Heaven on Earth

As I announced earlier, I took a big jump in life and moved into my OWN apartment on the UWS. At first, it was a little weird but now that I am all moved in settled in, I am in LOVE! It may be small, but its mine. So here's a little photo tour of the place.

The entry way


My tiny kitchen...even though its small, everything in there is brand new



The best part: the closet


View from the entry way

The living room area

Come visit!

Belgium: Trip #2

Work sent me to Belgium in July for 2 weeks again. My camera battery was dead when I got there so I don't have any pictures. I would have bought a replacement battery except for stores are only open from 10 to 6 Monday through Saturday and are closed on Sundays. I couldn't but one on a week day because I was (surprise) working. On Saturday, I went in a million stores but none of them had the right one. Next time I will be more careful before I leave for a trip. Anyways.....

Work was busy but that's good because I like to be busy. I didn't do much on weeknights except for eating and I love to eat so that's great. I found one restaurant that I have to recommend to you. It was recommended to me by my tourist book, the NYTimes, my parents, and some good family friends who live there. If you are ever in Brussels, you must go eat at the Belga Queen. Its amazing. Just go.

The first weekend I was there, I ventured to Antwerp. Antwerp is famous for 2 things: diamonds and Peter Paul Rubens. I started off the day going to Rubenshuis and checking out the artists former home which was filled with his work, work of his students and work of his contemporaries. It was a great museum because it had great things in it but only took an hour to go through it. Anything longer than that, i start to get bored.

I had lunch at a great Italian restaurant and had a fun 3 hour chat with my waiter. He was trying to get me drunk and was offering me shots (i refused) at 2 in the afternoon. He also wanted to take me out at night for lots of drinks and dancing by the water. hahaha He was a fun guy though and almost (note: almost) inspired me to get a tattoo. He had these great little stars behind his ears and I loved it. I have never wanted a tattoo ever and kind of feel like tattoos are something you get in college but I guess Europe got to me that day and I became obsessed with his tattoo.

Last stop was the diamond shops. Most of my friends hadn't ever even heard of Antwerp, but Antwerp is one of the largest diamond cities and does more than 6 times the amount of diamond sales than Amsterdam. Well, I learned (actually more like reminded of) that I have expensive taste. Next time I go diamond shopping, I need a man who's paying the bill to go with me. Any volunteers?!?! :)

Move on up! To the UWS!!!

Tonight I'm bored. My roommate Rachel suggested I blogged. I laughed. And well now, I'm bored enough to stop laughing and actually blog.

I am about to make a really big change in life. I have decided that life happens in 4's: high school for 4 years, college for 4 years (okay 4 years plus 1 quarter which was really only 2 months), and living in downtown Manhattan for 4 years. I'd really been been itching for a change so I decided my change would be moving to a new neighborhood. So after 1 week of stressful apartment hunting, I found it. It has a walk-in closet. And its all mine. No roommates.

I'm not moving for a few days but I picked up the keys to the apartment today and it was so exciting. I was able to pick out the paint color after I signed the lease and they have been completely renovating the apartment the past few weeks. I can't wait for the renovations to be complete (all they have left is refinishing the floors and replacing the brand new refrigerator that was delivered broken...seriously?!?). Anyways, if I haven't said it enough yet, I am so exited and am counting the days. Here's to the next 4 years...

Brugge

Monday through Friday was all work and no play. Fortunately, I made up for it on the weekends.

Friday night, I went to my family's friends Ed and Bonnie's house for dinner. I have known them my entire life but haven't seen them in 6 years. They had a gorgeous apartment in the Montgomery neighborhood and am completely jealous of their place. From the huge open windows to the eclectic furniture, I was in LOVE. I only dream to have a place like that one day. It was sooo fun to catch up with them. I hope to be able to travel to all the places they have been. I'm not going to lie, they are kind of my idols.

