Some helpful hints on where to stay!

Airbnb experiences

Throughout this trip we used Airbnb to find traveller friendly people to stay with. The idea was that we would meet people who actually lived in the places we were travelling to, and this would help us feel more than just observers - we could learn a little bit about the area, the people that lived there, and what brought them to these places. We also thought we might have a better chance of finding a good cup of coffee and a hidden away cafe with tasty food!

The concept behind Airbnb is that people who have a spare room temporarily lend it out to travellers. I love the idea of connecting people together from around the world - it seems a much more genuine experience than staying in a sterile hotel.

All of the places we stayed in were great! In some we had closer contact with the owners than others. We'd highly recommend the following hosts if you're looking for somewhere to stay:

Vermont - Burlington: Dan
New York - East Village: Adam and Maria
New York - Chelsea: Diana
New York - Upper East Side: Tim
Marylands - Baltimore: Rose & Brian

Relaxing in Rose & Brian's dining room, Baltimore

Funky NY apartment in Chelsea - Diana

Dan's greenroom in Burlington, Vermont

A few last days in NY

Baltimore to New York

We ended our trip with a few last days in NY.

We hit the shops and crammed our backpack full of new camping gear from REI, Paragon Sports and Eastern Mountain Sports - pack liners, head torches, fold out day packs - extras we thought we'd need on our next big trip to Europe in a couple of months time.

New shoes anyone?

Billy scoured the second hand bookshops for some classics to add to our Hemmingway shelf. We picked up Tarzan and the Apes and the Sexual Life of Savages (I bet it's the first one people select to browse!) from Housingworks, a collection of Montaigne essays from the incredible Strand bookstore (could spend hours and hours in here), and our greatest find, a 1913 edition of Baedecker's Spain and Portugal from the Complete Traveller Antiquarian Bookstore. We're planning on seeing how much has changed in the past 100 years!

The largest collection of Baedeckers in the world!

We visited the International Centre for Photography, where they were showing a collection of contemporary works on the theme A Different Kind of Order from around 25 different artists. The exhibits that stood out to us were two lightboxes showing images of every window and door from Ponte City, an apartment/office block in South Africa (Mikhael Subotzky / Patrick Waterhouse); and photographic maps of cities (Sohei Nishino).

We took a very intriguing trip to Tannen's Magic Shop that was described as one of NY's best (and oldest) magic shops. We entered an unassuming building in Midtown with a lone security guard manning a shabby looking front desk. We tentatively enquired about a magic store, to which the security guard simply responded that we needed to "sign here". Not quite sure whether we had just signed a secrecy act, or a visitors book, we took the lift up to the 6th floor and wound our way along a corridor of peeling white paint. A large sign gave us hope that we were headed in the right direction.

An interesting place for a retail store!

Sure enough, we open a door into a world of magic – packed behind a counter of course. Magicians are renowned for their ability to make things disappear. The staff showed us a few tricks including turning bubbles into solid balls, and making coins appear in a tin. We couldn't quite be convinced to buy a trick, but we bought one of Tarbell's books in the hope to teach ourselves a few more skills. It was an interesting experience to add to our collection of magic experiences!

The other standout activity was a night at Fuerza Bruta that Taylor recommended as a true New York experience. We entered a large warehouse-type building that felt a little bit like a big nightclub with about 150 other people. A Spanish, latino looking man came out on a conveyor belt in a white suit. Running. Away from something. Doors came hurtling across the room, and he burst through them. We were covered in confetti. Chairs appeared on the conveyor and travelled past him as he continued on his unknown journey. We moved about the space as the conveyor moved. A silver curtain surrounded us and 2 women suspended above us bounced and tumbled across the moving wall. A dance party started. We were the dance party. Another stage appeared. Brazillian style dance. Boxes crashed around. A cloth covered the audience and bounced as we bounced. It disappeared then was replaced by a clear plastic sheet. Filled with water. Then people. Sliding and gliding across in the water in the sky above. This was miles above slip and slide fun. Lights cast interesting glow and you could see the ripples as the dancers interacted. The sheet was lowered and you could reach up and touch, but not touch, the performers on the other side.

