Prince Harry's Royal Visit to NYC

Prince Harry's visit to NYC included a stop at the British Gardens in Hanover Square, in lower Manhattan. His intent was to plant a tree to commemorate the British people who died on 9/11. The trip has been somewhat publicized in recent days especially in the local newspapers and television.

The British Gardens is quite frequented by myself. I would enjoy drinking cups of coffee while sitting on the bench. But hey, if this is what Great Britain wants to claim for themselves in lower Manhattan, whom am I to say otherwise? It's a lovely triangular piece of land that has recently been planted with trees and flowers.

During my lunch hour, I walked over to Hanover Square and accessed the best possible location for viewing the Prince. Metal railings surrounded the general vicinity for the public viewing but luckily I was able to get close enough to one side of the garden in hopes of Prince Harry walking in front of me. At approximately 1:30pm, several black SUVs were escorted by the NYPD. And in the first car, came out a man in a suit with red hair! It was him!

There was some pandemonium as the crowd shouted "Prince Harry! Look at me! Wave for the camera!" I should note that the press sure know how to take a good shot. I was able to take a few pictures as he stood in front of me. Sadly he was shaking someone else's hands. There were a few security people protecting him and they stood between me and Prince Harry. One of the men in sunglasses had his jacket open - I'm thinking, is that supposed to deflect any bullets that go towards the Prince?

The entire ceremony was brief. He walked around and shook hands with the dignitaries and representatives of the NYC Parks. After an introduction by a speaker, he gave a 30 second speech. THAT's IT!! He just said how much this meant to his family and country and blah blah blah. Lastly, he helped to plant a tree into the ground (more pictures of that to follow). He quickly left to the India House which is a restaurant across the street from the garden.

Can you spot him in this picture above? He's standing in front of the flag.

New York Women's Foundation Annual Breakfast Event

I had the privilege and honor of attending the annual New York Women's Foundation Annual Breakfast event. I was invited on behalf of my company's women resource group so I was excited to attend and learn more about the foundation. The NY Women's Foundation is a philanthropic organization that supports community-driven projects who help support the needs of women. After hearing the wonderful accomplishments that are supported through the foundation, it has made me very excited to learn more.

And where there is a fund-raising event, there are always politicians! There many deputy mayors, councilmen and even the junior senator of NY in attendance. But there were two big name politicians who stopped by to address the thousands of women at the breakfast.

Here is Mayor Bloomberg. His company, Bloomberg LLP, is a major sponsor of the New York Women's Foundation.


And Govenor Patterson who was proud of his gay rights bill that he's pushing through.

And lastly, (and the main draw for me), was seeing Queen Latifah! She was one of the honorees this year. And here she is receiving a wooden staff. There were more than a few "Moses" jokes this morning.

More Pictures from Lindsay Price's Degree Event

Here are some more pictures from the Degree Women's Fine Fragrance Collection event co-hosted with Lindsay Price.

Japan Day 2009

This might be my first year attending this event - check it out!

Japan Day @ Central Park will be held Sunday, May 31st at the East Meadow (entrance at Fifth Avenue and 97th Street).

Japan Day @ Central Park is an event designed by the Japanese community of New York to promote deeper understanding of Japanese culture. Japan Day @ Central Park returns to fill the green oasis of East Meadow with tents offering a wide range of Japanese traditional and family-friendly activities, free samplings of popular Japanese cuisine and powerful stage performances throughout the day (click here for link of performers), with top entertainers from New York and Tokyo.

Japan Day @ Central Park 2009 begins at 8AM with the Japan Run, a 4-mile race, organized by New York Road Runners. However, the Japan Day Festival begins at 10AM with the opening of all the activity tents; the stage show begins at 10:30AM, and free samplings of Japanese cuisine begin at 11pm. To see a map of the tent locations at East Meadow, click here.