Anyways, on Saturday I was off to Brugge. Brugge is known as the best preserved historical city in Belgium. I had a lot of fun wondering around the city. First up was a boat tour of the town. It was full of great views and helped me understand the layout of the city.

Lots of cute little houses (and my tour guide's head)



More cute houses


This is the Belfort in Markt Square. There are 396 stairs to the top of the tour and I climbed every single one of them. Even though I have been working out a lot lately, I was totally out of breath. I guess I still need to hit the gym.

View of Markt Square from the tower. Amazing!

The churches of Brugge....thats for my mom

This is my in Burg Square. Behind me is the Basillica of the Holy Blood. Because there was a Holy Day that weekend, the church had their relic out on display. This wasn't just any relic. It is the relic of Christ's blood. I even got to go up and say a prayer over it. It was a really cool experience. I don't know if I believe in relics. My fifth grade teacher was a "retired" Catholic priest and told us once that if you added up the wood from all the different churches claiming they had a relic from the cross Christ was crucified, that there would be a total of 14 crosses. Even though I don't know if I believe in the relic, I hope that prayer gets answered because I really need it to be.

Taking a break from the touring...

Other tour stops included the Memling Museum at St John's Hospital, Groeninge Museum featuring work by van Eyck and Magritte, a Bigijnhof, and a FEW shops. Last stop was the Church of Our Lady. This was an amazing church but the highlight was this statue of the Madonna and Child by Michelangelo. It was the ONLY Michelangelo to ever leave Italy during Michelangelo's life.

XoXo

Compare and Contrast

This trip was my first time working in Europe. I have been to Europe on vacation countless times but I have to say that working here is very different yet very much the same as in the US.
SAME
1) People working in the marketing department are always dressed way more hip than the accounting department. I always kind of wish I could be one of those girls…

2) The auditors (whether internal or external) get the worst room in the building to work in.

3) I am still glad that I am not working for KPMG. I loved the people I worked with from there but seeing some of the things they were doing, reminded me of why I don’t work there anymore.

4) Debits and debits and credits and credits.

DIFFERENT
1) The casual atmosphere. I didn’t have internet at work the entire first day I was there. The IT department (which only consists of 1 person) was out and I was told there was nothing to be done. Seriously?!?!? In New York, that would have been taken care of instantaneously.

2) Their English and my English. Most people I have contact with speak English well except for the fact the phrases and words we use are not the same. I feel like I need a translator to get me from American English to the English spoken by my Belgian colleagues.

3)The languages. I know this is obvious but it is really crazy here. Half the population speaks French and half Dutch. I will here 2 people to the left of me talking in Dutch and then 2 people to the right of me speaking in French. Lets talk overload. I was slightly overwhelmed my first few days.

4)Business Etiquette- Because of the different languages there is a simple etiquette rule to be followed in the workplace. When 2 people are talking, they always speak in the language of the inferior person. I thought it was weird at first because in the US, I feel like subordinates always accommodate their superiors. I was explained that the you would always want to make sure that the person who you are delegating the assignment to, fully understands what needs to be done.

More Brussels

After my little bus tour of the city, I went on my own walking tour of the city. I was really shy feeling that day (actually I think I was just so tired and jet-lagged that I didn't feel like making an effort) so I didn't get any pictures with me in them. First up was the Grand Place. This place was full of beautifule architecture. There are really good restaurants along the Place and I ate many dinners there throughout my time. The last weekend I was there, there was a huge jazz festival on the Place. SOOOOO FUN!!!




Town Hall on the Grand Place

Shopping at the Galeries Royales St Hubert The ceiling totally reminds me of the Musee D'Orsay in Paris for some reason and that made me love this place.

This is the church of St Nicholas. It was beautiful inside but the coolest part is the outside/the background of the church. The original church burned down. The jewelers guild raised the money to rebuild the church. Since they paid to rebuild the church, the jewelers decided to build their shops into the side of the church. Nothing says religion like diamonds :)

A supposed must see is the Mannekin-Pis. I was less than impressed but I took my obligatory photo.

