The Most Americanest* Day

*I'm not sure that 'Americanest' is a word, but apparently 'most winningest' (as in 'Manchester United are the most winningest team in Premier League history') is acceptable over here so it seems you can do what you like with the English language this side of the Atlantic.

One of the biggest culture shocks of moving to the US has, surprisingly, been the food. Naively, I presumed that they would eat similarly to us Brits, just with larger portions and the healthier foods harder to find. That was okay by me - I've had my fair share of microwaveable all-day breakfasts in my time and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

But what I did not vouch for was the complete lack of orange squash in New York City. I'm not saying I expected Robinsons to have lit up the New York Stock Exchange, but it was pretty tough to hear that they didn't even know what squash was over here. I guess it's true what Westlife once sang about never missing the water until it's gone.

Nevertheless, I was looking forward to giving a staple of American cuisine a go on Saturday morning when we went to IHOP (the International House of Pancakes, apparently) for breakfast food. Besides, NBC's Parks and Recreation has only good things to say about it:

Maybe Leslie Knope likes peculiar blends of salt and sugar and pancakes that taste solely of bicarbonate of soda but it's not for me. I draw the line at those microwaveable all-day breakfasts.

I found out the hard way that the lump of what looks like ice cream on the pancake was actually butter.

Thankfully, it wasn't a case of 'start as you mean to go on' as the day was rescued by a trip to SoHo and the Brooklyn Bridge.

SoHo is basically Oxford Street but instead of having Hyde Park at one end, it is overlooked by the stunning Chrysler Building. In terms of three guys going shopping, I feel like we nailed it - one of us bought a grey polo shirt whilst the other two grunted their approval.

We continued the American theme of the day with a trip to a pop-up replica of the Central Perk cafe from Friends, but a queue that carried on for blocks didn't sound like our ideal Saturday so we settled for some photos of the exterior:

We made our way to the Brooklyn Bridge via Chinatown and although we only passed through, Chinatown was one the most peculiar places I've ever been and somewhere I'll definitely have to go back and explore later on. It seemed to be one massive cliche, with launderettes on every corner and dodgy-looking food being sold outside dodgy-looking shops.

After a bit of a struggle getting access to the Bridge (turns out the logic 'head for the waterfront' wasn't as sound as we first thought), we found our way onto the wooden pathway that overhangs the carriageways.

Thankfully the decent weather meant you could see everything Manhattan had to offer, from the Statue of Liberty and World Trade Center to the Empire State Building. I won't attempt to describe it fully because if I was able to do justice to the views then I'd be working for Lonely Planet instead of writing this. But it is definitely one of my favourite experiences of NYC so far, and that's saying something.

By the time we'd got off the Bridge my feet had had enough of walking and my stomach was still moaning about the IHOP, so we played it safe and called it a day.

America's unhealthy reverence for its sporting heroes

In the week that Derek Jeter plays his final home series for the New York Yankees, it is difficult to ignore the retirement of one of the City's favourite sons.

I'll leave it to those with a greater understanding and appreciation of baseball to do justice to his record-breaking career, but the following pictures of a father's reaction to his son throwing back a foul ball hit by Derek Jeter sums up New York's affection for the shortstop pretty well:

http://abc7chicago.com/sports/video-young-fan-throws-jeter-baseball-back-on-field/319060/

Even my Mets-supporting flatmate lamented the fact that his "childhood is over" as a result of Jeter's departure from the game. In that respect, I guess the only comparable figure in England in recent years is David Beckham, whose retirement was met with universal devastation among people my age back home.

Whilst such a respected career is quite rightly celebrated city-wide, it brought to my attention the sad reality that Jeter's is one that's uniquely blemish-free in American sport. The worst 'dirt' that can be found on him is a late night back in 2003 and some income tax controversy around the same time - but even Gary Barlow's been involved with that.

Of course, tax evasion isn't something to be taken lightly but it is small change compared to a lot of the big controversies American sport stars have been associated with in recent years. In the short time I've been in the United States, it feels as though there's barely been a sports star mentioned that hasn't committed or at least been accused of some sort of felony.

