American Holidays 2011

I distinctly remember my first sight of America. I was looking out of the small aeroplane window down to thousands of feet below. After six hours of flying, we saw land. I remember thinking "There it is - America". The land with which I was so familiar from the great movies, music and TV of my childhood was finally a reality. The pilot mentioned "Martha's Vineyard" - a name I recalled being mentioned in episodes of "Cheers".

Once touched down, in JFK airport I remember looking at a plastic chair in the arrivals lounge and thinking "That's an American plastic chair - Like the ones you get in the movies". Not a British plastic chair with soft rounded edges, but an American plastic chair with sleek straight lines and exciting contours.
New York City

Getting into New York from JFK was another adventure. I was on a mini bus driven by a man called Jesus. I don' t think he spoke much English if any. Just passing the road signs was an experience in itself - every one a movie or song title - Manhattan, Last Exit to Brooklyn, 59th Street Bridge.