This blog was inspired by the SOTAtour in brasil that miss phan has created. If you haven’t already seen it go there you silly goose!|| here ||

For the reference links please check these links, or just simply scroll down to where’d you would like to go. Keep in mind you will also need to printout some sheets in the future.

Reference Table:

New York

• Schedule of Events
• General Weather of NY during July
  • Predicted Forecast – Metric System
• Customs about NY
  • How to Dress
  • What we Eat
• History about Locations

Maryland

• Something about Mary-land
  • About Otakon
  • Schedule of Events
  • Bus Information

Important Info/Personal Printouts

• Packing/Carry on Tips
• Phan’s Itinerary, Prices, How Meeting, & Items to Bring
  • || > Printout Version Here (updated 7/10/09)
    
• Yumi’s Itinerary, Prices, How Meeting, & Items to Bring
  • || > Printout Version Here (updated 7/10/09)
    
• What to Bring?
  • || > Printout Version Available in your Itinerary Packet
    
• Emergency Information(MUST PRINT)
  • || > Printout Version Here
    

Side Reference:
Addresses, Hours, Numbers of Locations

1.)    Before we meet you, Amera will meet Julie @ Woodside Station. Amera’s train will be leaving from CI @ 2:18pm. Amera should be at Woodside Station by 3:22pm. We will then walk and drop off our stuff @ the apartment. This should take us roughly 30-45 minutes.

We will most likely just use the Q20A or B or Q44 to Jamaica (about 45mins)
But if not here are some Woodside trains that we may catch:

2.) Julie and Amera will be at the Airtrain at about 4:50pm-5:20pm. We will go to Terminal 4 for TAM Airlines (same way to Brasil as well)

We will then go to JFK, head to Terminal 4. Phan’s Flight Number is #8079

3.) We will be able to pick Phan up at baggage claim area. We will be the dorks waving a Phan <3 sign!! If it is past 6:15pm, and Phan has not met up with us do not hesitate to borrow someone’s cell(a girl please), and call our #’s. During the trip Amera will lend you her cellphone ‘til you are able to call properly with your SIM card.

4.) Go on Airtrain again, and head back to Jamaica Station.

Depending on the times we arrive to Jamaica Station will affect which train we are taking- but we will 99% chance take subway instead:

5.) Walk back to apartment, settle down and see what happens!! Enjoy NY!!

Tuesday, July 14
The main idea is to just get introduced into the culture of NY. We will try to just let you understand the history of NY here, so when you see the other places it will mean more to you.

If rains like a jerk, we will move what outside events were cancelled for Thurs/Friday. If we were not able to go grocery shopping, we can just do other stuff later too

Morning
(Grocery Shopping if we haven’t done that yet)
Dim sum and/or Starbucks something for breakfast if we haven’t had groceries.

1.) This was highly recommended that we should take this; it provides narration and history about a lot of the locations around New York. But what makes it great is that we will be very close to the Statue of Liberty as well.

Zephyr Seaport Liberty Cruise – $27
- Half Circle. Duration: 1hr.
Times; 11:30am, 1:00pm, 2:30pm, 4:00pm

2) Can walk down and see Wallstreet. Make a loop around and we can head to World Trade Center. Maybe on our way to 9/11 we can head to:

Japanese bookstore/cafe
Pass by the Public Library
There is a japanese mart that we can pick something up near bryant park
Bryant Park to relax and eat. There may be events going on around here too.

(If we can pull off otherwise on Friday)

• Empire State Building
• Chrysler Building

Night

• Karaoke(only if rains..)

Wednesday, July 15

1.) MoMa(w 53th street, 5th avenue between 6th.)
2.) Keep going, east til go to 5th avenue pass by St. Thomas Church (its on same side as MoMa). Keep going til hit Madison Avenue. There are brand name’s all down this street like Dior, Vutton..etc .
3.) Want to go down Madison Avenue til 50th street.
4.) Go towards 5th avenue by going west. and see St. Patrick Cathredal Rectory on right side. Go inside it.
5.) Keep going straight west til hit 5th avenue. We want to go down a block til hit 49th street. Go west, and stay on right side of road.
6.) On right side we will run into Rockefeller Center. Soon after the GE building(nbc chills here).
7.) Once hit Avenue of the Americas, make a right and go up til pass w 50th avenue. Radio City Music Hall is on right.
8.) Hit W 51st. Go make left(west). Keep walking down and you will run into Broadway street. Paramount Plaza is near(not important).
9.) Keep going down…omfg Broadway!!

