A day at the US Open

To me, there is not a better sport on this planet than tennis. So of course going to the US Open is somewhat of a dream come true. I was very lucky and got a cheap ticket, although the Open are sold out everyday, so there was no way I could say no. A ticket for the day session of day 5. And I especially like going to tournaments in the first rounds. That way you get to see more matches and can get closer to the players because some matches are played on "smaller" courts.

I got there at around 10:30am. The first match started at 11 o'clock. So perfect timing to get a good seat for the match Haas vs. Muller. Furthermore I watched some Federer vs. Alves, Ginepri vs. Cilic and also Safin vs. Robredo. Here are some pics I took while I was there:

Click on pictures for a larger view

Of course I could go into detail about every match but I won't. At least not too much. I wish Haas would have won. He got a bad call in the tiebreak of set 3 and wasn't able to regain his composure afterwards. Muller took it in 5.
I only watched Federer for about 10 minutes. It just isn't that much fun watching him because there pretty much is no chance he will lose in the early rounds of a Grand Slam. Also, I didn't want to miss other matches where I could be closer to the action than all the way up in Arthur Ashe stadium.
Cilic played really well against Ginepri and deservedly won. And I do have to say, the Grandstand is my favorite court at the Open. No too big with great seats and nice atmosphere all around.
Last match I saw was Safin vs. Robredo. Unfortunately the match had 3 rain delays. I stayed because sooner or later the clouds passed for good and play was continued. Safin just is not a smart player. Yeah he can hit the ball hard and on a good day beat anyone, but he just doesn't know when to take a step back and go for a smarter shot. Robredo used his chances and sealed the deal in the end.

That was my day at the open in short. It was amazing. Wish I could go everyday. As a consequence, I will start playing tennis again. For every tennisfan, visiting one of the Grand Slams should be on the "to do"-list.

Third Rock from Sun in NYC

Today I was walking around the city, running some errands. And in a city occupied by millions, every once in a while you will spot a celebrity. And one such famous person crossed my path today. It was Kristen Johnston. Probably most of you will probably say: Kristen who?! Well, here is a pic of her:



As you can see, she was in 3rd Rock From The Sun (great sitcom by the way) and one of the Austin Powers movies. Of course she has done some other stuff too as well as theater. Where did I see her? At a Staples (office supply store) on Broadway. I was shocked when I saw her though. To me she looked like this:


Okay, I am exaggerating. But she really did look horrible. She is a tall woman and anyone who has seen her onscreen knows she is a bit more heavy-set which is Ok because it fits her. Well, when I saw her she looked too thin, her skincolor unhealthily pale and old, eyes glossy, somewhat jumpy and nose slighty redish around the nostrils which could imply this:


In her defense, I have to say that she burst an ulcer in December 2006. But still, that was a long time ago and she should have recovered from that by now. Looks like the actress isn't hooked on 3rd Rock From The Sun but on 3rd Crackrock Before Noon. Hope I am wrong.

Drinks of the weird

When you go to a supermarket in the US, you will certainly be amazed by all the different beverages you will be able to find there. It far surpasses the selection you know in Germany. There is something for every taste and I always try to taste something new. But some drinks really are weird. And of course, I don't want to keep those from you. Drink Number 1 that I found weird:



NICLite. It basically is water with added nicotine. For all you tryin-to-quit smoking fiends. I did not try it though since I don't reallt crave the nic. I just find the idea of water with nicotine weird. But whatever floats your boat.

Drink number 2 was this:


The deal with hint is, that it is water with just a tiny bit of natural taste and no sugar. And I certainly love water. Kalter. Klares. Wasser. And I also love cucumber. So why not put them together? Great idea right? Yeah that's what I thought, too. But I was taught better. While the water did have a bit of a cucumber taste, it more so reminded me of this:



STINKBUG!!!!!
And if I do have an archnemesis on this planet, that is it. I have a very traumatic childhood experience where one ot those bugs flew into my ear and I couldn't get it out until some woman came to help me. And to this day I will never forget that smell. And tasting that water, I almost threw up on the spot. Stinkbug, you are my kryptonite. Thou shall not defeat me with your cucumber water! Revenge will be mine!!!!!!

If there's something strange in your neighborhood

Who you gonna call? GHOSTBUSTERS!

I went to visit a landmark of one of my favorite films of all time. The Ghostbusters HQ is in New York and can be found here:



View Larger Map
Inside the firstation, they actually have a Ghostbusters 2 sign. And outside a Ghostbusters/Fire department logo painted on the street. Check out my pics:


While I was there, five other people came to take pics. And this is almost 20 years after Ghostbusters 2. Pretty damn cool. Of course everybody knows Vankman, Ray, Egon and Winston are not going to walk out of that firestation. But when you are there, you still hope they really would.

