Coney Island

On Friday, Sammy and I went out to Coney Island. I didn't know that Coney Island is in fact not an Island. It is the furthest south-east point in Brooklyn. The area was developed in the early 1900's and you can really tell that it is old stuff. The place looks a little worn down, but they are renovating and adding to the beach for the next five years.



While we were at Coney Island we ate at the original Nathan's. It is really cool to be there. It is such a historical landmark of the early 1900's.

We really pigged out. I felt gross after.

Here's Sammy testing his strength on an old arm wrestling thing-a-ma-jig. Weak.

Then I tested my strength on one of those hammer deals. You know where there is the tall pole with lights and the harder you hit it, the higher it lights up. Well, I didn't do as stellar as I thought I would. my excuse: I think it's more important where you hit than how hard, because I saw some pretty wimpy hits before I got up that were better than mine. Or maybe, I'm just a wimp.

Interview @ Jean-Georges

So, Yesterday I interviewed at Jean-Georges. Everything went well, but I won't know if I got the job until early next week. They are interviewing about ten more applicants for the postition, so it's pretty competitive. The restaurant is four star New York Times, three star Michelin, five star Mobil Guide, Five Diamond AAA Guide, Relais Gourmande, and in the Grandes Tables du Monde (all that stuff really means is that its a really stinkin' awesome restaurant). So keep prayin for me. I would love to work here.

Peace Out Bouley

So, I got fired/quit my job at Bouley. I really didn't like it there at all. I had been working 80-85 hours a week! On salary even. The chef gave me a two week notice because I don't ask enough questions. It's funny though because when you do ask questions, you get screamed at. The whole place was a big Catch-22. The other guys told me to not take it personal, because he threatened all their jobs too. He does it "to motivate you" and see if "you really want it". Well, I didn't really want to work there, so I told myself I would quit. When I went to talk to the Chef, he said I wasn't really fired and that I could keep my job. I said, "that's cool, but I quit." I haven't been working for almost a week now, and I'm loving it. I've gotten to know my roommates, check out the city, and just relax. I have an interview lined up Tuesday at Jean-Georges. It's one of the top three restaurants in the City and very highly rated. Wish me luck. Pray for me. I would really like to work there.

Di Fara's Pizza

Someone that Sammy works with has a relative that is going to be in New York visiting for about six weeks. We're the same age, so we figured it'd be fun to take her around the city. It was great practice for my French. We took her all the way out in Brooklyn to eat at the best Pizza place around. We got all turned around on the subway, so it took forever. When we finally got the pizza...she didn't want any. Women.


This place is awesome. It is so good because there has been one man making the pizza for the past thirty or so years. His name is Dominick. He immigrated to the US in the seventies and opened a pizza shop. He is literally the only guy that makes all the pizza every day. The crust was a little off when we were there (when I say off, it wasn't bad. It was great, but it's usually a little better), but the sauce is freakin delicious. He also grates all the cheese directly onto the pizza, and then clips fresh basil on top. It takes a while for him to make each pie, but boy is it worth it

Here's Dominick. The pizza legend of Brooklyn.

Silliness, as usual. That's Sammy, my roommate on the left. He's a great guy. We're actually really similar, so it makes for a pretty fun apartment.
Here's Aurelie, the French girl we were showing around town. She's pretty cute, but camera shy I geuss.

The Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge is really amazing. Above traffic, there is a wooden plank walking path. When you walk out on the bridge you get an amazing view of the city. Sammy and I go jogging over the bridge at night time when there's no one out. It's really cool

This is a view of the Manhattan Bridge from the Brooklyn Bridge with the City in the background. See the Empire state building?

Yankees vs. Red Sox

My roommate Sammy is a huge baseball fan, and he bought tickets to the Yankees vs Red Sox game a while back. The guys he was gonna take couldn't make it, so myself, Ray (one of the guys who used to live in our apartment, but just got married), and Ming went with Sammy.

Inside Yankees Stadium there is a small area called Monument Park where there are plaques with busts of all the great Yankees of the past. Here's Ray with the Babe.



Ming fell asleep during one of the best parts of the game. It was really funny. We messed with him a little. I mean he was out cold. Everyone was jumping up and screaming, and he slept right through it.

Chess

That's my roommate, Sammy, on the right and one of the guys from our fellowship, Ming, on the left. They play a lot of chess. It gets really serious. It is hysterical, because Sammy beats Ming a lot, but there is alway something that was the problem. The lights weren't bright enough, he didn't see a piece, the timer messed up. Usually they are pretty even, but Sammy's been on a winning streak. We play too, but man do I suck. We usually catch a couple games in the night time.