Perhaps most notorious of all is the case of football player OJ Simpson, whose ill-fated attempt to evade capture and subsequent murder trial made international news twenty years ago. To list all of his NFL colleagues that have done jail time would take me into next week, but the fact that Bleacher Report were able to put together an 'All-Prison Team' back in 2012 speaks volumes.

More recently, Kobe Bryant (another apparently universally-renowned figure who my flatmates have "grown up with") was accused of sexually assaulting a hotel employee in 2003. Despite a public mea culpa, Bryant inexplicably walked away with his reputation virtually unscathed and only temporary damage done to his bank balance.

(ESPN)

Even today the news is full of stories in this vein, with the NFL facing controversy in recent months surrounding stars such as Adrian Peterson (who faces accusations of child abuse after apparently whipping his four-year-old son) and Ray Rice, who was videoed dragging his unconscious wife out of an elevator earlier this year.

The debate as to why run-ins with the law are disproportionately high amongst American sports stars is one to be had amongst those more qualified than I, but whether or not the glorification of athletes throughout schooling has anything to do with it is an idea that must have been discussed.

Rather, what's surprising to me is the treatment the aforementioned characters have got in the US press. I always thought that the English could be a little lenient on its stars - dreadful characters such as Joey Barton and Stan Collymore have been made millionaires by sport despite their many misdemeanours.

But compared to their counter-parts this side of the Atlantic, the English press can be seen to enjoy bringing a sports star to their knees amid controversy - and that's something we should probably be thankful for. There's a lot to be said for the idea that John Terry would still be England captain today were it not for the media, whilst Luis Suarez's career in this country ended after a long and bumpy relationship with the press.

(nationalturk.com)

In the States, however, there appears to be a worrying reluctance to blame the culprits themselves for their actions; in many cases, they are put on pedestals above criticism and even above the law.

Of course, there have been few offering excuses for the likes of Ray Rice, but the fact that ESPN have spent the last week laying into NFL commissioner Roger Goodell (here and here) whilst there's a chance Rice may return to action this season is, in my view, ignoring the crux of the issue.

Even more deplorably, the Baltimore Ravens tweeted after the video emerged that Rice's wife "deeply regrets the part she played" in her husband knocking her unconscious.

To see factions of a national press react in this way is ridiculous to me. But then the fact that the NFL has to have specific sanctions laid out for players that assault their wives and girlfriends is testament to the fact that things are different over here.

So whilst it is quite right that Americans celebrate the career of Derek Jeter this week, it should not be done without recognising the sad rarity of being able to toast the retirement of a sportsman who bows out without the blemish of a criminal record.

A long-distance view of Scotland's referendum

The time difference between London and New York has taken some getting used to - by the time I've got home from classes the UK is already fast asleep. Contacting home has meant getting up at the ungodly hour of ten a.m. to Skype family at weekends or interrupting my afternoon to catch them in their evening.

However, tonight proved to be one of the few times the five-hour difference was useful as, whilst the majority of the UK was tucked up in bed, I could keep track of the live coverage of the results of Scotland's referendum on independence.

It's been strange being so detached from such a significant moment in the UK's history. The only way to gauge public opinion real-time was through twitter, but that was primarily made up of abuse aimed at Andy Murray and poor attempts at spelling Alex Salmond's name.

In the event, most of my news came via covertly checking my phone at the back of a class on American government/business relations, but I'm pretty sure that the politics department at St. John's should have been encouraging my interest in the subject rather than limiting me to a risky glance at the BBC News webpage every fifteen minutes.

I guess that goes to show the surprising extent to which Americans have let this major news story pass them by. I know they are notorious for being a little self-involved, but I would have thought that they'd have been a touch more interested in a decision that could affect their 'special relationship' with the UK. I suppose that for them, no fighting means no fun.

That is not to say, however, that the story hasn't made news over here. It's been all over the major news channels but I'm fairly sure the overwhelming feeling this side of the Atlantic is concern for the well-being of Will and Kate rather than any genuine opinion on the stance of the Scottish people.

In fact, it was mentioned in all three of my classes on Thursday, and in the first I was asked for my opinion on the matter. After giving what I thought was a carefully considered response, the professor genuinely replied: "Let's move on, you're the only one that cares anyway."

The Mets at Citi Field

Baseball is known as 'America's pastime', and a lot of time definitely passed as it took over three hours for the New York Mets fall to defeat in my first experience of one of the country's Big Four sports.

