Friday 4 July – American Independence Day

During the American Revolution, the legal separation of the 13 colonies of America from Great Britain occurred on 2 July 1776; however the final wording of the Declaration of Independence was approved 2 days later on 4 July 1776, and it is this date which is celebrated as American Independence Day. Sometimes it is simply called Fourth of July.

Most Americans are extremely patriotic and you don't go very far in the USA without seeing an American flag. Therefore not only is Independence Day a national holiday, but it is celebrated with fireworks, family get-togethers, barbeques, and other special events.

No doubt some American citizens use Independence Day simply to have a rest; and today, we do the same. All our activity over the past 2 months has caught up with us, and we are suddenly feeling really tired. We decide to do very little today. We had intended to do our laundry, but the laundremat is closed because it's a national holiday. We were also intending to visit Central Park, and perhaps to go on to Brooklyn Bridge to see the fireworks, but the fact that it is raining hard makes us decide to lounge around in our hostel room, emerging only for breakfast in our local diner and pizza at tea time.

Apart from a brief shower in Chicago, the 2 heavy rainstorms we've had in New York have been the only rain we've seen since Charlottesville in May, so we can't complain. I sleep all afternoon, and when we go for our pizza this evening, the rain has stopped. We suddenly notice a Chinese laundry, really near to the hostel; we go in, and have a conversation about China with the Chinese family who run the laundry. It would cost $1 a pound weight for them to wash, dry and fold our clothes; the only problem is, we are out all day tomorrow and can't guarantee being back in time to collect the dry, folded washing. No problem; the Chinese lady called Susan (her English name, of course) will deliver the dry laundry to our hostel, just a few yards down the road.

Reg and I pop back to the hostel and bring over our big pile of washing. It will cost $15 including delivery, which I think is a bargain – provided that our washing is returned by tomorrow evening. Reg and I remember only too well the incident in Vietnam 2 years ago; we were due to move on the next morning and our washing hadn't been returned. The hostel receptionist on that occasion had to go shooting off on his motorbike to the laundry woman's house and get her to return to the wash house, so that we'd have our clothes before leaving.

“You won't forget, will you?” I say. “We're leaving New York Sunday morning. The next day.”

“That's ok,” says Susan, and something about her quiet efficiency makes me feel we can trust her to return our washing. Otherwise we'll have very little to wear on the Queen Mary 2!! I tell Susan that we will let the hostel know that she will be delivering the washing tomorrow afternoon. This is quite a weight of our minds, because plan A had been to get up very early tomorrow morning and do the laundry before we take the subway to Brooklyn Bridge, and then catch the ferry for Ellis Island and Liberty Island. We have e-tickets, and need to be at the ferry by 11.00 am. We aren't going up the Statue of Liberty (tickets for this have to be bought weeks in advance, and we didn't plan to do this anyway); but we should get a good view of it from Ellis Island.