Inside Tribeca All Access - Beyond the Mat

Can't Sleep

KASE CHONG - PRODUCER

It's 3:00am and I'm still awake. It's cause I'm still on LA time. Hollywood time. Or is it that I'm too excited. I can hear my writer snoring quitely in the background. Henry, my co-producer, and I just got back from a walk on the town. We're staying at the Exchange Hotel. It's a block away from Wall Street and the NYSE. That also means we're only a few blocks away from the WTC, ground zero.

Henry and I went down to the lobby bar at around 1 for a night cap but it was closed. We got directions to Ulysses, a nearby bar that closes at 4am, and upon arriving proceeded to have a pint each. Right out side were the cobblestoned streets of the NYSE. In the late night with no pedestrians, they looked eerily like the must have looked back in the 18th century. We downed our pints and headed out into the cold night air, imagining what the past must have been like. We were shocked back into the present by the gapping hole that still is the World Trade Center. 6 years and there's still nothing there. 6 years and the sight/site can still touch your heart.

A little bit hungry, we got Gyros (pronounced: YEARoh) from a streetside vendor named Mie (pronounced: MY). He was from egypt. Kinda surreal, an egyptian muslim selling greek food right next to the World Trade Center. What ever the case, the sandwiches were dang tasty and they supplied the fuel we need to make it back to our hotel.

Maybe it's jetlag or maybe it the excitment of being at Tribeca. I'm still not sleepy. We have a full day tomorrow which starts with our orientation breakfast at 9:00am. I promise to take better pictures tomorrow. These all came from my camera phone.

posted by The "Beyond the Mat" team @ 3:00 AM