I loved my first day in Brussels but eventually Monday came and I was back to work.

Brussels

I have spent the last 2 weeks in Belgium and it was absolutely amazing. Normally I would not describe work as absolutely amazing but I really did have am amazing time while over there. I stayed in the city center of Brussels but was working on the outskirts of town and also got to travel to some other well known towns in Brussels.

After I arrived on Sunday morning, I decided there was no better way to get to know the city than to go on a bus tour. First stop was the Bourse, the stock market building. It had beautiful architecture.


Among the stops were a Japanese Village. So random! I guess a Belgian prince visited Japan and really liked what he saw so he invited a Japanese architect to come build this place. Although it is really random, it is kind of a testament to Brussels because Brussels is a place where everything mixes.

Although the Japanese houses were random, the Atomium was definitely the strangest looking in Brussels. It was built for the 1958 World Fair and is a major attraction. It definitely makes a statement.

The Cinquantaire Arch was built in the 1950s to celebrate 50 years of independance for Belgium.

XoXo

Back to Bloging

I don't know if bloging is supposed to be spelt blogging or bloging so sorry if the title of this post is spelt wrong. I do numbers not words. Anyways, in March I switched jobs and my new job involves a lot of travel. I decided in March that I needed to blog about each place i went to so I don't forget all the places I get to go.

Its May and I have yet to blog about Minnesota, Florida, or Belgium. But I decided tonight is the night. I'm catching up on my trips starting with Belgium.

Friday's Daily 10

*Slept in (again)!
*Watched the first episode of the new season of The Real Housewives of New York. Love that trashy TV.
*My BF stoped by to say hello. It was great to see him even if was only for a few minutes. *Almost bought sweater in Zara but resisted. Then I went to Uniqlo and got the same sweater for $10 cheaper.
*Saw Crazy Heart and really enjoyed it. Jeff Bridges def deserved the nomination.
*Was able to get ready in record time
*Finsihed decorating the apartment for Easter
*Went to a fabulous birthday dinner for a fabulous friend.
*Ate Sugar, Sweet, Sunshine cupcakes
*Found out that there is a Blockbuster kiosk at my local Duane Reade.

Thursday Daily 10

*Woke up at 7 but fell back asleep for another 2 hours. It feels great being well rested.
*Watched an episode of 90210. That show never gets old.
*Saw Valentine's Day. LOVED it!
*Was reminded of how great love is: feeling it, experiencing, watching it...its just amazing.
*Stayed true to my promise that I was going to do touristy things while not working and went to the New York Fire Museum. I loved it and I can't wait to take my nephews there one day. The curator was so nice that she gave me books to send to my nephews.
*Took a walk through SoHo...LOVE that neighborhood. *Bought some uber cute Easter decorations at Crate and Barrel
*Had a great phone conversation with my mom. My nephews were over and it was fun getting to hear their cute little voices and their funny imaginations.
*Saw the Young Victoria (yes, I saw 2 movies in 1 day). Great movie and I hope Emily Blunt gets the Oscar.
*Thursday night TV

Marry Poppins

Tonight I saw Mary Poppins. I went by myself and after my sister said it was so sad I tried to explain to her that its just like going to a movie by yourself, only more expensive. And yes, it really is just like going to a movie by yourself, only more expensive.

Now, onto my thoughts on the play. At first I didn't like it at all and wished I had not spent so much money on the ticket. It was nothing at all like the movie and the little girl playing Jane was just completely ugly. I know that's mean to say, especially since she's a little girl, but its hard to find a child adorable when they are not. As I was thinking about the dispointment in it being nothing like the movie, I was reminded of a conversation I had at brunch last Saturday. My theories on entertainment is this: whatever you see, hear, read first, you will like it better than any other interpretation. For example, I loved the play Chicago but only thought the movie was so-so. The girl I was at brunch with, had the opposite feeling but had seen the two interpretations in opposite order.

