Monday, July 29, 2019
Pizza, Beer & History - NYC - Walking Tour Weekend
And it's Monday again. I really dislike Mondays. But what can you do?
We did have a nice weekend. On Saturday we went to NYC for the "Pizza, Beer and History Tour". We took the train down and stopped at Blue Haven for a bit as the tour didn't start until 3pm. We ordered chicken tenders which turned out to be a huge portion. Honestly we should have skipped the food because they fed you quite a bit of pizza on the tour. I was so full afterwards. Our first stop was Artichoke Pizza and that was honestly quite unique. We had their traditional artichoke slice and it was super creamy and filling. I am not even usually a big fan of artichokes but this was really good. Just super filling. Our second stop was Joe's Pizza. I thought it was pretty good, your typical NYC cheese pizza by the slice. Mike was underwhelmed with it but I thought it was decent enough. After that we stopped at the Blind Tiger for a beer. And from there moved on to Bleeker Street Pizza and had their "Nonna Maria" slice which was pretty delicious. The tour ended near the Stonewall Inn and we had another beer at Kettle of Fish. Lots of neat history tid bits and facts thrown in between all the food and beer stops as well. Definitely a fun experience and the other people on the tour were fun as well. There were 6 of us so it wasn't a huge group which made it easier/better probably. Funny thing is that the other people all lived in NYC.
Yesterday, Sunday, we went to the movies to see the new Tarantino movie "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood". Would definitely recommend the movie. It was a typical Tarantino movie in a lot of ways and in a lot of ways it also wasn't. But if you enjoy that era of Hollywood it's a great movie to see even just for the visuals and the cinematography. Of course there was violence but then that's just Tarantino. I won't write too much else about it to avoid given away any spoilers. But either way, go see the movie if you are a Tarantino fan and have enjoyed his other movies. I'd definitely recommend it. The funny thing is Tarantino is something that has kind of grown on me having lived here for this many years. I remember when I first lived in CA in 98-99 my ex boyfriend tried to get me to watch "Pulp Fiction" and I was absolutely horrified by it. I think I will need to revisit that movie again to see if I'd actually enjoy it now, after having seen a bunch of his newer films.
So yeah, that sums up our weekend. Another week ahead now. Just a few more days left in July. This summer seems to be zipping by. It's a bittersweet thing for me. Because part of me is definitely longing for summer to be over/have the crazy busy season at work behind us. And I really enjoy fall. I love the crisp blue skies, the slightly cooler weather, the leaves changing colors. But at the same time that also signals that winter is ahead and oh god how do I hate winter. I feel the past few winters have just been endless too. We haven't had much of a spring these past years, pretty much moving from winter straight into summer. Ugh.
Alright enough complaining. Better get ready for work. :)
Letter/Mail Update: Owe a reply/received a letter from Lotte/Denmark.
Posted by Hanna at 07:33 AM in NYC | Permalink | Comments (0)
Monday, August 28, 2017
MoMa, NYC, movies and more
Hello Monday ... again. Time really does fly by. I know, I know. I literally start every post this same way. Maybe I need to start writing posts on a
different day. Because writing them on Sunday afternoons/evenings or Monday mornings always gives me that feeling of "ugh another full week ahead, the weekend gone AGAIN". Well we will see what the week brings. The weather has been really nice these past few days and I think is supposed to continue like this for at least a few more days. We've had highs of around 75-80F (23-26C) with no humidity and a slight breeze. At night the temps go down into the 50ies (10-15C) which makes for nice sleeping weather. Really can't complain. I would take this weather all year round if I could. :)
Saturday we spent the day in NYC which is always fun. Went to MoMa (Museum of Modern Art) to see the Frank Lloyd Wright exhibit which was pretty neat. We have a membership at MoMa even though we don't go all that much. But as long as we go twice a year the money for the membership is made back plus it's money spent for a good cause. After we saw the Frank Lloyd Wright exhibit we also quickly looked at the other floors with their permanent collection. We've seen those quite a bit but it's always fun to see some Monets or Van Gogh's "Starry Night".
