Vegas Baby!!!!!!

I went to Vegas with my (then) girlfriend (now Fiance) about 9 months ago and I miss it like hell. Like when you go away to some remote place and you can’t get your hands on a KFC burger – or a Passiona!

We did as many of the “usual” things you do when you go to Vegas as we could, although I had a walking stick back then, so couldn’t walk forever. As a result, we didn’t get out at much at night and we only visited two casinos per day. Admittedly, that’s probably a decent pace to see Vegas at anyway.

But as I said, I miss Vegas. They say that once you see it, you’ll never be the same. Even Elvis put those words into song. And it’s SO true. The week after I got home, I was already missing it.

We’re planning our next trip for early 2013 and I SO can’t wait. It will be the start of our honeymoon, so as far as I’m concerned, the world will be our oyster. So we’ve been coming up with a list of the stuff we want to do next time we go.

Top of my list is to see the Bellagio fountains – by day and night. Sadly, we missed that last time because of my damn foot. Next, I’m hoping that Ron “Tater Salad” White will be in town. If you don’t know Ron, check out his website here. He’s probably my favourite comedian and I would LOVE to see The Tater live on stage.

Visit some clubs. Again, we missed that last time because of my foot. And it’s not that we’re big on hitting the town, but I’d just like to see what it’s like to party Vegas-style.

Take a gondola ride at The Venetian. It’s costly, but where else in the world can you go on a genuine gondola. In a casino. On the second foor. With the guy singing Italian opera?

Go to Coca-Cola World. Admittedly, I AM a fan of the drink, but who the hell ever heard of Coca-Cola World? It’s something I have to see.

Snort coke off a hookers butt. Actually, I DON’T want to do that, but I’ve been told of a nightclub where you can. If you want.

The other place we’re going back to is The Big Apple. NYC. What a great place. But the list of things we plan to do in NYC is way weirder than anything in Vegas. Check out this list:

Go back to a Walgreens;

Visit a shopping mall;

Go to wallmart;

Eat a twinkie;

Photograph a squirrel;

Visit the zoo in Central Park (Yes, non-Americans, there is a f**king ZOO in central park!);

Visit a Wholefoods (it’s a supermarket about the size of Bunnings);

Eat New York pizza (the best in the world IMO); and

Go see a movie.

Weird, right? But they’re all things that we wanted to do last time but didn’t get a chance to. Damn foot.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of “normal” things we plan to do as well, but NYC isn’t NYC unless you immerse yourself in the culture. And after all, the things on my list are things we see in movies and TV shows here all the time, yet we have no appreciation for.

For instance, in Australia it will cost you over $100 for a family of four to see movie (including snacks). But I have no idea what it costs in America. Or how big the popcorn is. Crap like that.

And we always hear about how huge the shopping malls are in America, but never get to experience one. And if you haven’t had New York pizza before, then you’re sadly missing out, my friend. It’s awesome. If you happen to live in Brisbane, there are some small pizzerias opening up called New York Slice. The pizza is good, but it’s just not quite the same. We’ve been there a couple of times to ease our pain.

So what strange things do you do when you visit foreign lands? Anything as seemingly weird as my list?

RS Durant jeweller

This post is technically an update on the post I made about getting engaged. To bring you up to speed, I purchased an engagement and wedding ring from RS Durant in NYC, and they seem to have ripped me off. They gave me their own appraisal of the rings, despite me asking for a GIA appraisal, and when I returned to Australia I had the rings appraised independently.

The results of the independent appraisal were quite shocking. The enagagment ring was valued at about half what RS Durant told me it was worth, and the wedding ring doesn’t fit the technical description provided by RS Durant.

I contacted RS Durant who accused the Australian appraiser of being “crazy and jealous”, despite the appraiser not manufacturing or selling jewellery. I asked RS Durant to either pay to have the rings re-set in Australia, or to pay me compensation to have them re-set. They have ignored that request.

I have contacted the New York State Jewelery Association (NYSJA) who can’t help, because RS Durant aren’t a member.

I have contacted the Jeweler’s Security Alliance who can’t help. Ironically, JSA deal with crimes AGAINST jewelers, not BY them.

I have contacted Jewelers of America, who still have not replied.

Tonight I contacted the Jewelers Vigilance Committee, whose response I should receive in the next day or two.

