We just arrived in the Big Apple today (Zoe’s 4th flight in 2 weeks!), and Dad picked a great spot in Chinatown for dinner: Joe’s Shanghai. They’re renowned for their pork soup dumplings and get rave reviews on Yelp – there’s even a special way to EAT them, per a reviewer on the Yelp site:

– carefully nab a soup dumpling (either using the provided tongs or chopsticks)

– place soup dumpling in spoon on its side

– take a tiny bite of the skin, making a small hole

– after making sure the soup is no longer 200 degrees, slurp soup out of the small hole you just made or lift dumpling and pour into spoon

– eat dumpling

Thank goodness for the directions – they were DELICIOUS, and we would have either burned our tongues off or missed out on the soup! The place was a cultural experience itself – they seat you with strangers (by however many people fit at a table), give you no menu yet expect you to order immediately, and only take cash. It was a blast!

Even the walk through Chinatown was an experience: vendors all along the streets selling fruit & vegetables, including Durian, and shop after shop filled with handbags and jade – and shops with both fresh and dried fish (that part was stinky)…

From Chinatown, we walked through Little Italy, where there was a festival of some sort going on, including a parade to celebrate Saint Anthony and then shared a canoli from an Italian bakery (YUM!):

Then we got back on the subway (an experience itself!) and did a quick trip through Grand Central Station and Times Square. Talk about ‘culture’. What I love most about NYC is that it’s filled with people from literally ALL walks of life and is an incredible place to people watch & listen. And you just have to BE here to feel the energy on the streets.

Hope to take Zoe back here when she can enjoy it – I have a feeling the huge Toys ‘R’ Us in Times Square might be just a little bit interesting to her ;)

Tomorrow we’ll be setting up for Internet Week, which is the reason why we’re here, AND we’ll be celebrating Daddy Bart’s BIRTHDAY!

Feel free to send him some love: bjohnson@aquent.com or 323.387.2200