Mike's bite of the Big Apple

The prospect of visiting New York is electrifying to anyone, but especially so for our celebrity microphone. Mike had been looking forward to this part of his trip the most and he was amped with good vibrations as he arrived at JFK International airport.

He took the subway into the city and as he climbed the steps to street level, drew a deep breath of the electric air on the streets of the city that never sleeps. He joined the estimated 330 000 people who pass through there daily and headed straight for Times Square. 

Light, sound, colour, music and action came at him from every direction as he was hit by the sensory overload in the area. He saw famous landmarks, glowing advertising screens, multi story posters for shows and movies and people from every conceivable walk of life. His circuits were nearly blown and this was only day 1!

The next day Roland and Mike headed out for some more sightseeing, starting at the world famous Broadway, where many of Mike's relatives have worked with Hollywood stars on the world's most well loved theatre shows. 

Then it was time to check out some broadcasting and performance venues where some of Mike's favourite people and microphones have done their best work. They got to the set of 'Good Morning America' early enough to see the live broadcast being transmitted from Times Square, popped in at MTV's 'Total Request Live' studio and stopped by at the world famous Radio City Music Hall where the live shows for 'America's Got Talent' happen. 

No visit to New York City would be complete without seeing the timeless Statue of Liberty, so Mike boarded a Circle Lines sightseeing cruise to take him there. On the way the cruise passed under the iconic Brooklyn Bridge as well as the Manhattan bridge where the famous car chase in the 'Fate of the Furious' movie was filmed. 

That night Mike decided to call up an old friend. P Diddy was happy to see his favourite audio associate and the duo went big as they hit the New York City nightlife. It was a night to remember but as the sun came up it seems Mike was a little worse for wear. The life of a rockstar microphone...

A strong cup of Starbucks coffee was just the right medicine to get Mike back up to speed the next morning as he took a stroll through Central Park to relax his mind after 2 days in the concrete jungle. 

Mike's catch-up with his celebrity friends continued as he visited the American Museum of Natural History to see T-Rex, who starred in the 'Night at the Museum' movies with Ben Stiller. 

He decided to end his trip to the USA by saying goodbye to New York City from the 86th floor of the Empire State Building. He felt like he was literally on top of the world as the sun went down that day.

Once the plane took off from JKF International, heading back to South Africa, Mike's fame and charm won out again as he was hosted in style by the friendly staff of Qatar Airways. They even let him sit in the jump seat. Only one thing made MIke happier than the memories he had collected on this trip and that was the thought that he was heading home to his favourite place in the world: Algoa country!