Buy Buy Birdie

Got extra money to spend? Did grandma just send you a check for your birthday? Interested in getting that new IT thing? If somehow, you've managed to beat the recession and answered yes to any of these questions, then come on down to New York's 5th avenue.

The shopping at 5th avenue in New York between 49th street to Central Park at 59th street is considered the place for all the IT people to buy their items. A walk down this gold paved road guarantees a celebrity sighting. For the average man however, this place may leave your pockets dry, your wallets empty, and your plastics burned.

The list of designer stores is endless, and the prices at these designer stores are limitless. But if you find yourself to be ready, willing, and able to drop some serious dough at these stores, you will be left nothing short of a VIP experience.

There is one store on this silk road where you can find yours truly. That is the NBA store at 5th and 52nd. With autographs, jerseys, collectibles, indoor basketball, ticket counters, clothes, video games, life-sized replicas, and so much more, this store will never bore the sports enthusiast.

For the shopper seeking some designer clothing, but a cheaper selection ought to mosey on forward to the legendary Bloomingdale's in NY. This building is almost as famous as the United Nations in NY. The store occupies an entire square block in the heart of the city on 3rd ave between 59th and 60th.

If none of the above interests you, which ought to be the case for most of us because this type of shopping exists anywhere in the world, there is one last solution. Walk through Little Italy on Mulberry Street to give you a real NYC experience. Small stores, fake goods, and persistent salesmen makes this place the epitome of the New York City market.

If the recession's got you bad, doesn't mean you can't enjoy New York's shopping. Just walk around with a hot pretzel and window shop your mind away!

- Shrenil S. Bhansali

GAMEOVER

Its over. The New York Knicks finished another season disappointing their fans for the 7th straight year. Are we officially losers?

Yea, we are....

The Knicks (30 - 52) ended their season with a win over the New Jersey Nets and won by 30 points. However, when it mattered, as per usual, the Knicks got blown out.

I had the luxury, although hardly a luxary to be quite honest, of attending two games over my spring break in New York. All I can say is money well spent. NOT! I asked for a good game. I didn't care for a win, I didn't care for a slam dunk, I didn't ask for a buzzer beater, and I didn't look for a medley 3s. Just wanted a solid game. But to my complete shock, we got killed in both games by an average of 30 points each game.

Its so bad now that the Knicks store is offering 30% discount on all its goods, and even has much of its merchandise on clearance at $10 dollars.

According to ESPN, MSG saw a decrease of $60 million in revenues per year since they started losing. In one of the world's premiere cities, the 'world's most famous arena' is full. Full of empty seats and angry New Yorkers.

Also, instead of promoting its team and the accomplishments, the http://www.knicks.com/ website is flaunting the plethora of celebrities that attend. I know Anthony Anderson and Howard Stern are pretty much the best things since sliced bread, but honestly, I rather just see a nice assist.

What's ahead?

Well, quite frankly, nothing. The way the Knicks have been playing, they probably don't even care about their fans and are throwing back, in addition to the bricks on the the court, hotdogs and burgers, instead of working on their game.

The Game Is Over.

- Shrenil S. Bhansali

A Big Fat Green Failure

Last week I was in New York, and I sat through what can most appropriately be called big, green, and ugly. No this wasn’t the Statue of Liberty; it was Shrek the Musical on Broadway.

The Oscar-winning DreamWorks movie that redefined fairytales for children and brought crude humor to adults made its debut onto New York’s City’s Broadway. However, somewhere in between The Phantom of the Opera and Mama Mia, Shrek the Musical just seemed out of place.

In a faraway kingdom, draped with redundant sets and unoriginal backdrops, things get ugly, yes very very very ugly, when a fairytale goes wrong. In this kingdom, an unseemly ogre, whose singing can only be compared to that of opera tenor, Luciano Pavarotti (they might even look alike), shows up to save the day despite his failure to sound anything like Shrek from the movie. His mission is to rescue a feisty princess, from a fierce dragon that looks like a cross between a stuffed animal and a 5th grader’s paper mache project.

Shrek’s companion, Donkey, might be the only actor on that stage that plays his role to perfection. How you might ask? Simple, he makes an ass out of himself on stage. This donkey, who won’t shut up, but really ought to, throws on a Halloween costume and a little bit of face paint to help Shrek save the day.

Along their journey, Shrek and Donkey come across the most random assortment of misfits. If I had to guess, these were all leftover costumes from legitimate animated productions on Broadway like The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast. The ensemble of these characters has the most random collection of songs which are complemented by dance moves most commonly used at a sweet sixteen.

The only noteworthy part of this performance is Christopher Sieber’s portrayal of the bad guy, Lord Farquaad. He struts around on his knees with a doll attached to his body to represent Farquaad’s pint sized frame. Whenever Sieber comes on stage, the crowd falls into a thunderous eruption of laughter.

None of the good songs from the movie were used, and Donkey doesn’t sing even sing to Smashmouth’s I’m a believer. The two lovebirds never roam through the fields while The Counting Crow’s sing Accidentally in Love.

The highly anticipated show took on a challenge when it set out to portray a brilliantly made film. The show doesn’t include any of the things the audience loved from the film, and bores the audience with songs that only narrate the next scene. I have to be honest; I fell asleep for about ten minutes because I was that bored.

If you don’t believe me, look at the facts, this newly released Broadway debacle already sells its seats for 40% off the ticketed price. My advice to you is this: if you do decide to watch this show, just lower your standards for theatre and you might just get your money’s worth.

- Shrenil S. Bhansali

Forgot your Valentine?