The saddest place on earth: Las Vegas

I went to Vegas for the first time in my life last weekend. "Wow! Vegas! Awesome!" That's what I thought. The city you always hear all these crazy stories about. When people go somewhere to go nuts, where do they go? Vegas of course! Or at least, that's what a lot films out there tell us.

Well, I went there and thought it was a sad place. So sad, I felt sorry for the people living there.

Seriously, Vegas is not a good city. The first thing you will see when you get off the airplane at Vegas airport, are slotmachines. As you may know, gambling is legal in Vegas. And pretty much that is all you do.

The airport / The hotel lobby-casino / Slotmachine in bar

Normally when most people go on vacation, they don't really spend time in the hotel because they are out and about exploring the place they are visiting. Well, in Vegas, everything happens in the hotel. So if you are not in YOUR hotel,then you are probably in one of the OTHER hotels. Why? Because that's all there is in Vegas: hotels. The hotel also is a casino with machines bleeping and blurping all day long already starting in the lobby. The hotel also always offers some kind of show like Barry Manilow or Siegfried and Twoface. The hotel also has several restaurants. And most likely, the hotel will also have some kind of nightclub and shopping area. Of course the hotels are quite fancy and some are so luxurious, it will blow your mind. Furthermore some of the restaurants are amazing and offer incredibly good food. But it all is overshadowed by the fakeness of it. Seriously, Disney World feels like the ancient cathedral of Notre Dame compared to Vegas. The city has absolutely no authentic atmosphere since everything happens in the hotels. When you go to an Italian restaurant everything is made to look Italian but it just doesn't feel right. In NYC there a little cozy restaurants in red brick houses, that are naturally run down and have an authentic atmosphere. In Vegas they try to capture that too, within the hotel, but it just doesn't work. I mean, just take a look at the pic of that Italian square. That was inside a shopping mall, with a fake painted sky and the smell of chlorine in the air. "Hallenbad"-atmosphere is what my buddies Roeb and Wollny called it. And there is nothing classy about that. The city has so little style, they have to rebuild other cities with style into it. Like Paris, Venice or even New York. Just look at the pics. It is white trash Disneyland. Everything is so unbearably fake! Even the women are! Since prostitution is somewhat allowed in Vegas, hookers are everywhere. The problem is you won't be able to tell which women are and which aren't prostitutes since they all look alike (fake boobs galore) and you can't really tell whether they just want your money or not.

So what do you do in Vegas? Gamble for one. But in my book, sticking a dollar into a slotmachine isn't really gambling. Blackjack is. Or Poker. But, if you are not into that or low on cash, you really shouldn't try. And even that is without a special flair since it is done in huge halls where you feel like cattle. Shows are another thing. You will find many a famous artists in Vegas: Cher, Elton John and all other kinds. Why are they out in the desert? Because in Vegas, they get paid way more than anywhere else. And why is that? Because there is nothing to do and only a huge amount of money could get someone to come out to live there! Drinking is a good thing to do. Again because that's really is not much else to do. Sports you can forget about. It is so hot there that you will get a heat stroke in no time. My friends and where close to going nuts and going at each other because of the heat after only being outside for about 30-40 minutes.

To me, Vegas is like a one-legged 50 year old prostitute, trying so hard to pass herself off as a prima ballerina from the Russian ballet. Underneath all those bright lights, this city has no style and glamour and seems rotten to the bone. You can really feel how people have pissed their whole live away and the city is full of scum and failed existences. Vegas might have been something at some time but I believe, the words of Ace Rothstein do it justice:

Today it looks like Disneyland. And while the kids play cardboard pirates, Mommy and Daddy drop the house payments and Junior's college money on the poker slots. In the old days, dealers knew your name, what you drank, what you played. Today, it's like checkin' into an airport. And if you order room service, you're lucky if you get it by Thursday. Today, it's all gone.

Still had a lot of fun though because I got to see some friends of mine that I hadn't seen for quite some time:

Cheers to you guys!

I sure am glad to be back in the real city of New York.

A night in hell or how lucky can I get?

Seriously, I thank god that my name is Felix. Why? Because the deeper meaning of the name is "the lucky one". And two nights ago I needed all the luck I could get. This is what happened:

I flew back from Vegas on sunday. First to Dallas and from there to NYC. I was pretty tired during the whole trip since Vegas really was stressfull. Already the trip turned out not to be a good one. The plane to Dallas was way late and just barely made the connecting flight to NYC by running like a maniac. But I did make it nonetheless.

