Reflections , New York and USA

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

The following are some comments from my owner's written diary, i hope he doesn't mind me putting a few of them here:

One thing that was very striking, is that yes a lot of the people in America are against the Iraq War, but they are very supportive of the troops fighting. When a group of sailors walked past an open air cafe, many of the people there, stood and clapped then as they passed. How different it is to the treatment that the Vietnam soldiers got when they came home from another unpopular war.

Life is like a theatre, we are here for the performance, and the applause we get is dependant on the show that we do.

Every day travelling on the Subway provided a performance: The young man and his practiced banter, wandering through the carriages selling bottled water. The street lady getting on and in loud voice telling, her story about why she is on the streets and how she was nearly raped last nite, and then leaving the carriage at the next stop. Another women with her zimmer frame asking for any food or drinks to help her out. The audience responds with no applause.

New York, Day 6

Tuesday, May 29, 2007. Exp 84F.
We were up reasonably early today, as there were a few things that had to be done. First there was the Brooklyn Bridge to walk over, while there I did a few photo shoots for a few of the many overseas fans that are following my travels. Oh and my owner took a few photographs also. He was also involved in a few photo opportunities a bit of publicity for his exhibitions.

After walking all the way over and back, we continued the walking through City Hall Park and across to what was the World Trade Centre Site. Now known as ground zero, it is a work site for the New Freedom Towers.

The afternoon I was left on my own, as my owner, was in meetings about gallery spaces and shipping etc.

Our evening being the last in NY, was spent on Broadway, we did not get tickets for Wicked, but did get tickets for "Grey Gardens" one of the highly nominated shows in this year Tony Awards.

A bit of walking has been done today, 18,951 steps. Yesterday, it was well over 20,000.

New York, Day 5

Monday, May 28, 2007. Partial Cloud, Exp 85F Memorial Day Public Holiday.
As part of the City Pass, we got a 2 hour cruise around Manhattan, which left from the piers on the west side. We walked down 42nd St to the pier and boarded the Circle Line. Our guide for the day provided lots of interesting information about New York its history and many stories. He is just about to publish a book called "Unique New York" which should be available through Amazon. (We were told about this several times during the cruise.)
From the pier we headed along the river, down towards Ellis Island, Liberty Island, we could see the very long lines waiting to go through the security tent before going on the ferry to Liberty Island. (Thank heavens my owner had gone to the Statue of Liberty last time he was here.)
Our cruise then took us up along the east side and under the Brooklyn bridge, and passed the UN building, etc.

Returning we walked along towards the piers to the north where the Navy had docked, and the ships were open to the public. (It was Fleet Week in New York, leading up to Memorial Day.) Being a public holiday, you can guess what the lines were like, waiting to get onboard, they stretched for 3 blocks. Standing out in the sun for that amount of time and distance was not something my owner was going to do, so we decided to head back uptown. Oh and yes there were some very enterprising young men selling chilled water bottles from roller bins, at 3 times the normal price of the bottled water. With the resulting empty bottles discarded all over the place.

Just a note, we have been getting Kosher Bottled Water from our local deli come drug store for 85 cents a bottle. We are note sure if it being Kosher makes a difference to the quality, but what the heck. I might have to get myself a little black cap to fit in with the others that travel on the subway.

New York, Day 4

Sunday, May 27, 2007 Partial Cloud, Exp 81F.
Well our day started out as normal for a Sunday, Breakfast at the Broadway Deli and Bagels on 42nd Street. Hugs to all at The Red Tongue. My owner thinks that the quality of the food here is a bit lacking. The rest of our morning was spent looking at spaces, for my owners exhibition of photographs.

Our evening was spent, doing what we have done a lot of, standing in queues. He thought that it would be nice to go to the Empire State Building, at dusk and get some nice photographs of the city as the lights come on. Once we got to the building, we find a queue at the door, that goes around the corner, we then are told that once inside the building the wait for the observation deck is 60 to 90 mins. Out city passes did shorten the wait a little but it was still a long wait so we missed dusk, only got images of the city lights.