Its not too late! Take her on a romantic date to the heart of New York City.

Rockefeller Center , only two blocks away from Times Square, is one of the liveliest places in the city of blinding lights. It is the center of the business (diamond and jewelry market), tourism, and shopping.

For you youngsters, there are things you can do here that will blow your special lady away. First, go to Rockefeller Center and go down the grand stairs. To your right will be a small door. Enter it, spend about $15 dollars, and take your lady ice skating in New York City. The rink at Rockefeller at night is beautiful and a perfect place to show your significant other, what she means to you.

For the mature crowd, if you have an extra buck to spend, take her to heaven up to the 65th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Cipriani's Rainbow Room is a high class venue with a grill for gourmet food, a bar for exotic drinks, and a view for only the exclusive. If you're a dancer, show it off on the Rainbow Room's jazz floor.

Just remember one thing if you are trying to redeem forgetting St. Valentine's Day: Fill your wallet and dress to impress

- Shrenil S. Bhansali

Mac-DO-A-LOT-gal Street

MacDougal Street is in New York's famous Greenwich Village also called the West Village. It is located between West 3rd and Bleecker Street. The place has been linked to bohemianism for most of the last century, and will surely continue to be one of New York's cultural hotspots.

NYU students especially enjoy this night time get away as it has all types of things to do.

If you're in the mood for some tasty food, this is the place to go! Here, you can find the best falafel in New York City, and arguably the country at a small joint established in 1971 called Mamoun's. For just $2, you can get a falafel that will fill your stomach up, and still keep you asking for more. Just be careful of their firey, blazing, spicy hot sauce. One dab of this sauce on your tongue, and you will surely be running to the nearest watering hole to put out the inferno in your mouth.

Just down the street from Mamoun's is India's favorite street food brought to the streets of Manhattan. Kati Roll is a food haven where you can get your paneer, aloo (potato), chicken, or lamb rolled up in a traditional Malaysian Parata (bread) pickled with peppers and onions. All of the food options are grilled on an open flame while the bread is cooked in a traditional tandoor.

Other food places to check out are Hummus Place, Ben's Pizza, Meskerem's Ethiopian, Indian Bread Company, Olive Tree Cafe, and Cafe Dante.

If you're not that hungry, there are tons of other things you can do on this legendary street. If you're in the mood for a good laugh, get yourself down into the Comedy Cellar. There are three shows every Friday and four shows every Saturday. Sunday through Thursday, there are two shows each day. What makes the place even better is that you can reserve a table online at anytime before the show. The place has had incredible lineups including: Robin Williams, Chris Rock, Dave Attell, Dave Chappelle, Jon Stewart, and many more.

Finally, once you're done laughing. You can mosey to one of the many ice cream and dessert shops, or be a little more adventurous and go to Luxor Cafe. Luxor Cafe is a Hookah bar where arabic music is played, bellydancers perform, and shisha is served.

Please go out and experiance one of New York's most cost effective hot zones with a crowd that drastically changes with each venue.

For those of you experts on MacDougal Street, tell us your opinions here!

- Shrenil S. Bhansali

Kobe's Demolition in Gotham City

Kobe Bryant walked into Madison Square Garden this past Monday and told Gotham City why he is going to win MVP this season.

Bryant broke the all time Madison Square Garden record of most points scored in a single game by a player. His 61 points beat legends like Michael Jordan and Bernard King. This was Bryants 5th career 60 point game and his 5th 40 point game in the Garden. The score of the game in the end was 126 - 117 L.A. Andrew Bynum, center for the Lakers, got injured just before this game and is expected to be out 8 to 12 weeks. Kobe's performance demonstrated that he alone can get the job done and that Bynum's injury will not hurt the progress of this franchise.

However Knick fans, this is not something to worry too much about. The Knicks played extremely well. Al Harrington had 24 points, David Lee grabbed 12 rebounds, and point guard Chris Duhan dished 9 assists. The turning point of the game, was in the third quarter when the Knicks went on a 10 - 4 run to make it a two point game. The play of the game was Quentin Richardson's two-handed cross court pass to Jared Jefferies for the Allie-oop.

David Lee explained how, "it was very obvious to all of us by the middle of the first quarter that he [Kobe Bryant] wasn't in a distributing type of mode or in a getting 10 rebounds type of mode, that he was going to try to score the basketball tonight."

The Knicks are currently 21 - 27 and stand at 10th place in the Eastern Conference. They are two games behind the 8th seed and playoff spot. If the Knicks continue to play with an up tempo speed and do not turn the ball over, they will be sure to advance and see the playoffs after five years of no postseason.

- Shrenil S. Bhansali

New York's Sound

Sinatra's New York, New York captured the heart of Americans all across the 50 states. Everybody wants to wake up in a city that never sleeps. Everybody wants to be a part of it, New York, New York. While this song went down as one of Sinatra's best, it was originally written to be performed by Liza Minnelli. It was even used in Marty Scorsese's 1977 film, New York, New York.

Today, the song is used almost anywhere that New York is mentioned or represented. It goes into the same group as Billy Joel's New York State of Mind and U2'S City of Blinding Lights. For example, at New York University's graduation in 2003, the graduating class sang New York State of Mind, as they said goodbye to NYU. Also, Columbia's Bhangra - Indian dance from the Punjabi region of Northern India - used New York, New York to close their routine.

In later posts, I will discuss the origins of the types of music found in New York. This entails the origins of jazz, salsa, and other types of ballroom dance.

-Shrenil S. Bhansali