Night
5/6pm. Up til 8pm – Karaoke DUET. $10 per person.
Times Square @ Night

Thursday July 16th

Morning
1.) Guggenheim Museum @ 5th ave right beside central park. It’s in between E 89th and E 88th street.
2.) We want to go down 5th avenue, either down the scenic route of central park maybe even take a carriage if desire.
3.) Go to E. 82nd st and 5th Ave. This is the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
4.) E 79th street has a pathway that leads into central Park. It’s called W 79st Transverse road. You can go on this pathway through central park.
5.)Once you see West Dr. your close to the 81st Street Museum of Natural History. Enjoy.
6.) Once down go down Central park West. Go down it til W. 72nd street. This is John Lennon memorial.
7.) Have a bite to eat, sit on rock or by The Lake.

Noon
Madame Toussand Wax Museum

Night
Webstarr Hall. We need to be there @ about 9:20-10:30pm

Friday, July 17th
If we not see Empire/Chrysler we will see it today.  The Chrysler Building was the highest building before the Empire was made, just fyi. Afterwards, we leave and go to the Korean Spa(around 2-3pm i guess..?). Maybe, MAYBE look into getting broadway tickets. In all honesty we have so many things to do, we don’t have the ability to sacrifice time for the times they are open.

Broadway tickets:  The lines are ENORMOUS…earlier the better before it opens. It opens 3pm to 8pm for evening shows Monday through Saturday. There is a seperate line for plays-only. 50% off. This would be a nice option to think about, really depends on how much progress did during week. Cash only. Broadway tickets @ Duffy(Broadway and W 47th street)

Morning
Korean Spa(if we saw empire/chrysler buildings)
Dim Sum?

Noon
Psychic to predict how the rest of our trip will turn out..? idk >3
Harry Potter Movie perhaps?

Night
>3

From Saturday, July 18th to Sunday, July 19th we will be going to Maryland to see Otakon. We will pay while we are there. Julie’s friend is lending out her apartment for us to borrow while we are there.

Sunday, July 19th
Later on once get back from bus, we will eat out with my dad. There is more then just the city that makes New York wonderful. We will be arriving back from bus around 5:40. May take us an hour and a half to get to my home. We will have a nice dinner- see how time goes.

Night
Stay overnight @ my place

Monday, July 21
Around noon we head out to Flushing. Get our luggage prepared- maybe even do laundry. Head up and get ready to go

Flight is @ 6:15pm at JFK- but! It will take us a bit to get there.

Also the humidity in NY, especially in the Subway can get pretty nasty.. if your worried about your hair frizzing out you better stock up on some nice hair products too!

Usually the weather tempature in July floats around 78-95F(25.5-35C). Sometimes it can get hotter, but what makes the weather feel nasty is the humidity, not so much the heat.

If you’d like to see the monthly forecast prediction feel free to check here:
Metric System Forecast

What to bring: Umbrella/Jacket with a hood. Should be expecting random showers/thunder showers
What to pack: Hair products to fight frizz(optional), clothing fabric like cotton(easier to breathe in for humidity). PLS don’t forget deodorant(edit: removed comment )

Curious of what the behavior is here? What is the trendy clothing going on in America these days? Where is some nice food?

Just in case you’ve been living under a rock in NY- or better yet living in Brasil all your life, have no fear! By all means I must admit i’m a bit weak when it comes to food, so we will need to depend on miss yumi’s suave help here.  Expect her expertise to be helping you along with popular food places to hit while we are in NY.

But for right now, my sister has added some great insight for what is popular to wear in NY. Maybe you can even invest in an outfit or two yourself!

How we dress

Jeans:

Jeans that are trendy these days usual have different types of wash effects. Sandblasted, paint splatter, rips and tears.

Another type of popular jean these days are skinny jeans- these are recommended to wear with pumps(high heels).

get in them skinny jeans. The left shows how it can be worn down too

Leggings:

(This is especially popular these days):

These can be worn in two different ways. First way is down ’til ankle length with long dress tops and high heels as trendy nightclub wear.