Unreal experience!

There are countless other small moments that made New York - spotting street fashion (although not everywhere as I originally expected), doughnuts from Doughnut Planet, burgers and shakes and the Shake Shack and singers on the subway. New York was all that I expected...and then wasn't. I couldn't help but wonder if New York's time has past. The energy, opportunity and cultural mix that had made the city was more gentrified and stable, rather than growing and changing. Then again...it's still a fun place to be!

So, goodbye NY, Vermont and Baltimore. Thank you all our wonderful Airbnb hosts (separate posting on this to come). Congratulations Tuugi & Puje, and thank you for including us in your celebrations. And most importantly, thank you Billy for joining me on this fantastic trip!

Saying Goodbyes

Baltimore

After such a good time reuniting with everyone last night, it was sad to say good bye this morning. But we did enjoy a relaxed morning chatting over incredible strawberry and banana pancakes at the Village Square Cafe in Cross Keys.

Everyone was off on more exciting adventures. Solongo and her Mum were heading to NY for a couple of days, before continuing onto soul food and jazz in New Orleans. Tuugi and Puje were spending some time with family before heading to Costa Rica for a few weeks of sunshine and relaxation. Taylor and Ryan were heading back to New Jersey, where Ryan was competing in his first half ironman race, and Taylor would fly back to Mongolia on Wednesday.

Wow! What an amazing group of people!

Billy and I were heading back to New York for a final few days of shopping before flying home. Not to rush from Baltimore too quickly though, we spent the afternoon browsing the antique stores and pink flamingoes on 36th Street / Hampden.

Not quite sure about the pink flamingoes

We found ourselves settling into a few boutique beers at the Brewers Art in town, where we managed to drink our way down the entire menu and enjoy a tasty cheese plate. A very chilled way to say goodbye to Baltimore!

A beautiful wedding

Baltimore

Wedding day arrived, Saturday 10 August, and Billy and I started the day with an early morning run to nearby Druid Hill Park. Despite all our walking, the increased intensity of jogging was a bit of a jolt to the system! But it was beautiful to be up early and exploring a new part of the town, that we wouldn't have seen otherwise.

We still had a few hours in the morning free, so Billy and I joined Sean (my boss from last year) on a whirlwind trip to Washington DC to check out the monuments, and have a healthy lunch with Todd (another friend from Mongolia) in George Town. We gazed up in admiration at Lincoln, were quietened by the Korean War Memorial, took in Martin Luther King's strong and motivating words, admired the scaffolding of the Washington Obelisk, were disappointed that the President hadn't stayed home to say hello, and learnt about the controversial "Black Gash" Vietnam War Memorial.

We made it back to Baltimore in plenty of time to get ready for the wedding, and were soon sitting amongst the sculptures of the Baltimore Museum of Art. Tuugi's flower girls raced around in white and pink playing and giggling. Friends met and milled about. We greeted Taylor (my housemate and great friend from last year) and her fiance Ryan with big smiles and hugs. It was all very relaxed. 

Accompanied by a traditional Canon in D, following her bright and happy bridesmaids, Tuugi walked out with her mother looking both stunning and elegant. She and Puje linked hands as their good friend Dr Ayra led them through the service in both English and Mongolian.

Dr Ayra read a moving poem (in Mongolian, so unfortunately it was lost on me!) written by his father, a well respected Mongolian historian, and Tuugi and Puje lit a tulga together (small fire used to light the stove in the centre of a ger, the most important item to life in cold Mongolia), a Mongolian tradition.

The rest of the night was a lovely evening of impromptu speeches from guests interspersed with plenty of conversation with old and new friends. There was no doubt that Tuugi and Puje are a wonderful couple, with independent strengths but a strong sense of togetherness.

