I'll miss the Americans and their often ridiculously large sized portions of food.
I went to The Cheesecake Factory of The Big Bang Theory fame recently and was greeted by an enormous dish of meatloaf. I came out having only left a little bit of mash on the side, but regretted eating to the point where I was about to throw up.
Their signature Cheesecakes are just as bad with the following not giving a truthful depiction of its epicness.
The Christopher Nam Hamburger Project (aka make him gain weight) was good fun though.
... is a pretty dull place with a fairly weak duty free shop.
I've also had to buy rip-off goody and salty treats for all. Ah well...
One good thing is that they've at least got free (and fairly decent wi-fi) meaning I can gradually transition back to my old procrastinating self in the next few hours.
So expect some random posts as I reminiscence about the American Adventure.
So I mentioned a while back that I watched A Social Network, the film "based" (loosely I would imagine, with several fictional parts created for narrative purposes). I thought it was actually quite entertaining, despite not really being a Facebook user (although I don't see how this would affect my enjoyment of it). Nevertheless, I recommend watching it.
I also went to visit Harvard today which is pretty much equivalent of Oxbridge, (ridiculous) traditions and all. The student tour guide was a rounded student who had managed to find the optimal way to juggle studying, extra-curricular activities and more importantly, partying to the extent that no lifetime regrets were created.
Harvard does come with the prestige of being academically intellectual, but do lack in some basic intellect and common sense. I don't know any other university where
a) They've got a statue of the "founder" John Harvard, when he just donated a large proportion of books (or was it money...I can't remember).
b) They've got the date wrong of when he supposedly "founded" Harvard.
c) This statue isn't even of John Harvard.
Only the Americans could get away with this really.
is the optimal duration for a holiday and to spend away from home I reckon.
I know this as my small weak feet are now starting to suffer and I generally don't seem to have the same amount of energy for my days out now. Or maybe it's just the fact that DC was much cooler than in NYC. It's a personal preference really but I really haven't enjoyed NYC as much as I thought I would have done.
Nevertheless, I quite glad to be leaving the Big Apple and hope Boston has something different to offer.
Apparently I have a doppelganger. He was staying at the HI hostel in DC who looks and sounds exactly like me apparently.
I never got to meet my twin but was informed about him after someone staying at the hostel was confused as to why I was asking such standard "first meeting" questions again and why I didn't remember him the following day. Apparently my twin was also quite nice
So that poses the question; am I the evil twin? Be very afraid...very afraid I suppose.
Learn Catonese properly. It should avoid over ordering food in restaurants.
But at least I am well feed on fairly decent stuff tonight and have had plenty of vegetables. It should counter act all those burgers, hot dogs and pretzels I've been eating lately.
Laundry is being dried and I've managed to get the internet working just by switching into the next room. This is one weird hostel.
So my first two nights in New York were spent couch surfing as mentioned before. Whilst practically free accommodation and insider knowledge sounds like a good, I don't think I enjoyed it as much as everyone makes it out to be. But maybe this is just me being my usual self of having such high expectations in life.
Don't get me wrong, my host was very considerate and did a good job of entertaining me. He had an excellent apartment (it was more "spare room surfing" than "couch surfing"), in a good location. He also suggested plenty of things to do together and we even decided to watch "The Social Network".
Understandably, my host wouldn't leave his surfers alone in his apartment, but this meant I had to phone him to find out when I could get back. This turns into a big inconvenience of finding a Starbucks to use their internet to phone him via Google Talk, and occasionally asking someone nicely to use their mobile if the reception is bad internet wise.
The other thing I disliked about my experience was my host throwing me into the deep end of NY life by expecting me to find his apartment alone by taking a cab. Again, it might just be me being picky and needy, but if he had known prior that I was going to making my own way their, he could have given more precise directions and instructions, and even suggested taking the Subway. The cab driver also wasn't particularly friendly or helpful which really didn't help with the experience.
So all in all, I'm not entirely sure if I'll be couch surfing again. Unless a good rapport and level of trust is developed between the host and the surfer prior to the stay, it seems quite inconvenient. I initially asked to stay for much longer than a week but I'm glad it was only for 2 nights given my experiences from just two nights.
So I genuinely look forward to my stay at HI NYC, and meeting new people. It's a bit further out from the city than I would like it to be meaning I can't stay out too late (it doesn't seem as "safe" as DC) and I might be more inclined to catch bed bugs, but at least I can control most of these things.