After MoMa we made our way back to midtown and had a late lunch/early dinner in the theater district at Osteria al Doge. We've been going there for ages. It's actually where we officially got together in February of 2000 when I visited Mike in the US. So we've been going there for 17+ years and nothing much ever changes. Delicious food, good wine. They have the absolutely best lasagna ever. Mike gets a spinach ravioli in a butter sage sauce that's also pretty yum. Before and after the theater it can get pretty crowded and without reservations on the weekend you don't have much of a chance. But since we went during a more off time it was not crowded at all and actually really nice. We may need to try that again another time. We usually tend to go before or after a show and I guess so does everyone else so that's when it's really, really busy.
After we were done at Osteria al Doge we stopped at Madison&Vine for some wine before eventually taking the train back to Connecticut. Definitely a fun Saturday even though it's always tiring and a long day but still a lot of fun of course.
Sunday we slept in and and then went to the movies to see "Ingrid Goes West". Really makes you think about today's world and social media. The perfect commentary on all of those things in a way. Would definitely recommend catching it if you have the chance. After the movie we had a late lunch at 121 in Oxford and later caught up on some TiVo before watching the MTV VMA's. We recorded those too so we fast forwarded through the commercials and boring parts. Nothing too spectacular I suppose.
Well let's see what this week brings. Tomorrow, Tuesday, we have tickets to see Green Day in Hartford so that should be good. The last time we saw them I think was on their American Idiot tour, so quite some time ago. Going to shows mid week always makes me feel old because I am always dragging like crazy the next day but oh well, such is life I suppose.
Letter/Mail Update: Received a letter from/owe a reply to: Celia/MA.
Posted by Hanna at 07:22 AM in Food and Drink, NYC | Permalink | Comments (0)
Monday, August 14, 2017
Broadway Weekend
Good Morning Monday. Ugh, I hate Monday mornings. I guess it's just the fact of the weekend being over and having to start a new work week. Fingers crossed it turns out to be a decent week. It's still busy at work but I guess that's a given with it still being summer. I am partially covering for someone else on vacation at the moment but I am only covering some of her files/accounts so it's not so so bad. Hanging in there and doing my best. I guess summer will be over soon enough. Kind of sad to be wishing summer away but I guess it's an occupational hazard in my job now.
This summer has been kind of weird weather wise anyway. We have had some crazy hot days but mainly it hasn't been so bad. Especially the last few weeks it has always cooler down to a nice temperature (60ies, sometimes even mid 50ies = 12-15 Celsius) at night which has made sleeping pretty nice. Kind of unheard of in August usually but I am ok with it. We will see what the rest of the month brings. Don't get me wrong, we have had some hot and also plenty of humid weather but it definitely hasn't been the unbearable weather we had last summer.
On Saturday we took the train down to NYC to see "The Great Comet" again on Broadway. Decided to see it again since it now has Ingrid Michaelson in it. Well it did. Sunday was her last show but she was in it for about 8 weeks I believe. Enjoyed the show a lot and really wish it wasn't closing on Sept. 3. I have seen it three times now and I would be happy to go see it again. Little crazy I know. Oh well. I do have the soundtrack/cast recording so I can always listen to that if all else fails. :)
After the show we had dinner at Madison & Vine, eventually took the train back and stopped at Two Steps for a couple more drinks and to hang out. Then on Sunday we went to see "The Glasshouse". Enjoyed the movie but it's so crazy to think that most of it was actually based on a true story. What a strange way to grow up. Anyway, I would definitely recommend seeing the movie. After the movies we had lunch in Oxford at 121 and eventually stopped at the store for groceries and then caught up on some TiVo. We are finally sort of getting caught up. Kind of funny since a lot of the fall shows will be starting up again in the not too distant future.
Letter/Mail Update: All caught up on my mail at the moment - yay :)
Posted by Hanna at 07:23 AM in NYC | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, June 25, 2017
Broadway Saturday - Kinky Boots
Sunday afternoon, we meet again. Really, where does the time go? :) It's already super close to July now. Only one week left in June. So crazy.
Yesterday, Saturday, was a fun day. We took the train into NYC in the morning and had lunch at "The Perfect Pint" before seeing the 2pm show of "Kinky Boots". What a great show. We had been meaning to see it for a while but there are so many shows on Broadway it's hard to make the time and money to see them all. But when Brendon Urie (from Panic at the DIsco) was announced to star in it we finally decided to go see it. I am really glad that we did because it was a truly great show. Very inspiring & heartfelt as well as funny with great music and dance numbers. Would recommend it in a heartbeat.
