I have done underwhelmingly little since I’ve arrived and this is mostly because I was totally knocked down by this zombie virus that Sydney kindly gave me as a loving departure gift. Safe to say that any flight where your vocal cords feels like they have been ripped out can easily be the worst 22-hour flight ever…

Following the worst I’ve ever flight had….

• I was not able talk to (or smooch!) Brad after 110 days of not seeing each other.
• I couldn’t eat solids.
• I had a such an awful fever that I passed out on the bathroom floor while trying to throw up.
• I kept throwing up nothing because all I ate were lemon cough drops.
• I can no longer eat lemon cough drops because of this terrible experience.
• I did not leave our apartment until four days later. You really appreciate sunlight when you haven’t seen it for almost 100 hours.
• Once I was well enough to leave the bed, I ended up having my first shit cup of coffee. Actually it was served in a bowl, not even a cup! :(

So New York is not exactly turning out to be the city of dreams or whatever they call it and home isn’t quite “home” yet. I don’t even have enough underwear to last a 2-week wash cycle! Despite what seems to be a series of unfortunate events, I am appreciating the sunshine. Summer just puts me in a good mood. ;)

Also to the weirdo-lady who was wearing thick tights and a jumper today in this humidity, are you nuts?

After having a great chat with a few cool cats today, I’m seeing the silver lining in between my coughing fits and the grimy subway floors. Some of these include:

• Being with a fantastic boy who is willing to peel me off the bathroom floor even though I’m highly contagious.
• Slightly alright coffee at Birch Coffee.
• Great coffee at Bluebottle, experienced at Rockefeller Plaza. Yaaaas at the hipster gnome who gave me my caffeine boost.
• New Yorkers aren’t as mean as others say. I’ve been receiving compliments every time I step out the door (Albeit only stepping out a few times). A compliment goes a long way when you’ve been trapped in a cave for a little while.
• Breathing in the amazing view from the top (see pictured). It’s gotta inspire a little adventure, right?

While I’ve only just taken the first step, I’m finally a little excited to be in the big city and definitely less terrified. At least I know I’m excited to try and find some pork hock tomorrow in Chinatown.

Meanwhile I will keep my ears and eyes out for better coffee and eats to explore in NYC.

P.S We ate that LDR challenge for breakfast. :P