Leaving Citi Field at the game's conclusion, I couldn't figure out why it is that Americans so willingly embrace this game whilst cricket remains so obscure in this part of the world. Both are essentially similar, but there are far more moments of excitement in the British game.

When I first got to the States I learned that our version of football didn't catch on earlier because there was a perceived lack of scoring involved. My experience of baseball posed something of a contradiction to that as there were five scoreless innings in a row lasting over an hour in total. Not much to celebrate there.

Although the eventual score was 5-6 in favour of the Miami Marlins, a ball was hit maybe once every four or five pitches. Compare that to cricket - where nearly every ball is hit and hundreds of runs are scored - and it is hard to see why Americans are in love with this bat-and-ball game whilst entirely disregarding our own.

That is not to say, however, that the game we watched wasn't enjoyable. In fact, we witnessed a bit of Mets history as pitcher Jacob deGrom struck out the Marlins' first eight hitters, thus breaking his team's record and equalling a Major League Baseball record that has apparently stood since 1986.

Thanks to this strong start, the Mets looked comfortable going into the final few innings but somehow the team from Florida managed to turn the game on its head to secure a 6-5 victory. I can't claim to know enough about baseball to say this with much confidence, but it looked to me as though the removal of deGrom from the pitcher's mound had something to do with it.

Mets rookie Jacob deGrom, wearing a specially-themed jersey to recognise the service of America's veterans (metsmerizedonline.com)

I've been in New York City for nearly a month and in Madison Square Garden and the Arthur Ashe Stadium I've seen two of the more stunning sporting venues this city has to offer. Citi Field could rival them in stature, but not in style.

Although it was an impressive structure, it looked as though the stadium had eaten too many adverts and vomited them all over one of its own corners.

To make matters worse, those parts of the stadium that weren't replaced by advertising hoardings were far from full with people. When I enquired as to why, I got the response that "we suck." It seems the team's own fans agree with Joey Tribbiani's assessment of the Mets on NBC's Friends.

Whilst it's true that the Mets' hopes of making the playoffs are over, it occurred to me that the fact there's a game virtually every night can't help attendance figures. Only the extremely committed (and well-off) could possibly dedicate eighty-one evenings and afternoons to these marathon games of baseball. Either way, the 40,000-capacity stadium couldn't have even been more than a quarter-full.

Although it can be a little slow at times, the appeal of baseball is clear: it is a simple game with a rich history. Even in Britain, the likes of Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio are household names. The New York Mets are not without their 'own' history either, as I found out upon leaving the ballpark.

I write 'own' in quotation marks because much of the celebration surrounds Jackie Robinson, who was a Brooklyn Dodgers before they moved to Los Angeles, and before the New York Mets were formed in 1962.

I must admit that I hadn't heard of Jackie Robinson in a baseball context before last night, but knew something of his significance in challenging the basis of segregation. As it turns out, when the Dodgers played him at first base in 1947 they were the first team to play a black man since the nineteenth century, thus ending the relegation of black players to the Negro leagues.

Robinson would go onto win the World Series with the Dodgers in 1955, before being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame seven years later. His impact was so far-reaching that, since 2004, every player on every team in the MLB wears Robinson's number 42 on 'Jackie Robinson Day'.

Since the Dodgers' move to LA, it seems the Mets have 'adopted' Robinson as one of their own, and it isn't hard to see why.

"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives" - the Jackie Robinson Rotunda

Afternoons on Broadway

This weekend another box was ticked as we took advantage of 2-for-1 tickets on Broadway and went to see the revival of Les Miserables at the Imperial Theatre.

I've been to Times Square and Broadway a couple of times since getting here and obviously was aware of its theatrical history, but the famous jungle of theatres is fairly well tucked away from the main road. Unless you're looking for it, it's unlikely you'll just stumble into it.

In the event, it took us a while to actually find the theatre we wanted among the countless others showing big names such as Chicago and Mamma Mia!

I'm no theatre critic, but I'm a fairly solid fan of the film so was expecting a fair bit from seeing the musical in the flesh. More to the point, I wasn't sure how Broadway's Marius would stand up to Eddie Redmayne's pretty flawless portrayal in the 2012 epic. 

