Another exciting weekend @New Paltz!

And yet again, another week has gone by!! I can´t believe that in less than 3 weeks we will be working and living in New York City! This past weekend was also full of new adventures, and places to visit while you are at New Paltz.

It was Friday afternoon when the girls came up with the idea of going all together to the Cinema. Some of us had already signed up for the ISP Apple Picking trip whithumb_img_6637_1024ch was located near the campus in the afternoon and was really nice.

We were all going to wake up very early on Saturday so we thought this might be a great idea to hang out and don´t be so tired for next day. We went to the Apple Picking in the afternoon, and afterwards,Sully was playing anthumb_img_6649_1024d we decided to go and watch it. When I arrived I felt like I was in an 80´s movie theater as seen in movies. It was really different from the kind of cinemas we have in Mexico. We are used to big, and modern cinemas, where there are more than  10 movies playing and about 15 cinema theaters. Here at New Paltz there are only 4 or 5 movies and maybe just 4 cinema theaters. We arrived, bought our tickets, and of course popcorn and soda to watch the movie. Great experience!

 

 

 

7:00 am Saturday morning. Alarm went on. It´s hiking day! THE MOST AWESOME VIEW EVER!!!! The school took us to Mohonk Mountain were we met with the tour guides, and started hiking all the way up. We walked, ran, climbed on rocks, ate lunch in front of a beautiful lake, and everything was perfect. Could´t find a better way to end the outdoor wellness center activities. Really one should´t miss any of it! Register, register, register.

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To finish up the weekend, let´s go shopping! We found out that there were huge outlet stores about 45min ride from New Paltz, so we decided to rent a car and go there. It´s called Woodbury Commons Premium Outlets.Why did we rent a car? We looked up for all the optionsthumb_img_6769_1024 to get there and the cheapest one was by car. We arrived and it was so big, that we thought we would´t finish looking, but we did. It is an easy way to go and buy some things before moving to the big city!

 

 

 

 

Into the wild – Hiking at its best

The Mohonk Mountain Lake and House

Hello folks!

No, this time we won’t talk about zip lining, kayaking or tubing. We went HIKING last Saturday and it was great ! Our two lovely tour guides took us to the Mohonk Preserve (http://www.mohonkpreserve.org), so whenever you have the possibility to go there, you should definitely do so because it is just amazing! There are 85 miles of winding trails to experience, ranging in difficulty from beginner to advanced.

We started ourThe IIB Team ! tour early in the morning, all freezing because autumn arrived so suddenly and none of us was prepared for it. After a short introduction gWhat a view!ame where everybody had to present himself with some “true or false” stories, we headed towards the mountains where the colors of the leaves had already turned into orange and red.

After having walked for almost two hours, we had a little lunch break with an incredible view on the Mohonk Lake and the Mohonk Mountain House. The historic resort is located just beyond the southern border of the Catskill Mountains, west of the Hudson River. Our guides explained us that the resort was built by the twin brothers Alfred and Albert Smiley in the late 19th century and since then, has been operated by descendants of the Smiley brothers. Several famous people such as John D. Rockefeller, Theodore Roosevelt andInto the wild Julia Grant have stayed at this beautiful place. And rumors say that Stephen King likes to come over to get some rest and inspiration here…

Incredible colors We continued our way up to the Mohonk Sky Top where we had an amazing view over the whole preserve! It was absolutely worth walking and climbing (yes indeed, climbing as well!) that long to finally appreciate this view.

This was by far the best trip I’ve done during my stay in New Paltz so it will be hard to top that experience… But let’s see! I will keep you posted!

/P.

 

Birthday Bash: Celebrating life !

I am one of the very lucky persons who had the chance to celebrate her birthday during this wonderful stay in the US. Probably I look much younger but indeed, I turned 25 last week and all the people around me made it a very special day. Actually, it felt like celebrating birthday not only for one day but the whole weekend.

Happy me !It already started with cheering at midnight in our hotel room where my IIB girls had prepared a wonderful surprise with flowers, balloons, gifts, wine, and sushi. Although everybody was a bit tired of a tough week, we all had the power to dance and sing !
And the surprise continued in the moThe perfect birthday breakfastrning when I went to our lobby where I found a table prepared with the perfect birthday breakfast including chocolate dipped strawberries and waffles! And even more gifts! I felt more than thrilled and was super happy about how much effort the girls put into this, although we only hOutput rooftop view ad known each other for not even three weeks, simply amazing (it’s time to thank you again, girls, at this point!).

