Moving to NYC!!!

I have held off on posting stuff a lot because GUESS WHAT?!?!

I've moved to New York!

*cue cheers and giant applause* (oh wait, is that only in my head? Ah well.)

So basically the second week of August, I spent mostly packing (10% of the time) and agonizing over packing (90% of the time). When I agonize over things, I get into this state of 'rabbit in headlights'. I say rabbit because I feel much more small and helpless than a deer; I mean a deer can really put a dent in your bumper, and that's without talking about how he can just go through the windshield and skewer your ass with his horns.

Anyways, that means that most of the time, I get really irritated about my inability to accomplish anything, and so I destress by watching TV and doing nothing remotely useful. Good coping strategy, no? Thank goodness for my wonderful mother, who, let's be honest, probably did 80% of the packing herself. Let's just say I had a more managerial role ... say Director of Fashion Choices.

So, let's get to the down and dirty of my trip:
1. United Airlines BLOWS. (Note to self - do NOT forget this fact when booking plane home for Christmas even if they're cheaper.) Flight attendants? Rude. Food? Non-existent. 

But, on the upside, the whole pre-flight experience was great. My bags? Weren't weighed. (Mind you, I was a champ - 2 bags at 23.1 kg and 1 bag at 23.0 kg). The whole immigration thing? Stamp, stamp and off you go. So that was a load off my shoulders. (Although not literally, because I had to lug around a 10 kilo bag on my shoulder for 2 hours).

2. Carts at Newark cost 5$ to rent? WTF. In EVERY.SINGLE.OTHER.AIRPORT they've always been free. I mean, I had US cash, but it wasn't exactly burning a hole in my pocket, begging to be spent, if you know what I mean.

3. I probably shouldn't have hired that gypsy cab. But to be fair, Newark shouldn't have put their Taxi stand at the FARTHEST end of the airport, across all the fricking traffic. (Note to self - fly into JFK. Too bad LaGuardia is domestic only, because that airport ROCKS). Plus my cart was so huge, loaded with my 4 huge suitcases, that the thought of going over the curb with it was too terrifying.

I may have made an off-colour joke to the cabbie along the lines of 'I hope you don't kill me and put my body in a ditch' which I don't think he took well.

4. And last but not least, everybody is SO NICE. Not what you would expect, right? But everyone, from the cab driver, to the manager at my hotel (by the way, 100$ a night buys you a bed but no bathroom. But thank god for AC - that made it TOTALLY worth it), the waiter at my new fave eatery, EVERYONE.

Conclusion - so far, I love it. I mean it's hot and humid, but nowhere near how horrible Moscow was, and besides, I just spend all my time sitting at my desk with a tower fan at full blast. That baby has already paid for itself.

Oh wait, maybe I should go explore this city outside my wonderful, cozy room. They say it's pretty cool. Or something.