Original Post Date: March 13, 2006
We are on our way to NYC at last! Our original flight was delayed, so they moved us to an earlier flight. Here’s the kicker: We got bumped to 1st Class! I have never flown 1st Class before. There are 2 seats instead of 3. Shauna and I are on the first row, so we have tons of leg room. They gave us water and orange juice while the flight was boarding. Now we have apple juice in glass cups. Fancy!! It makes up for us getting searched at security.
Oh, my gosh, I just got offered a warm towel! 1st Class ROCKS!!
Anyway, back to getting searched. We had to take our shoes off and not touch our bags while they searched them and gave us a pat down. Oh, well. I feel safer knowing that this could stop a potential terrorist.
We are on our way to Dallas and it will be on to New York City!! I am SO EXCITED!!
Okay, I am never flying coach ever again. We just got breakfast. First of all, the tray had its own tablecloth. The glass was a little goblet and the napkin was cloth. We got fresh fruit (kiwi, cantaloupe, and peaches), hot biscuit (or bagel) with butter & jam, and yogurt. This is the life.1st class is the way to fly. We feel bad for Steph, though, back there in coach. I hope they gave her more than pretzels & and a drink.
We got to Dallas and had about an hour layover. We saw a huge group of missionaries walk by us. They were obviously on their way out, because they were all clean and pressed. ☺ Turns out they are on their way to Honduras!
We boarded the next flight on time, but because of delays at La Guardia, we had to sit on the runway for about an hour. Talk about BORING! But, I’m almost done reading Pride and Prejudice, so it’s all good. We finally took off and will get into New York about 6:00. This flight has a movie, and the first one was “The Man” with Samuel L. Jackson & Eugene Levy. Didn’t care much about that one. However, the 2nd movie was “Walk the Line.” I immediately bought earphones so I could watch it. Awesome movie!
It’s now about an hour until we land, and I’m so anxious to get off this freaking plane. Not just because I’ll be in NYC, but because we’ve just been trapped on here way too long.
We have arrived! We got into La Guardia about 6:00. We waited a long time for our bags. Then we had to figure out how to get to Staten Island. The guy at Transportation Information was very helpful. We ended up buying an all week Metro pass for $24. We can use it the whole time we’re here for both subways and buses. We took a bus from the airport and then got on the subway at Lexington & 125th. We rode that all the way to Bowling Green and then it was a short walk to the ferry. That’s where we are now. It’s dark out, so it’s hard to see what stuff is out the window. I just saw the Statue of Liberty! We are passing it now! Oh, my gosh! It looks so cool!
*fun smell* The elevator down to the subway from the street smelled so bad!
*fun sight* The cops arguing with a guy, telling him he couldn’t smoke on the ferry. I think he was forcibly removed.
*dumb tourist moment* My metro card wouldn’t work at the subway, so I had to go ask for help. I didn’t hear her tell me which door to go through, so I wandered aimlessly for a minute. Luckily, Ashley was clueless with me on that.
It’s hard to take public transportation with our big luggage. We must do something different on Sunday morning, since our flight leaves so early. But first, we will enjoy the week. We’re in New York!!
Our house we are staying at is really cute. It’s on the main floor of a house, actually. 2 Queen beds and 2 singles. The house was built in the 1860s. The people that own it are really nice. They’ve made it like an anti-hotel. It’s like your own home in New York. We are just a few minutes from the ferry. We could have walked, but we had no idea where we were going, so we took two taxis. (I way overtipped the guy, but he was a cute little old man and he got us here quick and safe.)
We already found a great pizzeria down the street and around the corner. Great food and the people were very nice! I’ve noticed already that New Yorkers are very nice. Very helpful. They aren’t all rude and stuff like you always hear. That’s awesome!
We can hardly wait to start exploring tomorrow. Yay! We’re in New York!!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
New York City Trip: Day 2
Original Post Date: March 14, 2006
We went to a bakery near our house this morning. They had all kinds of good stuff there. We will probably go every morning. The croissant was delicious!
We made it to the ferry after not too bad of a walk (although one hill was a killer.) We’ll probably take a cab at night, though. It would be easy to get lost in the dark.
Today we are doing the stuff around the theatre district. Times Square, etc. It was raining a little, but the sun has come out, so we should be okay. The humidity is killing me, though. It’s not hot temperature-wise outside, but I’m getting hot. Oh, well. At least it’s not freezing cold!