Now, I know my theory does not always hold true so I don't need a bunch of messages telling me I am wrong along with a list of examples. I think though, in general, after we experience something, we have it in our minds that this is the way it is supposed to be and when we see it differently, we tend to react negatively.

I think I would recommend Mary Poppins but would also advise not to spend too much money on the tickets.

The Daily 10 is BACK!!!

I quit my job so now I have free time to do things I like to do, such as blogging. So here's todays daily 10:
*It was raining as I walked into my doctors appointment but it had stopped bythe time I got out, which was great because I didn't have an umbrella.
*My doctor gave me a clean bill of health and I wasin and out of the office within 35 minutes
*Went to the American Indian Museum at the US Customs Building. The museum was interesting but the real highlight was the building itself. Great Beaux Arts archictecture and admission was free
*Had my favorite salad for lunch
*Made a home cooked meal for dinner...its so great not ordering in and eating at my desk
*Talked to both my sisters on the phone
*Had a funny email chain from my friends that I am in a weight loss challenge with
*Walked almost every where I went to today. It feelsgreat being more active!
*Second row seats to see Mary Poppins on Broadway AND there was a small child sitting in front of me in the first row so no big heads blocking my view
*Loved the play

The Daily 10 is BACK!!!

DAILY 10

*My roommate made me feel okay about skipping out on church when I was feeling bad about it
*A subway was pulling into the station right as I was walking down the stairs. Perfect timing!
*Ate a brownie with my cheerios this morning.
*Then ate some delicious cookies baked by my roommate April
*Caught up with an old friend...his life is so cool! Let's just say his new job requires a high security clearance
*Watched the Jets dominate the Colts until the second half of the game (what happened in the second half won't be mentioned here as this is a positive only thing)
*Started working on my taxes
*Vince "drove 5 hours to see me"
*Thought about how happy I was that I didn't have to iron my clothes for work
*took a Sunday afternoon nap

Dailey 10 Saturday

*Slept in until 7 am, meaning I got a full 8 hours of sleep for the first time all week
*Wore a bright fuscia sweater and the bright color made me happy
*Looking at the Chrysler building against the pretty blue cloudless sky
*Discovering oreo cakes at work. Seriously they arethe most amazing junk food ever.
*Had enough time to watch 30 Rock and The Soup before I went into work
*got my favorite salad from Cosi for lunch today
*Helped some tourist find their way on the subway
*Burger Burger with Rachel and Maria
*Got my clothes ready for the week...one less stressful thing for the week is gone
*Watched Damages with Maria and Rachel for the first time...really good series and the episodes have really funny titles

Daily 10 Wednesday

This week has been really busy. I didn't have time to post this on Wednesday but I guess its better late than never.

*Woke up to the news that Scott Brown won the MA Senate race...that's the kind of change I can get excited about!
*My admin told me that I didn't just look pretty today but that I look beautiful
*Was able to go out at lunch and buy some fab new tights for my outfit tomorrow
*Have a great assistant from my clients internal audit group to help me today
*The bathrooms at work were finally cleaned after too many days not being cleaned
*Invited to a Game Night this weekend
*Made my cab driver drive the way I wanted and not how he wanted
*Watched last nights episode of the Biggest Loser
*my soft sheets
*talked to my mom on the phone

Daily Ten

*The big windows in my living room
*the line at Starbucks moved really fast even though it was really long
*My staff is getting really good and professional when talking with managers and the client. Go Joe!
*Got a black and white cookie from Juniors
*Went outside to pick up lunch
*Was so busy at work that I didn't even realize it was 5pm *Made a wager with a friend over the Colts/Jets game
*Ordering too much food for lunch ended up being a good thing bc it ended up being my dinner since I worked so late
*My mom received the flowers I ordered her
*Excited to go to work tomorrowo finnish everything and meet my deadline