After this perfect start, I ran to the bus station to go down to NYC where my better half, my sister has already been waiting for me. She just flew from Switzerland to NYC to celebrate this day with me. I think we checked out all the nice rooftop bars, restaurants, brunch places and boutiques of this city. It would take too long to get into detail here, but I thought to share a top list of the best places we have visited in order to give you the opportunity to make your day the greatest day of the year. You should check it out even if it’s not your birthday. There is always a reason to celebrate. Let’s celebrate life.

Here is my “perfect-birthday-in-NYC-list“:

  • Get your day started with a fresh brunch at the stonework café in Brooklyn. You should better make a reservation, this place is always crowded, especially on weekends http://stoneparkcafe.com
  • Then head over to the Meatpacking district where you can just walk around and enjoy the neighborhood. Obviously, you can’t miss the Chelsea Market, where you will find a lot of nice boutiques and cafés http://www.chelseamarket.com
  • When you get tired of all the walking, grab a cooled Aperol Spritz and a little snack in a cosy Italian place called Barbuto http://www.barbutonyc.com/index.php
  • Especially for the ladies reading the blog, I’d suggest a little stop over at Bleecker Street where you have a huge choice of little boutiques with new, hip designers
  • After so much hard work, it’s time for dinner: this place is absolutely outstanding, with a beautiful decor and excellent Asian food. It became famous when it appeared in the series “Sex and the City”. Very fancy. http://www.buddakannyc.com
  • In order to finish your birthday while swinging your hips, you should go to Output, a rooftop bar/club in Brooklyn with an amazing view over the city. Absolutely breathtaking! http://www.outputclub.com

I guess seeing the pictures one can tell that we had a great time…

 

Kayaking the Hudson River!

This Saturday we went kayaking on the Hudson River. How amazing does that sound? Almost all of us went and, even though I hadn’t gotten very much sleep the nights before (I went to NYC really early Friday morning to do some interviews and I had been studying late all week) I was very excited about the adventure we had ahead of us. Tired but happy we went to buy some picnic and then we headed to the activity center where we were picked up by a jolly and humorous bus driver.

The bus drive took approximately fifty minutes and I enjoyed the scenery that whizzed past us outside the window. When we arrived at the Hudson River we realized that the weather conditions were a bit rougher than usual. Our kayaking instructor informed us that they had decided to change the route due to heavy gusts of wind out on the river. We got some quick instructions and then we put on our life vests and we each grabbed a paddle. The sun shined encouraging and we were not too worried about the wind even though the waves were a bit unruly…

We paddled for about forty, sometimes though, but mostly great and enjoyable, minutes until we reached a lake or what looked like a big lagoon. It was surrounded by the most magnificent mountain face, which together with the willows contributed to an incredibly peaceful and beautiful view. We stayed there for almost an hour, just floating around, enjoying the sun and taking pictures. After that we returned – this time with the wind on our side, gently brining us forward. Our way back was a Sunday stroll in comparison to our first struggles and it went a lot faster!

When we got back we were starving to the point where we ran to get our bagels as soon as we sat foot on land. We ate all of our food in no time and when the bus arrived we were quite happy to find our seats and lean back. No need to say, I fell fast asleep on our way home, with Stephanie on my shoulder.

P.S. I would definitely recommend this trip to other students! It is a fun way to explore the areas surrounding New Paltz without spending all of your money!

Talk to you later!

/Fanny

NYC: Love at first sight

Yes, in my whole life I have never been to New York City. However, to make up for this I will not only visit as a tourist but live and work in this beautiful city.img-20160903-wa0000

But before I get ahead of myself, let’s start at the beginning.

Of course, I wanted to visit before moving to this incredible city. Therefore, I booked together with the other girls from IIB the trip organized by University to New York City. We left  New Paltz in the early morning to enjoy a whole day in the city.

The view of Manhattan before the bus entered the Lincoln Tunnel was already breathtaking. But it was even better when we got off the bus at Bryant Park. While walking down 6th Avenue I could not stop looking up at the huge skyscrapers.

After some lunch and shopping at Herald Square, we walked up Broadway towards Times Square to gaze at the huge luminous advertisings.

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We took the subway up towards Upper Westside to explore the area around our future home in New York City on 99th Street and Broadway. After looking at the street and not finding the exact building we decided that we were satisfied to just see the surrounding and sat down at a beautiful café called “The Earth Café” to enjoy some coffee and muffins.

 

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As Central Park is not far from the area we took a long stroll trough the park, marvelled the beautiful nature and envisioned how we will walk trough the park in autumn and winter and how beautiful it will look then. We made a stop at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir to look at the striking skyline. We then took a train from the 86th street back to Times Square and walk towards Bryant Park to catch the bus back to New Paltz.

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When I sat on the bus I knew I fell in love with this city and I eagerly anticipate to move to New York City.