Thankfully, this Marius didn't disappoint and nor did the show. For starters, there's no way the voices of Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman would hold up on stage. Even the young performers portraying the likes of Cosette and Gavroche showed not an ounce of trouble in hitting every note.

I don't have enough experience of attending musical theatre to compare this against many other productions, but some of the big numbers definitely beat the wow factor of Lion King's impressive opening.

In fact, the only gripe I could have about the entire afternoon is the fact that Americans spell it Les Miz. Not sure what that's about.

St. John's and its strange brand of 'soccer'

Seeing as the Premier League is so big in these parts, it was no surprise to see a similar buzz surrounding the university's 'soccer' team. On Saturday night, St. John's University's men's team faced Syracuse University in something of a local derby.

The four-figure crowd that showed up wasn't bad - the kind of numbers that would show up to a Conference fixture in England - but I had been given the impression by advertising that the stands would be full. As it was, St. John's students filled a stand behind one goal, whilst a few paying customers were littered across what would be described as the 'main stand'.

Impressive compared to the one-man-and-his-dog that attends the average football match at the University of Leicester, but underwhelming versus the filling of huge arenas at American football games in the South (a la Friday Night Lights). 

As a fan of non-league football, I am all-too-aware of the perils of attempting to entertain a half-filled stadium. The half-time dancers looked a little lonely as they performed to a main stand that was more interested in their mid-match snacks.

The cheerleaders were a little more painful to watch, not least because their 'show' lasted the entire ninety minutes. Perhaps I'm just too British to ever really understand their purpose, but it seemed as though no-one was inspired by their well-rehearsed routines.

In fact, the most entertaining thing about them was the fact that, whilst supporting a very Catholic institution, they were chanting, "Let's go, Johnnies, let's go!", blissfully unaware of the word's meaning in British slang.

Sadly, the cheerleaders weren't the only aspect of college soccer I didn't understand. As the game kicked off, I was surprised to hear the sound system continue to be utilised beyond your usual pre-match announcements as play-by-play commentary was forced upon the crowd. Though its intention was to be informative, sound systems are never particularly clear and the incessant, garbled attempts at description merely resulted in a headache.

The fact the announcer used terms such as 'goalbox' (making Twitter's US Soccer Guy sound worryingly less satirical) didn't exactly help proceedings.

Furthermore, the game itself was plagued by 'time-outs' which involved roll-on roll-off substitutions that began after twenty minutes. I'm sure Sven Goran Eriksson would have loved it, but I'm not sure how beneficial it was to the players who were - in theory, at least - on the final rung of the ladder to playing the professional game.

This strange circus sadly detracted from what was, at times, high-quality football. There may have been a distinct lack of quality in the final third and there was a clear emphasis upon individual talent over team cohesion, but the pace at which the game was played was impressive.

St. John's even boasted one or two players that wouldn't have looked out of place in the upper echelons of England's non-league game, but it wasn't enough to stop their team falling to a 1-0 defeat.

The referee blew his whistle bang on ninety minutes - they have apparently done away with injury time this side of the Atlantic - to draw to an end a pretty peculiar evening.

Although Saturday night was just a first taste of college soccer, it was hard to shake the feeling that America has tried to fix a game that isn't broken, trying far too hard to force its own character onto a game that already has plenty.

The "EPL" in the USA - some initial observations

Since I've arrived in New York, I've heard more talk of soccer than any of America's so-called 'Big Four' sports. Perhaps it's because I'm English and so conversation naturally leans towards our national sport, but it seems as though everyone here follows a team in what they call "the EPL".

In a strange coincidence, the first Premier League game I watched with American company was Arsenal's visit to Leicester. Seeing my university's local team on television from NYC was a peculiar experience, but not quite as strange as hearing my new American flat-mates refer to the place as "Lie-chester". I let it slide once or twice before I had to correct them.

The impression I've got in the week since that game is that 'soccer' has grown in popularity not just since the USA's impressive showing at this summer's World Cup, but for a while before that too. David Beckham's presence in Los Angeles has been mentioned without prompting on numerous occasions, emphasising the influence he had on the game in this country.

