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Thursday 30 April 2015

Top 5 Characters in Times Square

I'm Batman.  Wait a minute... So am I.
  1. Batman
  2. Elmo
  3. Minions
  4. Toy Story
  5. Hello Kitty 
Times Square in Manhattan is known for having thousands of tourists swarming around 24 hours a day, and for having lights and advertising wherever you look.  It is also a place to find people dressed up as popular movie or TV characters.  You may even encounter people dressed as "What the hell is that supposed to be ?".  They can all be found in Times Square hoping to pose for photos and earn a buck or two.  This list includes our favourite characters.

1 ) Batman
Not dressed like Adam West Batman, (We would pay to have our photo with him) but more likely the Christian Bale Batman or Michael Keaton Batman.  Or is that Val Kilmer or George Clooney?
Anyway, it just depends on how long they have had the suit and when they decided to start wearing it in public.  If you are going to invest in a costume, Batman is a safe bet.  Although you will have a fair bit of competition.  We were also surprised not to see any Dynamic Duos.  Sorry Robin.
2)  Elmo
Everyone's favourite giggling Sesame Street monster can also be found in abundance. We once were on the New York subway when an Elmo got on at 49th street after a hard day's work.  He soon revealed himself to be one very sweaty man.
3) Minions
Minions from Despicable Me are taking over the streets.  With a Minion movie and Despicable Me 3 on the way, they are not going to disappear anytime soon.  You can spot their little yellow heads through the crowds.  When choosing a costume, minion is best left to the shorter people.  Nobody wants to take photos with a 6 foot 4 minion.  If you taller people insist on dressing as minions, may we suggest you dress as the purple guy with the crazy hair.
4) Toy Story
The popularity of Toy Story characters has yet to fade.  Maybe it has faded a bit, but Toy Story made the list mainly because Woody & Buzz never seem to be too far from each other.  This also makes them the only duo on our list.  Again, sorry Robin. 
5) Hello Kitty
Hello Kitty has worked her way from the pencil cases of Japan and into the hearts of the world.  Now she is waiting to become part of your New York vacation memories.

Aren't you a little tall for a minion?  Sorry, I got mustard on my Woody costume.


Map of Our World
Times Square

Post # 48

Saturday 25 April 2015

Grand Etang Lake

View of Grand Etang Lake.

Location: St. George's, Grenada
Address: Grand Etang Lake
Date: Nov 2001
Website:  www.grenadaexplorer.com

    During our Princess Cruise, one of our ports of call was the island of Grenada.  We took a Grenada Highlights bus tour.  One of those highlights was Grand Etang National Park.  There are many hiking trails where you can get a closer look at the plant and wildlife.  Many people mention seeing birds and mona monkeys in the park.  Mona monkeys can be found in western Africa in places like Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon.   The population in Grenada was brought over from Africa many years ago and has thrived ever since. We are always on the lookout for wildlife when on vacation.  Actually, we are always on the lookout for wildlife.  Unfortunately we did not encounter anything during our brief visit.  We were also only there long enough to take in the view overlooking Grand Etang Lake.  Grand Etang Lake is formed inside an extinct volcano.  Grenada consists of several islands in what is called the Grenadines and the whole island chain is volcanic in origin.  The best known volcano is Kick 'Em Jenny which is located in the sea about 8 km north of Grenada.



Map of Our World
Grand Etang Lake

Post # 47

Monday 20 April 2015

Annandale Falls

Annandale Falls

Location: St. George's, Grenada
Address: Annandale Falls
Date:
Nov 2001
Website: 
www.grenadaexplorer.com

 
During our Princess Cruise, one of our ports of call was the island of Grenada.  This country has many waterfalls in a tropical jungle.  One of the most visited waterfalls is Annandale Falls.  To get to the falls we had to walk along a trail where several people were selling local crafts and spices.  We ended up buying a small basket with various spices inside.  Fortunately, we did not have any trouble bringing these back through customs and into our country.  We never ended up using any these spices so we cannot confirm if they were properly labelled or not.
  We didn't have far to go along the path before we could hear the roar of the falls.  Depending on the season the flow of the falls can vary.  When we visited it looked to be at full flow.  There were several local teenagers all dressed in matching shirts and offering to jump off the cliff, for a price.  If we had to guess, we would say that the cliff was about 50 feet high.  We decided to take one of the teens up on his offer. 

Watch me jump!

 
The jumper reached the top and raised his arms.  In the air he arched his back and held this form all the way until he disappeared into the water below.  A few moments later he emerged and climbed up onto the bank eager to go again.  Once was good enough for us, but you can decide how many jumps you want him to make by replaying the video below.
 


Map of Our World
Annandale Falls

Post # 46