P.S. I missed the 30 Rock live recording. I'm currently listening to it whilst I blog. It's quite surreal to see it with a live audience, and the camera shots are quite unlike 30 Rock's style (understandably SNL like). Some of it appears to be done quite well (and funny) and it's good to see the return of familiar characters. But it ultimately feels alien to me. I will probably review this in the end. For those of you unfamiliar with 30 Rock
Apparently I haven't been blogging enough with any sort of shenanigans so I will try and make up for it tonight in the next couple of hours whilst I need to stay in the hostel.
So I did make it to the Big Apple and did get to experience couch surfing for two days but that's for another post...
Whilst in the HI hostel in DC, I did meet a few interesting people, one of whom was a Historian who oddly seemed to know quite a bit about Statistics (the boring kind though with rank correlation etc.). I always thought that these two fields never crossed about alas, I was proven wrong and he informed me that Historians do use quite a bit of "Statistics". (I'm going to put that in inverted columns since I can't guarantee that they'll be using it correctly at all. For all I know, that might be just applying any old method and claiming that they're doing "Statistics"). Nevertheless, I got on rather well with this guy and enjoyed his company.
This American guy was the same age as my parents, had a rather good sense of humour and wit (the gentle mocking kind) and seemed to be happily married with children the same age as me. We discussed a variety of things and I even had to explain to him the rules of cricket from my shady and limited past.
So I nearly had a sort of "pint of milk" incident with him, as had I stayed in DC over the weekend, we were going to "paint the town red". I really wished I'd stayed in DC for the weekend just for this incident.
I'll miss his presence (I doubt anyone's going to be the same in NYC or Boston or even the UK) and although we did exchange e-mail addresses, it's not going to be the same as discussing a whole variety of topics over the wet trays and bad coffee at breakfast.
Apologies for the lack of posts. Somehow, travelling and walking copious amounts does tire you enough to make blogging the last thing on your mind at the end of the day.
Nevertheless, I thought I'd post a photo to convince you that I indeed alive and well and seeming to enjoy my current visit in DC.
I've yet to figure how to rotate pictures in blog world so for now, you'll just have to tilt your heads or maybe even just your screens.
I am meeting new people (admittedly older; but that's just because I'm an old man trapped in a youngish body), eating a lot of junk food (I guess this is the Christopher Nam Hamburger project that someone proposed to me a few years back) and learning lots about the American culture and history (through observation and museums).
But no one has yet to bump into me whilst buying some milk in the streets and drag me to dinner followed by a club/bar; I guess that is more of a New York thing.
So the conference has officially started and I'm currently staying in a rather nice hotel. The only downside thus far is that I can't find the complimentary slippers. It's going to be drastic change when I switch to a 10 bed dormitory.
The conference thus far has been okay (understood somethings, haven't fallen asleep yet) although I can't help feeling out of place. It's a mix of statisticians and econometricians, where a lot of people seem to know each other from before. Nevertheless, I have made a bit of an effort to talk to people and it hasn't been too bad...
My poster session could have been better; I don't know whether its the different academic research area or the different nationality but they seemed a little less interested/impressed, and constantly referring back to current literature (a valid point though). Or maybe it's the fact that no wine was present at this reception...
Nevertheless, one more day of this conference before the holiday part officially kicks in...
Surreal moment 2: Your supervisor playing in a kid sized indoor playground. Wish I had a camera for that...
So I've arrived safely and settled in a bit (possibly slightly jetlagged still).
It's been slightly surreal in some places; the Americans do of course do everything big (but necessarily better I hasten to add) and can sometimes be far too friendly.
However, the two most surreal moments have to be experiencing life with a two year old (especially when you live alone like me) and hearing your supervisor reciting nursery rhymes, complete with childish voices. If only he could do it for the papers I don't seem to understand.
And so my adventure begins, by tomorrow afternoon I should be up in the air and safely on my way to North Carolina.
I thought I might invite close friends to read my blog whilst I am on my travels, so greetings to the lucky few. Be prepared to be bored out of your wits.
I'm now back at Kingston home for an overnight stop where the house is in a tip....admittedly my parents are getting the kitchen refitted, so I suppose I'll have to excuse them.
Anyway, this was going to be a post to at least get the ball rolling; who knows if I'll be posting tomorrow detailing my safe arrival or discussing the pros and cons of travelling with your supervisor and family.
One more thing, I've signed up to Couch Surfing in aid of meeting new people and possibly staying over at someone's place in NYC. I posted the photo below as my profile picture; such false advertising! I have never looked (or been) so laid back in my life or appeared so cool. The people that meet me are in for big surprise I suppose.
