Category: NYC

Ok, ok I’ll admit it: I didn’t come here just to hunt dinosaur cans! You may recall that I came last year to go up the last observation tower in the city that I hadn’t visited and was foiled by cloud. I’m back for another try!

A quick trip on the subway and I was back at One World Observatory, the tallest building in the USA. The skies were clear so I knew I’d enjoy some nice views today!

It was insanely hot today and even walking around outside for a few minutes was uncomfortable. The air conditioning in the foyer was sublime and even if the tower (which cost $43) disappointed at least I would be underwhelmed in comfort!

Thankfully the views were wonderful. There are three levels to the observatory and the best one (floor 100) is 380 meters above the ground. Even from this height you could see details on the ground below and a great view for many miles. The above photo shows the view to the southwest: can you see the Statue of Liberty?

That’s looking directly down. The thin tower on the left is residential and appears incredibly tall from the ground, but you tower over it from One World Observatory. Almost all of the other buildings that make up the majority of the city are at least six stories tall, but look tiny from that high.

That’s looking north back toward midtown, with the Hudson River on the left and East River on the top right. If you look very closely you can see the Empire State Building (next to my hotel).

One World was expensive to visit and isn’t in midtown where the other four observation platforms are, but I enjoyed it a lot and would say it’s worth the visit if you’re ever in the city. To be honest I liked the high views so much it makes me want to visit Skytree again…

As I said the heat was extreme today – almost unendurable! The big difference to yesterday was the terrible humidity, and I spent much of the day drenched in sweat. I drunk the entire bottle in one hearty slug, and I needed to do this so many times today I’m surprised I didn’t drown!

In the afternoon I did some more shopping, and then went to see the Times Square lights which seem to multiply every year. Even after dark it’s still uncomfortably warm outside, and the AC of my hotel room when I returned was blissful!

Tomorrow I’ll head home, but not before another activity I like to do every time I visit the city. Can you guess what it is?

I’m in NYC again! One never needs a reason to visit this city, but let’s say that this time I’m here on a hunt for Dr Pepper Jurassic Park cans! I want some and stores in Albany don’t sell individual soda cans and I’m certainly not going to buy full cases just to get one. So I’m here to check the delis and markets and bodegas and see if I can find a dinosaur or two…

It’s really hot! My weather app says it’s 35C/95F but ‘feels like’ 38C/100F. There’s not much of a breeze, which is a blessing since when it does arrive it feels like a sirocco. Walking through the caverns of the city today felt like trudging through a concrete hell. The forecast for tomorrow is even hotter!

I walked up and down visiting my usual shops, buying comics and manga and some cosmetics for kls. I ate junk fine food, hydrated myself frequently, and as I now sit half-dead in my hotel room it feels like I may have sunburn as well.

And speaking of my room, look at this view:

What’s that big building outside the window you ask? Maybe you’ll recognize it in this shot taken right at the window:

Yes, I have an incredible view of the Empire State Building from my room! I look forward to seeing it lit up tonight 🙂

The city doesn’t seem as busy as I’m used to in summer. Maybe it’s people staying out of the heat, or maybe the reports of reduced US tourism is affecting NYC as well. But there’s still plenty here and mid afternoon most of them looked as dead as I felt as we all struggled through the hot air.

After a full day, when I returned to the hotel for the evening, had I been successful in my hunt? I’ll let this photo speak for me:

There’s (I believe) twelve different dinosaur cans in total, but the other flavours are uncommon and I’d be extremely surprised if I found individual cans for sale so I’m happy with these two. Mission successful then….

Except perhaps for another series of collectible cans available right now:

Egg & Bacon on toast. The rare example of me eating eggs 🙂

It was parade day, which means these guys selling green stuff were everywhere. I’ve never been to a city with as many street vendors as NYC, and their absence was very noticeable during Covid.

We only glimpsed a bit of the parade since crowds were massive. Even the (ultimately unrealized) threat of rain didn’t keep people away. We spent the day shopping!

We didn’t buy that.

Or that.

The view from the roof of our hotel. The bar up there was closed so we had to peep out the door to the outdoor seating, but the view of the Empire State Building was great! The hotel is Japanese by the way, and has a tatami room. Maybe we’ll stay there one day.