I didn't need to know the origin of that......

Ill get to the title of the post later...... today, it seemed like we were running late all day. Our tour had a respectable start time of 10:30am. But, it wasnt on our train line, so it involved a transfer. And, the closest subway station to the MET is at 86th street and is a brisk 20 (or so) minute walk from the station. So, we didnt arrive until 10:45, but our guide waited for us which was nice.

The tour we took was called 'Integrity.' It is designed as a follow-up to the previous tour we took last year called 'The Woman and the Seed' and takes up from Greek and Roman world powers. Was really interesting. We had an enthusiastic tour guide (Pedro) who was very knowledgable and the tour was very compelling. It was like a three (ish) hour public talk.

But, back to the title.

This is an Ionic capital from Ancient Greece. The moulding right at the top is very common, even in homes today - its called Egg-and-dart moulding. The column was 58 feet high. The name gives it away - egg. It has origins in mother worship and the eggs are shown coming out of the Fallopian tubes (look closely - its gross). So, this is just one of the examples of things that we saw on the tour - but it was a good example of modern traditions just reusing and rebranding beliefs from the ancient world.

Here is a sampling of some of the things we saw;

This is an athlete. He was a victor from the games (as seem by the band around his head). Who is he? Do we know his name? Nope.

We saw a tonne of these pottery urns. 

This is a head of Socrates. 

This was part of our tour group. Interestingly, on our tour were seven couples that were graduates from the 21st Class of the BSCC in the US. 

This room was amazing. It was an original room that had been reinstalled in the MET.

This was an amazing view - looking down directly into the Roman room, through to Greece and then further you can just see Egypt - like looking down over thousands of years of human history. So much to process - Kylie took some good notes and we will have to review them to make sure we dont forget.

Oh, i forgot one thing about the tour - halfway through, there is a break where we can have lunch at the MET cafeteria. So far, its the most expensive meal in New York that we have had. I had Sushi in a pack and that was $13. Kylie wasnt sure what she would order, so I suggested she have the chicken curry. Its based on weight and Kylies plate of food (plate was about 3/4 filled) was $21.50. It was hilarious! As we were leaving, we were watching the reaction of people at the price of their food - Kylie saw one person whose total meal came to $109. So, here is the tip - the lightest option if you are eating is spinach leaves. And, there is free water for you to drink as you pass through the registers in the dining room. 

Then, after this, we went outside and it was RAINING! Spew! We did our brisk walk back to the subway station, got lost and then ended up in a cafe. Since we were running late this morning, we had no time for breakfast and no time for coffee. Here in the US, the coffee is not great. But, somehow, ive gotten used to drip filter coffee. And, I think that its slowly weaned me off, which is a good thing. So, when I saw this cafe, I was more than happy to order a short black. It was terrible, but I was still happy. Kylie ordered a small latte.

When it came on the counter, I asked 'is this mine?' and she said that it was a small latte. I think there was about a liter of warm milk in the drink, with a measely shot of coffee. How was it Kylie? Her words "It wasnt repulsive, but I endured it." Imagine if she ordered a medium? Or a large? It was totes cray cray (that one is for you Greg).

So, on the way back to the subway, we stopped in at H&M - that shop seems to be on every street here in NYC and we both bought some stuff. Then, Kylie asked an innocent question - 'What time is it?' And, we continued on with our theme of running late for the day. It was 5:30, the meeting we were heading to was at 7 back in Brooklyn and we had to eat something for tea. So, it was going to be tight. Added to that, our feet were literally about to fall off, it was raining and it was cold. So, down into the subway but not before an agressive hispanic lady told me I was a sinner and needed to repent. It was rush hour by now and the platforms were teeming with literally thousands of people. Trains would arrive, trains would departs, within seconds, the platform would go from being packed to being empty and then packed again within minutes. Was just amazing. The train ride was interesting. Kylie starts talking to everyone. In NYC, people are just in their own world, minding their own business, ignoring the homeless person asking them for money. So, when Kylie asks them a genuine question - it really takes them by suprise and they arent sure how to react. We got into a few discussions about health care in Australia, a lady saw me playing 2048 and said that he nephew sent her a screen capture of how he had gotten to 4096 and we met an Aussie ex-pat who moved to NYC in Feb this year. We eventually got on the A line and got to our stop (Nostrand Av) and made the quick walk to our apartment, got changed, scoffed our dinner and got to the meeting (it was the CO visit). Had a nice time with the friends, came home and by 9:45 we were fast asleep.

Tomorrow is rainy again, so might be a good oppportunity give the feet a rest....