A Trip Into Harlem
I’m taking some time away from my studying and cleaning to reflect a bit on the past week since I last blogged. Okay not really taking time away from as much as postponing my studying and cleaning…
Drew recently posted about our Saturday of running and giant pianos. Seriously, I loved the FAO Shcwarz store. It was so much fun. If people come and visit I think I might make them go there. I mean its free and you get to play on a giant piano. Its fabulous!
But Drew already wrote about that so I will talk a little about what we did last weekend. We went to the world famous Lenox Lounge.
It was free to the public (i.e. no cover charge) as a Columbia/Harlem Festival of Jazz event. But first we met up with some of my friends from the School of Social Work, Lucia and Brandon, and went to a fabulous Chinese restaurant, Ollie’s. I don’t know if it was just because I was really hungry or what, but my curry chicken and potato dish was really delicious. I think everyone else enjoyed their fare as well.
So, with our tummies full and happy we headed through Morningside Heights (which is Columbia’s name for their section of Harlem) and into Harlem to the Lenox Lounge. By the time we got there the “Zebra Room” was already packed so we had to sit in the bar area. While we were not able to see the band playing, we could still hear them and were able to talk too, so it worked out okay. 
We crammed 6 of us around a table that would comfortably seat 4 and ordered our drinks.
Lucia and I especially wanted to try a new drink so I ordered a Miles Davis and she ordered an orange martini. The Miles Davis was delicious. I am not sure what was in it, but it was tequila based with a bunch of other stuff mixed in to make a pretty froo froo drink. Lucia didn’t get quite what she ordered (her drink came as a martini with a slice of orange in it, rather than a orange flavored martini), but it was still pretty good.
We sat and talked for a while, and spent about an hour waiting for our waiter to bring us our check before we could leave. And when he finally did bring it, he had charged us for too many drinks. So, the lounge was a fun place to see, but the service was so terrible, I think that may be the only time we stop there.
On our way home I saw my first New York City Rats in a pile of garbage along the fence, so that was pretty exciting… and a little creepy.
Then we decided at the last minute to have a Guitar Hero party in our apartment. So Brandon and Lucia came up to our place and we played some Guitar Hero into the wee hours of the morning. It was a good time. And although Lucia had never played it before, she quickly picked it up and I still am one of the worst players ever… Oh well, I just like to play. :)
