Trip to the US, October 2017

A 17-day adventure by Rasmus Read more

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Trip start
October 3, 2017
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Day 1
Tuesday, October 3, 2017 at 6:32 PM
⛅ 13 °C
Altitude: 7 m
Denmark Copenhagen Airport 55.626233, 12.64976855°37’34” N 12°38’59” E
Copenhagen airport
October 3, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 12:11 AM
🌙 12 °C
Altitude: 52 m
United States Saint Peter's Lutheran Church 40.757828, -73.97117640°45’28” N 73°58’16” W
On my way to the hotel..
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 12 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 5:42 AM
🌙 10 °C
Altitude: 20 m
United States Greenacre Park 40.755835, -73.96902640°45’21” N 73°58’8” W
CPH-NYC
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 10 °C
So I started my journey with an 8-hour flight from Copenhagen to New York. Fortunately it was a direct flight which makes the trip a lot more pleasant! Additionally I had made a low bid to get my ticket upgraded to the Premium cabin, and surprisingly my bid was successful.

It was my first time in the Norwegian Premium cabin which is sort of like a budget version of Business, but in reality more like Economy Plus. Aside from more legroom, realistically it wasn’t much better than economy. It was nice to get off the flight quickly at least, and there was virtually no line at immigration in the airport which is extremely rare when you first arrive in the US. So I got out of the airport rather quickly, and grabbed a subway to my hotel.

For the first two nights I’m staying in a budget hotel in Midtown. I also stayed here the first two times I was in NYC (2008 and 2010). I remember it being much better! Maybe because that was before I became fond of the much more luxurious, upscale properties! The room is very small and noisy, and bathrooms are shared. Cheap - but I suppose extra comfort is worth the money..

Today I have lots of things planned - a talkshow taping, a movie screening and two Broadway shows! More on that later :)Read more
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 8:06 AM
☀️ 11 °C
Altitude: 47 m
United States Thousand Acre Tract (historical)40.774178, -73.98054540°46’27” N 73°58’50” W
Columbus Circle
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:28 AM
☀️ 17 °C
Altitude: 30 m
United States West Fourth Street Courts 40.731403, -74.00180540°43’53” N 74°0’6” W
Live with Kelly and Ryan
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 1:50 PM
☀️ 22 °C
Altitude: 57 m
United States Manhattan Church of the Nazarene 40.756596, -73.9839140°45’24” N 73°59’2” W
Pearl Jam - Let's Play Two
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 6:01 PM
☀️ 22 °C
Altitude: 17 m
United States Greenacre Park 40.755876, -73.96903140°45’21” N 73°58’9” W
Bryant Park
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:10 PM
🌙 19 °C
Altitude: 57 m
United States Channel Gardens 40.758709, -73.97844240°45’31” N 73°58’42” W
Rockefeller Center
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 19 °C
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Day 2
Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 10:39 PM
🌙 19 °C
Altitude: 17 m
United States Greenacre Park 40.755844, -73.96903340°45’21” N 73°58’9” W
Broadway and more/Moore
October 4, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 19 °C
Busy first day in NYC!

I started early in the morning, standing in line outside of a TV studio. For some reason there is always a lot of waiting involved when you want to be in the audience for a major US TV show. I usually go for the Late Night shows, but this time a certain guest tempted me to check out Live with Kelly and Ryan - a morning talk show. The guests on the show were Uzo Aduba from Orange is the new Black - and the legendary Harrison Ford! I’m not a fan of Uzo, but I couldn’t miss a chance to see Indiana Jones and Han Solo in person.

Sadly, as it turns out, evidently his segment was apparently taped at a different time. So he wasn’t at the live show this morning! Boo! It was still fun to be in the audience, and I got a great seat facing the two hosts. We were allowed to take pictures, which is very unusual, but maybe the rules were different because it aired live. We saw the interview with Ford on screens - presumably at the same time as it was shown to the rest of the US for the first time.

After the TV show taping I went to a movie theater to watch the new Pearl Jam documentary. It’s partially about The Cubs, a baseball team, but mostly about the two shows they played in Chicago last August. I was lucky enough to actually be at the second show in Chicago (which even now is still their most recent concert). So it was great to see highlights from that amazing performance again. There are many moments when it feels like they are indeed the best band in the world.

I then made my way to the theater district around Times Square to see Michael Moore’s Broadway show. I have always enjoyed his films and books. The show was just him on stage (except for a surprise in the end involving male strippers!). He was sharing a number of stories - some from his youth, illustrating how even small actions can make a difference. He also talked about the water crisis in his hometown Flint, and he talked a lot about Trump and how to defeat him! Definitely a fascinating and interesting experience to see him live. A wet dream for leftist liberals for sure!