 

 

 

Tubing in Phoenicia, NY

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The first thing we decided on when we got to New Paltz was to sign up for all the activities we possibly could. We wanted to get the most out of the area and we knew that time would fly, so when the schedule for the activities was published we basically booked everything on there. This weekend we had both tubing and zip-lining planned and I was literally rushing through the week so that I could jump on the bus and go. I’ve been tubing once before in the Philippines but it was a very calm and relaxed ride – nothing like what we experienced now! The tubing in Phoenicia is nothing for the easily frightened. If you’re afraid of water or of losing control – don’t go! But, if you love adventures and if you don’t mind getting totally soaked and a bit bruised, sign up! I laughed all my way down the stream, except for one single moment when I flipped and flew of my tube, at that point Stephanie was the one who did all of the laughing. unknown

I am so glad that we went, it was so much fun and the nature surrounding the river was astonishing. I even enjoyed the bus ride there. It’s so exciting to see the areas surrounding New Paltz, and since we don’t have access to a car the bus rides to the different activities are actually a really good way to get a grip of the area!

 

Bye for now!

My first visit to The World’s Most Famous Arena

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One of the major reasons that I chose the IIB program is the chance to be in one of the most amazing event venue-cities in the world. And as a crazy New York Rangers-fan I would lie if I said I wasn’t biased towards Madison Square Garden. It’s not called “The World’s Most Famous Arena” for nothing as it has hosted some spectacular concerts and sporting events. Last week I unfortunately had to travel to JFK to visit customs for a new stamp in my passport and decided to do something good with the trip. I scheduled a tour of MSG.

9.30 in the morning I stood in the lobby among a bunch of typical tourists (including a group of guys from Sweden) excited for what was to come. I couldn’t believe the fact that I was actually here, where my precious Blueshirts spend so much time during the NHL-season. After a tour of the food court and “Defining Moments Exhibit” (where “The Great One” Wayne Gretzky had a case of his own) we got to go through a luxury suite into the arena space itself. During this day it was getting ready for night two of Kanye West’s show. The guide told us about the crazy fact that the reason we didn’t see any real stage was because he “floated” above the crowd. Talk about an innovative artist! It was magical to be here and picture that in just about a month the Rangers would hit the ice just below the temporary floor and the seats would be full with fans singing and shouting for their team.

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We moved up to the bridge that is the highest point of the arena for spectators. The view was amazing! But now came the part I was most excited for. We went all the way down to the floor level because now it was time to see the locker rooms. We entered through the glass wall that separated the players from the fans at Delta Sky360 Club during the teams’ entry to the ice during games. We walked past the rack where the hockey sticks are placed during games and there it was: the Rangers locker room. Just a few feet from the New York Knicks/New York Liberty locker room. It was truly a dream come true to see the place where surely a lot of emotions, pep-talks and frustration has taken place. A noticeable attribute is the fact that the Rangers logo is covered up by a carpet. Why? Ice hockey players are extremely superstitious and would rather not see or talk about the logo – and definitely not step on it as it would be bad luck. Yes, it’s true just read about when Justin Bieber stepped on the Chicago Blackhawks logo and what the sporting world felt about it. It’s no joke!

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That’s it for me this time, have a great week and never stop dreaming!

Visit the home of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Vanderbilt´s Marble House

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The school organized a trip to the home of 32nd U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Vanderbilt Mansion Historic Site, historically known as Hyde Park- Vanderbilt Mansion National Park. The Park encompasses over 200 acres of the original estate which was home to prominent New Yorkers for nearly two centuries. Both sites were amazing in itself.

The FDR estate is much more unpretentious that the Vanderbilt Mansion. Nevertheless it is definitely worth and very interesting to take the tour and see how the young Franklin D. Roosevelt lived, where he studied and later had official meetings. Moreover it is interesting to see the modifications that where made to make him live comfortable during the time he had to spent in a wheelchair, when being stricken with poliomyelitis. Roosevelt fought to regain the use of his legs and succeeded. The Presidential Museum is very modern and uses different types of media to inform and entertain its visitors. It allows to gain a comprehensive knowledge about Franklin D. Roosevelt and also about his wife Eleanor that was politically very active.

The Vanderbilt Mansion is only 30 minutes away and is one of the smallest residences that belonged to the Vanderbilt´s. It was a summer house where Mr. and Mrs. William K. Vanderbilt regularly lived in. The interior is amazing and consists of more than 500,000 cubic feet of marble. When it was completed, Mr. Vanderbilt presented  the house to his wife as a 39th birthday present. since 2006 the Marble House is a National Historic Landmark and open to the public.

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More information:

FDR House: http://www.nps.gov/hofr/index.htm

Marble House: http://www.newportmansions.org/explore/marble-house