New York city, the city that never sleeps. Well for the first couple of days there thats pretty much all I did. Arrived omn Tuesday night with Damian who was about to fly on to Europe. We caught up with another Upper Huttian Peter Ung. Went to an Irish bar for food and drink and relax after a hectic few days on the road. After that went to see GI Joe at the movies. Was an ok movie, story line had more holes that swiss cheese, and I was falling asleep during it, but otherwise it was alright.
All day Wednesday I spend sleeping in and resting, hardly going out of the apartment except to hunt for food (which wasn't hard as McDs was right across the road). Thursday was pretty much the same, but walked a little further at dinner time. But then that night I got to go to the airport and pick up Lizz :) She will be with me for three weeks. Got the subway back at like 1am, and it didn't stop at the station we were expecting it to, so we got to take a long walk through NY in the early hours.
On Friday my friend Aileen and her friend came down to catch up with us and see some of NY. We went to for lunch and then got driven around more of Manhatten seeing the sights. Saturday Lizz and I walked around more of NY, we went through Times Square, up to the "top of the Rock" observation deck. Great views of NY. Went up through Central Park.
Sunday we walked through the lower end of Manhatten. Walked down through SoHo area, across to Ground Zero, the site where the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre were located. There is now quite a bit of construction work going on, look forward to seeing what they come up with. Then through the financial district along Wall Street. After that we went on a sunset cruise (although it was already dark!) as we were given tickets by our Boston friends. Great views of Manhatten skyline at night. The cruise went out to the Statue of Liberty which is very impressive up close. Monday was time to pack up and leave New York. We had a fantastic time. Check out the photos by clicking the link on the previous post.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Patriots Football Sept 14
As much as a fan of Stryper I am, So is Damian of the Patriots. So off we went to see them play the Buffalo Bills. Game starts at 7pm so we headed off as soon as we arrived (2:30) to avoid the traffic, but to no avail. Already traffic is jammed. People get there real early to tailgate. This is where you have a BBQ party in the car park. Hundreds of them going on. We were going to go to the Pats Hall of Fame, but it wasn't open for game day.
Luckily I was able to get a ticket on game day. We entered the staium a couple hours early and were able to go right down sideline and watch the teams go through some warm ups. The star quarterback Tom Brady missed all of last season after getting injured inteh first game last year and so he got a huge ovation when he came out. Time flew by and it was time to take our proper seats. It took me over 15 minutes to walk from the first level all the way up to the nose bleeds where my seat was. Still it had a really good view of the field.
The game itself was pretty cool. When ever I have watched it on TV it seems to go on forever, with the time outs and clock stopping etc so was expecting the same live. Howeber there is always something going on and never any boring bits. In the second half we were featured on the big screen in a commercial they filmed when we waiting to enter the stadium. The Pats played under themselves for 90% of the game and deep into the last quater needed a score to win, but the Bills scored again leaving the Pats to score twice to win with only minutes left. So a section of the crowd picked up and left. However they missed on hang of a come back. Brady engineered two touchdowns and the Pats won. Man the crowd went crazy. Awesome.
Luckily I was able to get a ticket on game day. We entered the staium a couple hours early and were able to go right down sideline and watch the teams go through some warm ups. The star quarterback Tom Brady missed all of last season after getting injured inteh first game last year and so he got a huge ovation when he came out. Time flew by and it was time to take our proper seats. It took me over 15 minutes to walk from the first level all the way up to the nose bleeds where my seat was. Still it had a really good view of the field.
The game itself was pretty cool. When ever I have watched it on TV it seems to go on forever, with the time outs and clock stopping etc so was expecting the same live. Howeber there is always something going on and never any boring bits. In the second half we were featured on the big screen in a commercial they filmed when we waiting to enter the stadium. The Pats played under themselves for 90% of the game and deep into the last quater needed a score to win, but the Bills scored again leaving the Pats to score twice to win with only minutes left. So a section of the crowd picked up and left. However they missed on hang of a come back. Brady engineered two touchdowns and the Pats won. Man the crowd went crazy. Awesome.
Harfort Sept 13
Time to get moving again. Today Jon is taking me to Hartford to meet up with Damian, a friend from back home who just happened to be in the region so we decided to meet up. Our first impression of Hartford was just what a dump the place was. Maybe it was just the area we were in, but it was very ghetto, not a place I feel I need to return to in a hurry. But we were not there to sight see, we were there for the greatest band in the universe.
We went down as soon as Damian arrived for the meet and greet again. Got there as they were already starting already. They were joking around with the crowd, asking what to play next. Someone yelled out "Shining Star" (not part of the set list) and they played the opening few lines to it which was cool. Then someone asked for The Rock That Makes Me Roll (which is part of their set list) and they made out that they hadn't played it for years and they would give it a go and played it right through.
