My Cousin Vinnie

I'm having trouble keeping up with myself. Where were we? Oh yes. Saturday morning was the International Friendship Run - for international marathoners and their friends and family. It was a 4km from the UN building to Central Park. I refused to run, but we did enjoy the walk - great vibe, thousands of people, and probably the only time I'll ever walk down the middle of a Manhattan street with no cars.

After the walk (and a shower) we headed down to Soho to meet my cousin. He is a first cousin, but as his parents separated when he was very young and he lived with his mother (and I lived overseas) we only met a couple of times as kids. But a few days before we flew over here I remembered hearing he was in NYC, so I tracked him down. Well. He's like the embodiment of what Coming to America is supposed to be about - he works for an investment bank, has just bought a full-floor loft in a landmark building in Soho/Nolita (which he's gutting out and completely renovating), and his girlfriend is a ridiculously beautiful Dominican model approximately half his age (but probably less). Not making up a word of it, promise. Didn't that make me feel like the Country Mouse ...

We sorted of dawdled around bit, stopping at Dean & DeLuca (yum), Uniqlo (cheap, but HOT and LOUD and kind of yuck).  Came back via Union Square (can't have too much of that hot cider),  then had an early dinner so Andrew could carbo load. Neither of us slept very well before the big day, but more of that anon.