They started up the dance floor with some very cool dance moves, and it was far too soon before we were having cake and saying good bye. A really lovely wedding, we couldn't have been happier for Tuugi and Puje!

Touring Baltimore

Baltimore

It was time to move to the next stage of our trip - a few days in Baltimore to celebrate Tuugi and Puje's wedding, two dear friends that I met last year in Mongolia.

We had been especially looking forward to this part of our trip, catching up with old friends, and being part of a very special occaision!

After grabbing a few Rueben sandwiches from Murray's and a second breakfast at a nearby french cafe, Le Grainne Cafe, we caught the bus down to Baltimore (Thurs, 8 Aug), and found our way to Rose and Brian's beautiful farmstyle house (another great find on Airbnb). 

Somehow we stubbled on a local eating institution, the Papermoon Diner, which was both over the top, weird and wonderful all at the same time. I felt like we'd ended up on Toy Story!

Papermoon Cafe, Baltimore

On Friday, 9 Aug, after a short run to wake us up, we met up with Tuugi and Puje for a tour of Baltimore. We piled into their car along with Solongo and her mother and a mixture of English and Mongolian flooded the space with excited chatter - there was so much to catch up on, and it was great to see all our friends again. I had missed hearing spoken Mongolian, and was instantly transported back to last year, and our car trips together on our way to hiking on the weekends.

Tuugi and Puje took us to all the local hotspots. Federal Hill overlooking the harbour,  Fort McHenry where the battle over Baltimore inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star Spangled Banner, the city's Basilica (the first cathedral in America). We checked out the global headquarters of Under Armour and caught the commuter ferry across to Fell's point for a delicious bakery lunch. Everything was amazingly seamless...we'd get dropped off in one location, walk to the next with Tuugi telling us all about the history and interesting detail, and amazingly Puje would appear at the end with the cars ready to go. What a team!

The Baltimore Basilica

We ended the day with a pre-wedding group dinner, at the Olive Garden American-Italian restaurant in Columbia, where we met many of the other guests who had travelled to the wedding. So much fun to meet Tuugi and Puje's friends and family, who are all so engaging and interesting to speak with. It felt very special to be part of this Mongolian community that had gathered in Baltimore.

Recounting tales of Taft

Looks like we feature in this weekend's edition of the Burlington Free Press!

We met Molly at Taft Lodge, the night before we climbed up to the views at Mt Mansfield. Great to read another perspective on the evening and the walk.

More online

New York Must Sees

New York

We moved back to Diana and Lilian’s place to continue our exploration of New York from the now familiar streets of Chelsea.

Diana and Lilian's apartment in Chelsea

Over the next few days we experienced all the elements of New York that had previously just been images in my mind.

Riding the subway

We walked through Washington Park and the University down to Wall St and the Stock Exchange, gazed up at the tower that is being build to replace the World Trade Centre from the Atrium of the Finance Building, discovered quirky stores in Soho, and joined a crowd in the street that had gathered to watch a highschool basketball game.

We passed Radio City on the way to the Rockefeller Centre and the Top of the Rock to enjoy the expansive views south towards the buildings of lower Manhattan and north over Central Park (much bigger than I anticipated!). We dreamt of big journeys at Grand Central Station, joined the crowds along at Times Square and were engulfed by the collection of modern brand names at Broadway before appreciating the collection of artist brand names in the Met. We grabbed hot pastrami sandwiches from the PastramiQueen on the Upper East Side, and took a nap in Central Park.

My favourite was joining New York Outriggers for a session on the Hudson from Chelsea Pier, as it made me feel like part of New York, rather than just being an observer.  We joined the girls on an interval session that took us all the way down to Tribeca and the Financial District. They seemed just like PDs – friends who paddle together, they had a race one of the crews was preparing for on the weekend… and they also were potentially about to lose the lease on the pier where they store their canoes.