In my opinion, RS Durant have acted fraudulently. They gave me a verbal description of diamonds which I agreed to purchase, but the diamonds they have sold me do NOT match the 4c’s which they described.

Tonight I also re-emallied RS Durant and told them that if I don’t receive a response within 24 hours, I will commence legal proceedings against them.

Why do these things need to be taken so far? RS Durant have held a store in NYC for 30 years, and are located on Madison Ave on the Upper East Side. If they are prepared to rip off an average person on a diamond so comparitively small, how badly are they ripping off the mega rich of NYC? Maybe those rich people wouldn’t care if they discover they’ve paid inflated prices on misrepresented jewelery – but I do.

But what I bought was an ENGAGEMENT ring and a WEDDING ring. What two more important days are there in a couple’s relationship, or in a girl’s life? RS Durant have destroyed the memory of what should be the most memorable time in the life of my Fiance and I.

I’m not sure how else to “advertise” my disgust and disappointment at these people, but with every ounce of my being, I implore you all to stay away from them. Don’t give them a cent of your money, because they don’t seem able to fulfill their promise. Or maybe it’s just that they don’t want to.

We’re Engaged! – an update

For all my ranting about being ripped off in Australia, it seems that America has taken the proverbial cake.

For those of you who read my post about my recent engagement, you might recall how happy I was with the jeweller that sold me the rings. The store was RS Durant, and they’re located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. If you’re NOT American (or a fan of Sex and the City like my Fiance), the UES is the rich part of NYC.

I bought a diamond solitaire and a wedding band with small diamonds all the way around from RS Durant. Unfortunately, while I was impressed with their service, it seems that I didn’t receive the great deal they they lead me to believe. Especially considering they told me that because I am in the military, they wouldn’t charge me any tax.

RS Durant didn’t (wouldn’t?) give me an appraisal by the GIA (Gemmological Institute of America) which is the recognised body of authority on stones, but instead gave me their own appraisal. This is perfectly acceptable, and the professionals allow a one increment difference of clarity and colour when jewellers provide their own appraisals.

Just recently, I took said rings to a valuation service in Brisbane. The lady who does the valuations is a Fellow of both the Australian and Great Britain arms of the Gemmological Association, so I would think she’s officially accreditted.

The differences in appraisals are alarming. To begin with, the total value of the rings was appraised as being only slightly above HALF what RS Durant stated they were worth.

RS Durant told me that the engagement diamond was a .51 carat, whereas it’s only 0.45. That might not sound like a lot if you haven’t researched diamonds, but the price of a diamond increases dramatically once you go above the 1/2 carat mark. It’s like buying a car that’s $10 above the “Luxury Car” limit, and being hit with a fortune in taxes – it significantly changes the value of the car.

Next, RS Durant told me that the diamonds on the wedding band totalled 0.7 carat, when in fact they only total 0.36 carats. Once again, barely above HALF what I was quoted, and again being on the wrong side of the 1/2 carat marker. The other issue with the diamonds is that RS Durant state that the 36 little diamonds have a clarity of VS-1, when they are, in fact, P1. That’s a difference of FIVE increments and is a difference between inclusions being invisible to the naked eye to being QUITE visible. (Learn all about the 4 c’s of diamonds here)

They also told me that the wedding band was 18K white gold, but it tests at 14K. Not a HUGE difference, but again you would expect that this would effect the value of the ring.

So even though the rings have been valued for insurance purposes at slightly more than what I paid, RS Durant have valued them at almost double what the official, recognised valuer appraised them at.

I call this post an update, because tomorrow, RS Durant will be receiving quite a nasty e-mail from me insisting that they make an offer to resolve this issue before I speak to a lawyer. A friend in the know of the diamond trade in America has put me in touch with a couple of other organisations over there, and they will be getting e-mails in the near future as well.

I appreciate that every business on the planet has the occasional bad day, but some of these errors can’t be defended by that. In my opinion, RS Durant have engaged in practices that are at least deceptive, if not deliberately fraudulent.

Stay posted – once all this is resolved, I will submit a post of the outcome – with a full apology if it’s warranted, although I can’t see that happening at this stage.

Not happy, Jan

So I’ve been back in Australia for a week now, and the honeymoon is over. Why the hell is it that Brisbane drivers can’t drive??

I’ve been back at work for five days, and from Monday to Wednesday, I managed to remain calm and I started to think that maybe I had been too hard on Brisbane-ites in the past. But then, on Thursday, it all came flooding back.

