New York, New York

This weekend I went to New York. I love New York. It was cold and windy and rainy, but I still love New York. I also love how Pittsburgh is about ten degrees warmer.
I stayed at the Chelsea International Youth Hostel. It's a good experience, I think. It's a different sort of environment from hotels in that we're literally only provided with a bed, clean sheets, a thin blanket, a locker and a bathroom. The entire building shared a shower and a toilet, and the sinks were in the rooms in a corner. That's the first time I've seen the toilet have its very own room since I've been in Japan. Sadly, unlike Japan, there's no sink on the top of the toilet, so it's a little disgusting. Also, our neighbors didn't really have a sense of cleanliness so the floor got particularly disgusting after only two days of staying there. I had to borrow my roomie's flip flops a lot. Still, it was a lot of fun - I think I'd like to back pack across Europe sometime and stay in hostels there, somehow I get the feeling that European back packers are more considerate of public toilets. But then, who knows.
We went to a lot of galleries and museums and stores designed by famous architects. Some of it was interesting. Is it bad that none of them impressed me greatly? Though I do like Donald Judd's furniture design. I didn't particularly care for his art, but his application of it is brilliant.
Happily, people really enjoyed the places I picked, my professor was like a three year old when we went into Dylan's Candy Bar. He bought a little box of mints for his wife. I didn't buy candy but it was so freezing outside that I bought a cafe au lait. O and on Saturday night, I bought my first ever Starbucks product - Caramel Apple Cider - and I enjoyed it most thoroughly. I've had cravings for more of it - maybe I'll drag Ben to the starbucks with me so I can buy some..hmmm...
O yes and I bought my bestest buddy an excellent birthday present. I'd been getting worried about what to get her, but when I saw it, I thought, "Perfect!" So, Marlen, you can look forward to a beautiful cadeau when you and my daddy pick me up from the airport in less than 10 days.
O, and my one roomie seems to have partially moved out of the apartment this weekend...Disharmony in the apartment makes me kind of sad...