Our wait in the line was made a bit more painful having to spend most of the time with a couple from England standing in front of us. He never stopped speaking, tall, pale skinned, wearing a England Rugby top, 3/4 length pale shorts, black socks and black shoes. She was an attractive girl, except for the eye makeup, every dark eyeliner around the whole eye and very thick dark blue shadow. Attractive except for the makeup and we guess lack of brains being with him. One thing she did remind me of was Panda, my friend in Dallas, who could not come with me on our adventures.

New York, Day 3

Sat. May 26. 2007 Sunny 86F.
Was hoping to add a few of the images, but once again the USB connection on the terminal at the hotel is not working. Will update and add some later.
Another beautiful sunny day in NY, a bit warm but we will be doing a couple more art galleries, today so that will be cooler. First stop. MoMA Museum of Modern Art.
Several exhibitions on here, painting, architecture, photography, etc. Once again works by the well known. My owner is enjoying seeing all these great works, I am getting a bit bored with all this art. And after this we are heading to another gallery. If I complain he will leave me behind and I might miss something.

The Guggenheim Museum, was a bit disappointing, as the exterior, was being renovated and under skaffolding. Inside also they were preparing for some new exhibitions so nearly half the galleries were closed, but he still got to see works by Chagall, Kandinsky, Picasso and VanGogh etc.

After all this art, we eventually, made our way back to Times Square, and got some tickets for the Disney Musical Tarzan. Its is amazing the number of people that have to take a picture with their cell phone of themselves sitting in a theatre seat.
He is still trying to get some tickets for Wicked, but most nights it is booked out except for premimum seats at $250 each.

New York. Day 2

Friday, May 25, 2007. Sunny Exp 90F.
We started the day, with a subway ride to Colombus Circle, and then walked through Central Park. Lunch was a traditional Hot Dog, expensive in Central Park. Walked up to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We spent most of the afternoon, looking at the exhibitions. Impressionist and early modern paintings, Neo Rauch, Contempory Photographs, Tiffany, Barcelona and Modernity : Gaudi to Dali, Studio Craft Movement, etc. So we spent the afternoon, with Picasso, David, Leutze, Van Gogh, Warhol, Remington, Ingres, Rembrandt, Goya, ElGreco, Matisse, Balthus, Velazques, Titan, Roden, Durer and many others.
We then bussed it to Times Square, and got some half price tickets for the musical "Hairspray".
After the show he did a few photographs of the lights of Broadway and Times Square.

New York, Day 1

Thursday, May 24, 2007 Fine, Exp 85F.
We explored the area around the hotel a little last nite, got some juice, milk and cereal for breakfast, as there is a fridge in our room. Today we are going downtown, Times Square and check out what theatre is happening, Halfprice Tix, etc.
We walked up to 103St station and got a 7 day unlimited ride ticket for $24.
Caught the 1 train downtown, to 42nd St., Lots happening, its Fleet Week so lots of armed services personal around, also sections where blocked off because some politicians were making speeches or policy statements, and there were famous people all around. I managed to get my pic taken with one of the well known Time Square identities.

Found the Halfprice Tix place which has relocated and when we returned later the queue was so long we did not bother waiting, one of the problems of coming to New York during a Memorial Day Long Weekend.

Later headed back to Halfprice Tix around 7 to see what was left and nearby. We got tickets for Monty Pythons "Spamalot", a comedy musical.

Travel Day. Ft Lauderdale - New York

Wednesday, May 23, 2007 Ft Lauderdale 83F - New York 74F Sunny.
We checked out and headed to the airport a bit early, but we decided to have brekkie at the airport and not have to worry about rushing to get there.

Fort Lauderdale, Day 5 Later.

Tuesday, May 22, 2007.
Tonight we had dinner with Dr Joey. It was good for my owner to catch up with him as over the years they have chatted over the net. He has moved to Miami but still works some time in Fort Lauderdale, (Miami is only about an hour down the road) We went to a nice Thai restaurant, and had a good time catching up. After dinner we drove a litte around some of the area sites. Remember Fort Lauderdale is now famous for being the place that 'Anna Nicole Smith Died'. He has got an open invitation to come down under anytime he wants.

