Fitness Hotel!

I have to blog about our hotel in New York! It's very smart and the bed is very comfy. However what is notable is the fact that it is a "Fitness Hotel" - for those who know me and my intermittent attempts to become fitter this is quite amusing. As well as a large gym and a health food bar on the ground floor, the bedrooms themselves are furnished with exercise mats, gym bands and cords and a gym ball. There is also information on suggested running routes around the hotel, and when you switch on the large television there is a hotel channel devoted to showing you how to use the exercise equipment in your room! 

I love it, but will be too busy to use it all today because we're going for brunch at the Rockefeller Centre!

Upgrade!

To my absolute delight we were given an upgrade for our flight from London Heathrow to Newark! We were upgraded to premium economy which had lovely big seats, extra leg room, free champagne, freebies like toothbrushes and flight socks, and best of all we were in a row of two rather than three which I love! It was a great flight and as well as watching a film (Love and Friendship, a quirky wee film based on an obscure Jane Austen novella.) I got a good couple of hours sleep. Just as well, because after our early start this morning, my nap bolstered my stamina for our first day in New York. 

It was a beautiful, warm and sunny afternoon when we arrived, so as soon as we had checked into our hotel in Chelsea we decided to head to Central Park. We took the metro to the very north of the park and over the next couple of hours we walked the length of it in a zigzag fashion. The sky was blue and the leaves in the trees were just beginning to turn golden. The park was full of people of all ages and nationalities, walking, jogging, playing sports, sitting on benches; it was such a a good day. We had drinks with biscuits and cheese at the Loeb Boathouse beside the lake. We eventually emerged from the park at 59th street and found our way back to 35th street without too much trouble. By this time we were both pretty exhausted - it was only about 8 p.m. but that's 1 a.m. British time - so off to bed we went, on the 22nd floor of our hotel.

All packed!

Well here we are at the school October holiday already! I am pleased with how the last two months have gone at my new job. Of course no job is perfect but it suits me very well for now. I got a lovely compliment from a colleague today about my teaching, which came out of the blue and was very nice. 

This evening James and I went to see Jean-Michel Jarre at the Hydro after a delicious curry at the India Quay. To be honest he's not really my cup of tea but James was very excited about it. The concert was better than I expected and the electronic music was ..... not unpleasant. I quite liked the laser harp and the lighting displays we're spectacular. Most of the adoring audience were pretty ancient but then so is Jean-Michel! It was a good evening. 

And in six and a half hours we will be setting off to New York! Happy holidays! 

Davie is nearly 21

We visited our lovely boy Davie in Dundee yesterday. We took Grandma with us and Chanel came for lunch too. We booked our perennial favourite, the Bridgeview Station Restaurant which has gorgeous views across the Tay. It was such a beautiful day that we took our coffees outside after lunch to sit in the sunshine. I can hardly believe that my baby is nearly 21 years old. I'm so proud of his achievements - education has not been an easy road for David but he has worked so hard to get to 2nd year at Uni. I'm also proud of his work ethic - he works at least sixteen hours a week at Subway as well as a full time university course. But most of all I'm proud of him because he is the kindest, nicest boy you could hope to meet. 

Still Good

It has been a busy week and I haven't had time to blog. Well I have really, but instead have been watching Poldark, Cold Feet, the Great British Bake Off, and Victoria on television. If that is a waste of my life it's a very pleasant waste! 

The rest of my time has been taken up with working and socialising but sadly not much exercise. There was a stirring of genuine excitement among both pupils and staff at school yesterday at the return of that favourite Scottish television comedy of the early 2000s, "Still Game". This was originally a recurring sketch in a comedy called "Chewing the Fat", about two very grumpy old men. In "Still Game" they are still grumpy but more likeable, and the series proved to be tremendously popular in Scotland, many of the characters, settings and situations being very fond and familiar. It can be very, very, laugh out loud funny. It ended in 2007. Last year it was revived in a couple of stage shows which were very successful, and last night the first episode new series of Still Game was broadcast on BBC1. Needless to say James and I were keen to watch it and I thought it was good. They have sensibly stuck to the tried and trusted format, and because the actors have always been made up to look older than their age, their appearances in the new series are exactly the same, which makes it pretty seamless. I bet that the viewing figures will have been excellent since it seems to appeal to all ages, and it was nice to see Jack, Victor and the gang back. 

Autumn sunshine

It has been very mild right up until the end of September, however yesterday evening  I noticed that the temperature dropped considerably. It had been pleasantly mild during the day but by the evening there was a wee nip in the air. This morning it was misty and cool, and there definitely seems to be a change of season.

However we still had some beautiful weather today. James and I went through to Portobello in the hope of seeing Jennifer's poetry exhibition, even though we knew that it had ended on 30th September. We hoped that it might have been left in place over the weekend but alas it was gone - our own fault for leaving it so late. So we went for a walk along the prom all the way from Portobello to Musselburgh and back again. It was so nice walking beside the sea with views of Arthur's Seat in the distance. An elderly man asked us if the was "something on" because he was surprised at how many people were out and about. We suggested that, like us, lots of people were making the most of the sunshine while it lasts! 

Not all by myself

Book club was at my house this evening and I thought for a while that it would be book club for one! Several people had sent their apologies and the others hadn't confirmed. However, one by one, my chums arrived and soon we were a convivial group of five. We discussed the crime novels of Val McDermid. Ruth had suggested this after hearing a radio interview with McDermid which sounded interesting. We were unanimous in our enthusiasm for the different books we had read, although there were one or two wee issues regarding plot that we all noticed. But they are good crime novels. It was a very pleasant evening in great company.