We didn't scub up too badly, did we.

Considering we've had a year of roughing it I think we did okay.

More Snaps of the Wedding

Thanks for the pics Georgie!

Congratulations Natalie & Francois!

We're back! Had a fab time at Natalie & Francois's wedding. Everything went really well & as it was a bit of an international affair a few Czech traditions were in corporated into the reception. Natalie's Uncle Slavek broke a plate outside the reception venue & the newlyweds swept up the pieces together to symbolise how they will solve their difficulties together in the future. They also drank some specially prepared Czech wedding soup from the same bowl, using the same spoon, wearing the same napkin.

Thanks for a lovely day guys!

Manhattan from Ellis Island

Ellis Island Immigration Museum

Ellis Island is where over 12 million immigrants arrived between the 1880s and the 1950s. Here they were interviewed & inspected for contagious diseases before a decision was made about whether they could stay in the country. The immigration centre was turned into a museum in the 1980s & it's absolutely fascinating. We could've spent days here. You can listen to the voices of immigrants relating their experiences, look at photographs of what went on here & see artifacts that people brought with them on the long journey from home.

This article shows how a Czech woman & her daughter, arriving to meet her husband who had come before her, was given the 'makeover treatment' by a volunteer & taught how to look like 'an American woman'. I couldn't help wondering about the Swiss children who suddenly got a new muff & a tasty tea after the disappearance of Fluffy & his friends.

The Island of Manhattan

Pretty cool, huh!

Lady Liberty

The statue was a gift from the French. It is made of bronze & took thirty years to gradually turn green due to exposure to the elements.

The View from Battery Park

Here's our first view of the Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island from Battery Park. We get one of those boats in the first picture over to Liberty Island first & look back for some great views of Manhattan.

More Pizza

So, the real business begins! We came to Di Faro when we were in New York five years ago & can still remember how delicious the pizza was. Nothing much has changed since our last visit. Domenico DeMarco is still making all the pizzas single handed as he has been doing for the last 45 years. You still have to wait an eternity to get fed (one and a half hours this time) & there is no logic to the order of service whatsoever. Don't even think about asking where your order is or complaining that it's taking too long. That'll send you right to the back of the queue. Thankfully, all this pales into insignificance when the pizza arrives. It's divine! Here's Paul sporting his newly rotund belly after we've finished.

Prospect Park

We get ourselves a copy of the New York Times & settle down in Prospect Park with most of the rest of Brooklyn to enjoy the late summer sunshine. There's an enthusiastically supported game of cricket going on that we enjoy watching too.

Brooklyn's Brownstones

As part of our pizza quest we're come over to Brooklyn. Before the eating commences we have time to do a bit of exploring. We stroll down 'the other 5th Avenue' in Park Slope & along this street full of Brownstones towards Prospect Park. Paul Auster lives around here. I don't blame him. It's beautiful. If I were a squirrel I'd probably chose to hang out here too.

The Lower East Side

It's 99 degrees outside & we stumble upon a free pickle festival in the Lower East Side. We try all kinds of pickled vegetables & even a pickled grape. Yummy!

Teany

Here we are at Teany, a veggie cafe co-owned by Moby. There are 98 different teas on the menu & lots of british style tea time treats. I get cheesy beans on toasts with HP sauce. Paul gets cheese on toast with Branston pickle. Ah, nostalgia!

John's Pizzeria

Paul has decided that one of our projects for New York should be to find the best pizzeria. As you can see I don't enjoy this at all : )