Finally made it to New York, and it's so hot I'm typing this with napkins between my palms and the laptop to keep them from slipping on sweat. Nonetheless, this is truly the king of cities. There is more going on here than anywhere.

Observations:

- You can save $2 by taking the Subway one way, then a bus back, but don't do it via midtown or ths bus just sits there in traffic
- New York seems to be packaging crazy, you always get a straw with a canned soda and an inch-thick stack of napkins, hence my attempt to recycle them
- Airport transportation is remarkably primitive.
- There is excellent bouldering right in Central Park
- Everything about Central Park is awesome
- It is amazingly friendly here
- The food is phenomenal, even if it does cost twice what it should, speaking of which, the $12 burritos at Mexicana Mama on Hudson Street open up an entirely new genre of tortilla-wrapped cuisine.