What a day! We started out in Times Square. Now that is a sight to behold! So many things to look at. Huge, lighted signs. Tons of people. We weren’t sure what to do first. We did have to figure out which way was which. Where are the mountains when we need them? It’s easy to remember that streets run East-West and Avenues run North-South (just like Greeley), but I still don’t know which direction the numbers get higher & lower. We walked in the wrong direction a couple of times today.
We hadn’t been on Times Square more than five or ten minutes when the Scientologists attacked. It was this really nice girl who wanted us to come to see a movie about “Dienetics”. It took me about a minute to figure out that it was Scientology. Being the dumb tourist that we are, we followed her to their building. I was ready to day “Actually, we’re Mormon and we’re not interested” but then Shauna just said “Oh, we’re going to be late. We really have to go now.” As soon as the “nice girl” figured out we weren’t going to listen, she said “Bye” really quick and took off. So much for that. At least she didn’t hound us to come back. I should have given her a Book of Mormon. We did decide to get one at the Temple Visitor’s Center and leave it at the house.
After we escaped the grasp of Scientology, we went to the Gershwin Theatre to get our Backstage tour tickets for Wicked. Gorgeous theatre, I must say. We are trying to familiarize ourselves with where all the theatres are. We see lots of marquees. They’ve got the one up for “The Drowsy Chaperone” with Sutton Foster. It opens next month. (Why not now? Gah!)
After we left the theatre, we went in search of the Rockefeller Center. It’s not just that gold statue and the ice rink, like I thought. It was a huge complex of office buildings, including the NBC Studios. We watched the skaters for awhile and sat by where the tree goes at Christmas. The Radio City Music Hall is there, too. Next time we come, we are taking the backstage tour. I have a bet with Shauna that if she makes the tour guides cry or say “What?” at the Wicked Backstage tour, I’ll give her $5. This extends to any backstage tour in New York.
We visited the NBC Experience store. Pretty much any and all NBC products you can think of. It’s a HUGE store. We got our picture taken on the “Friends” set. Well, it was green screen. The picture turned out really cute. A definite keeper.
Next, we went to lunch. Okay, so we went to McDonalds. But it was a Times Square McDonalds. We sat on the 2nd floor. It was decorated really cool. A huge mural of Times Square, or Manhattan, or something.
We headed out from McDonalds and intended to go do One Shubert Alley. While standing on the corner, waiting for the light to change, we suddenly realized that Toys ‘R’ Us was behind us. Duh! So we went there instead.
Toys ‘R’ Us is the coolest store ever! There is a Ferris Wheel in the middle of the store! A HUGE ONE! We, of course, had to ride it. There is also a massive anamatronic T-Rex and tons of stuff made out of Legos. King Kong on the Empire State Building, The Statue of Liberty, the Hulk, etc. So cool! You could seriously spend a whole day in there!
Next it was off to One Shubert Alley, the actual store of broadwaynewyork.com (where Shauna and I have spent loads of money.) It was much smaller than I expected. In fact, it was TEENY!! But, we got some cool stuff. I never knew that Shubert Alley was an actual alley by the Shubert Theatre. Go figure.
After we left there, we caught the train up to Herald Square. Macy’s is right there, but our destination was the Empire State Building. Now let me just say that if “Sleepless in Seattle” took place post-9/11, the ending would have been TOTALLY anti-climactic. Meg Ryan would have had to wait in line, go through security, wait in another line, get her picture taken in front of a picture of the Empire State Building, wait in another line, go up one elevator to the 80th floor, wait in another line, go up another elevator to the Observation deck, and then get to where she was going. Tom Hanks would have been long gone. Oh, and it cost $16. It took about an hour to be up there in the freezing cold wind for about 15 minutes and there were tons of people. It was really cool, and now I can say I’ve been to the top of the Empire State Building. But the long lines were just too much. I probably won’t do that again.
After we got back down, Shauna and I went in search of the Post Office while the other girls went to Macys (New York at Rush Hour is fun, by the way.) The Post Office is HUGE! We had to wait in line awhile, but finally got our 5 packages of souvenirs mailed home.
After hooking back up with the girls, we went to dinner at Ollie’s Noodle Shop. (Recommended by Juliana. Must thank her.) Good Chinese food. Next it was off to the Gershwin for...WICKED!!
