vegas

finally, a vegas trip MY way.

the one and only conference that i just get to attend, and my co-worker diana and i had booked rooms at one of the new city center properties: vdara.

vdara is a non-smoking, non-casino, all suite hotel, and though it's on the strip, the complex of sister hotels and residences is so large that you can't see or hear the strip unless you are on a high floor.  definitely my favorite hotel to date.

workshops went well, but after we were finished, diana and i decided to have some fun.  we went shopping!
i was on the hunt for sunglasses and she was on the hunt for tiffany's. i am happy to report that we were both successful.

not ready to call it a night yet, we headed next door to bellagio where we were amazed to find it in 'full bloom'.  we had no idea we would be walking into spring, and we just couldn't get enough.  between the tulip fields (my favorite!) and the butterfly house, and the merry-go-round, we were giggling little children!

we made a stop for dinner before heading outside to watch the water show out front, and ended up staying for three shows, talking and enjoying the aquatic performance before calling it a night.

the next morning, we finished up our workshops, and spent our last couple of hours in vegas getting hot stone pedicures, thanks to a groupon we bought last month.  after almost two weeks on the road, it was the perfect way to finish off the trip before heading home.

toronto

with back to almost back trips to new york and toronto, i opted to stay in new york (as previously blogged) before heading out of the country.

since my company does not do business in canada, this was an unusual event for us, and i won't go into the details of why we attended. suffice it to say that there were good reasons, and the result was a border crossing.

my plane landed (still not sure how) in a blizzard, and sadly, as a result of the bitterly cold weather, we didn't get to do much exploring.  having been to toronto several times in my former life, i wasn't overly compelled to sacrifice frozen eyelashes for sight seeing opportunities, but my co-worker julianne and i did at least make it to the cn tower where we enjoyed the views and the photo opps.

the entire trip was low-key and enjoyable, with some of my favorite colleagues along,which was a nice way to spend the middle leg of a three city tour.  it was bye-bye toronto, hello vegas. again.

for more pics, click here

new york: day 3

though i spent most of the day working, i had big plans for my last night in new york.

before heading to the city i connected with my uncle in the hopes of seeing him and the rest of my ny family.   it was then that i learned that my cousin sonja had done the aerial choreography for daniel radcliffe's new (revival) broadway play 'how to succeed in business without really trying,' and i couldn't have been more excited for her.

sonja is six years older than me, and for many years, she and dylan and i were the only cousins on my dad's side.  i am sure that there were many times she wished for cousins closer to her age, but dylan and i never once felt unwanted or excluded from any activities at our annual family gatherings.  in fact, when i think back on it now, i simply do not know how such patience is possible...after all, what 15 year old wants an 8 year old tag along.

as a result of her unceasing graciousness, and also because she was just so fun to be with, i absolutely idolized her.  as an adult, that idolatry has evolved into great respect.  she always had a passion for the theater, and while i shared a similar love, i was not willing to make the sacrifices so often required to pursue that particular passion and chose a safer path, while she made those sacrifices and dedicated herself to the exploration of that art, in many of it's facets.  and while to some it may seem that the journey (so far) has taken an unusual path, she has found a way to live her dream, and i couldn't be more proud of or happy for her.

so, you can imagine why i was so thrilled when my uncle kim suggested that she might be able to get tickets for us to see the show, which was still in previews.

now, full disclosure time: this is a show that i did in high school, and, well...i'm not such a fan.  in fact, it may have been the least favorite production from my entire theater experience.  but, i was truly excited to see her work, and hey, who doesn't like harry potter!?

she was able to get two tickets, and she and kim, and 8 year old sam and i met for dinner before the show.  it's been a couple of years since we had seen each other (more for sonja and i) and we enjoyed yummy italian and more importantly, each other's company.

i have said it so many times before, and i cannot say it enough:  i am so fortunate in my family, and even more fortunate to have so many opportunities to be reminded of that.

as we were wrapping up dinner, my aunt mary arrived, and she and i headed off to the show to catch up in between the musical action.  it was so great to have some dedicated time with her, and to hear first hand about some of the recent health issues she has faced, while feeling more comforted that she is on the mend.

