Hello everyone!So the trip has begun and I couldn't be more ecstatic about it! I'll give you a run down of what has happened since we left from Chicago's Union Station on Friday. Sorry I haven't updated since we started but we just got internet (and I just got time) tonight.First things first was the train ride. I was definitely dreading this part of the trip because I knew it was going to be long and uncomfortable. Both of these definitely turned out the be the case but I didn't know how much fun we were going to have doing it. This was really the beginning of our summer of intense bonding with the team and I can tell after the first three days that we are all going to become very good friends.When we arrived in New York City I was so excited I was at a loss for words. See I've never been to the Big Apple (actually I've never been to any of the cities except around the midwest) and have always dreamed about seeing the sights. We arrived in Penn Station and I looked to my right and there it was, the Empire State Building in all of its splendor. That night we had our team meeting and got our stuff together but we were eventually able to venture out and see the big city. We saw the beautiful Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and then made our way to Times Square. I could not believe my eyes when I saw it. We didn't really know where we were going but just followed the bright lights from blocks away. Being late at night we were expecting to be able to get around a little easier, but in the city that never sleeps it was packed! We were eventually suckered in to going to a comedy show at the Ha! Comedy Club on Broadway so I can officially say I saw a Broadway show even though we only paid $10!The next day, Manny, Kelsey, Linsey, Taylor and I went on a bike tour to see some other things. Among them were the Statue of Liberty, Ground Zero, Wall Street, and of course we had to check out the subway which was to no surprise incredibly dirty. After that we were treated to brunch with St. Paul the Apostle Parish with whom we were staying with and got to meet some real live New Yorkers who had just awesome accents. After that we proceeded to check out Central Park and Rockefeller Plaza and saw Radio City Music Hall, Carnegie Hall, and St. Patrick's Cathedral on the way.Finally we were guests to the NYC U of I Alumni Organization and were treated to a performance of the Illini's very own accpella group The Other Guys which was both very entertaining and funny. I picked up an I <3 NY shirt with Illini orange and the University's "I" logo as the "I" which I thought was just awesome.After that we caught the Bulls game at a local Irish Pub and even though they didn't come out victorious, our group entertained the whole bar by repeatedly performing on the karaoke to such hits as "Flat Bottomed Girls" and "Rock N Roll All Nite."More to come as we are about to embark on our first trip tomorrow to Hillsborough, New Jersey and then to Philadelphia the next day.Hope to hear from you all soon and comment if you like what you read!