Now, we saw the show in Denver, but this time...wow!!! My 1st Broadway show. I started to cry when the Overture started. (I’m pathetic, I know.) I wish I could have been sitting more center, but I did have a good show. Eden Espinosa and Megan Hilty were Elphaba and Glinda. Both were totally amazing. The same guy we saw as Fiyero on the tour was in the show. He’s really good. The highlight was that Madame Morrible was played by Carol Kane and the Wizard was played by Ben Vereen. So cool!!!! The entire show was just amazing. It’s a wonderful show to begin with, but on Broadway – HOLY CRAP!
When the show ended (and I destroyed a kleenex with my crying), Shauna and I went to the Stage Door. We met Derrick, the guy playing Fiyero. He was really nice. We talkeda bout how he liked Denver. Then we met Eden Espinosa. Surreal moment for me when she thought she knew me. She said “Now, I’ve met you before, right?” When I told her no, she said I must look like someone she knew. Totally weird!!! Then we met Megan Hilty. She was really cool. It was FREEZING outside then, so we left.
We got on the wrong train and had to get off after one stop. Whoops, my bad! We finally got on the right train, but we had to wait awhile. We missed the 11:30 ferry by less than 10 minutes and had to take the midnight one. It’s about a 20 minute ride. Then we were going to take two taxis to the house, but this one cabbie said we could fit all 6, and we did!! Crazy!
All in all, a great day, despite the cold wind. Tomorrow promises to be just as good!
We went to a bakery near our house this morning. They had all kinds of good stuff there. We will probably go every morning. The croissant was delicious!
We made it to the ferry after not too bad of a walk (although one hill was a killer.) We’ll probably take a cab at night, though. It would be easy to get lost in the dark.
Today we are doing the stuff around the theatre district. Times Square, etc. It was raining a little, but the sun has come out, so we should be okay. The humidity is killing me, though. It’s not hot temperature-wise outside, but I’m getting hot. Oh, well. At least it’s not freezing cold!
What a day! We started out in Times Square. Now that is a sight to behold! So many things to look at. Huge, lighted signs. Tons of people. We weren’t sure what to do first. We did have to figure out which way was which. Where are the mountains when we need them? It’s easy to remember that streets run East-West and Avenues run North-South (just like Greeley), but I still don’t know which direction the numbers get higher & lower. We walked in the wrong direction a couple of times today.
We hadn’t been on Times Square more than five or ten minutes when the Scientologists attacked. It was this really nice girl who wanted us to come to see a movie about “Dienetics”. It took me about a minute to figure out that it was Scientology. Being the dumb tourist that we are, we followed her to their building. I was ready to day “Actually, we’re Mormon and we’re not interested” but then Shauna just said “Oh, we’re going to be late. We really have to go now.” As soon as the “nice girl” figured out we weren’t going to listen, she said “Bye” really quick and took off. So much for that. At least she didn’t hound us to come back. I should have given her a Book of Mormon. We did decide to get one at the Temple Visitor’s Center and leave it at the house.
After we escaped the grasp of Scientology, we went to the Gershwin Theatre to get our Backstage tour tickets for Wicked. Gorgeous theatre, I must say. We are trying to familiarize ourselves with where all the theatres are. We see lots of marquees. They’ve got the one up for “The Drowsy Chaperone” with Sutton Foster. It opens next month. (Why not now? Gah!)
After we left the theatre, we went in search of the Rockefeller Center. It’s not just that gold statue and the ice rink, like I thought. It was a huge complex of office buildings, including the NBC Studios. We watched the skaters for awhile and sat by where the tree goes at Christmas. The Radio City Music Hall is there, too. Next time we come, we are taking the backstage tour. I have a bet with Shauna that if she makes the tour guides cry or say “What?” at the Wicked Backstage tour, I’ll give her $5. This extends to any backstage tour in New York.
We visited the NBC Experience store. Pretty much any and all NBC products you can think of. It’s a HUGE store. We got our picture taken on the “Friends” set. Well, it was green screen. The picture turned out really cute. A definite keeper.
Next, we went to lunch. Okay, so we went to McDonalds. But it was a Times Square McDonalds. We sat on the 2nd floor. It was decorated really cool. A huge mural of Times Square, or Manhattan, or something.
We headed out from McDonalds and intended to go do One Shubert Alley. While standing on the corner, waiting for the light to change, we suddenly realized that Toys ‘R’ Us was behind us. Duh! So we went there instead.
