After 24 hours of flying, 2 pat down searches by USA security and a mild hangover we’d arrived in New York city. Thecity that by the way never shuts down; or at least not until it closes at 4am as we later found out. My first 24 hours in the big apple were filled with the weird,wonder andwhacky! Mark put it the best when he said “[New York City]… is a triumph of volume, scale and everything that comes with it.”

Not content with the myriad of bars and eateries, we took in a game of baseball to see the American Weapon of Mass Consumption (WMC) in action. Unique in so many ways, not the least that you can eat all the free onions, jalapenos and ketchup you want at the “toppings station”. The purchase of a baseball cap to protect me from the blistering sun has seen me become Mets fan by default. Apparently the only statistical difference between a Mets and Yankees fan is that the former at 3 times more likely to own a gun!

A trip to the Museum of Modern Art started well, until we were told it closes every Tuesday. Another notch up for the city that never shuts.

Beer is around every bend; and good beer at that. Names like Brooklyn Lager and Six Point seem to be regularstandouts at more than one tap house.McSorley’s is surely a standout beer experience with their vast choice of beer (i.e. the light ale or the dark ale.), but what’s fascinating is the manner in which it’s served. You are given two 1/2 pints, each two thirds full. So ordering one beer results in two. This distinct approach to serving along with the charming surrounds that appear to have evolved since Adam was a boy makes for an easy drinking afternoon. We’ve nicknamed the place McSoreHead’s.