The kids are here!

Yesterday the kids finally came! Friday night I hosted my first event, the World Cup Staff Party! We had great music, costume contest, and a trivia contest. It went well and I was up till 1:30am! I woke up at 6am to take a bus with Luke to pick up 15 kids from Yonkers. It was a long bus ride! I came equipped with barf bags, snacks, waters, med kit, and other stuff. Luckily, Bruce the driver stopped by so we could get coffee and breakfast! We took a pit stop because of course I had to pee after drinking coffee and Luke (from London) snuck over for some Mcdonalds which apparently was yummy. (ew) We got to our destination where the fun began. Parents, bags, kids, medicine, paperwork, money, questions, and more. There were 13 boys and 2 girls. Luke was in the front with Bruce and I was in charge of the kids. We had graham crackers snacks and waters. I got to show my tough face and make sure every kid was buckled in. Oh, the best part was taking 11 boys through a supermarket to use the restroom. Counting heads about every 2 seconds. We made it back to camp in time for lunch and carried on through the busy day. Last night I hosted the Staff Talent Show for the kids! Wes (theatre director) worked with me on stage and we had a great time! I think the stage is calling my name! Anyways, things are going well, helping where I can, planning events, and doing office things! I'm also the volleyball specialist so I'll be doing a bit of coaching as well. My ankle is doing much better just sore and bruised. Thank you Tomi and Ron for my favorite chocolates and card! So sweet! I must get going to lunch. I rarely have much free time! Thanks for reading!

Life at Camp!

Herro Herro! Once again sorry I'm having a hard time keeping up with the blog as much as I'd like to. I've been rather busy! I have moved into a private room at camp with a full size bed and my own bathroom area. All of the staff is now here and we are preparing for the kids to come on Saturday. There are a little over 200 campers including overnight and day campers. It's been interesting and I still have lots to learn about the camp, rules, procedures, and even things that I'm working on! A theme at camp for the staff is "flexibility and adaptability" so I suppose I fit into that. The food has been great! A salad bar has been open and there is a great variety of food. I saw my first groundhog yesterday and a few chipmunks! The days are long from 7am-10:30pm. Showers are now warm. I mostly work in the office on the evening activities and special events that will be taking place. I've been gathering materials needed, decorations, dj music, ordering parts, making lists and forms, phones, typing, printing, and just about anything that is needed. We have been doing some orientation games to get to know each other as well as rules. Unfortunately, as some have heard I did end up in the local medical center about 45min away from camp. Safety first but accidents do happen. Others have told me that I stepped on a ball but hell if I remember it was so painful! My ankle is very swollen and black/blue colored. Luckily though, its just a severe sprain so I should be good in a few days. The people here are great! People from all over from California, Alabama, England, Australia, Japan, New England, Spain, and a few other places. Overall I'm doing well! Today I even shared my lesson plan for teaching volleyball! (Of course I was unable to play with my ankle) Thanks for reading! :)

Elizaville!

I apologize for not blogging in a few days! I've been rather busy at camp! I met 18 of the head staff at Grand Central and we took a train to Poughkeepsie where we were picked up in the bus to drive 30min to the camp. Everyone is wonderful! There are only two americans, the rest are from UK, New Zealand, Australia, and Japan it seems. The accents are great! haha Food is amazing actually! We've had everything from mash potatoes, pizza, salad, mac n cheese, eggs, chicken, meatloaf and so much more. It's all actually like home cooking! The eggs are from a local farm as well. The cabins dont have air condition but at night its actually pretty chilly. The property is 200 acres! Lately I've been working in the office with Luke, the other assistant director, on behind the scenes work for the most part. I will try to post later but for those reading now I'm safe and happy here! Making new friends here and enjoying the work. I'll try to take pictures soon and post them. Thank you Ron and Tomi for the postcard! Its the first piece of mail received at camp! :)

The Phantom of the Opera is Here!

On Monday I woke around 7am and headed over to Times Square! I decided to hold out on eating since I was going to the Carnegie Deli. I was able to take the elevator for Top of the Rock early which was nice since it wasn't crowded at all. The view was great! I think I made a good decision to do the Top of the Rock instead of the Empire State Building. This gives you a nice outside view from all around the building. I then ate at Carnegie Deli just near by. The sammich was huge!! The meat was good but the sammich was plain. I then walked down 5th avenue and the corner of Central Park. I went inside FAO Schwarz (toy shop), Tiffanys, and of course the chocolate shops for samples. There was a long line to get in to Abercrombie! Just about every shop you can think of. I just couldnt find the TJmaxx and Marshalls! I counted at least 4 H&M stores, Lids and Lindt. I headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up and ready for Phantom! I walked around Times Square a bit and had dinner at a small cafe in Hells Kitchen area. I had a yummy apple salad. The Phantom was packed!!!! It was amazing! Costumes, makeup, singing, and techy aspects were great. I sat pretty close to the front but in that theatre any seat prbly wouldve been good. There was even a chandelier that crashes on the stage! This might have been my favorite part of NYC. Tuesday morning I slept in till 7am! I walked around the west village area and somehow ended up in SOHO area and then Chinatown again. I guess I walked alot! My foot is still messed up. Likely a sprain that I havent let healed yet. To be frank, I've been stopping at just about every church and park to take a break and stretch my foot. The churches have been so peaceful and air conditioned! Also restrooms most of the time! I haggled some post cards and a tank top in Chinatown and a large american flag. I'm hosting the World Cup orientation party at camp! I was trying to find a cheap shirt or something with all the flags on it so that I remain neutral at the party but I suppose rooting for USA will have to do! I checked out of the hotel and made my way to Grand Central where I'm currently writing this at the apple store. Grand Central is huge with lots of restaurants and a market! The clock is disappointingly small though. I'm reading through some emails for work, eating, then meeting my group to travel to camp. If anyone has any creative ideas for activities and special events for children 4-8 years old let me know. Also, any ideas for the World Cup party!