Toys ‘R’ Us is the coolest store ever! There is a Ferris Wheel in the middle of the store! A HUGE ONE! We, of course, had to ride it. There is also a massive anamatronic T-Rex and tons of stuff made out of Legos. King Kong on the Empire State Building, The Statue of Liberty, the Hulk, etc. So cool! You could seriously spend a whole day in there!
Next it was off to One Shubert Alley, the actual store of broadwaynewyork.com (where Shauna and I have spent loads of money.) It was much smaller than I expected. In fact, it was TEENY!! But, we got some cool stuff. I never knew that Shubert Alley was an actual alley by the Shubert Theatre. Go figure.
After we left there, we caught the train up to Herald Square. Macy’s is right there, but our destination was the Empire State Building. Now let me just say that if “Sleepless in Seattle” took place post-9/11, the ending would have been TOTALLY anti-climactic. Meg Ryan would have had to wait in line, go through security, wait in another line, get her picture taken in front of a picture of the Empire State Building, wait in another line, go up one elevator to the 80th floor, wait in another line, go up another elevator to the Observation deck, and then get to where she was going. Tom Hanks would have been long gone. Oh, and it cost $16. It took about an hour to be up there in the freezing cold wind for about 15 minutes and there were tons of people. It was really cool, and now I can say I’ve been to the top of the Empire State Building. But the long lines were just too much. I probably won’t do that again.
After we got back down, Shauna and I went in search of the Post Office while the other girls went to Macys (New York at Rush Hour is fun, by the way.) The Post Office is HUGE! We had to wait in line awhile, but finally got our 5 packages of souvenirs mailed home.
After hooking back up with the girls, we went to dinner at Ollie’s Noodle Shop. (Recommended by Juliana. Must thank her.) Good Chinese food. Next it was off to the Gershwin for...WICKED!!
Now, we saw the show in Denver, but this time...wow!!! My 1st Broadway show. I started to cry when the Overture started. (I’m pathetic, I know.) I wish I could have been sitting more center, but I did have a good show. Eden Espinosa and Megan Hilty were Elphaba and Glinda. Both were totally amazing. The same guy we saw as Fiyero on the tour was in the show. He’s really good. The highlight was that Madame Morrible was played by Carol Kane and the Wizard was played by Ben Vereen. So cool!!!! The entire show was just amazing. It’s a wonderful show to begin with, but on Broadway – HOLY CRAP!
When the show ended (and I destroyed a kleenex with my crying), Shauna and I went to the Stage Door. We met Derrick, the guy playing Fiyero. He was really nice. We talkeda bout how he liked Denver. Then we met Eden Espinosa. Surreal moment for me when she thought she knew me. She said “Now, I’ve met you before, right?” When I told her no, she said I must look like someone she knew. Totally weird!!! Then we met Megan Hilty. She was really cool. It was FREEZING outside then, so we left.
We got on the wrong train and had to get off after one stop. Whoops, my bad! We finally got on the right train, but we had to wait awhile. We missed the 11:30 ferry by less than 10 minutes and had to take the midnight one. It’s about a 20 minute ride. Then we were going to take two taxis to the house, but this one cabbie said we could fit all 6, and we did!! Crazy!
All in all, a great day, despite the cold wind. Tomorrow promises to be just as good!
New York City Trip: Day 3
Original Post Date: March 15, 2006
Back on the ferry again. This seems like the best place to write. Although, I need to write more during the day, so I don’t have to do it all at night. Sometimes I forget the order we did things and then it just took too long. I don’t think I got to bed much before 2 last night, and I was up at 6:30 this morning. Eh, who needs sleep? I’m in New York!!!
Well, I’m now sitting in a Starbucks in the East Village. I’d feel like a true New Yorker if I didn’t look like a total tourist. Oh, well.
Today has been SO WINDY!! Insanely windy, in fact. I’m very sick of wind now. The sun was shining, but the wind was cold. Enough!!
We started out the day doing our new favorite pastime: standing in line. We went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. First, we stood in a massive line to get on the ferry. We had to go through security (which this time entailed taking off jackets, scarves, & belts.) Then we got on the ferry, which is much smaller than the Staten Island Ferry. And since it was windy, the water was choppy. Fun stuff! I got my sea leg, though. Go me! Once we got to Liberty Island, we had to go through Security again (after we had to pay a dollar to store our backpacks, since they were not allowed.) This security checkpoint had something new, though, and totally different. It was this air thing. You stepped into it and then these blowers blew at you, blowing your clothes in weird places. I don’t know how it does any good, but it was pretty cool. (Oh, and I had to take my belt off again. Curse the terrorists!)