I then picked up my badges for the upcoming New York Comic Con, had some food, and eventually returned to Broadway for another show! This time the controversial play 1984, featuring the amazing actress Olivia Wilde. Very good play - and somewhat (potentially?) relevant for the times we live in. Good, solid performances especially from the male lead. I got to meet him and Olivia after the show which was fun! I even spotted Late Show host Stephen Colbert walk casually by in his suit outside the theater. Not sure what he was up to!

Great and very eventful day!Read more
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Day 3
Thursday, October 5, 2017 at 9:00 PM
⛅ 24 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758481, -73.98906940°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
NYCC Day #1
October 5, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
First day of NYCC (New York Comic Con) kicked off this morning. One of the biggest pop culture and geek events in the world. With close to 200,000 people attending this event (!) it is indeed very crowded everywhere!

I visited the first panel of the con which focused on a remake of the movie The Watcher in the Woods, directed by Melissa Joan Hart. She was there to talk about the movie, and we saw a clip of it. Not bad.

Later I attended a panel about a weird new animated series voiced by Michael Madsen, Carl Weathers and Vivica A. Fox who were all present. I saw Michael at the London con a few months ago, and he’s always up for a great story or two! It was also fun to see 80s action hero Carl Weathers from Rocky and Predator.

My next panel was about an audiobook of a novel by the guy who wrote The Martian. The panel featured the lovely Rosario Dawson who is the voice talent used for the audiobook. I saw her at Wizard World in Chicago last year and she’s just amazing!

After browsing the show floor for some time, I had a photo shoot with none other than Mark Hamill from Star Wars! Really fun to meet Luke Skywalker in person.

The con had some other events that I was interested in, but I rushed out of there (and got a whiff of the sun and 28 degrees Celcius!) to attend a movie screening at the beautiful Lincoln Center. The movie was the world premiere of a documentary about Steven Spielberg, as part of this year’s New York Film Festival. Funnily I saw Spielberg in person exactly two years ago at the same festival for the premiere of his new movie at the time. Now he was here again!

It was a great documentary, and definitely quite surreal to watch it with Spielberg himself in the room, presumably watching it for the first time himself. The director Susan Lacy did a Q&A afterwards about the comprehensive project. Great experience.

To finish off another busy day in style, I went to see a stand-up show with Jerry Seinfeld. I’ve been a Seinfeld fan for many years so it was great to see him perform live. As I’m writing this there is a new interview with him on TV.

After Seinfeld it was time to move over to a much better hotel, the InterContinental in the Times Square area.Read more
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Day 3
Thursday, October 5, 2017
☀️ 25 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758509, -73.98916240°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
New York Comic Con
October 5, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
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Day 3
Thursday, October 5, 2017
☀️ 25 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758491, -73.98908840°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
NYCC Panels
October 5, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
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Day 4
Friday, October 6, 2017 at 8:44 AM
⛅ 19 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758487, -73.98908940°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
Hotel room view
October 6, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C
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Day 4
Friday, October 6, 2017 at 1:05 PM
☀️ 26 °C
Altitude: 53 m
United States Koreatown 40.753252, -73.99392840°45’12” N 73°59’38” W
Empire State
October 6, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
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Day 4
Friday, October 6, 2017 at 6:52 PM
🌙 22 °C
Altitude: 62 m
United States Gramercy Park 40.739861, -73.9849540°44’23” N 73°59’6” W
Madison Square Park
October 6, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 22 °C
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Day 4
Friday, October 6, 2017
☀️ 24 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758495, -73.98909340°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
Times Square
October 6, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
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Day 4
Friday, October 6, 2017
☀️ 24 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758481, -73.98906840°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
NYCC Day #2 + New Yorker Festival
October 6, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
Another day at NYCC! While most of the con takes place at a huge convention center, some of the events and panels have been moved to venues offsite. I spent most of the day at those places to get a bit away from the crowds. Ultimately I got to attend four panels:

- The World of Philip K. Dick
Cast and crew from two shows based on stories by the popular science fiction author. I was not familiar with the shows, but I’ve watched films based off short stories by Philip K. Dick and quite enjoyed those.

- Pacific Rim Uprising
World premiere of the trailer for the second film in the series, coming out in March 2018. Some of the cast members were there, like Scott Eastwood and John Boyega of Star Wars fame. Pretty cool panel.

- Robot Chicken
Another weird animated (or stop-motion rather) show I’ve never watched, but the cast members (who do voices on the show) were a lot of fun and very entertaining. The main stars were Seth Green, Breckin Meyer and Macauley Culkin! Of all people. Kevin is all grown up.

- Lucasfilm
A panel about the cartoons, books and various Star Wars related stories by authors who work for the official franchise. I’m not familiar with the material, but it’s always fascinating to observe how influential Star Wars has become.

