If I was a very fat woman, I might not have fit in my hostel room. That is absolutely the fact of the matter. Now, before you scroll down, first click right HERE. (You have to.) That is the website for the hostel we stayed at, and that was what I thought the rooms were going to look like.
Ok.
Expectation.
Reality:
I had a pretty good laugh about it. Especially the part on the website where it talks about 'plush blankets'. (My blanket was stiff and scratchy and still had someone else's long black hairs in it.)
But really, I didn't spend very much time at all in the room, so I wasn't bugged about it. I'd even stay there again, since the price and location were right. Plus, people kept feeding me croissants while I was there, and it's like I've always said: free croissants are better than plush blankets and five extra feet of living space. I've always said that.
My walk around Central Park wore me out enough that I was able to pick the black hairs from my blankets and fall asleep fairly fast that first night, after whispering softly to myself 56 times or so different variations of: Other peoples' hair can't hurt me. I'm a strong woman, and other peoples' hair can't hurt me. And I don't mind sharing a bedroom with a stranger, or a bathroom with fifty strangers, or a bed with an entire wig's worth of stranger's hair.
I think I made strides in the germaphobe department that week.
Anyway. The next morning, I woke up and met my sister and her friends in the lobby. I didn't know most of them, but had a few random connections: I'd met one at a garage sale last summer, and one at a Tim Hortons in another city a few years back, and one has the same aunt as me and another's dad is best friends with a friend of mine's dad in Ottawa or someplace, and one was my best friend's little brother's friend and I'd dressed him up as a girl when he was, like, 7, at a sleepover (I didn't recognize him at first though because he's since grown a beard and become an adult man).
It is actually an insanely small world.
We ate croissants and decided to go see the Statue of Liberty, because we knew that it was our duty as tourists. There is a free ferry that goes from Manhattan to Staten Island, and if there's anything better than free croissants, it's a free ferry ride.
Ok.
Expectation.
Reality:
I had a pretty good laugh about it. Especially the part on the website where it talks about 'plush blankets'. (My blanket was stiff and scratchy and still had someone else's long black hairs in it.)But really, I didn't spend very much time at all in the room, so I wasn't bugged about it. I'd even stay there again, since the price and location were right. Plus, people kept feeding me croissants while I was there, and it's like I've always said: free croissants are better than plush blankets and five extra feet of living space. I've always said that.
My walk around Central Park wore me out enough that I was able to pick the black hairs from my blankets and fall asleep fairly fast that first night, after whispering softly to myself 56 times or so different variations of: Other peoples' hair can't hurt me. I'm a strong woman, and other peoples' hair can't hurt me. And I don't mind sharing a bedroom with a stranger, or a bathroom with fifty strangers, or a bed with an entire wig's worth of stranger's hair.
I think I made strides in the germaphobe department that week.
Anyway. The next morning, I woke up and met my sister and her friends in the lobby. I didn't know most of them, but had a few random connections: I'd met one at a garage sale last summer, and one at a Tim Hortons in another city a few years back, and one has the same aunt as me and another's dad is best friends with a friend of mine's dad in Ottawa or someplace, and one was my best friend's little brother's friend and I'd dressed him up as a girl when he was, like, 7, at a sleepover (I didn't recognize him at first though because he's since grown a beard and become an adult man).
It is actually an insanely small world.
We ate croissants and decided to go see the Statue of Liberty, because we knew that it was our duty as tourists. There is a free ferry that goes from Manhattan to Staten Island, and if there's anything better than free croissants, it's a free ferry ride.
19 comments:
Next time you come out this way, consider staying at this hotel, or "pod". http://travel.yahoo.com/ideas/pod-39--an-nyc-hotel-with-a-family-friendly-price-213007385.html
even if you hadn't always said that about free croissants being better than extra space and plush blankets, its really true and you should start saying it. i burst out laughing when i read that and scared my roommate's cats. haha.
its funny because, after seeing the statue of liberty i felt like "i would have been okay with not using a whole morning to see this", but you still have to. as in there is honestly no way you can go to NYC and have a good reason to say "i've never seen the statue of liberty".
did you go to the island itself? i've heard the gift shop is pretty cool.
