Ahead of my NY trip, I have already purchased the following and had them shipped to my friend's place before my arrival:

1. A pair of rollerblades (£140 here, $110 over there!)
2. Dance apparel
3. God, the Devil and Bob - The Complete Series on DVD

To my friend, if you're reading this - thanks a million! I owe you!

There are already a whole bunch of things I'll be on the look-out for when I get there, namely vintage wear (The Vested Gentress being particularly high on my list of labels to look out for), jeans (True Religion and 7 for all Mankind), MAC cosmetics, a sexy, classy little black dress (if not, then Vivienne Westwood's Corseted Drape Dress being an expensive back-up) and, most importantly, a warm jacket or coat.

I have been freezing a little over the last few days and it's mostly because my winter coat is too chunky for this kind of weather, and what I usually wear doesn't work too well when the wind blows or if I have had any alcohol to drink. I've taken to wearing my not-at-all flattering jumpers under my coats, but am not too fond of this option as they keep snagging on my earrings when I take them off.

In addition to shopping, there are so many other things I'm looking forward to... checking out MoMA and the Metropolitan Museum (for free, thanks to one of my few corporate privileges), the Met Opera, Broadway, Brooklyn Heights (according to MD, the most romantic place in NY), Greenwich Village, jazz cafes and, of course, Halloween!