We finally made it into the pedestal. When you first walk in there is a huge replica of the torch (Actually, I think it’s the original torch.) It was gorgeous! Then we made our way into the museum. It was a fascinating look at how the statue was designed, originally built, and then brought here. There were several great photo ops, which we, of course, took full advantage of. (Ah, the fun of accosting statues.)
They don’t allow anyone to climb up into the statue anymore. They haven’t since September 10, 2001. (The Park Ranger said that there had already been talk of closing it prior to that, due to it being unsafe. Hard to evacuate in an emergency.) We were able to climb all the way to the top of the pedestal. So many stairs. I thought I was going to die. We think it was about 10 stories up. (I should have done Stairmaster before coming.) We took pictures on the observation deck. It was super windy, of course. Got some great shots of the Manhattan skyline, including one of me hugging Manhattan. (I’m such a dork...and proud!)
Going down the stairs was way easier than going up. Once we got down, we spent a lot of money in the gift shop. Afterwards, we ate lunch at the snack bar there on the island. I had my first New York hot dog. Not bad! It was totally packed inside the building, so we braved the cold wind, and pigeons, to eat outside on the terrace. (Pigeons = rats with wings.) It was so cold!!
Next we caught the ferry for Ellis Island. Now, I have wanted to visit Ellis Island ever since I took American Immigration at UNC. I wish we would have had more time to spend there. We didn’t watch the movie or take the tour, but we did look at several of the exhibits, all totally fascinating. I want to come back here. Not to the Statue of Liberty, per se (except for the grounds), but definitely Ellis Island.
It was almost 3:00 by the time we got back to Manhattan. That took way longer than we had planned, but that was okay.
Next we caught the subway up to the World Trade Center. Ground Zero. I wasn’t sure what to expect at the site. It’s been 4 ½ years since that horrendous day. There is basically just a big Fence around the entire area. It’s still a massive hole in the ground with part of the foundation showing. It was the eeriest feeling, being there. Everywhere else in New York is so loud. Around there, this is a hush. I don’t think it’s a conscious “Oh, I have to be quiet here” kind of thing. It’s hard to explain. There is just a reverence. There is a train station underneath, or I guess right by there. People just walked through without making too much noise. It was seriously the quietest place we’d been all week. There is going to be a memorial built, but it’s going to take awhile. It looked like they were still cleaning up, but it was hard to tell. Maybe they are just reinforcing. Not sure. But wow, oh, wow. What an amazing place to be. I’d like to go back once the memorial is completed.
It was then time to figure out what to do next. It was about 4:00. We needed to get over to the East Village to see if we could get tickets to Blue Man Group. We had heard they were sold out, but wanted to check just in case. We got to see the Trinity Church on our way to the subway station! There’s not a cave full of treasure underneath, so we didn’t go in. Oh, well. Once we got on the correct train, we made it up to Astor Place. (Shauna and I are even now. We have both gotten on the wrong train once.) We found the theatre and went to the Box Office. I asked the guy if they had any tickets at all for tonight. He said they had actually just had some “limited view seats” returned. (GASP!!) And could we have 4 tickets? Yes, we could!! Further proof that you should never assume a show is sold out. Always check the box office. $65 a ticket (not bad at all) and we are seeing the Blue Man Group at 8:00 tonight! Yay!!
We are now waiting for Guizella & Steph to get here. I’m not sure what happened, but all the girls ended up on the Uptown train instead of the one to South Ferry. Shauna gave them instructions on how to find us, but they aren’t here yet. It’s almost 6:30. We’re not too worried yet, but I hope they get here soon. Nothing worse than getting lost in New York!
OH! MY! GOSH! The Blue Man Group ROCKS!! I have loved their music & loved their DVD, but seeing them in person is like nothing else. Now I’ve seen a lot of shows, and I thought I had seen it all, but Blue Man Group tops it all in terms of pure, hilarious fun. The music is so cool, they are just fall down funny, and it’s a total blast to be there! PVC pipe will never be the same to me again. And streamers. And black lights.