and the show itself, was, against all odds, TREMENDOUS!  that sounds like a broadway word, doesn't it? :)
truly, i absolutely loved the show.  i spent the whole evening laughing and wondering why i had ever disliked it!  daniel radcliffe was so darling and perfect for the role, and i was impressed by his musical chops.  narration by anderson cooper and john larroquette as co-star didn't hurt  none either. i cannot recommend this show highly enough - just go in with a sense of humor about 1950s stereotypes and you will not be able to help but have a good time.

at the conclusion of the play, i walked mary to the subway station and we made our bittersweet farewells.  it was the perfect way to bid adieu to the city of lights.

for more pics, click here

new york: day 2

day 2 of my 'fun time' in new york was spent with my dear friend angela.

i now angela from our time spent together in virginia, but for the last few years, she has been living in florida.  for the last couple of years, i've been able to spend some time with her there while in town for my big january conference, but i missed her this year thanks to her recent move to new york.

lucky for me, this event gave me an opportunity to catch up with her again, and, as always with angela, it was quite an adventure!

it started as a result of my intense aversion to solo subway riding in new york.

of all the public transportation systems i've braved, and there have been many (and many with foreign language challenges), new york is the only one that absolutely terrifies me, and which, i will never, on pain of death, attempt by myself.  it probably comes as a result of having terrible subway experienced with seasoned new york riders, but regardless of the cause, i simply cannot do it.

since angela lives in queens, it meant i'd have to suck it up and pay for a cab, which i was happy to do, on the condition that she'd drive me back to manhattan at the end of our day.  she agreed, and in the pouring rain i hailed a taxi to take me across the 59th street bridge.

but, as if the rain and the guilt i felt from making this driver take me to an outer burrough weren't enough, about half way across the bridge the car started moving oddly.  at first i thought maybe the bridge was heavily potholed, but it wasn't long before i realized that we had a flat tire.  a very flat tired, as a matter of fact, and with every rotation, it got flatter, leaving us, by the end, riding on the rims.

when we got to the far side of the bridge, he asked if he could drop me off at the subway station.  i told him that was fine and i'd figure it out.  lucky for him (particularly when i saw how seriously trashed his tire and rim was) his garage was about two blocks away.  unlucky for me, it was raining, and i was about twenty blocks from my destination.  at that point, i was ready to face my demons, until i realized that it was an above ground station, with three flights of wet metal steps ahead of me.  my resolve crumbled with visions of knees twisting and falling and ipads and iphones being stolen while my body lay a twisted heap on the sidewalk, and i walked the twenty blocks.

when i arrived, only slightly worse for the wear, and with a great story to tell, things were far less exciting, but so much more enjoyable!

i got to meet angela's daughter for the first time, and see how much her son had grown.  we were able to catch up on life and love (-less, in my case) and play angry birds and hide and seek and watch star wars and laugh and laugh some more. and when steve came home, he joined us for what was a muy delicioso dinner, 'thrown together' but one of the best cooks i've ever known.

i am always so grateful and so happy to spend time with 'old friends' who know me so well, and who i can be so completely myself with. it is a wonderful blessing to have such wonderful girlfriends, with whom time forms no barriers.

for more pics, click here

new york: day 1

with the official work activities behind me, it was time to check out of the marriott marquis times square, and into hotel deb & andrei.

though i had seen photos of the new place, they simply could not do justice to the spectacular view afforded from every room...river to river, bridge to bridge, the statue of liberty, and the empire state building seemingly almost next door.




since my next event required arrival in toronto on wednesday, it didn't make sense for me to fly across the country on sunday and back again a couple of days later. that meant spending monday and tuesday getting some work done while trying to catch up with friends and family.




sunday was spent with my hosts, and we were able to catch up on a number of post-christmas happenings. i was glad to have a chance to get to know andrei better, since we haven't had the chance to spend much time together. i also enjoyed watching deb in her new life, as we took advantage of the sunshine and cool temps the city afforded us that day.

turned out that it was a good thing we had appreciated that sunshine, because, by the time i awoke on monday morning, the city was covered in a blanket of clouds and rain.

-posted from my iPad