After the show we stopped into a restaurant/bar on our way back to Grand Central. Had another snack and I had some yummy Frozen Rose. Delicious. Later we took the train back and met up with our friend John at a local place for another couple of drinks. Fun and busy day all around.
Today we slept in late which was nice. Then went for lunch to Oxford. At 121 now. Had lunch and now just hanging out and relaxing with some wine. Nice, relaxing Sunday afternoon.
We will see what next week brings at work. I am sure it's supposed to be super busy. But it will be followed by a 4 day weekend. Management decided to give us Monday, July 3rd off as well as the 4th so we will have a 4 day weekend for the holiday. Really excited about that!! Well let's get through this coming work week and then I can enjoy my four days off. :)
Letter/Mail Update: Received letters from/owe replies to: Kimber/Canada, Eunice/Malta and Caroline/Scotland.
Posted by Hanna at 03:29 PM in Food and Drink, NYC, Performances, Work Stories | Permalink | Comments (0)
Monday, May 29, 2017
NYC & Memorial Day Weekend
Happy Memorial Day to everyone here in the US. :) I am off from work today and had a nice
3-day weekend. Can't complain. :) It's nice to actually have the holidays off at my new job. But being involved in an international company & industry we are still never a 100% off of course. I have people in other parts of the world who don't have Memorial Day off and where it's business as usual so there is a lot of prep work to be done and a close eye to be kept upon things. But it's still nice to have an extended weekend of course. :)
Saturday we went down to NYC and spent the day in the city. Had lunch and saw "Waitress" on Broadway. Great musical and it was fun to see Sara Bareilles in it. Afterwards we stopped and had a light dinner and some drinks before taking the train back to CT. Definitely a fun day out.
Yesterday, Sunday, we took advantage of the fact that the weather was semi decent (pretty humid but not raining at least) and went for a 2 3/4 mile walk. We had explored the same trail earlier in the season when the trees were still bare. What a difference a few weeks can make. So green and lush now. Was nice to be outside for a while.
Today it's been raining on and off pretty much all day. So we have been taking it easy. Slept in and are now at the Red Rooster pub for lunch. Going to stop at the grocery store for a few things on our way home and then catch up on some TiVo. Should be a relaxing night. We will see what tomorrow brings at work. At least it will be a 4 day work week so that's something. :)
Well, that's all the news here from my end. Hope everyone in the US had a nice Memorial Day weekend.
Letter/Mail Update: Letters went out on Friday to: Eloine, NY and Celia/MA.. Received letters from/owe replies to: Lotte/Denmark and Caroline/Scotland.
Posted by Hanna at 03:29 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, NYC, Performances | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, March 05, 2017
Panic at the Disco and more
And it's already Sunday afternoon again. How does that happen? Had a relaxed and quiet weekend overall so I can't complain too much. Sipping a delicious Peach Bellini right now and savoring what's left of my Sunday.
Wednesday I had lunch with my friend Sharon which was great as it's been a little while since I have seen her. It was great to meet up and catch up a bit.
Thursday we went down to NYC after work to see "Panic at the Disco" at Madison Square Garden. They really put on an amazing show. His voice is crazy. He can reach such high notes and still stay in tune. It's pretty impressive. Lots of screaming teenage girls (I guess I am getting old - lol) but it was still a lot of fun. Here are some clips if you are interested (both originals and covers)
Don't threaten me with a good time
Nine in the Afternoon
I Write Sins Not Tragedies
L.A. Devotee
Bohemian Rhapsody
Movin Out
Let's see what next week brings at work. I will have to prepare for vacation coverage as the week after one of my co-workers will be out for a week. That will be the first time covering for someone else for a whole week. I have done it for a day or two but not for an entire week. Well fingers crossed everything goes well. :)
Also just booked a hotel in Mystic, CT for one night in July. Our friends Megan and Jonathan are getting married at Mystic Seaport so that should be fun.
Letter/Mail Update: Received letters from/owe a reply to: Laura/Spain.
Posted by Hanna at 02:46 PM in Music, NYC | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, February 19, 2017
Valentine's, Birthday Weekend for Mike, Broadway and more
Another busy week has come to an end. Already Sunday afternoon again, how does that happen?
Had a good but definitely busy week. Tuesday was Valentine's Day. I had to work till 6 but after I got out we made our way over to Red Rooster in Newtown. First time I had been there but I really liked the place. It was busy but we lucked out and managed to get a seat at the bar. Yummy thin crust pizza.