So I arrive in the Big Apple at around 10PM. And since it is somewhat late and JFK airport is very far away from Manhattan, I decided to treat myself to a cab. So I am sitting there. Got my luggage consisting of one big carry-on bag, my camera bag and my black notebook case which also holds my passport. The ride took about 30-40 minutes so by the time I get to my front door, I am just tired and wnat to get out. I grab my stuff and leave the car, head up the stairs and am just happy to be home. All of a sudden I realize "Fuck, where is my notebook case?"

I left it in the cab. In New York. Together with my passport which contains my visa.

Fuck.

My heart slipped into my pants. You have to understand that my notebook is all I have over here to work with. And I do not have money to buy a new one. Furthermore my passport was in that case as well containing the visa which allows me to work here. And I have no clue how hard it would be to get a new one.

Furthermore I have no info on the cab. But thank god, when I left the cab, the receipt fell on the street. So I ran downstairs to get the slip of paper off the street. So at least I had some info on the cab. Right away I called the TLC (Taxi & Limousine Commission) but they were closed already and wouldn't open up until 9 in the morning. So I was screwed. All kinds of scenarios ran through my head. What if a guest found it? Would he keep it? What if the cabbie found it? Well, I though for sure as hell everything was gone and I would be left with nothing. I was seriously freaking out.

Couldn't really sleep that well that night. Got up at 8AM and called the TLC at 9. After I explained my situation to the nice lady on the phone, she knew which cab had taken me home. And she also knew which driver was driving it. So she calls the guy, named Boris. And believe it or not, he found my stuff and still had it. I was so freakin' relieved. No my only fear was that it might be broken because some guest might have sat or stepped on it. But no, I got everything back today and I am so grateful for it.

Of course I gave Boris a reward for being so honest.

I really must be one lucky bastard.

Quick Update: I am in Vegas

Well the reason I haven't written anything these last couple of days is because I was in Vegas. Actually I still am. Sitting at the airport right now. Very soon I will write about what I did here.
Furthermore the vote on the right indicates the most people that visit my blog don't care that much for movie reviews. I won't stop writing about movies but I will keep those articles as brief as possible. And last but not least, I will start looking into bringing my blog to wordpress since a bunch of my friends recommended it to me.

When commercials go wrong II

Take a look at this pic:



What do we see? A poster of tennispro James Blake promoting Heineken Light. And just for your info: Light beers in the US just have fewer calories but the same amount of alcohol as regular beers. The ad also points out Heinekens sponsorship of the upcoming US Open. Am I the only one that thinks there is something wrong with this? Seriously, I am the last one to turn down a beer or a good party but seeing an active pro athlete, advertising a beer, is just not right. Yes, I know Boris Becker also is in a beer commercial but he is not an active athlete anymore. And that is a huge difference to me. Athletes are big rolemodels and beer definitely does not help them win, stay on top or perform better on court. Nor is it part of their strict diet. Believe me, I know since I myself tried braking into the professional tennis circuit.

Sorry Heineken and James Blake, but this commercial is no Grand Slam.

Bring in the cow!

No-meat-week is over! I did it! And you know what? It was only semi-kind of tough. How did I do it? Well, I ate Pizza with vegetables on it. Fish & Chips. Salad. Hummus with bread (I already liked Hummus even before no-meat-week). Pasta. Or all kinds of other stuff that did not contain meat. But my last no-meat-meal had to be something special. So I made...

-drumroll-

VEGETARIAN HOT DOGS!!!!



Click on pic for larger image

But of course the most important question remains: Did they taste good? Yes, they really did. And I put everything on there that I normally would pack on a regular Hot Dog, too. Ketchup, mustard, cheese and some relish to top it all off. It was a good meal that thoroughly delighted my tastebuds. Was it better than a NY famous Gray's Papaya Hot Dog? No, not really. But every once in a while, not indirectly hurting an animal, doesn't hurt you. Will I quit eating meat from now on altogether? No, but being mindful about what you eat, is good no matter what. Now where did I put that butcher knife? This lil' piggy is goin' to town...

OINK! -swoosh- THUD.

...yummie...

Beachclubbing in Liberty City

In a lot of major cities in Germany you have beachclubs. They are nothing else but outside bars with sand raked up. While there actually is a natural beach in NYC, there also is a pretty cool beachclub called the Water Taxi Beach. What's so good about it, is not the food or the drinks but the view. I think it is just amazing. But see for yourself:


Click on pic for larger image

View Larger Map
I can't even decide which pic I like the best. The last one I changed a bit using iPhoto. Anyways, why was I there? Well, I don't know that many people in NYC yet, but I came across this website called meetup. And there I found the New York City German Culture Meetup Group. Basically people that share an interest in Germany get together for fun times every once in a while. Some of them are Germans living in the Big Apple, some are Americans. You get together and just talk and share experiences. Pretty fun stuff. Unfortunately once it started raining, the meetup was over. Thank god, because a couple of more beers and I would have been done with.