Dear Diary,
What did I do today in New York.... I went to the Brazilian Consulate to get my travel visa. For the second time. I tried to go yesterday but the hours they posted online were different than the hours they keep in reality. So I missed it by about 2 minutes. But today I was successful. They NY consulate is pretty much exactly like your average DMV except really fancy and filled with Brazilians. I tried to drink my stashed jamba juice when I was waiting for my number to come up, but the Brazilian guarding the door yelled at me, and pointed at the "no cell phones no drinking no eating" sign. So I put it back in my purse, but then he saw me and was like, NO! and pointed at the garbage. In my head I was like, "no way homie! I just paid a whole 5 USA dollars for this!" But I thought it best not to argue and threw it away.
I am thinking about writing a book, or at least a pamphlet, called, "How to go to New York and not look like you're from Jersey." I am already thinking of helpful hints to put in it. 1. If you are in a fancy place, look around for someone else who has a drink before you pull your smoothie out of your purse. 2. If you are getting buzzed in to someones office, apt, ect, and you can't figure out how to open the door, push it really hard. 3. Only exit from the back door of the bus. Apparently that's required. 4. Watch how the person in front of you puts their metrocard in the bus reader. Then follow suit.
I would say a few more hints but I can't expose all of my faux pas at once. I've got a reputation to maintain.
I walked by the Seinfeld restaurant today, and also by the Trump Tower. Both without expecting to. And my sister took me to this conference at Columbia today. "State of the Planet '06; is sustainable development feasible?" Saw some heavy hitters such as Jeffery Sachs and Peter Singer. Tomorrow is round two. I feel bad, there are kids at my school that would cut off their right arm to go to this stuff, and I fell asleep for part of it. I'm not perfect, okay? You're just going to have to be okay with that.
Love,
Diana