While I didn’t count every vehicle in NYC, I reckon there would be in the vicinity of four thousand billion cars – most of them yellow cabs. And about 98.42% of those drivers know how to drive. Unlike Brisbane.

On Thursday morning, while I was on my way to work, I encountered two semi trailers within about 200m. The first one pullled out in front of me, without ensuring there was enough room. I was able to slow down easily enough, but of course then he started driving at around 30kmh under the speed limit – so I went around him.

But then it happened again. A semi trailer pulled out in front of me again. And this time, I had to hit the brakes to stop from running into him. It doesn’t take a genius to guess the outcome of a semi trailer versus a Mazda.

Once again, he drove WAY under the speed limit (an offence in NYC that earns you constant horn-honking), until I managed to get around him. But guess what? No, not another semi trailer……..a street sweeper. In peak hour traffic, driving at around 4 kph in the middle of the road. I counted 7 cars stuck behind the sweeper, travelling so slow that you wouldn’t need an accelerator.

The other thing I’ve noticed is that when traffic lights go green here, people try to be the last one to leave the line. I have seen a truck get to the middle of the intersection before one car even moved. Once again, in NYC, you would expect to have your life honked out of you.

The only thing that stops you getting honked in NYC is the “no honking zones”. Seriously. I knew you wouldn’t believe me, so here’s a photo. The sign is only small, but it’s really there, and it stops people honking.

This sign was located on the Upper East Side (the rich part of Manhattan), where we stayed. Some of the residents there are insanely wealthy, so I guess they have politely informed the city that they don’t appreciated honking in their neighbourhood.

And that’s one thing the Americans do well: Not put up with people’s shit. If you do something discourteous or amoral, they will shoot you down.

One example that I could offer is the Eagle Farm Markets in Brisbane. They run every Sunday at the Eagle Farm Racecourse. They have their own website, but you have to look them up yourself, because after last weekend, I’m not a fan.

They charge an entry fee of $2 per person. Can you believe that? All the Aussies are probably thinking “Yeah? So what?”, while the Americans would be thinking “What? Are you serious?” In America, the Eagle Farm Markets would fail. Why? Because why should you have to pay to go shopping? That’s ridiculous. It’s just the market’s owners gouging the customers, and Australians are so used to being ripped off, I think we’ve become oblivious to it.

Even the ACCC, our own government department who are there to protect us, have stated to me that “Australian consumers are ignorant and lazy”. Now don’t get me wrong, they didn’t say that as a bad thing. It was during a conversation I had about mobile phone companies.

Retailers in Australia actually work on the theory that Australians either don’t know their rights, or are too lazy to do anything about it. In order for the Eagle Farm Markets to fail, everyone would need to stop going. And try to get a thousand Australians to stop doing something, just to prove a point. It will never happen. So, we will continue to get ripped off on everything from groceries to fuel to electricity, and it’s our own stupid fault.

And that’s one reason why my Fiance and I are actually considering packing up our lives here in Australia and moving to New York. Pretty much everything I have ranted about on this site are things that are not an issue in America: The customer service is EXCELLENT, for a start. We went to a little restaurant called “3 guys” a bunch of times. It was located just around the corner (literally) from our hotel, and it was reminiscent of the restaurant in Seinfeld.

We would walk in the door and be greeted by a waiter who would seat us immediately. When we got to our table, another waiter would be there within 30 seconds to deliver water and menus. Within 3 to 4 minutes, a waiter was back to take our drinks order and ask if we were ready to order food. Once the food is ordered, it arrives in 6 – 7 minutes. It’s hard to believe they could cook your food by the time they bring it.

And in America (3 Guys included), when you need a waiter, they’re right there. You don’t spend five minutes trying to get their attention. They actually wander around the restaurant LOOKING for stuff to do. When you ask for more drinks, or ketchup, or more salt, or whatever, it’s THERE. In like one minute. If ANY Australian restaurant provided that kind of service, I’d be happy to give them a tip.

I was born and raised in Australia, and after a lengthy career in the Army, I love this country as much – or more – than the next guy. But after two weeks, I’m starting to love America more. I just can’t help it. America has fixed all the things that are wrong with Australia. So don’t be surprised if this post changes it’s name to HappyYank in the next 12 months, is being brought to you from NYC.

Have you been to America? Are you an American who’s been to Australia? I’d love to hear what everyone thinks of the other’s country.