Thanks Carol for coming down from Montauk to say hello – it was awesome to see you, and we’d love to take you for a paddle when you’re next in Sydney! I was pretty knackered by the end of the session – it was tough going into the chop and the current – and wolfed down a bowl of meatballs afterwards. Delicious!

We spent a day embracing what New York was originally all about – a mixture of cultures thrown together in the same location, making a fresh start. Starting at a nearby French café for crepes and bowls of coffee, we then caught the No 6 train to Jackson Heights in Queens. The area is an eclectic mix of communities – Columbian food stalls, Indian dress shops. We peered in the window of a Polish grocery store to check out the selection of sauerkraut, and bought ultra cheap berries from a Chinese fruit shop before sitting down for lunch at a Columbian corner store. On the return trip to Manhattan stopped to admire the Five Points graffiti warehouse – home to a huge array of artists. Finally, we enjoyed a delicious dinner at Café Gitane – a great recommendation from Nick.

It's been a busy, but fun week in the city! Now time to head to Baltimore for the last stage of our trip - Tuugi and Puje's wedding

Through the streets of Brooklyn

New York

We were ready to start exploring our new environment, and with our much invested walking fitness, decided to head over the Williamsburg Bridge to Brooklyn in the early morning light for coffee.

We timed our trip perfectly, and arrived at the Blue Bottle Café right on opening, joining a small queue of people also looking for their early morning caffeine fix. We’d heard about the Blue Bottle Café in a book Billy had given me for my birthday last year, Edible Selby. The book was a great combination of photography and stories of quirky food creators from around the world. We’d read that the owner of the Blue Bottle Café loved coffee so much he used to roast his own beans in a frying pan when he traveled, and always carried his own grinder and coffee press on the plane. This was coffee obsession we had to experience for ourselves! The café felt like a place where coffee was loved. The staff paid attention to every coffee, concentration on each face as they poured creamy frothed milk delicately into each cup. Drip coffee looked to be the specialty, but we opted for espresso. It was great coffee…but we weren’t quite convinced that it was miles above other cups we’ve had before.

We continued through the industrial chic streets, that felt a little like Pyrmont in Sydney, and headed up to the East River State Park to the flea markets

As we wandered up and down the stalls it was hard to not start collecting industrial antiques, old maps, wooden articles and hand made furniture that would be far too big to carry home. With the sun out, it was a the perfect way to spend a lazy Sunday morning, and we ended up taking in the view over East River and Manhattan skyline from the grassy park, snacking on Sunday Gravy’s rich pork and sausage ragu.

There was plenty more to see in Brooklyn, so we headed to the ferry terminal with the intention on heading down the East River to Dumbo, beneath the Manhattan Bridge (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass). Unfortunately, about 300 other people had the same idea, so after lining up and missing one ferry, we decided to walk instead.

Stopping at Book Thug Nation along the way

Streets of Brooklyn

We refueled with a few coffees at Brooklyn Roasting Company and grabbed some fish tacos and guacamole at Gran Electrica, another funky Mexican place before walking along the piers of Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Everyone was out enjoying summer – one of the piers had been converted into soccer fields, another into volleyball courts. There were families having barbeques, a public pop up swimming pool and a photography exhibition, which all came together to create an energetic summer feel.

To celebrate the day we grabbed a cocktail at Alma, a roof top restaurant and watched the lights of Manhattan emerge from the city silhouette as the sunset glowed, then faded into the deep purple light of evening.

Walking home via the Brooklyn Bridge

Images of New York II

Lower Manhattan & Beyond

Wall St Bull

Where money is made and lost

And love is made and lost

Washington wants a hotdog

Stately

It's got to be New York, New York

Property border

Splash of colour

Enforced

The start of great journeys 

Play me some jazz

Living the dream in Central Park (or just dreaming?)

Images of New York

Brooklyn

Williamsburg Bridge

Dots and dashes 

Tagged

Skyline

Sending a text to Manhattan

New industry at the Navy Yards

Brooklyn Bridge

A place to relax

Night

Bridge lines