After the meet and greet we took off to find food. After driving around Hartford we decided it would be best to bet KFC and head back to the hotel. This time we made it back in time for the openers. Once again they were great. Stryper came out and delivered once again. Again they were able to get through the whole show if only minor difficulties. Still had the two songs missing, I do hope they will reappear later. However, I think this was their best show so far. Mike is warming into the screams a bit more. The music was tight and some (but not too much) funny banter with the crowd. It was also the closest I have been to catching a bible so far lol. Robert continues to rock the drumming. He has this awesome thing he does on "Calling On You." Awesome!
We went down as soon as Damian arrived for the meet and greet again. Got there as they were already starting already. They were joking around with the crowd, asking what to play next. Someone yelled out "Shining Star" (not part of the set list) and they played the opening few lines to it which was cool. Then someone asked for The Rock That Makes Me Roll (which is part of their set list) and they made out that they hadn't played it for years and they would give it a go and played it right through.
After the meet and greet we took off to find food. After driving around Hartford we decided it would be best to bet KFC and head back to the hotel. This time we made it back in time for the openers. Once again they were great. Stryper came out and delivered once again. Again they were able to get through the whole show if only minor difficulties. Still had the two songs missing, I do hope they will reappear later. However, I think this was their best show so far. Mike is warming into the screams a bit more. The music was tight and some (but not too much) funny banter with the crowd. It was also the closest I have been to catching a bible so far lol. Robert continues to rock the drumming. He has this awesome thing he does on "Calling On You." Awesome!
Clifton Park Sept 12
After waiting over 20 years to see Stryper live for the first time, I get to see them for the second time the very next day! Quite a busy day. After a week in Boston time to pack my bags and hit the road once again. The drive from Boston to Clifton Park is just a few hours. Dropped our stuff at the hotel and headed straight over to Northern Lights to attend the meet and greet/sound check.
This was really cool. Whilst waiting we could hear Stryper inside warming up already. As this was the first meet and greet no one knew what to expect. We could hear Stryper and we just wanted them to open the doors and let us in to see them. Finally they let us in and we poured through the doors and up to the stage. Lots of photos were taken. Oz done most of the chatting from the stage. We heard a couple of beginnings from songs as they checked sound level etc.
After a few minutes of this the sound check was completed and the band members came down to the floor to meet the fans, sign autographs, and have pictures taken. All the band members are really cool. You didn't get long with them as there were many people to get through. It all went pretty smoothly, most people said a few words, took their photo, and got their things autographed. There were a couple of people who thought they could tell them their life story or something and others who didn't seem to understand the concept of lining up and waiting your turn, but on the whole no dramas and it seemed everyone got to meet all the band members.
Since we had been on the go all day instead of waiting for the concert to start we took off to find something to eat with the intention of coming back in time for doors opening to the public. However we found a place with good food and cheap beer, so ended up staying there a couple hours and made our way back to the concert just in time for Stryper.
Stryper came out and blasted through their set list in rapid style. The technical problems that occured throughout the Boston set seemed to have been taken care of and they were able to just get on with playing. For reasons unknown they dropped two songs they had played in Boston. One of which is a ballad, so I didn't mind it was dropped (although it should have been replaced with something else) but the other one they dropped is my favourite song from the new album. I was totally bummed that was dropped. Hopefully they will return in later shows. Despite the shorter set they still totally rocked it out. Great show, can't wait for more.
This was really cool. Whilst waiting we could hear Stryper inside warming up already. As this was the first meet and greet no one knew what to expect. We could hear Stryper and we just wanted them to open the doors and let us in to see them. Finally they let us in and we poured through the doors and up to the stage. Lots of photos were taken. Oz done most of the chatting from the stage. We heard a couple of beginnings from songs as they checked sound level etc.
After a few minutes of this the sound check was completed and the band members came down to the floor to meet the fans, sign autographs, and have pictures taken. All the band members are really cool. You didn't get long with them as there were many people to get through. It all went pretty smoothly, most people said a few words, took their photo, and got their things autographed. There were a couple of people who thought they could tell them their life story or something and others who didn't seem to understand the concept of lining up and waiting your turn, but on the whole no dramas and it seemed everyone got to meet all the band members.
Since we had been on the go all day instead of waiting for the concert to start we took off to find something to eat with the intention of coming back in time for doors opening to the public. However we found a place with good food and cheap beer, so ended up staying there a couple hours and made our way back to the concert just in time for Stryper.