Yesterday was Mike's birthday and we headed down to NYC to see "The Book of Mormon" on Broadway. Been wanting to see it for ages, it's been on Broadway since 2011 I think. It was definitely worth the wait and really funny. Had lunch at "The Perfect Pint" prior to the show and afterwards we went to dinner at Ibiza back in CT - yummy tapas.
Today we slept in and then stopped at my office for a min. Wanted to hang up a couple of things I got for my cubicle. Afterwards we headed to 121 in Oxford for lunch. Relaxing and drinking some delicious rose from Provence now.
Let's see what next week brings at work. Mike is actually off to CA for 3 nights starting tomorrow. Our Australian friend Nicki will be in L.A. so he will meet up with her. I would have loved to have been able to go but with my new job and saving up vacation time it is really not a good time. Oh well. At least the weather has turned almost spring like here in CT at the moment too. Can't complain too much. :)
Letter/Mail Update: Received a letter/owe a reply to: Eloine/NY, Bianca/Germany and Tiffany/OK.
Posted by Hanna at 04:00 PM in Food and Drink, Holidays, NYC, Travel | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, January 15, 2017
Klimt Exhibit, NYC Sunday
And another week gone by again already. Only one week until I go to Pittsburgh for training.
Had a good week at work. Nothing too eventful to report I suppose. Yesterday I had my yearly check up at the OB/GYN. So that's done for another year as well.
Also went to the movies yesterday to see "Live by Night", Ben Affleck's new movie. I usually like him but the movie was only meh at best. It wasn't terrible by any means but also not amazing. I expected something better I supoose. Oh well.
Today we went down to NYC to see the Klimt exhibit at the Neue Gallerie (upper East Side, pretty close to the Guggenheim museum). The museum is neat and modeled after Viennese art galleries, filled completely with Austrian and German art. The special Klimt exibit ends tomorrow so I am glad we managed to see it. It must be pretty popular as there was a line to get in when the museum opened at 11am.
After the museum we went to the Third Ave Ale House where we are now. Had a yummy lunch and just hanging out for a bit now before heading back to CT in a little while.
Then tomorrow it's Monday and back to work. One more week before heading to Pittsburgh next Sunday. Going to be there for 10 days for training.
Letter/Mail Update: A letter went out on Wednesday to: Lotte/Denmark. Received letters/owe a reply to: Carmen/Malta, Kimber/Canada and Celia/MA.
Posted by Hanna at 02:10 PM in Austria , Food and Drink, NYC | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, November 20, 2016
Concert Week :)
Hello from Boston. :) Just here for a quick stay on the weekend. Came up here yesterday afternoon, checked into our hotel (the Indigo in Newton) and then took the T into Boston to the area around Fenway. Had a late lunch at Boston Beer Works and hung out there for a bit. Afterwards we were going to have another drink at the Yardhouse but it being Saturday night the place was absolutely packed, line out the door wait for tables and the whole bar full. So instead we went into another place we saw walking by called Bar Louie that was pretty neat. Afterwards we took the T over to the venue (only 4 or so stops) - the Paradise Rock Club. Oh, I didn't even mention what we were doing yet. Ha ha .. sorry .. little all over the place this morning. Anyway, we went to see Letters to Cleo. First new music/EP in 17 years. Mike used to be a big fan of them when he was younger so it was cool to see them live after all this time. They put on an amazing and long show. But I have determined I am definitely too old for the standing room only sticky club scene. lol. I can feel every muscle in my body today from standing up for 3+ hrs straight. Definitely not my scene anymore. But regardless, we did have a great time of course. Took an Uber back to the hotel after which wasn't too bad cost-wise.
Today we slept in and are now hanging out at Starbucks for a bit before heading to Legal Seafoods for lunch. I love Legal Seafoods and am truly upset they closed all the ones relatively close to us. I think the only one we have now is on Long Island somewhere but that's a bitch of a ride and not really very close. So whenever we come up to the Boston area we try to make sure to eat at a Legal Seafoods since there are plenty in this area. Yummm. Can't wait. :) After lunch we are going to make our way back to CT. And then tomorrow it's already Monday again. But at least it's a short work week next week with Thanksgiving. I have never been off for Thur/Fr/Sat for Thanksgiving without having to jump through fifteen hurdles/tons of prep work/scheduling other people to cover so this is a really nice surprise/change having a 4 day weekend. Yay. :)
So let's rewind to earlier in the week. We had another concert this week on Wednesday. Went down to NYC to see Ingrid Michaelson at the Beacon Theater. Really neat venue (such a cool theater) even though being up in the balcony gave me vertigo. The views were really great though. And a fun show. Before the concert we had dinner at Amsterdam Ale House, which was a neat find. Also found a parking garage close to there that was nice and easy to get in and out of. Definitely a win-win. The show was great. Ended up getting to bed around 1am which made Thursday morning not all that fun. But I guess no pain, no gain. Ha ha.