Fort Lauderdale, Day 5

Tuesday, May 22, 2007. Exp 83F, moderate strength winds from the east.
This morning woke and got going early, as we were heading out onto the everglades to wrestle alligators etc. The weather is still warm, but a moderate wind of around 12-15 mph is blowing off the sea. But you can still get a bit of a tan and enjoy the small surf. Last nite was a bit of a quiet nite, with dinner down on the beach blvd. After we get back from today's excursion, we will be meeting Dr Joey for dinner. (Could the meeting be to remove the surgery bandages, Miami the home of cosmetic surgery).

Some people have also sent emails asking about the Las Vegas Wedding pictures, my owner hasn't let me resize them yet.

Fort Lauderdale, Day 4

Monday, May 21, 2007 Sunny, Exp 85F maybe some showers.
Well I was left back in the hotel room last nite while my owner went out to some place that is called or practices Voodoo. He hasn't said much this morning, but indicated that it was very loud, and some interesting performers. Sorry he didn't take his camera, so I can't put any pics here.

We spent most of the day, looking at art. Firstly after a short visit to the Library we went to the Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale, as they were getting ready to close for the summer, only the main collection was on show.
We then went to Las Olas Blvd, where there are the restaurants, galleries and designer shops. We found some interesting art works, and sculpture. One sculptor name Tuan, impressed my owner. But the price tag and shipping costs would have stretched the Visa Card.

Later this afternoon we spent a bit of time on the beach working on tanning the legs, and then spending a little time around the clothing optional pool.

On the way to dinner, I found some unusual spots on the pavement, could they be blood, I will have to call out CSI to investigate. CSI Investigator Teddy is on the trail.

Fort Lauderdale, Day 3

Sunday, May 20, 2007. Overcast, Exp 83F, Thunderstorms later.
We had a bit of a sleep in this morning, and managed to watch the local news. There had been a few storms during the night, and Miami was under a flash flooding weather alert. Some of the interesting news was, David Hicks was on his way back to Australia, the next week was Hurricane Preparedness Week, and that a new reality series was about to start next week. The reality series is of some interest as it was 10 young women against 10 older women, trying to win the attention of an International Tennis Star, and have a guess who that star is. The lad from Williamstown, Mark Philippoussis, guess he has now hit the heights of his career, a reality star.
Being Sunday it was also, late and long breakfast day, so we headed down Beach Blvd. to St Barts Coffee Co, sat out on the Patio and watched the passing parade. My owner has told me to say 'Hello and Hugs to all at The Red Tongue' I hope you are enjoying my version of our adventure.
Later today, we are going to be calling Dr Joey, a friend of my owner. I hope he is not a cosmetic surgeon as there are a lot of them here and in Miami. I wonder if my owner is going to have that tummy tuck he was thinking about.
As we were walking along Beach Blvd, there were some flying advertisments going by and one was "Give your implants a break, Run Easy Miami" think it was an advert for some running shoes that lessen the impact.

I will add some more images soon, when he gets around to resizing them, but some of them he will not let me use or see.

Fort Lauderdale, Day 2

Sat. May 19, 2007 Exp 86F, Thunderstorms in the Afternoon.
We had breakfast by the pool, sunning out pale legs, to get the Florida tan. I will update the Posts over the next few days and a few pics. Later in the morning we headed out to the other end of the bus route, to Lauderhill Mall. When going thru downtown, we noticed the main public library, which we visited on the return trip. I have to include this note as my owner said it's for Taxation Purposes, not sure what he means by that.
My owner likes to use the local buses in the places that we visit, as he says that you get to see a lot of the real people and places. The bus that runs near our motel runs between Galleria Mall and Lauderhill Mall, and it is trip between what you may say is the extremes. Galleria is upmarket, Macy's, Neimann Marcus and various quality stores, and Lauderhill would cater for the other end of the market. When we arrived at Lauderhill, you could say that me and my owner were about the only pale fur and skinned persons in the place. My owner found a shop that had the greatest range of suits in any colour, and yes there was a nice bright red suit there for only $99. The suits were very colourful, bright yellow with black pin strip, shades of purple and green etc. as he described them "pimping colours"

Thanks to the person from India who left a comment on yesterdays posting, My owner and I thank you for your comment and glad that you are enjoying our adventure. We have also received a comment from Turkey.