Stryper came out and blasted through their set list in rapid style. The technical problems that occured throughout the Boston set seemed to have been taken care of and they were able to just get on with playing. For reasons unknown they dropped two songs they had played in Boston. One of which is a ballad, so I didn't mind it was dropped (although it should have been replaced with something else) but the other one they dropped is my favourite song from the new album. I was totally bummed that was dropped. Hopefully they will return in later shows. Despite the shorter set they still totally rocked it out. Great show, can't wait for more.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Kicking into Action
Now the tour is kicking into some real action.
Saw the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Wednesday night. Good times, the American pastime.
Friday was the start of the real Stryper tour. The anticipation was amense. Got down to House of Blues nice and early. Ran into a couple of people I only know through the Stryper Forum. Great to meet them in person finally. Opening band was Manic Drive they were pretty sweet. Then Flight Patterns featuring the son of Stryper's lead singer. They are also preet sweet! But Stryper was what we were there for, and just wanted them to get on.
Stryper were awesome. One and a half hours of pure rock. They blasted through a bunch of classics and some new songs too. After all the waiting the show seemed to fly by in moments. Unfortuntely there seems to be a few technical issues throughout the night, but other than that no dramas. Everyone was great. Especially impressed with Robert's drumming, man he tears it up. Had a good position in front of Oz, he was realling enjoying himself, ripping up the guitar.
Great show, I'm so stocked to finally see them and even more so that I get to see them again. Can't wait.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
More Photos Up
Hey people,
This blog is not very good for displaying photos so I have started a facebook group to host the photos. I will still be doing this blog and posting some photos here, but with the facebook page I will be able to host many more photos and in better quality. You will not need to have a facebook account to see the photos, just follow the link that I put up and/or save it in your favourites.
I'll have another post up in the next day or so but in the meantime if you want to see some more photos follow the link... http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=173415566144&ref=mf
Regards,
Craig
This blog is not very good for displaying photos so I have started a facebook group to host the photos. I will still be doing this blog and posting some photos here, but with the facebook page I will be able to host many more photos and in better quality. You will not need to have a facebook account to see the photos, just follow the link that I put up and/or save it in your favourites.
I'll have another post up in the next day or so but in the meantime if you want to see some more photos follow the link... http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=173415566144&ref=mf
Regards,
Craig
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
First Few Days
Saturday we went for a drive up north of Boston. We partook in a spot of random sighteeing (aka getting lost and driving around) before ending up at Hampton Beach in New Hampshire. A beautiful late summer's day with just the right contidions to throw around a football and practice our "Al Bundy" poses.
On Sunday we drove out to Springfield, Mass to Six Flags New England amusement park. Unfortunately due to the nature of the rides etc couldn't bring a camera so no pictures. Plenty of cool rides though. As it is with these things standing in line is the order of the day. Most of the time its an hours wait for a minutes worth of ride! But man what a ride as the saying goes.
Monday was a public holiday over here and we spent the day checking out downtown Boston. Plenty of cool buildings and whatnot to see.
Here is the world famous Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox baseball team. If you look to the right you can see the House of Blues club.
On Sunday we drove out to Springfield, Mass to Six Flags New England amusement park. Unfortunately due to the nature of the rides etc couldn't bring a camera so no pictures. Plenty of cool rides though. As it is with these things standing in line is the order of the day. Most of the time its an hours wait for a minutes worth of ride! But man what a ride as the saying goes.
Monday was a public holiday over here and we spent the day checking out downtown Boston. Plenty of cool buildings and whatnot to see.
Here is the world famous Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox baseball team. If you look to the right you can see the House of Blues club.
The House of Blues just happen to have Stryper playing on September the 11th. Looks pretty sweet maybe I'll come back then and check them out :)
Got legal troubles? Here is the offices of Crane, Poole, and Schmidt.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
My Stryper Tour is underway.
Well my Stryper tour has officially started! Have arrived safe and well in Boston after a long but uneventful journey. Left home 5:30 am Friday 4 September and arrived at my final destination 1:30 pm Saturday 5 September NZ time (9:30 pm Friday local time) a total journey time of 32 hours. First thing first so off we headed to Harvard Square for a quick ale at one of my old favourite places “John Harvard’s.” Well that’s pretty much it so far for day 1, no band sightings yet lol. However there have been comments already on my Stryper tee-shirts :) Looking forward to catching up with friends and seeing familiar places in the coming week whilst we count down to the opening show here in Boston.
Before I left our church small group had a Yellow & Black party to farewell me. It was a very fun time and everyone got dressed in Yellow & Black and listened to the new album. There was Yellow & Black balloons and even Yellow & Black cupcakes!!! Thanks guys.
Before I left our church small group had a Yellow & Black party to farewell me. It was a very fun time and everyone got dressed in Yellow & Black and listened to the new album. There was Yellow & Black balloons and even Yellow & Black cupcakes!!! Thanks guys.
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