Or if you want to be casual, you can either scrunch up the leggings to knee length, or you can purchase knee-high length leggings. This can be worn under a sundress that’s a bit too high up for casual strolling.

Legging Sizes- can come in different colors and patterns too!

Tank tops:

Casual Tank Layering

As casual use, tank tops are layered over smaller tank tops. Usually for outside shopping and fun daytime activities

Cardigan Jacket

Turn this tank top into something fancy pairing the two tank tops with a small cropped jacket/blazer(cardigan). This jacket usually does not go past the belly button. This would be a wonderful fancy casual outfit for comedy shows and restaurant dining.

Shoes:

During the day for casual activities besides the basic shoe, you will find a lot of people wearing flat gladiator sandals.

At night- especially in the club, scene or Broadway shows women will wear gladiator stilettos with a pear of blue ripped jeans and a casual top.

Popular Summer Shoes!!

Accessories:

Most of New Yorker design is focused on accessories: Shoes, Necklaces, Bracelets, earrings, sunglasses, scarves, and bags.

Accessories make a difference!

Pairing a basic white t-shirt with a pair of jeans can be extremely trendy with a scarf, and sunglasses.

For night time upscale evening, with a strapless knee high dress you can pair with a clutch, bracelet, rings and earrings with a cropped jacket.

Showing you all the simple items that can make you look f-a-b!

What to Eat

Star-bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbuckkkkkk

NY has everything you’d ever want- especially if you got the money! Not to mention we have something called Starbucks

Click this to see some restaurants out there that provide some visuals.

If you like anything feel free to comment!

The region that was to become New York City was originally populated by Native Americans of the Algonquian language group. Englishman Henry Hudson and members of the Dutch East India Company were the first Europeans to settle in what is now called Lower Manhattan in 1624. Story has it that shortly thereafter in 1625 these Europeans purchased Manhattan Island from the native peoples for a mere sixty guilders (approximately $24), and its newly established town was christened New Amsterdam. It was not until after a conflict between the Dutch and English occurred in 1664 that the city took on its present name in honor of the British Duke of York.

New York City grew and remained under English rule until the American Revolution, after which it served briefly as the capital of the United States from 1785 to 1790. Its expansion and prominence continued for the next two-and-a-half centuries, as its location at the mouth of the mighty Hudson River made it an ideal port serving the entire Northeast and, ultimately, the United States as a whole. The late nineteenth century to the end of the Second World War marked a period of particular growth in the city’s size, commerce and culture, due in part to a massive influx of poor European immigrants, who sought out a better life only to find themselves in living under mostly squalid conditions in crowded urban tenements. Improvements were ultimately made in municipal services, including public transportation, sewer and water and health care; culture and the arts also flourished during this period. During the latter half of the twentieth century, New York experienced a transformation from a predominantly working-class city to one of privilege and stark economic contrasts. Fiscal problems — including deficits, taxation and potential bankruptcy issues – and high crime rates plagued more than one mayoral administration. It is truly tragic that, just as New Yorkers were beginning to feel safer in their own city, the terrorist attacks on the landmark World Trade Center towers took place on September 11, 2001. That the citizens of this diverse and at times overwhelming urban landscape immediately pulled together to help one another with such genuine acts of kindness and heroism is a true testament to the human spirit. The city is still in the process of rebuilding and recovering from this fateful event during which 2,000 lives were lost.

About Otakon:
[ insert nerdy image]
lalaladsa
www.otakon.com

Schedule of Events:
hiu

Bus Information:
So…how are we going to MA exactly..? As a matter of fact..where will we be living?? Yumi saves the day for us! She has done the pleasure of getting us the otakon tickets, bus tickets, AND a place we can crash as we are in Maryland! Posted below is the bus information.

Prices:
So how much is this?

Bus Tickets: $35
Otakon Tickets: $35/65(worst case)
Bus Schedule:

We will depart to Maryland:
Friday, July 17th @

We will arrive to Maryland:
Saturday, July 18th @

Otakon for some of the 18th & 19th.