We have found a nice way to cool down, catch a bus, the AC on the buses is very affective, we have even seen on passenger wrapped in a blanket.

Fort Lauderdale, Day 1

Friday, May 18, 2007. Exp 86F. Sunny Possible Thunderstorms.
Early walk along the beach front, to check out where things are. Eventually worked out the buses, and headed in the afternoon to Galleria, my owner need to get a new watch band. We sat around the pool for a while in the afternoon, chatting with Joel, a sports medicine doctor from Chicago. Thunderstorms arrived and the rain came down so continued talking under the veranda, till he left to pick up a buddy at the airport and then heading down the keys for a bit of scuba diving. For Dinner we headed down to the 'Beach Place' on Beach Blvd. and had chicken parmigiana, which was a bit differnet, a couple of pieces of chicken served on pasta.

Travel Day Dallas - Fort Lauderdale

Thursday, May 17, 2007. Exp 74F, Fine and Sunny.
Special day today. Before heading to the airport, we had to attend award presentations for the 6th Grade at Vivian Fields School. Merryn owner of panda, did not want us to go as she did not think that she would get an award. But we knew otherwise. Earlier in the week her school counsellor had called and informed Deb that she was going to be presented with the Viking Award of Honour, but we could not tell her. It was nice to see her being presented with the Black badge, and award, there were 2 very proud parents there.
Managed to get thru all the security checks at the airport without too much trouble, and yes he did have clean socks. When we got to Ft Lauderdale, had a bit of a wait for the shuttle service, and then he could not find the place we were staying in, but eventually did. Nice comfortable, basic room, AC and a pool outside.

Dallas, Day 6

Wednesday, May 16, 2007. Sunny Exp 75F
My owner and John took me shopping with them when they went looking for Dallas Cowboy's Tops and cowboy boots. They managed to stay out of trouble, and got what was needed and a little extra. They also went shopping for an ipod nano, as Merryn had been leaving hints that she would like one, that and also a Razor mobile phone, were on her wants list. I decided that my owner should get her one, because she had given up her bed for him and me, and she had also achieved a major award at school which she did not know about as yet. So back to Sam's and while there another pair of shorts for the warm weather.

Tonight you should have seen the surprised look on Merryn's face when I gave here a little present. She was over the moon and straight on the phone to her friend, to let her know that she had gotten and IPod.

We all then headed out for TexMex dinner, and a few margarita's

I think I should still keep the phone number for Bad Boys Bail Bonds, just in case, someone has been a very bad influence on my owner.

Dallas, Day 5

Tuesday, May 15, 2007 Exp 86F, Sunny possible Thunderstorms.
Out of Dallas adventure trip today to the Historic Town of Jefferson, East Texas.

Dallas, Day 4

Monday, May 14 2007. Sunny 87F.
Last night I played babysitter for John and Merryn, while my owner and Deborah went to The Music Hall at Fair Park, Dallas to see "Wonderful Town" music by Leonard Bernstein. When they returned they indicated it was just a show, nothing outstanding or memorable.
Today we went shopping at 'Sams Club', and managed to get a few more shirts and shorts for my owner to wear in Florida. Good quality VanHeusen, Calvin Klein and BermudaBay, for very very good prices. My owner also managed to get a few films processed and printed to check that they had not been affected by the Xrays at the airports. So there are lots more pics that have not made it to my blog. When we were going thru the checkout the lady said we had got some real good bargains, but there were no new things for me. Those cowboy boots with the flashing LED lights would look really good on me, I think I could really impress Panda wearing them.
Tonight is a quiet nite, as Panda and I are going on an adventure in the morning.

Dallas, Day 3. Later.

Sunday, May 13, 2007.
I had to include this photo, as panda said is was so typical of her owner. Merryn purchased at the Fort Worth Stockyards some Extremely Sour Warheads candy. The picture is the reaction that they have on her. Her parents are thinking of using this as their Christmas Card this year. Another image to embarrass her when she turns 21.

