NYC Trip: As transcribed from the Orient Express

My trip to NYC has ruled my life for the last few weeks so I've been M.I.A. from my blogging responsibilities. I figured this would be a good way to get back into the swing of things and let my friends/family know how the trip went. I'll break it up into a couple parts so the post isn't so long.


NYC Trip Part 1:

Pre-Trip:

• Heidi and I took this trip to not only escape from Middle TN for a couple days but also to "feel out" New York as a possible post-college destination for the two of us.
• We found bus tickets for $70 round-trip. Yes, I said round-trip.
• To continue the good fortune, Heidi's friend Whitney recently moved to NYC let us crash at her place for the week. Whitney = Best. Hostess. Ever.
  

Saturday 7/12:

• Packed our bags and said our goodbyes. Met up with our friend Veronica so she could drop us off at the bus station. After driving up and down Murfreesboro Rd. for 20 minutes we found the bus parked beside an International Grocery in Antioch.
  
• Apparently, the same people who ran the grocery store ran the bus line. Seemed shady at first, but after closer inspection it seemed much more reputable (they sold live frogs, wouldn't you trust them with your life?).
• After a quick scan of the crowd, Heidi and I concluded that out of the 40 or so passengers on the bus, there were only 3 of us who couldn't speak Mandarin. It was a little odd, to say the least.
  
• Huge delay between Cookville and Crossville. A tractor-trailer flipped and dumped a chemical that creates hydrofluoric acid when it reacts with water. Both sides of I-40 were closed.
• Wreck on the detour turned a 3 hr drive to Knoxville to ~11 hrs. Good start.

Sunday 7/13:

• Almost positive I saw a man who payed for his ticket ended up driving the bus for a shift. Apparently, on our bus the only difference between the driver and the passengers are their seats.
  
• Definitely saw the trip coordinator switch places with the current driver less than 5 miles before the Holland Tunnel. My guess is he's the only one with a driver's license.
  
• After 24 hours on a bus, we got into town 8 hrs behind schedule (8 p.m.) on Whitney's only day off. Kinda a bummer.
  
• Trip didn't conclude at Penn Station like our tickets said. Where did it end up? Chinatown, of course.
• Tired, hungry, and disoriented. Then, we see Whitney's face appear out of an endless sea of Asians. I was never so happy to see her.
  
• Tasted my first real pizza since about 2002. Passing Pizza Hut off as pizza is heresy once you've tasted the real thing.
• Went back to Whit's place and promptly passed out in my clothes. I've always been a party animal.