Yale University ...

New Haven, Connecticut... Home to one of America's best Universities! That being none other than Yale it's self! Being from England I can safely say that Yale was unlike any University I have seen before, the building was truly magnificent and puts all of our building work to shame! American's really do have a talent for creating a masterpiece; something so grand and so elegant that it is down right beautiful! During our short week we spent in New Haven, we made sure we popped down to pay it a lil visit... by hell were we in for a treat!

When we arrived we were greeted by a young bubbly red head, who took us for the grand tour. The young girl was roughly the same age as ourselves, which truly emphasized the degree of opportunities America has to offer. 

The exterior of the University reminded me of Hogwarts Castle from Harry Potter, displaying a very Gothic design. However the buildings are a lot more modern than they appear, the Gothic appearance was actually the goal of the founder. Each building was made from stone complete with thick wooden doors, old fashioned windows and even the occasional castle turret... it truly was magnificent!

Within the grounds of the University stands a statue of Theodore Dwight Woolsey, who was not only an American academic and author but also the president of Yale from 1846 - 1871. The statue was erected due to a tale told, being that Woolsey would kick the boat with his left foot at the regatta to start the race; they said that Yale would always win! Students and tourists who visit the grounds, have been known to rub the statues left foot in the hope of it bringing them good luck. 

In my opinion Yale is incredibly lucky, as it has not one but two stunning libraries. The first being that of the Sterling Memorial Library, which is actually the largest. You'll notice from the photographs that the building it's self is rather unorthodox, resembling that of a Cathedral. This design was actually the goal of James Gamble Rodgers, who'd attended Yale in 1889. The library it's self is made up of a total of 16 floors housing up to 4 million different volumes, the ceilings reach up to approximately 60ft tall. There are a total of 3,300 stained glass windows throughout the library, all designed by artist G. Owen Bonawit.

The second of the two libraries is that of the Beinecke rare books and manuscripts library, containing approximately 600,000 rare volumes. Some of the works range back hundreds of years ago; 1487 being one of them, Beinecke is also lucky enough to house none other than one of the only surviving 21 complete Gutenberg bibles. Within the middle of the staircases stands a six story high bookcase which is encased within a glass cabinet, the volumes are kept within a controlled climate to preserve the quality of each collection. The exterior of the library is made from Marble which is translucent and only 1.25 inches thick, on a sunny day; daylight can still be transmitted through the marble due to it's thinness. Beinecke is one of the largest buildings in America, which is dedicated solely to rare books and manuscripts.

As someone with an absolute deep love and passion for books, being able to see the rarity and antique appearance of some of those volumes was truly breathtaking! Vising Yale was an experience like no other, and something I am beyond lucky enough to have embraced!

The Gothic Campus

The Sterling Memorial Library

The Beinecke Library of Rare Books & Artifacts

The Lucky Foot

 

American Museum Of Natural History ...

If you know me well, then you will know I am an avid lover of movies! My collection literally takes up the majority of my under bed storage! Wasting away the day snuggled up in bed with a blanket and a cuppa watching my favourites, is when Im at my happiest! When I was roughly 10 years old a film called "Night At The Museum" was released, which Im sure the majority of you have either heard of or seen. Since then the Natural History Museum has found it's self on my bucket list, I just longed to see where all the magic happened! Fast forward 12 years and there I was stood right in front of none other than the American Museum Of Natural History!

Standing tall and proud beyond the trees of Central Park, was the most magnificent building complete with pillars making it look all grand and elegant. Sat high upon his horse on the museum stairs stood the main man himself, and one of the biggest assets of the Museum which I really couldn't leave without seeing; President Theodore Roosevelt.

As I entered the revolving doors which lead into the foyer, the nostalgia of being 10 years old and watching Ben Stiller do the same hit me hard! It was as though those doors were some sort of time machine, I entered them as a 22 year old and transformed into a 12 year old right there inside the Museum entrance. 

Of course throughout my time there I did unconsciously compare what I saw in the movie, to what was actually within the museum. Unlike the movie Rexy was not actually stood near the main doors, instead he was actually on the fourth floor but that didn't matter to much to me; I was just happy to actually see him! The hustle and bustle radiating from the crowds inside the Museum made me feel like a child on Christmas Eve, bursting with excitement! 

There were about four floors full of many different exhibits, everything ranging from African Mammals, Dinosaurs, Birds, Primates and many many more! Sadly many exhibits from the movie were not actually within the Museum, such as Ahkmenrah, Attila the Hun, Sacagawea and a few more ... but I guess it has been about 10 years! However as I climbed each floor I couldn't help but mentally tick off each character that we did find! Teddy Roosevelt... check! Rexy... check! Dexter... double check!!

Gift shops are my weakness, and the Museum had a fair few of them at that! Naturally my inner child came out and I left with none other than a stuffed Dinosaur toy, yes i am 22 and still like cuddly toys! ... I have no regrets!


They say that the American Museum Of Natural History comes alive at night... but for me it was just as alive during the day!

Central Park ...

Let me ask you something ... what do all of these movies have in common? ; Home Alone, Elf, Night At The Museum, Spiderman, The Smurfs, Sex In The City, I am Legend, The Devil Wears Prada, Ghostbusters and Breakfast At Tiffany's ... Guessed it yet? 

Well aside from being absolute classics (Of course), they all include scenes shot in none other than Central Park! The park it's self has taken Centre Stage in many movies and TV series' over the years, so naturally we had to take a lil trip and see what all the fuss is about! This was actually the first place we visited upon our arrival in New York, I had high expectations for the Park but honestly it manage to exceed them! 

It's a park right? it can't be that big right? ... WRONG!! it was flippin' enormous! It's one of those places you could play Hide & Seek in, but not find your mate until like a week later! The hustle and bustle within the park was amazing, if you look around you you'd find people from all different walks of life doing many different things. You'd find children running around or playing on the rocks and climbing frames, runners and cyclists, people practicing yoga, tourists from all over the world, ballet dancers and even newly engaged couples having a photoshoot!!

The park it's self was beautiful, filled with enormous trees and bright green grass all superbly looked after! Running around the floor and climbing trees everywhere were lots of Grey squirrels, who were a lot less scared of humans than those back home! In fact they were pretty damn fond of the camera, sometimes even posing for us. All around were various food stalls, painting stalls and features ranging from statues of Historical people to a beautiful water fountain right in the middle of the park. 

Of course we decided to take advantage of it and have a little girls only photo shoot! However the highlight of the park was the huge lake in the middle! As there was six of us we decided to take a cute little boat trip upon it, we split up into groups of three and set off in our little rowing boats! Now you probably already know that I am terrified of water, and have a massive phobia of drowning! Nonetheless I decided to continue to conquer those fears and actually thoroughly enjoyed myself! Armed with my best friend sat by my side and my boyfriend rowing for us, I felt so safe and everything felt so perfect! With the cool crisp New York breeze in our hair and the skyline emerging beyond the trees, life stood still for a split second and all my worries merged away ... could life get any better!