The Daily Ten-Monday

*the train was empty bc of the holiday...so nice to have personal space
*Was able to run an errand on lunch
*Laughed really hard when my coworker said "little people" over and over instead of children
*Pacman
*Got an email from Target saying my order had been shipped
*My college sorority got 30 new girls today
*Bachelor is on tv tonight
*Woke up and had an email from Groupon. Love it!
*Emailed with a friend I had not talked to in awhile
*A quiet evening at home

Sundays Daily 10

*Jessica asked Sal if he was from the Jersey Shore. LMAO! In Jessicas defense, Sal is Italian and liberally uses hair gel, but no he's def not from the shore or a shore goer
*Was able to fall back asleep after waking up at 650 am
*Watched Meet The Press and appreciated the Haiti coverage
*I got to work from home instead of going to the office
*Cleaned my room and bathroom...nothing makes me happier than clean apartment
*Made some delicious banana chocolate chip pancakes
*Used my new dvd player for the first time
*Read an article in NY Mag about what makes people happy...it made me happy!
*Caught up on some old episodes of Weeds
*Jets won! J-E-T-S jets! jets! jets!

thE dailY teN

*After I got ready for the day, I thought "wow, I look really good today"
*Took a cab to work this morning and the drive up the FDR was beautiful. Its seriously one of my favorite views of Manhattan and I miss getting to see it every morning on my drive out of the city
*Was the only one at the office when I got here. I'm. Not a loner or anything but its really nice not to have the 15 other people I share an office with here
*Found out my sister had a really fun night with friends
*Ate goldfish and Diet coke for lunch...reminded me of college
*Leighton Meester's Somebody to Love
*Caught up with some girlfriends
*Got all my clothes ready for the week
*Suishi dinner with Vince
*Met up with a lot of work friends at a party

Fridays Daily 10

*Stood on the subway and enjoyed
*Got a key piece of information I've been needing for my audit
*Its Friday
*Read a story about 3 people who work for my company were on the plane that landed in the Hudson
*They ordered in lunch for us today
*Im not dreading going to work tomorrow like I normally do
*Listened to some great subway musicians
*Rachel did me the biggest favor ever and picked up my laundry
*Read an interesting article about my old client acquiring a new company
*was a smart spender

A Day Late in Posting: Thursdays Daily 10

*Was able to snag a seat on the subway the whole way to work
*40 degree weather!
*Had a great professional call
*Ate crumbs cupcakes for my managers birthday
*Went to a meeting in a different building and was able to enjoy the beautiful weather
*Solve a problem at work that I have been working on for 2 months
*Jay Leno is back at 11:35
*Walked down the steps in the station right as a train pulled in. No wait = one happy commuter
*My coworker thinking the CEO had a stroke but no, he really just can't speak well
*Streaming Z100 made work this evening much more enjoyable

Daily 10

*My dry cleaning bill was less than I expected*

*Was offered a free gymnastics class by Chealsea Piers after blogging about it yesterday*

*Something I thought was going to be disastrous at work was not disastrous at all*

*Something I thought was going to be a really big task at work turned into a small task*

*People started RSVPing to my sisters baby shower*

*I left work the earliest I have left all week*

*I had the apartment to myself for a few minutes tonight*

*Caught up on my friend Lauren's blog*

*Had a seat on the subway ride home*

*Was told by some readers that they like reading my daily 1o*

Daily 10

*Woke up before my alarm (again)
*Had enough time to read an article of the Ensign before I went to work
*Was reminded that the past is to be learned from but not lived in
*Our intern went to the store and bought us a ton of candy to snack on. Yum!
*Realized my birthday is exactly 2 months away because its Jacobs birthday and in 9th grade I thought it was cool that my boyfriend and I had the same birthday except they were 2 months apart
*Found out they offer adult gymnastic classes at chelsea piers
*An old man at the deli in my office building told me I have a smiling face
*Took a cab home from work
*Watched part of All My Children from last week with Haley and Mateo aka Kelly Ripa and Mark Conseulos
*Was in bed by 10