Table for one!

I woke up around 5:30am and was out the door by 6am! The sun rises around 5am here! Somehow yesterday I took a funky step with my right foot and woke up with a nice sharp pain towards the bottom of my foot and outside ankle. I got a foot brace and advil and carried on with the day though! For the first time, the streets were moderately quiet. I saw quite a few yellow cabs trying to hunt me down as well as what I thought was a beautiful woman standing near the subway with her friend. As I got closer, I slowly realized that this boobalicious “lady” was a man with a deep raspy voice! The subway was slightly emptier at 6:30am. There were a few other tourists and many homeless people sleeping on the benches of the subway. I got to Battery Park and walked around till about 7:15am. I was in the front of the line to board the ferry but when we went through security I was pulled aside. While being questioned about my purse people were passing me! Security thought I was carrying some form of weapon in my purse but turns out it was only two brass bars used as hotel keys. I was able to get a decent seat on the top of the ferry and saw the Lady! I admit the statue was smaller than I had anticipated. Once on the island, there is not much to do other than take selfie pictures and climb the pedestal. With my foot not looking hot, I just walked around and ate at the café. I paid $12 for a yucky Panini and water. I boarded the ferry to Ellis Island where I also just walked the Island and peeked in the museum. I made my way to the financial district where I saw Wall St, the Stock Exchange, and the bull. Trinity church is beautiful! I was able to walk in during a rehearsal. The organ sounded great! I also saw St. Pauls Chapel. I grabbed an espresso iced coffee drink and walked around the 9/11 memorial. It was very tastefully done in my opinion yet far too overcrowded. Freedom Tower is neat and seems to touch the clouds. The newly opened museum was far too crowded as well but I was able to get through the line pretty quickly. I wouldn’t call it a museum though. It was definitely a beautiful memorial. I have a few pics and will explain them there. There was a gift shop inside the museum as well as outside down the street. While it seems to be controversial, I didn't mind it too much I guess. There is a sign right in the front to let you know all profit goes towards the museum and memorial. The books are fine of course, but why is there a need to sell doggie firefighter jackets and cheese plates. I then walked to Little Italy where I had a nice romantic dinner! I had some kind of vodka pasta with wine and a cannoli. The host seemed to have liked me and asked me for my number and drinks later. Somehow I always attract the older men. I then walked through Chinatown and worked my bargaining skills! I got a two perfumes and a fedora hat. I walked some of the Brooklyn Bridge then used my taxi skills to get back to the hotel. Tmrw is Top of the Rock and Phantom!

Oh, Hello New York City!

The time has come…I’m in New York! Everything seems to be going rather swell. Last night I got an email at 8pm from JetBlue telling me my flight was canceled and rescheduled for late today…of course that wouldn’t fly with me. I was able to catch another packed flight at 6am to JFK. The flight went well, I got two cups of OJ and Doritos! I took the AirTrain to Jamaica station where I took the E line for almost an hour to 14^th street. I believe the subway system turned 110 years old today...and it sure smelled like it! I got a metrocard from the machine and put $15 in for my $11 cost but lucky me $7 in coin dollars came back. The Jane Hotel is only a few blocks away but I went in a few circles until I figured out that the streets go in numerical order…duh! The staff at the Jane Hotel have been friendly and held my bag while I walked around Greenwich area. I got a sangria tea from David’s Tea and headed back to the hotel to check-in. The room is tiny as expected but quaint and just about all I need for 3 nights. Theres a rooftop bar and inside club as well! I dropped my bags off and took a walk along Highline Park where I got a really yummy iced coffee to wake me up. It was way too crowded but the trail was nicely done. I ended up walking all the way to Times square! WAY TOO MANY PEOPLE! It was an interesting site nonetheless and I suppose something one must experience in NY. It was pretty overwhelming and I really didn’t know what to do with myself! I got a slice of pizza and sat down outside. Yummy as well! I found the Majestic theatre and then made my way to the Elektra theatre for 50 Shades the musical! There was a neat bar inside the theatre so I took myself on a date and bought myself a delicious expensive cosmopolitan drink. To be honest, I wouldn’t recommend the musical. I have a good sense of humor and love a dirty joke, but this was extremely cheesy. I left pretty fast and caught a subway back to the hotel. Its very windy! Now I'm getting ready to shower and check out the rooftop bar before bed. Lady Liberty Ferry early in the am!