Okay, so this blog is going to change. From now on I will tell anyone that reads this, or perhaps just for my own therapeutic needs, about the places that I traveled for my job, the hotels that I’ve stayed in, the restaurants that I ate at, and somewhere in there I will maybe, possibly address the progress, if any, I’ve made on the goals mentioned in my first post.

So currently I’m in Brooklyn, NY. New York, in general, is a great city. It’s a great place to come for vacation and see the sights. It’s a great place to come to for business or if you’re looking for that place where you could possibly make your future, but be warned, it is absolutely the worst city to drive in. You have the people who barely pay attention to the traffic lights, the pedestrians that cross the street wherever they feel like, even when they’re just ten feet from a crosswalk. The people on bikes that act as if they own the road and the people who double park in the middle of a busy street so they can drop someone off, but stay parked for some reason checking out their phones. Basically, comes to New York but avoid driving here.

Last night I stayed at the Holiday Inn at 625 Union Street Brooklyn, NY. This is my official warning to anyone even remotely thinking about maybe considering this hotel. RUN THE F*** AWAY. Don’t walk, don’t avoid eye contact, just run. This is one of the nastiest hotels I have ever had the misfortune to ever stay in.

The elevator in the hotel seriously needs to be worked on. I wasn’t sure if it was going to break down and leave me stuck between floors or plummet me to my death. The room was small, and it cost $125 a night and I was ripped off by about $100. The room was barely 10x10 and the bed took 90% of that. When I took a shower, I knew every time someone flushed the toilet when my water pressure went down to nearly nothing then shot back up after a few seconds. I was afraid to walk around my room barefoot for fear that I would contract some kind of disease. The bed was basically just the box springs, no real mattress, or if it was a mattress then the franchise owner bought it from the cheapest wholesaler in New York. The walls were paper thin giving me the worst night’s sleep I have had since Iraq. Even being on the ninth floor I heard every car, truck and bus that drove by. I heard every conversation, foot step and movement that took place last night. All in all, I truly think that Holiday Inn should no longer support this franchise member, they’re only damaging the brand name.

Last night I got delivery from Avlee Greek Kitchen. Don’t do this. I’m not sure what food is like in the restaurant, but the delivery was not very good. It arrived lukewarm, and yes, I understand it was a cold night. That’s why you don’t have your people deliver food via bike or motorcycle. Look, I understand it can be a pain to drive in New York, but cars were literally made to get from one place to another faster than you can walk or ride a bike. It also has the awesome side effect of not making my food cold. I ordered the Gyro Platter, with Greek Fries, Gigandes (whatever that is), Baklava. The gigandes was ok. They were just meatballs, and a little different from what I’m used to but ok. The Gyro Platter was very salty. Maybe it would have been better if I had some beer with me but since I’m doing my best to lose weight that seems rather self-defeating. The bakalava was soggy and I couldn’t eat it. All in all, very underwhelming.

In conclusion, avoid this hotel like the plague and maybe go to Avlee Greek Kitchen instead of getting delivery.