Dallas, Day 3

Sunday, May 13, 2007. Exp 85F. Sun with cloud.
Being Sunday it was a not so normal breakfast morning, Pancakes were the order for today. After breakfast we headed to Fort Worth Stockyards. The older area of the city which is a bit of a tourist attraction with shops, cafes etc. I tried on a few pairs of cowboy boots, an one pair took my fancy they had flashing lights set in to the sides of the boots. Around 10.30 they drive a herd of Texas Longhorns through the streets.
After Lunch we had a bit of culture with a visit to the Kimbell Art Museum. Its one one of the art collections that Sister Wendy featured in her series on Art Galleries in North America. Also it has a Victoria connection with the Director being one of the previous directors of the National Gallery, Victoria.
Tonight I am being left home to baby sit, while my owner and Deb head out to a theatre production.

Dallas, Day 2 Afternoon.

This afternoon, I met another bear, Panda, who belongs to Merryn. And we spent the afternoon sunning ourselves by the pool. It was good to finally meet Panda, and hear about what has happened over the years. (This entry was added by Merryn, owner of Panda.)

Dallas, Day 2

Saturday May 12, 2007 Sunny. 88F.
This morning we went into downtown Dallas, and visited a small park which had a large stampede sculpture in it. After that, we progressed further down to the west end. Have a look at the image, it will give you a clue as to where we were. The place has historical significance, as an important event occurred there. You can email your answers and the first correct, might win a prize!

Dallas, Day 1

Friday, May 11, 2007. Fine 85F.
Relax day, time for us to catch up on washing, massage sore feet, sort out the images etc. Tonight we are going to see Merryn in her musical debut, in the off Broadway production of "School House Rock". She has signed my copy of the program which I will keep. so when she is a famous actress on Broadway, I can sell it on Ebay.

Travel Day

Thursday May 10, 2007 Sunny Exp 97F Las Vegas to Dallas
Today head down to Dallas Texas. We made sure that there was plenty of time to get to the airport, clean socks for security checks, etc. Once there we find that there is a delay of about an hour on our flight. Even after making sure there was no coins in the pockets something was still setting the metal detector off. Maybe he did get a piercing at Venice Beach, but after a bit of wanding over the body we were free to continue. So sat back relaxed and watch the passing parade in the terminal, or you can play the slots. We were lucky as one other flight was being delayed over 2 hours due to blocked toilets. Someone on the flight to Las Vegas had blocked the toilets, and they had to fly from LA, some special equipment to remove the blockage. (When you see the size of some of the butts, you can see why they need special equipment)
Anyway the flight to Dallas was uneventful, except I had the window seat and had a good clear view of the Grand Canyon. There was even some rain when we landed, its the first bit of rain that we have had during our travels.
My owner's good friend Deborah met us at the airport, and we drove home to meet her lovely daughter Merryn for the first time. On my owner's last time here Merryn had not been born, but he has seen her grow up over the years with the photo and Christmas card each year.

Las Vegas. Day 3

Wednesday, May 9. 2007. Sunny Exp. 92F.
Big day today, this morning we headed down to the South Strip, to pickup tickets and a little shopping. Then headed back to downtown which is really uptown in direction, very confusing for a little teddy.
I was left with Tina at Bingo while my owner went to the Justice Building, to pick up a marriage licence. I hope that young lady he met from "Glitter Gulch" has not talked him into helping with visa and working permits for Australia.
If he gets into trouble I might have to call Bad Boys Bail Bonds for assistance.
Anyway Tina had not been doing well at Bingo since see had arrived, but I have brought her good luck, she won the Bonus Jackpot of $1000 today. She wants to adopt me.
Tonight we are going down to the MGM Grand on the South Strip. I am not sure if we are going to the Wedding Chapel there and then on to a show, or a little wedding chapel closer to downtown, like the one that Brittney went to.
At the MGM Grand, there was a choice of Tom Jones or the Cirque du Soleil production of KA. We had tickets for KA, a massive production, visually stunning. This is one production that cannot travel as one of the stages moves up down, around vertically and horizontally, over a pit 3 levels deep.

Las Vegas, Day 2. Grand Canyon.

