New York

What can I tell you about my impressions of New York? An airport that is like a massive concrete spaghetti junction and then on the way in to Manhattan we passed along flyovers that were literally built through 3 giant cemeteries. In order for the bill boards to be readable at this height they are built on top of multi storey buildings or on giant stilts.

I followed the advice of all the people I knew who had been to New York and we went up the Empire State Building late on the first afternoon we arrived, just as the lights were coming on, and it was awesome. They say ‘awesome’ a lot in NY.

The second day was my birthday and we walked through Time Square and along Broadway to meet our Big Apple greeter in Union Square. She was 57, looked about 40 if that, and of Russian/Lithuanian descent (I remember the fantastic cheek bones Lithuanian women have). She was a retired social worker/IT person and showed us round Greenwich Village, Chelsea, the meat packing area, food halls and discount designer shops. A* had been quite scathing about doing something so uncool as this, but Ann was one of her highlights, ensured she got some fab cheap clothes and was totally smitten by her. We also got our nails manicured by Koreans who have cornered the market in nail parlours. All NYS get pedicures and manicures. It was the first time ever for me.

The next day was sunny and bitterly cold. We caught the subway to Downtown Manhattan and visited the World Trade Centre site, then took the ferry to Statten Island and passed the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island en route. In the afternoon we went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art which totally enthralled A*. I visit museums and art galleries quite a lot on my own in my leisure time, but it was a first in a long time for her and she was really engaged.

On Sunday we did Central Park and the John Lennon shrine. In NY any old bit of scrub gets the grand title of park and access to open space is so regimented; joggers, dog walkers, horses, bikes, cars and bladers all have their own paths and have to go clockwise or anti-clockwise as instructed.

In between it all we shopped and did Maceys and Saks among others. These places are like art galleries, some of the fabrics and wools are divine colours and gossamer like to touch, and while A* obsessed on bags and shoes I watched the NY rich talk their way into £1ks worth of shoe purchase. They have masses of male, generally gay shop assistants and they are utterly charming to you whether you are buying or browsing. The NY men are beautifully groomed and look normal sizes. The women are thin and look unreal – not glorious – unreal. They have little dogs instead of babies that are cute and very restrained. I have to admit that for the first time I thought maybe I should dye my hair. None of the women there my age would allow their hair to grey – they go blonde.

On the last day we walked to China Town and Little Italy. I had the best time. A* was great to be with as she walks as much as I do and shops in moderation. Because our body clocks were a bit fraught we tended to be out of the hotel by 7.30am in the morning and got back about 8-9pm. I got so stiff and sore. We didn’t night life. I think A* didn’t feel OK about doing it with an old woman and we were both so knackered we fell asleep the moment our heads hit the pillows. I didn’t drink as much wine as I would have liked. It’s a good job I gave up smoking at Christmas as A* is the thought police and thought that my max of two glasses a day was addictive. Then even the hotel bar was closed for refurbishment so I resigned to resting my liver instead.

Nothing bad happened while I was away. J1 missed me and got lonely and hated clearing up after himself so it wasn’t too bad a thing to absent myself occasionally. So there we are – I promised to write at least one letter that was upbeat and not obsessing about FH.

I hope you are OK and the treatment/drugs are working.