Daily 10

*I woke up before my alarm
*Got a really yummy free breakfast at work
*A funny story about a friend and her shoes was told at a Company meeting in front of 2,000 people
*A partner said breast knowledge instead of best knowledge and we all immaturely laughed. And I just laughed again as I wrote it.
*PS 161 from Harlem came to our Company meeting and sang for us. Definitely made a boring corporate meeting not so boring
*Got in a heated debate with my coworkers over the Jersey Shore with my coworkers
*They served tomato soup for lunch (my fav) at the cafeteria
*Told a coworker I would sue him for fraud if he proposed tome with a cubic zarconia (sp?) ring
*Didn't feel tired when I left work even though I didn't leave until 9
*Missed the subway but the next one came a lot sooner than I expected

Sunday's Daily 10

*Ate brunch at Cafeteria with my parents*

*Found out there really are green eggs and ham and its not just a DR Suess book thing*

*Made a new friend at church*

*My mom told me my dress was too short....never am too old for some motherly advice*

*Made my parents come and look at my room after I made my bed so they could see what my room looks like when its clean and was proud of myself for my room being clean*

*Ate some wonderful desserts with some wonderful ladies after church*

*Watched Away We Go with John Krasinski....love that guy*

*Ate some ice cream....even though its cold outside I still love it*

*Got asked to speak at church and am not not looking forward to it*

*Watched Kelly Ripa and her husband Mark on last Monday's episode of All My Children that I had recorded*

I'm Baaaaack

Its been noticed by a few people that I haven't blogged in awhile. I think I found the task of blogging to be daunting since I had gone so long not doing it. Recently, Rachel started blogging her "Top Ten" and I thought it was such a great idea. So I am jsut going to skip the last 5 months and give you todays top 10.

*My mom and dad came in town*

*Got 2nd row tickets to see South Pacific on Broadway*

*There were some really cute sailors/actors in the play that I now have crushes on*

*Finally ate a burger and fries at the Burger Joint*

*Went to the Museum of the City of New York and learned all about the history of New York....so interesting!*

*Laughed at my mom for being scared about being in Harlem*

*One of the architects featured at the museum designed the theatre we saw South Pacific in*

*Even though it was bitterly cold, it was sunny and the sky was so blue*

*Introduced my parents to Adrienne's pizza*

*Mailed out the invitations to my sisters baby shower....cant wait for those babies to come!*

Road Trip

I've been really busy and haven't had time to blog much int he past 2 months and now that I am finally on here, I am still not really blogging. I just wanted to share this link with you all. My friends Vince, Vlad, and Sal are on a road trip. Not just any road trip- a 30 day road trip going from New York to California and back to New York. Follow the boys as they go cross country:

http://www.roundtrippin09.blogspot.com/

The CPA Exam is PAINFUL

This is me:

The CPA exam is taking over my life. I passed the first section and now have until December 31, 2010 to finish the rest of the exam. I'm taking another section on Saturday and am hoping to have to home exam done by January 2010. Maybe then, I will be able to do something with friends and live a care free life. Until then, I'll be stuck with my nose in a book.

Thanks Drew!

Its restaurant week in NYC. That means I gorge myself day after day in New York's best restaurants. Tonight Vincent and I went to Tribeca Grill, which is owned by Drew Neiporent. Drew is one of the city's most famous and successful restaurateurs. Despite owning 5 or so restaurants in NY alone and much to my surprise, Drew was at the restaurant tonight. I think its great that he is involved in his ventures each and every night.

What we ate:

Appetizers: Warm Asparagus Salad and Tomato Salad
Entrees: Roasted Striped Bass and Grilled Birkshire Pork Chop
Dessert (of course..no meal is complete without it): Roasted Peach Tart and Chocolate Mousse Cake

The appetizers were good but nothing special. Vince's pork chop was amazing. I don't normally eat pork chops but this was amazing and would def ordered it again. Overall this is a great place for a meal. Some entrees are a little expensive for what they are but they will taste great. Yum!