That said, it is not the MLS that captures the imagination of the locals but our Premier League. I have heard only one mention of Thierry Henry's New York Red Bulls since I've been in the States, and even that was born out of a conversation about Arsenal.

Thierry Henry: one of the many Premier League stars that have graced the MLS in recent years

The Gunners are surprisingly popular in these parts (perhaps a measure of Henry's star quality) and apparently share the affection of the locals with - less surprisingly - Manchester City. One Chilean I came across professed his love for both sides: Arsenal for their signing of Alexis Sanchez, and City for the Manuel Pellegrini connection. I asked him what the Chilean word was for loyalty but I'm not sure he got the joke.

Similarly, a Manchester United fan in my flat has lamented the decline in support for his side over the last twelve months - confirmation of the apparently fickle nature of Premier League 'support' in these parts. Americans may appreciate the quality of our league, but they have found it harder to understand what it really means to be a fan of English football.

Perhaps I am expecting too much or being too protective of the English game, but there is a lot to be said for the idea that they won't be able to fully appreciate our game until they become familiar with the history, rivalries and loyalties involved. Over here, there is an emphasis upon individual talent, big-money transfers and NBC's bloated Premier League schedule. But then, some would argue that England is heading the same way...

It's fair to say that Americans have been well exposed to football, but exposure doesn't necessarily equate to understanding. On more than one occasion when people have asked who I follow and I tell them about non-league St. Albans City, I've been met with blank faces and the response: "Ok, but who's your EPL team?"

Although there's a naivety about the American interest in the English game, it's still serious enough to suggest that the Premier League is here to stay - in this part of the country at least. Even our visit to Seth Meyers involved the Late Night host (a West Ham fan himself, incidentally) asking my Manchester-based friend if he was "City or United?" - an indication of the way our game is becoming indelibly stamped upon the American sporting consciousness.

How a routine trip to Central Park turned into an impromptu evening with Seth Meyers

It was only meant to be a casual trip to Manhattan, to sort out some banking administration and to enjoy the ridiculous New York sun at Central Park, but somehow we ended up in Studio 8G of 30 Rock.

We were simply browsing the NBC store on the famous building's ground floor when we were approached by a lady asking if we were interested in attending the monologue rehearsal for Late Night with Seth Meyers. I recognised the name and knew the show itself from when Jimmy Fallon was host, but it's safe to say that Meyers hasn't penetrated the British market in the same way that Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel have.

Nevertheless, we accepted the tickets and joined the back of the queue on the second floor. At this point, airport-esque security kicked in and phones were suddenly banned before we'd even got up to the studios on the eighth floor.

The lack of opportunity to take photos was a shame, as the corridors were lined with stills from NBC shows both past and present. Comedy stars such as Jason Sudeikis, Steve Martin and Amy Poehler were all featured.

We were interrupted from admiring the famous faces by the less-than-subtle entrance of two of the show's writers. They told us they'd been away for three weeks as though it was some kind of excuse for their hyper-activity. They had so much energy that it hurt to look directly at them, much like the sun.

After this fast-paced introduction to the world of television writing, we filed into the small and dark studio. In typical American fashion, there were 'windows' offering views of Manhattan at night - a staple of any late-night US talk show.

Meyers himself came out from behind his desk and explained a little about the studio, how it was a new set across from where Saturday Night Live was filmed. It was at this point that I remembered where I knew him from - he'd hosted the Weekend Update on SNL after Poehler left the show.

Time was tight, though, and it wasn't long before he began reeling off jokes the writers had written for him - so quickly that it would be impossible to remember them all. The volume of our laughter was seen by the staff as a measure of their success, but there were some so poor that only the writers themselves laughed.

In fact, the only quip that was of any real quality was one about the fact that Keanu Reeves has just turned fifty, which is good because "any lower and the bus explodes". That one apart, even Meyers himself seemed a little pained by the quality of the gags he was having to read.

The tight schedule and the nature of US television meant that our job was done in about half an hour, and we were shepherded out of the building as quickly as we'd come in, leaving the writers to analyse our response and decide which gags had made the cut for that night's broadcast.

The jokes may have been questionable but the evening as a whole was a top experience - an unexpected glimpse behind the curtain into the world of comedy where legends such as Chevy Chase, Bill Murray and Tina Fey have all plied their trade.