New York - New York! Da da daaa da da.......

Ah the city that never sleeps.....at least not for very long over the next 5 days anyway! As my cousin Ronan put it ´an endurance test´!

The main event for this trip was to be Shelly´s wedding - another one who´s gone and got all grown up! I tell you - I´m starting to get an immaturity complex here.....

So arrive at the airport after another tense journey - getting upgraded is very stressful (although to be fair it was the least I deserved after the security nazis at the airport, just because I didn´t have a return flight to the UK I was forced to go and collect my bags in London then hike it around to Terminal 4 and check in again - all the time hoping I wasn´t going to miss my flight. What the hell difference does it make if I don´t have a return flight - either the contents of my bag pose a risk or they don´t!). But the upgrade was a nice little extra I have to say - may there be many more to come!

Anyway moan over....got met of the plane by Shelly, Ciaran and Sue, I like this personal service - could get used to it! Thanks again guys x Quickly dumped the bags and hit the pub where the party had started long before I got there - time to find my father and play catch up....and catch up I did! Good seeing all the rellies and meeting the once removed in-laws and other reprobates.

Anyway next day feeling a touch jaded (was from the flight of course - nothing to do with the beer.....) a few of us headed into the city and proceeded to walk our little legs off taking in the sights and sounds of New York. I´ve been there a few times before but I still love this city - its like a big living throbbing (easy!) machine - it has an energy all of its own that is uniquely New York. This time of course there was something missing - the WTC. Ground Zero is a pretty sombre place, only by actually seeing the big empty space can you appreciate how horrifying it must have been some 5 years ago.

So moving on from the morbid the next day was D-Day (queue peeling bells or should that be horror film music.....just kidding Shelly....or am I?!?) Unfortunately the weather didn´t keep up its end of the bargain and decided to rain all day but have to say it didn´t put a dampener on the wedding at all. Who can complain when you get picked up in a limo, get driven to the church door and then get picked up after the service and get delivered to the reception???? And speaking of the service and the reception both were great. A special mention has to go to the organ player......just in case anyone was thinking of dropping of during the service he made sure they didn´t by regularly blasting our eardrums with his pipes!

Now the reception....this place is so well set up its incredible - how much food???? And delicious it was too. Especially liked the dry ice, loud music entrance for the wedding party - you all looked great! I think it can be safely said that a good time was had by all. Thanks again for the invite!

Saturday evening a large group of us went on an evening dinner cruise around the city - this is definitely a great way to see the lights of Manhatten, don´t know about anyone else but I much prefer cities by night - they look so much better! The trip took us from Long Island all the way into Lady Liberty and then back out - a great way to spend a few hours. Again thanks to the cus for organising.

Sunday - well the All Ireland Final was on so what´s a group of 60 odd hungover people supposed to do the next morning? Get up at the ungodly hour of 8.00 and head to the pub of course and stay there until mid-afternoon naturally!

So that was my trip to NY - thoroughly good time had by all. Thanks to Tommy for forking out for the hotel xx