Tuesday, May 8th, 2007. Exp 90F. Today we were up early as we were being picked up at 6.40am for a trip out to Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon West, including the new Sky Walk. We travelled in a nice big black and air conditioned Hummer. Scott was our guide for the day and our travelling companions were Lydia and Joe from Chicago. Will post some of the fantastic pictures from the Rim of the Grand Canyon, shortly. We travelled a route that most going to the canyon do not do, passed Hoover Dam and then onto some tracks not normally travelled by the tour buses. By doing this we got to see some of the distinct vegetation and geography of the area. Our first stop at the Canyon was Eagle Point, where the new Skywalk is located. My owner was brave enough to go out onto the glass walkway, but I was not allowed to go as I was light and small and might be blown or dropped from the walkway. (You are not allowed to take anything with you, not even a camera onto the walk way.) He said it as a fantastic feeling looking down thru the walkway, watching the birds fly beneath you. Some on the less adventurous, would only walk on the opaque areas in the inner side of the walkway. After that my owner took a lot of pictures of me at the edge of the canyon, and with our guide and fellow travellers. Second stop was at Guano Point which at the western end of the canyon. More fanstastic views of the canyon and river very far below. We had lunch at the Hualapai Ranch, The Hualapai, traditional owners provided cultural demonstrations and lunch.
Thanks to Scott from Big Horn Wild West Tours for a great day.

Las Vegas, Day 1

Monday May 7, 2007. Sunny Exp 85F
Well I have been told by my owner, that "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" so the details in the entries my be censored a bit. Also still unable to find an internet terminal,with a good usb port for pics.
This evening we went across the street to the Fremont Experience, and watch the largest screen presentation. Over the street for 4 blocks is a giant screen which has a spectacular sound and lights show on the hour after sunset.

Travel Day.

Sunday, May 6, 2007. LA 72F Las Vegas 78F
Today is a travel day, so we were late getting up, after a very busy day. Our driver is picking us up around 10:30 to take us to the airport. It was handy having the driver, so nice of them to provide him for us, but there is an Australian connection as Tai, our driver usually looks after Hugh Morgan while in town. Which he is not this week. Anyway before we left for the airport there was an accident right in front of us. A brand new blue honda and a older pickup. and guess who was at fault. The driver of the Honda, she was distracted while talking on the mobile phone. (As yet it is not illegal to be talking on the phone here)
We got to the airport in plenty of time, as you have to go thru so many security checks, and yes my owner had clean socks on when he had to remove his shoes. This time they did a more detailed search of his person, as something kept setting the metal detector off.. I wonder if it was something he may have got while at the tattoo and piercing place on Venice Beach.

Our flight to Las Vegas was slightly delayed due to wind conditions, there have been tornadoes, in some states. But we eventually made it, and met two nice older ladies who are here to play bingo. We shared a taxi into town as we were staying at the same place, Ann and Tina. Ann has a walking stick, but it helped to get to the front of the taxi line which had a waiting time of around 40 mins.

Bingo starts at 5 so once settled in the room I will head down and play bingo, they tell me it not really gambling. (I am too young to gamble, as I am only 10 years old.) I will leave my owner to find something to occupy his time.

Hollywood. Day 3

Sat. May 5th 2007. Sunny 72F. Today is going to be a bit more of a sight seeing day. Will add some pics to the entries shortly. Internet access has not been as available as was Vancouver and San Francisco. We for the later part of the afternoon we had the services of our driver, Tai. So we headed out to Santa Monica and the onto Venice Beach to see the setting sun, and a lot of strange people along the foreshore. But earlier in the day we went to Hollywood and Vine to see where my star on the Walk of Fame will be, as you can see by the picture. A bit of a walk up Hollywood Blvd, we mixed with all the other tourist at the Chinese Theatre, and then onto the Kodak Theatre, where the Oscars are held now. If all that the producers people have been saying, happens then it won't be too long before I will accept one of those gold statues.
During the afternoon, we went to Manson and Menendez crimes scenes. Where Hugh Grant and George Michael got caught with their pants down. The pavement outside the Viper Club, where River Phoenix collapsed, The place where Michael Richards had his meltdown, and the alleged Black Dahlia murder site. To top it off also where Paris Hilton was picked up for drink driving.