Have been doing a little time planning and I've decided that instead of starting in New York I'm going to fly into Philadelphia instead. Gives me chance to see another city and also I've been to New York before and though would be nice to spend some time there I think I'd rather see more places and spend slightly less time in NY. There are only really a couple of places I really want to go to in NY such as Greenwich Village that I didn't see the last time I was there and a few sights such as Grand Central Terminal and I think I'll be able to fit all of that into a slightly shorter space of time. Also, I've been recommended to book into a hotel or bed and breakfast for the first couple of nights to get over the jetlag properly to be able to really enjoy the trip from the start and they're far more affordable in Philadelphia than in New York. Have found some fairly reasonable places on the Philadelphia tourist board website and as I've recently acquired a self-inflating mattress from a friend which I was thinking I'd need to buy I can put the money towards the hotel instead. Feeling very excited about it all at the moment although worked out today that I've still got 38 weeks before I finish work. Let's hope that goes quickly - not that I'm wishing my life away mind but I just want to get on with the next stage of my life!!