Arrival and straight into it ...

... well, I can't say it was a hardship - got off the day flight from Heathrow, and after finally finding my car (the driver was asleep!), we were off to the flat. The driver was Russian I found out quickly, and had lots of "business" that he had to negotiate over the phone as we drove along. However he did name all the bridges for me as we headed through the midtown tunnel, and into the city. The flat was relatively easy to find, and after signing for the car, I hefted my 3 bags inside. The doorman, instead of the obsequious, forelock tugging, tip-hungry Noo Yawker I had expected was an uninterested, supercilious, unhelpful person, who checked my ID (had a snigger at my passport photo - well it was taken about 8 years ago!), handed me the keys, and pointed me to the lift. So I wrestled the first two bags, together with my carry on which had TWO laptops in it, up the lift, and found the apartment. Dumped that stuff in the door, and back down for bag number 3. Guess what, doorman - no tip for you! I don't feel bad though, because every time I have been past the desk it has been a different doorman!
Flat is fine, facing west with a nice view of a sliver of the Empire State, and the top of the flatiron building, can't complain. I investigated the cable channels, and generally nested for a while, unpacked, and headed out for some basics. The only problem being - where are the controls for the air conditioning units - NY is sweltering!