Well that's all the news from this past week. Bailey, our new cat, is settling in well. She seems happy, cuddly and purry most of the time. The other cats aren't too thrilled though. Sadie and Mindy have somewhat abandoned me and are spending a lot of time with Mike's sister, Kristina, instead. Oh well. I guess things will settle eventually and they will hopefully end up getting along. For now there is a lot of hissing/growling and plain avoiding each other. We will see how it continues.
Letter/Mail Update: Letters went out on Tuesday and Wednesday to: Jessica/DE, Eloine/NY and Bianca/Germany.
Posted by Hanna at 11:53 AM in Food and Drink, NYC, Performances | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Birthday Update
Here we go, here's my birthday update post. :) Really can't complain. Had an absolutely fun and wonderful extended birthday celebration.
Sunday we started off the day by having breakfast. I had yummy French Toast and bacon, one of my favorites. Then took the train down to NYC and headed over to the theater district from Grand Central. We hung out The Perfect Pint for a bit. Pretty neat bar for midtown where it's usually hard to find anything that's not a stereotypical touristy Irish pub.
From there we headed over to the Imperial Theater which is only a block from there. Was really excited to see "The Great Comet of 1812". We splurged and got stage tickets. The seating and layout was super unique and the whole experience was just amazing. I have seen my share of Broadway musicals, plays and productions but I honestly have never seen one where minutes after it ended I said "I wanna see it again. Now!!" It was just so cool. The stage tickets were amazing. The ensemble and cast was all around us at all times, people everywhere, singing, dancing, playing instruments. It was so immersive. Denee Benton absolutely blew me away. Josh Groban has more of an understated role but does very well with it and gets to show off his impressive singing skills quite a few times. I could go on for ages but I won't. But truly .. if you get a chance to see it .. go see it. Splurge on stage tickets if you can. But even orchestra or mezzanine would be ok. The ensemble and cast is all over the theater at all times so even if you're farther away from the stage you still get to be close to performers. I really do want to see it again. I don't think I can justify paying for stage tickets a second time but I'll be happy to see it from a different viewpoint as well. I honestly think you could watch it ten times and still see something new as there is so much going on all around you at all times.
After the show we went for dinner at Osteria al Doge which was delicious as always. After a yummy dinner we headed back towards Grand Central but stopped at a wine bar about a block from there (Madison & Vine) and had some wine to wind down. Ended up hanging out there for a while, not paying attention to the time and train schedule. Didn't realize that Sunday and Saturday schedules are different and that there is an hour and a half gap between trains. So we missed the train and didn't get home till about 2.30am. But not the end of the world since we didn't have any early morning plans on Monday.
Monday I filled out my employment paperwork. Oh wait .. I don't think I even updated about that properly on here. On Friday I received a call from the company extending a job offer. They sent the papers via FedEx so I received them Saturday. Filled out everything Monday and sent them back via FedEx (their headquarter is in Pittsburgh) My start date is November 7th.
Anyway, after we did that Monday morning we headed to the Hopkins Vineyard for some wine and cheese. Nice autumn day with great views at Lake Waramaug. Had a great time relaxing, drinking wine and eating cheese. Perfect birthday afternoon. :) In the evening we went to Rizzuto's for dinner and met up with some friends which was also fun.
Today I am just catching up on some things at home, drinking tea and relaxing. We decided to book a 3-night stay in Montreal for the weekend (Sat-Tue) to have one more vacation before I start my new job. Once I start I won't be able to take any significant time off for a while so it will be nice to go away one more time beforehand.
Letter/Mail Update: Received letters/owe replies to: Carmen/Malta, Celia/MA, Nina/WA and Eloine/NY.
Posted by Hanna at 02:42 PM in Food and Drink, NYC, Performances, Wine | Permalink | Comments (0)