MONDAY 23 MARCH
- Throat feels better.
- Waffles for breakfast from waffle maker in restaurant.
- Sad to leave Ramada Inn -- seems to be a haven of tranquility.
- Head for Bethlehem PA.
- Sunny, many trees. Spot Amish wagon on adjacent road.
- Check in to Quality Inn, Allentown. Modest place -- busy with families.
- Room is clean and has view of local park.
- Have to move table across room to get laptop near electrical socket.
- I need to eat some proper food (vegetables and fruit). Go to Old Country Buffet and secure admittance for $8-95.
- There is something frantic and chaotic about this place.
- Eat corn on the cob, green beans and carrots (with grilled fish) and then fruit.
- Just an observation: many of the people here do not need to be exposed to an 'all you can eat' buffet.
- Another observation: so much waste -- food piled onto plates and then left.
- Return to Quality Inn.
- Get ready and drive to Bethlehem. Pleasant, wide tree-lined streets. Parallel park outside church.
- Event goes well. Wonderful reception.
- Return to Quality Inn and sleep well.
TUESDAY 24 MARCH
- White bagels for breakfast in Quality Inn.
- Depart for Connecticut.
- Take a wrong turn and end up in busy suburb of New York City. So many signs in Spanish. Takes forever to get back on track.
- Will stay in the house of the mother of a friend/colleague from GE.
- The street address sounds quite ordinary -- it's in the GPS.
- This isn't a street -- it's a country lane. Houses set back far from the road, nestling in the trees.
- Oh my God! This house (mansion) is amazing. The architecture is stunning and unique.
- Sandra is very welcoming. House is a labyrinth -- multiple levels and directions. Guest suite looks out at forest.
- Relax for a short while, then get ready for New Haven event.
- Drive there with Sandra.
- Event goes well.
- Afterwards, go to Japanese restaurant with Sandra. She tries to pay, but it's the least I can do. I'm saving a fortune staying with her in the CT/NYC area (potentially for four nights).
- Stay up late, checking e-mail, chatting.
- Retire to guest suite.
- Sleep soundly.
WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH
- Awoken by UK cell phone at 6 am -- voice-mail from a company that wants a reference for someone who used to work for me. Thank God they didn't call at 9 am their time.
- Make the call back to them by Skype (not video, as I'm not presentable!).
- Lazy morning in magnificent house. - Depart for Concord, MA.
- Stop at Starbucks to check e-mail on their network (the one I bought a subscription for at Heathrow).
- BBC News website article is out! http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7964497.stm
- E-mails start pouring in.
- Stop answering e-mails -- hurry to Concord MA.
- Event is well-attended and goes well.
- Plan is to drive three hours back to Connecticut.
- A charming and pleasant woman says, 'You don't need to drive back to Connecticut tonight. My husband and I would love it if you stay with us.'
- Agree.
- Follow her in pitch darkness to their farmhouse.
- Stay up for a while chatting, then retire to bed.
THURSDAY 26 MARCH
- Arise early and depart quietly without disturbing hosts (as agreed).
- Two hairy brown cattle watch lazily as hybrid car trundles quietly along country lane.
- Thank God for GPS.
- Head back for Connecticut.
- Stop at Starbucks to answer e-mails.
- Stop at Target in some unremarkable town to buy training shoes.
- Return to Sandra's house in early afternoon.
- Have quick late lunch of sushi.
- Shave, shower, change for NYC event.
- Drive to South Norwalk station, park car, buy off-peak return ticket to Grand Central Station.
- Enjoy comfortable ride into New York.
- Talk to early thirties man sitting next to me. Tell him about my tour. 'Wow!'
- It's raining in NYC. Umbrellas everywhere.
- Walk thirty blocks to All Souls Church on Lexington and 80th. There's a huge poster about my event outside!
- Arrive at 6:55 pm, in good time for 7:30 pm event. People are pouring in already!
- Documentary maker is here also.
- There is plentiful food and drink.
- The Rev tells me that they have the event starting at 7 pm! No time to rest.
- The event goes well; people laugh; the documentary maker laughs too.
- There is a youngish African-American woman at the back; her clothes indicate socio-economic disadvantage; she looks bored.
- People ask interesting questions.
- Finally the African-American woman makes a comment. 'A black person can't rent an apartment in Paterson, New Jersey, but Mid-Eastern men can, and then they crash airplanes into buildings.'