After NYCC I had some dinner, and made my way to the Gramercy Theater for a Q&A and live interview with actress Glenn Close - part of The New Yorker Festival. It was quite interesting to hear her discuss her craft and some of her memorable roles. The one I associate her with primarily is of course Fatal Attraction. It was fascinating to hear her talk about working on it, and watch a clip from the movie with her sitting right there in front of us. Intimate and insightful.

About 40 blocks north I then attended another event by The New Yorker - a live interview with Jerry Seinfeld! Yup, the very same man I saw perform live last night around the same time even. Tonight it wasn’t a performance - instead he was interviewed on stage by a moderator in front of a relatively small audience. He was asked many questions about his career and about comedy in general. It was very interesting to hear more about all the technical things involved in delivering jokes - at least in the way he approaches it. With Seinfeld being one of my all time favorite shows it was a treat to hear and see the titular man himself talk about it - in person.Read more
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Day 5
Saturday, October 7, 2017
☀️ 24 °C
Altitude: 33 m
United States Al Hirschfeld Theatre 40.758488, -73.98907740°45’31” N 73°59’21” W
NYCC Day #3
October 7, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
Day 3 and 5 panels! All of them offsite this time.

- Ash vs. Evil Dead
The stars of this pretty crazy but very funny show came out to talk about it and their characters, and they also screened the first episode of the upcoming new season. Apparently the episode won’t be out for several months. I mainly attended the panel to see the star of the show, Bruce Campbell! I saw him at a different comic con last year and he was hilarious. It was great to see him again.

- Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
I like the Marvel franchise, but this is one of the many Marvel-related shows that I haven’t had a chance to watch. Nevertheless it was interesting to see the cast and producers talk about it, and there was footage from the upcoming season.

- Star Trek: Discovery
Another show I haven’t really watched (the NYCC lineup this year didn’t match a lot of my interests sadly!) They had a lot of the cast though, and a few surprises.

- Stan Lee interview
At this point in the schedule they were supposed to have a panel about The Punisher, but it was cancelled due to the events in Vegas. Instead they screened a recent interview with Marvel legend Stan Lee. I really like him and the interview was interesting. However it was rather disappointing that he wasn’t actually there in person.

- An evening with Mark Hamill
The last panel of the night was actually a separately ticketed event. They know how to take your money! It was a great event though - two hours with Mark Hamill just talking about his career and work. There was no moderator, so he was rambling a bit at times and got off track constantly! But he’s Luke Skywalker so he can do anything he wants :)Read more
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Day 6
Sunday, October 8, 2017 at 6:52 PM
⛅ 24 °C
Altitude: 18 m
United States Spargo Park 40.739729, -73.89625640°44’23” N 73°53’47” W
NYCC Day #4 + Halestorm
October 8, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
Last day at NYCC! Aside from a photo op with the legend William Shatner, I attended three panels today:

- Deception
A new show about the world’s great illusionist. We watched the first episode, which was really good, and it was followed by a chat with cast and crew. The creator of the show, and the main star, are actually both real-life illusionists. They even showed us some impressive card tricks. Definitely a cool panel especially when I wasn’t previously familiar with the show.

- The X-Files
Yeah! This is one of the few panels I had really anticipated since I’ve watched and followed the show for many years, and I really like the cast. The main stars were there - Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny and Mitch Pileggi - as well as show mastermind Chris Carter. They screened the world premiere of a trailer for the next season which is still shooting. The panel itself was not the most serious, but quite entertaining.

- The Gifted
Another new show that I wasn’t really familiar with. A lot of the cast and crew were there to present it - including actors Amy Acker, Stephen Moyer and Jamie Chung. We got a screening of the first half of a new episode, which looked promising.

After my final NYCC panel I went around the show floor a bit more, although with so many people there it was not easy to get around!

Overall a good con with some fun experiences, but a better lineup would definitely have improved things.

After dinner in the theater district I got on a train to Long Island to catch Halestorm live! I’ve seen them several times now, and they always put on a great show. They cancelled a show two nights ago because lead singer Lzzy was sick. Fortunately she is better now - better than ever, actually! It was one of the best performances I’ve seen from her. Just incredible. They played a tribute to the late Tom Petty, and a beautiful rendition of The Rose. Just a fantastic concert!Read more
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Day 7
Monday, October 9, 2017 at 9:43 PM
⛅ 24 °C
Altitude: 29 m
United States World Financial Center Plaza 40.714193, -74.01483140°42’51” N 74°0’53” W
Slow day..
October 9, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
So after 5 busy days with quite a lot of activities and things planned, today was a lot more relaxed. I didn’t have any plans in advance, and the weather wasn’t very good, so a lot of sightseeing wasn’t in the cards.

After switching to another hotel - the luxurious Conrad in Battery Park (very close to the World Trade Center), I made my way back uptown to visit the large IMAX theatre in Lincoln Square. I wanted to see the new Blade Runner film, and IMAX is the way to go! It was indeed a very stunning experience visually. The effects are amazing. But at almost 3 hours it’s a bit long.

