NYC

Top to Bottom: John and Maya at diner; Maya and Alex tearin up the rug; Lisa admires the NYC mass transit system; Radio City Music Hall; 9th Ave and mid town buildings; Kara and Rick.
See more pics by clicking here (look under 2006 Friends: NYC Maya's Party or 2006 Travel: NYC Random Pics)

Lisa and I spent the weekend in NYC. Took the Chinatown (DC) to Chinatown (NYC) bus...surprisingly very few Chinese. Mostly students, including a xanax dealer in the seat in front of us. Nonetheless, the bus was cheap and relatively efficient. Arriving late on Friday, Lisa's cousin Kara and her boyfriend Rick met us for dinner at 11pm (HK's on 39th and 9th). We finished at 1:30am... things do happen later in NYC. Lisa and I were feeding like pigs at a trough. Kara enjoyed a piece of lettuce that she split with boyfriend Rick. It wasn't until I woke up Saturday am that I realized I had stiffed them for half the bill. I will blame it on the 2 hours of sleep I had the night before. At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Sorry guys, we'll make it up to you, assuming you ever decide to eat dinner with us again.

Woke up at noon and managed to catch Avenue Q on playing on Broadway. Like your life, only funnier. And yes, the internet is for porn. Dinner was at a nearby Indonesian restaurant on 9th St. Killed time by walking down to the Empire State Building on 34th St. and 5th Ave. to brave tropical storm winds on the 86th floor observatory.

We walked back to our hotel on 52nd and Broadway, before taking subway uptown to surprise our friend Maya, who was having a belated apartment warming party 7 months after making the move from DC to NYC. She had a one bedroom on the 17th floor overlooking Central park on 96th and CPW. Nonetheless, she managed to cram in 30+ friends and still had room for a salsa dance floor.

On Sunday, we met Maya, her friend Alex, and her brother John for lunch. John was also visiting from DC and saved us the trouble of trying to find the bus stop in Chinatown letting us hitch a ride. Once back in DC, John took us on a tour of their family's business, The Bakery de France. Maya and her family have always been modest about their family's bakery, but Lisa and I were floored by the size of this "small business," which specializes in quality bake goods and pastries. It was an amazing operation, and we were fortunate enough to catch some croissants fresh out of the oven. We remain amazed that how their family has managed to avoid weighing 300 lbs each.