That is too funny! I just found out they have hostels there.. i def going to stay there next time.
i wish you could just travel the world always and then come back and tell us stories. i love the way you do it. like, not dragging it out to the point of where we're like, "c'mon, suzy, we get it." but, we're like, "TELL US MORE ONE EVERY 24 HOURS IS NOT ENOUGH." that's how we are.
i wanted to say that i am the same way about stranger's things and also hotel room beds. i don't like touching other peoples' clothes. i can't do it. the skin flakes?! the hair?! the inevitable lice that everyone else has except me?! CANNOT DO IT. and if i had to stay in a hotel room with a bed covered in enough hairs to make a wig? i think i would rather stay away for a week straight.
AND FINALLY: i love that second picture of you on the ferry. seriously, i want it. but of me, not you. because that'd be weird if i just took that. but it's so perfect.
okay. NEXT STORY, READY? GO!
Awesome photos and what a tiny ass room! It's sad but an apartment that small would run up to $1000/month in parts of New York.
THAT PLACE IS SO COOL! i'm so sad that we didn't stay there. next time, i completely will.
man alive. i should've called you before coming to nyc!
{plus we could've gone for coffee or something!}
i didn't actually go right to the island, cuz it was closed! we just took the free ferry across and back without really getting off the boat--so our 'statue experience' only took like an hour altogether, which i was so fine with. because you're totally right: not worth a whole morning, but pretty unavoidable! haha.
also: i am totally going to start saying the thing about the croissants. just at really irrelevant moments. someone'll be like, "hey suzy, what's up?" and i'll be all, "free croissants are better than plush blankets and five extra feet of living space." and they'll be like, "yeah...totally."
check out the one brenda linked to above your comment!! it looks way cooler than the one i stayed at!!!
oh man, if that could be my full time job, i would LOVE it. do you know of anyone who would pay me to do it? cuz i would. i would do it.
also: you are so sweet. i mostly write this stuff out for me, for in ten years when i can't remember what the heck i did when i was 25. but i love love love that other people read it and enjoy it. it really is one of my favourite things. and i love love love it when other people identify with my extreme germ aversion. solidarity.
also: if you fly me to new york and fly you to new york, i will take a picture of you exactly like that picture of me. no sweat.
aw, thanks caitlin! i'd love to see the pictures YOU'D take of new york. have you been?
and i know hey? crazy new york prices. that's kind of how it is up here too; rent is RIDICULOUS.
If I would do that I would probably find the whole thing too funny on forehand in my head and end up messing it up in the crucial moment saying: "free croissants are better than plush living space and five extra feet of blankets" or something like that... And if I was already making no sense with the random statement; then i wouldn't be making ANY sense at all with this nonsense.
but that, too, is a wise and good saying.
You had to share a room with a stranger!?!?! I am very impressed, Suzy, b/c I don't think I could do that and I know your germ phobia well...and I LOVE the last picture of the little Jewish boys! (Are they all boys? I didn't know, maybe some of them were girls, but don't only the boys wear those caps and have the ringlets?)
hahahahahaha oh hostels. You really never know. I'm like you though, I can pretty much talk myself into sleeping anywhere if I have to.
That would have been awesome! Next time for sure!
it's true--this one was pretty fantastic compared to a lot of hostel stories i've heard. i love hearing other peoples' hostel stories...
they WERE all boys--they were SO CUTE. we were all completely taken with them. and so well behaved. we thought it was hilarious how hard it was to keep track of 19 adults, (me and one other guy) when two men were having no problem keeping tabs on 33 little 4 year olds. they were so well behaved!
FOR SURE.
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