A change is as good as a holiday

As the seasons change in this part of the world, it becomes very popular to head up the coast for some "leaf peeping"; a chance to take a road trip into the countryside and see the brilliant autumn colours in full effect.  It's also the season for pumpkin patches, apple picking, and buying home-made fruit pies by the side of the road in tiny country towns.  My friends took full advantage of this weather change this weekend, and I offered to take care of their Upper East Side apartment, and babysit their two adorable dogs.

It is not unusual to have dogs in New York apartments - indeed, most of the tenants in my building in Chelsea have a dog or two each.  But as much as I love dogs, I still haven't felt the push to get one.  Having said that, I absolutely love any puppy time I can get.  And how could I go wrong with these two fluffy charges?

From Thursday night to Sunday night it was just me, Gus (on the left - an older, distinguished and rather deaf Jack Russell) and his brother-from-another-mother, Harry (perhaps a bit of  Jack Russell but definitely mixed with something else too).  I have known Gus since my days working in London, where he was quite partial to taking me for walks (via the pub) and then veering off into his neighbourhood park for a good sniff-around.  Harry is much younger, and this is his first diplomatic posting.  Harry has taken to New York life with great gusto, walking confidently on the lead with both ears perked up, on full alert for adventure.  Both Gus and Harry are celebrities in their neighbourhood, and have sussed out which doormen and residents have dog biscuits in their pockets.  And as a trespasser on their turf, I allowed the boys to show me their hood.  And so we were up with the birds on Saturday and Sunday, but we walked the blocks like we owned the Upper East Side - even stopping off for coffee at the delicious Oslo (the caffeine was for me, not the pooches).

It rained almost non-stop on Saturday but after the morning walk with the boys, I took myself to Jones Wood Foundry on East 76th Street for some brunch.  I had been there for beers and dinner ages ago and it's a great English pub that has a delicious food menu too.  When you get up really early on a weekend, and because the streets are quiet, you kind of lose track of time a bit.  It felt like I'd been awake forever, but it turns out I got to the pub a little after the brunch menu opened at 11am. At that hour of the day, the dining room only had one other couple in it but for some reason, I was seated one table away from them (why do servers do that!?).  Whatever hopes that poor couple had for a private chat were dashed by my presence, though I did my best to blend in with the furniture and quietly read my book.  As I was finishing my delicious Scotched Woodcock (toasted crumpet with anchovy butter, smoked salmon, soft scrambled egg and a salad), a table of four screechy girls was seated next to me.  That was definitely my cue to leave.  Why do girls have to shout, when they're less than three feet away from each other?  Maybe I was ready for a nap.  In the drizzling rain that lasted all day, there wasn't much else to do anyway.  Gus and Harry were certainly pleased to have me home and we curled up to watch some quality cable TV (another advantage of looking after somebody else's apartment).

Sunday morning we woke up early and took off for our routine walk.  Saturday's rain had moved on and left a clear blue sky in its place, but we also had a frosty, cold wind - hardly helped by the fast-moving East River right by the apartment.  Still, you can't fault that view.

Gus, Harry, and I braved the cold weather and walked for a few more blocks but it wasn't long before I felt the familiar tug on the leads, and I knew we were heading back to the warmth of the apartment (and breakfast time for the boys).  Once I had them settled in, I walked in search of my own sustenance, this time in the opposite direction to the day before.  I randomly wandered into Trend Diner on 2nd Avenue, which offered up typical diner fare, but I always think that diner breakfasts taste so much better than anything I could rustle up for myself.

Long stretches of Second Avenue on the Upper East Side have been under construction for a number of years.  The City is still building the 2nd Avenue subway tracks and a lot of the stores are buried behind lots of scaffolding.  They're not expected to open the new line until 30 December 2016, but having a subway line running underneath 2nd Avenue will just open up the whole eastern side of Manhattan.  It will be great, and will certainly ease the pressure on the 6 train that runs underneath Lexington & Park Avenues, and carries a huge burden right now.  I remember when I was looking for an apartment a few years ago, and brokers kept trying to convince me to rent something along this Second Avenue construction zone.  The prices were right (of course) but I don't think I could put up with jackhammers and scaffolding at all hours - not even for the distant promise of a subway!

Another great advantage to temporary Upper East Side living is that the apartment I was minding has a full kitchen.  It's not even a large kitchen really, but it's a whole lot bigger than the one in my studio, so I got well acquainted with it today.  I fixed a delicious (and huge) vegetarian chili courtesy of Jamie Oliver.  It was so hearty and tasty and because I cooked it early this morning, it was just right to eat by the time Harry and Gus welcomed their parents back home tonight.

I'm now back in my own place in Chelsea and even though I only have to unpack an overnight bag, it still feels like I've had a real adventure this weekend.  I got out of my usual routine and I was fortunate to have two handsome boys show me their neighbourhood.  Nobody gave me any treats from their pockets of course, but I suspect I should probably be grateful for that!