- I try to answer that this is probably a socio-economic issue -- the hijackers had lots of money.
- The Rev suggests that we can wrap up now. (She is also African-American.)
- The young woman retorts: 'What? I'm not allowed to have free speech? Isn't this America?'
- I sign books. They all sell out. People gather around and ask me many questions.
- Finally, I get to eat something -- an English woman (art dealer) brings me a plate of food.
- Options: hurry back to Grand Central Station and take late train back to Connecticut, or stay in Manhattan.
- Log into Rev's office computer and secure reasonably-priced room in Radisson Lexington -- pay a few dollars extra for a deluxe room with king-size bed.
- Walk over there; check e-mail in Starbucks en-route.
- It's not raining now; buy delicious lamb and rice from Arab street vendor.
- Check-in to hotel, assigned room on 16th floor.
- Room is small and has what looks like a crushed cookie on the carpet, and hairs on the toiler seat. Ugh!
- Ask for replacement room, and given similar compact, bare room on 4th floor, but it looks clean.
- Sleep soundly.
FRIDAY 27 MARCH
- Awake.
- Hang on a minute -- this can't be a 'deluxe' room. It's tiny and the bed is just a double.
- Ask the housekeeper in the hallway. Sadly, tiredly, she confirms: 'No, that's a standard room.'
- Maintain absolute calm as I explain to pleasant, professional young woman at Front Desk that I paid extra for a deluxe room.
- She gives me breakfast voucher and late checkout (3 pm).
- Have coffee, orange, poached eggs and toast in American diner of hotel.
- Walk to Paul Simon (the singer-songwriter)'s offices on Broadway (by prior arrangement). (I paid a fee to quote Paul Simon lyrics in my book.)
- Juanita is wonderful and very welcoming - gives me a guided tour.
- Paul Simon's personal office is very large and very tasteful.
- Another office has a huge map of the world his sister-in-law painted on the wall -- it is stunning. I stare at it for ages.
- Juanita gives me some Paul Simon CDs and takes pictures of me in Paul's office -- I agree not to publish these in my blog.
- Paul does not come by, alas, but he does phone in whilst I'm there.
- Walk over to The Moth office. http://www.themoth.org/ I worked with these people at the Perth Writers' Festival and did a Moth event.
- Vacate room at 3 pm, walk to Grand Central Station, buy decaff venti latte and cake at Starbucks, take 3:34 train to South Norwalk.
- Drive back to Sandra's house; dinner with Michael and his wonderful family.
- Sleep well in guest suite.
New York
Connecticut
SATURDAY 28 MARCH
- Awake early.
- Spend time re-gathering personal effects from around Sandra's house and making sure nothing forgotten.
- Depart on 400 mile drive to Glen Allen (Richmond area) VA.
- Arrive in good time, get taken to dinner by Rev and some volunteers, in Chinese restaurant.
- Event goes well.
- Use Internet; secure room in Sheraton Richmond, where I used to stay on business many times; right next to my old company.
- Put Sheraton (Starwood) card on counter and get a Tower room.
'Welcome back, Mr Ahmad.'
SUNDAY 29 MARCH
- Awake in Sheraton. Feels so comfortably familiar.
- Have favorite breakfast in Sheraton restaurant -- except that I have to pay for it now!
- Go for walk around grounds of ex-employer. I always enjoyed being here.
- Drive to Woodbridge, VA, to cousin's house.
- Have nice dinner there.
- Prepare clothes for early morning departure to Washington DC.
- Sleep late and a little apprehensive.
I enjoyed the BBC article you linked. I saw you in Perth. Your book is very good, you are very funny, and you are doing a great job. I don't agree with the more negative comments linked to the article.
Posted by: cosmos | April 02, 2009 at 06:33 AM
I wish I'd read your fantastic book before you visited Australia - I would have loved to hear you speak. Sorry, I have no involvement with any famous people, and no possible way of making you more successful. But I would if I could! Love your blog. I look forward to every hilarious post. Can't wait for the next instalment of your autobiography.
Posted by: Pil | April 10, 2009 at 08:59 AM
A nice place they got here, lots of nice pictures and the surroundings are also nice.
Posted by: Perth Hotels | September 23, 2009 at 01:31 AM
I would like to stay at a place like this. Its nice and quiet atmosphere can really give relaxation to people like me when they are there on vacation.
Posted by: house plans | October 26, 2009 at 01:25 AM