We will arrive to NY:
5:30pm

Otherwise

If you want to see a little video on how to bag your makeup check out this link:

Carry On Rules

1. Carry on bag should contain a folder containing all your flight information, tickets, passport, etc so that you can pull it out easier.
2. If you carry on any gels, liquids, aerosol cans it should be no more then 3oz’s and inside this quart bag.

Packing Tips

Pack by putting it over bed to see your items.

Put things in your shoes(socks, underwear) and put them around the side like this. This helps secure the luggage up, and help prevent wrinkles of clothing. Not to mention, it will keep the bottom of the shoe away from the clothing.
For pants, the best way is to line it folded halfway
For shirts fold in sleeves, and roll it like a newspaper. If you

If you wish to see some general tips about packing check this:

[download here]
(updated 7/10/09)

Package Includes:

1. Flight Information
2. Price Sheet
3. How we will meet up
   
4. What Yumi Should Bring

[download here]
(updated 7/10/09)

Package Includes:

1. Flight Information
2. Price Sheet
3. How we will meet up
   
4. What Phan Should Bring

Carry-On Essentials

Important Documents:

Tip: Put this into a yellow envelope so that you can pull it out when needed.

1. Airplane Itinerary Sheet (to get plane ticket)
2. Contact List in case of Emergency (Talk to Amera if you haven’t been given this)
3. Passport with Visa inside
4. Printout Packet – You can retrieve under your name @ sotatours.wordpress.com

Wallet With:

1. Blood Donation Card (if you have one)
2. Debit Card
3. Driver’s License/Permit (They may ask for this when getting plane tickets too)
4. Health Insurance Card
5. Money converted into Raeis and/or Dollar Bills
6. Personal Check (This is not a preferred method, use your debit card)
7. SIM card (Phan)
8. Visa (preferred) or Mastercard/American Express

Purse:

Tip: Make any liquid/gel items fit in a clear, quart size bag. The items should not be in anything above 3oz. If you can, do not bring any of these following items on carry on in the first place! Leave them in your luggage wrapped in a Ziploc bag so they won’t spill. If you bring it in carry-on they may take at Brasil security.

You can put toiletry items here, but you were warned that they may take them away if they are liquid/gels!

1. Camera
   1. Battery Charger (Julie is Bringing)
   2. Spare Duracell Batteries in Ziploc (Amera is Bringing)
2. Cell Phone with numbers added on contact list (msg Amera if don’t have #’s)
3. Comb/Brush(Not metal- otherwise store it in luggage to be safe)
4. Glasses + Case
5. Gum
6. iPod/MP3 player w/ headphone
7. Pen/Pencil
8. Phrase Book
9. Schedule of Events Printout
10. Sunglasses + Sunglass Case

Page 2

What to Bring

Note: There is Special Markings for that person to bring the item for everyone.

Toiletries:

Tip: Put them in bags so that it’ll be easier to retrieve them later (especially makeup). Try to protect the items by wrapping it in between a towel or something.

1. Body wash(Amera is bringing this)
2. Comb/Brush
3. Contact Lenses
4. Dental Floss
5. Deodorant/Powder
6. Insect Repellant (Amera is bringing)
7. Make-up + Makeup brushes
8. Medicine
   1. Allergy Medicine (whoever has allergies/seasonal brings..?)
   2. Aloe Vera (Heather is bringing)
   3. Anti-Itch Mosquito Cream (Heather is bringing)
   4. Aspirin (Julie is bringing
9. Moisturizer – For face + body
10. Shampoo/Conditioner (Phan/Amera is bringing this)
11. Sunscreen (Phan/Amera is bringing this)
12. Tampons/Pads (FFA!!!)
13. Toothbrush
14. Toothpaste (Julie is bringing this)

Clothing:

Tip: Wear the heaviest/bulkiest clothing you can when flying (ex: sneakers, jeans + jacket). When you pack clothing put the shoe bottoms facing outside, around the luggage. This will secure the luggage, save space, and make you not get dirt on clothing. Also wrap your shirts like you would a newspaper to save space.

For more tips on bagging see: sotatours.wordpress.com

1. Bathing Suit
2. Fancy Outfit for Dancing
3. Fancy Shoes (clubs do not accept sneakers to clubs!! Cry ;__;)
4. Sneakers(Lots of walking)
5. Socks
6. Umbrella (for NY especially)
7. Your call! – Check the weather to get an idea on what to bring.