Following the movie I went for a walk around the area, and had a nice long walk in the gorgeous Central Park. Despite the rain and clouds it was warm and lovely. I also walked for a bit on 5th ave to see the fancy shops and of course Trump tower!

This evening I had a proper dinner. For most of the previous days it’s mostly been fast food since I was too busy to eat!

Tomorrow should be sunny and warm :)Read more
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Day 8
Tuesday, October 10, 2017 at 3:58 PM
☀️ 26 °C
Altitude: 56 m
United States Diamond District 40.75271, -73.97712140°45’10” N 73°58’38” W
Grand Central
October 10, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
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Day 8
Tuesday, October 10, 2017 at 4:53 PM
☀️ 26 °C
Altitude: 56 m
United States Theatre District 40.761076, -73.98315540°45’40” N 73°58’59” W
Times Square
October 10, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
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Day 8
Tuesday, October 10, 2017 at 9:14 PM
🌙 21 °C
Altitude: 28 m
United States Brooklyn Tabernacle 40.690227, -73.98688840°41’25” N 73°59’13” W
Sightseeing
October 10, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 21 °C
Lots of walking today! According to my phone I have walked 32,000 steps and almost 20 km! Not a bad workout for one day. Some of the places I visited on my long journey around Manhattan:

- Battery Park. Amazing views of the skyline and The Statue of Liberty in the distance. I also returned shortly after sunset where it looked even better.

- Tribeca, Greenwich Village, Lower Manhattan. Really nice part of the city and good for just walking around and exploring. I stopped by the famous Katz’s Delicatessen, but a bit too crowded and stressful to stay for lunch! I did end up having a burger at a fancy steak house by Chelsea Market. It was a rather ... minimalist variant: a bun and a beef patty. That’s it. Nice beef though! I also visited john varvatos, a store where rock club CBGB’s used to be.

- Highline. I finally got to walk the length of the lovely Highline park. Very nice - almost too hot though! It was sunny, no clouds and 27 degrees C today. Pretty amazing for late October in this city. Ironically it might be warmer here than California where I’m going next.

- Times Square. Total tourist trap and super crowded, but fun to visit. I visited Planet Hollywood to see some movie props and their Halloween display.

- Midtown. I stopped by a few locations like the Chrysler building, Grand Central station and the New York Public Library. I had to see the Rose reading room where they shot the opening scene of Ghostbusters! Yesterday I also visited some other central locations from what will always be a fav movie of mine: Tavern on the Green and the building where Dana and Luis Tully live!

- Central Park. I was there yesterday too, but it’s always such a lovely place to visit, and you never run out of corners to go for a walk or admire the beautiful views.

- Brooklyn. After getting back to the Conrad to pick up my bag (and see the Ghostbusters firehouse in the area!), I got an Uber to drive to Brooklyn for my final NYC hotel. I usually stay in Manhattan so this is a first. I had dinner at a local BBQ place which was cool. They provided two small cupcakes with the check. Cute!Read more
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Day 9
Wednesday, October 11, 2017 at 3:02 PM
⛅ 22 °C
Altitude: 46 m
United States Federal Hall National Memorial 40.706614, -74.0112740°42’24” N 74°0’41” W
Wall Street
October 11, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C
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Day 9
Wednesday, October 11, 2017 at 6:19 PM
☁️ 20 °C
Altitude: 54 m
United States Greeley Square 40.750469, -73.99110440°45’2” N 73°59’28” W
Last day in NYC
October 11, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C
I’m flying to Los Angeles tomorrow, so this is my last full day in the Big Apple. This morning I started off with a tour, simply named The Tour. It concentrated mostly on the Midtown area, where I’ve already been walking around a lot. The bus itself was pretty cool though. ‘Stadium-style’ seating, many screens and a good vantage point to see the street go by. The guide told some interesting stories and facts along the way, but otherwise the tour didn’t offer much new.

I then went downtown for another tour by the same company, The Downtown Experience. It was the same type of bus, but a little different since they provided a Virtual Reality component. It was basically a fancy set of goggles playing 360 degree videos along the way. Cool way to make a bus tour slightly different. This tour, of course, stayed mostly in the Downtown area and passed by places like the financial district (where I went for a walk afterwards), and Battery Park. Lots of interesting history there.

After some more walking around Manhattan I had soup from the amazing “Original Soup Man” - or the soup nazi as portrayed in probably the most well-known episode of Seinfeld!

Now I’m waiting for the evening entertainment to begin: Guns N’ Roses live at Madison Square Garden. There is no opening band so it looks like it will be more than 3 hours of Guns N’ Roses at the world’s most famous arena. Not bad for a Wednesday in October!Read more
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