaurant for pre-concert drinks and appetizers.  well like any uncle I imagine would do (at least I know mine would) he totally picked up the bill for everything.  it was very, very nice of him.  I even somehow got a free hat for the restaurant out of the deal too!  the food itself was so delicious (don't get me started on the crab cakes), so if you have a chance you should check it out - Statler Grill.

(before the concert started - kinda obvious)

(right as the concert was starting)

(please excuse the bad quality of these pictures as they were taken with my iPhone)

the concert itself was what a concert should be.  it wasn't just "here are a collection of my songs," but instead she told a story.  it was a show, not just a concert.  a performance.  which honestly made it much more exciting to be at rather than a regular concert that is essentially a grown up version of a girl/boy scout sing-a-long.  what also made the concert was the fact that almost everyone dressed up.  honestly, Ms. CT and I felt a little out of place because we weren't dressed up (it was too short of notice to put together the most amazing Gaga costume, especially since I have this tiny detail of work getting in the way).

(one of the stage sets)

(it was the Monster Ball after all - so here's your monster :) )

but the truly amazing part was the huge respect I had for her, as both an artist and a person, after the concert was finished.  she sang every single one of her songs.  no lip-synching whatsoever. and the girl can SING.  she played a few slow numbers on her piano and I didn't know she had that voice in her!!  almost makes you wish she would stop coming out with all of the pop-y songs and sing actual ones that really show off her talent.  or more so that people would be receptive to it enough for it to be played on the radio.  and last, but not least, you could really feel the appreciation she has for her fans (not sure if being in NYC made her more nostalgic).  I've never experienced a concert where the artist had THAT much gratitude for everyone in the audience.

(I know this probably isn't the best video quality, but hopefully you can still hear her singing)

p.s. - turns out the concert I was at was the one they used for her HBO special.  :)

running through the streets of NYC

I'm not sure how many of you will understand how much of a big deal this was - me running the NYC Half Marathon - but let me tell you, from a girl who used to not even be able to run a mile (seriously) to finishing 13.1 with no breaks was a pretty big deal.  yes, I used to not be able to run at all.  I remember in high school my dance coach would make us run a mile before practice, to which I would respond "Coach, if I wanted to run I would have joined to the track team."  oh she definitely thought it was funny and laughed - but she still made me run that damn mile. 

but slowly through the years I've started to enjoy running more and more.  and the only reason I got into it really is because the best friend forced me to do so (I will be forever grateful to her for kicking my ass and making me run).  over the years I have done mostly 5Ks and randomly a 10K here and there (a big deal at the time mind you).  it wasn't until after cheering Fabulous on in the 2010 ING NYC Marathon that really made me want to run as well.  it was an amazing experience to watch 40,000+ people running 26.2 miles through the streets of my city.  I followed Fabulous first in Brooklyn, then the UES and then finally on the home stretch at mile 23.  it was fun because at each place I got to see some of the people I cheered on at different spots over and over again.  I'm not sure if many of you know this, but a lot of runners in the marathon write their names on their jerseys so while they are running people will just shout their name for encouragement.  it was really cool when a couple of times I would shout someone's name at mile 23 (which also happened to be a hill) and I literally could see their pace pick up a little.

(spectator view at mile 23)

I really was inspired by this, so I decide to run in the 2011 NYC Half Marathon (baby steps - marathon will be next year).  I ran for a charity - The Children's Tumor Foundation: NF Endurance - which honestly help me stay motivated to stick with my training schedule more.  and at the same time, I raised money for a great cause and ended up raising $1,000+ more than I actually had to (thanks to my wonderful friends)!

(the weather I had to train in)

after months of training race day finally arrived.  it was cold (it was in March after all) and it was early, but I was still there.  I think what got me through most of it was the "runner's high."  or it could be due to the fact that the first half was basically my normal run - so I was used to that - and the second half of the run was through the streets of NYC.  I cannot explain how amazing it was to do that.  I love this city so much, but to see it from that perspective - the roads closed down for you, being able to see things head on instead of always from a sidewalk, having random strangers cheer you on while you are running mile after mile - it's an experience I'll never forget.

(my jersey and number  :) )

view while running towards Times Square (please excuse the bad photo, but I was running after all)

can't wait until next year when I do the full marathon and get to experience that in all FIVE boroughs of the city.

the starting line for the race (where I was NOT located)

Mermaid Parade

the best friend and I took a little trip down to Coney Island for their annual Mermaid Parade.

not much of a parade honestly.  but some of the BEST people watching I have seen in a long time.  and I'm not just talking the people walking in the parade.  Coney Island seems to bring out the best sort of people to gather in one area - think carny kinda folks.  now while I have pictures of those walking in the parade, I don't really have any of those not walking in the parade, but spectating rather.  this is mainly due to the fact that I was very afraid of what these folks might do if I just snap a photo of them without their knowledge.  however, now that I think about it I probably just should have asked them and I'm sure they would have been delighted to pose for a picture (maybe even 2 or 100, depending on the individual).

however, before the parade began the best friend and I had to get a Nathan's hot dog.  so we had our dogs and downed them with some good ol' Coney Island beer while hanging out at Beer Island.  good times all around and who knows... I might even dress up next year for this thing.  ;)

 the Coney Island beer I had at Beer Island

 starting this kid's pimping skills early

 Ursula.  couldn't you tell?

I saw way more boobies at this parade than I ever expected to