I can’t even begin to describe the show in its entirety. It’s something everyone should experience for themselves. Many of it I had seen & heard before. Some was new. All of it was SO MUCH FUN!!! Laughing burns calories. I probably dropped a pound tonight. ☺ It’s like a Rock Concert-Performance Art-Mega Experience. The first three or four rows have to wear ponchos. What does that tell you? I have never had more fun in a theatre. Seriously.
Oh, I should say that Guizella & Stephanie found us okay. They just had trouble with Rush Hour. We went to a Pizzeria called “Familia’s” or something like that. “New York’s Favorite Pizza”. Apparently it’s a famous place. Signed pictures on the wall of Barbra Streisand, Nicholas Cage, & Ashley Judd. The pizza was really good, too! I had spinach. Very, very good! And cheap! I paid $4.00 for a big slice and a lemonade (the 1st lemonade I’ve found so are, by the way.)
We walked so much today. We are all in serious pain. I could hardly walk after sitting at Starbucks for so long. Ouch!!!! I’m in great shape now. Bolder Boulder anyone?
Back on the ferry again. This seems like the best place to write. Although, I need to write more during the day, so I don’t have to do it all at night. Sometimes I forget the order we did things and then it just took too long. I don’t think I got to bed much before 2 last night, and I was up at 6:30 this morning. Eh, who needs sleep? I’m in New York!!!
Well, I’m now sitting in a Starbucks in the East Village. I’d feel like a true New Yorker if I didn’t look like a total tourist. Oh, well.
Today has been SO WINDY!! Insanely windy, in fact. I’m very sick of wind now. The sun was shining, but the wind was cold. Enough!!
We started out the day doing our new favorite pastime: standing in line. We went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. First, we stood in a massive line to get on the ferry. We had to go through security (which this time entailed taking off jackets, scarves, & belts.) Then we got on the ferry, which is much smaller than the Staten Island Ferry. And since it was windy, the water was choppy. Fun stuff! I got my sea leg, though. Go me! Once we got to Liberty Island, we had to go through Security again (after we had to pay a dollar to store our backpacks, since they were not allowed.) This security checkpoint had something new, though, and totally different. It was this air thing. You stepped into it and then these blowers blew at you, blowing your clothes in weird places. I don’t know how it does any good, but it was pretty cool. (Oh, and I had to take my belt off again. Curse the terrorists!)
We finally made it into the pedestal. When you first walk in there is a huge replica of the torch (Actually, I think it’s the original torch.) It was gorgeous! Then we made our way into the museum. It was a fascinating look at how the statue was designed, originally built, and then brought here. There were several great photo ops, which we, of course, took full advantage of. (Ah, the fun of accosting statues.)
They don’t allow anyone to climb up into the statue anymore. They haven’t since September 10, 2001. (The Park Ranger said that there had already been talk of closing it prior to that, due to it being unsafe. Hard to evacuate in an emergency.) We were able to climb all the way to the top of the pedestal. So many stairs. I thought I was going to die. We think it was about 10 stories up. (I should have done Stairmaster before coming.) We took pictures on the observation deck. It was super windy, of course. Got some great shots of the Manhattan skyline, including one of me hugging Manhattan. (I’m such a dork...and proud!)
Going down the stairs was way easier than going up. Once we got down, we spent a lot of money in the gift shop. Afterwards, we ate lunch at the snack bar there on the island. I had my first New York hot dog. Not bad! It was totally packed inside the building, so we braved the cold wind, and pigeons, to eat outside on the terrace. (Pigeons = rats with wings.) It was so cold!!
Next we caught the ferry for Ellis Island. Now, I have wanted to visit Ellis Island ever since I took American Immigration at UNC. I wish we would have had more time to spend there. We didn’t watch the movie or take the tour, but we did look at several of the exhibits, all totally fascinating. I want to come back here. Not to the Statue of Liberty, per se (except for the grounds), but definitely Ellis Island.
It was almost 3:00 by the time we got back to Manhattan. That took way longer than we had planned, but that was okay.
Next we caught the subway up to the World Trade Center. Ground Zero. I wasn’t sure what to expect at the site. It’s been 4 ½ years since that horrendous day. There is basically just a big Fence around the entire area. It’s still a massive hole in the ground with part of the foundation showing. It was the eeriest feeling, being there. Everywhere else in New York is so loud. Around there, this is a hush. I don’t think it’s a conscious “Oh, I have to be quiet here” kind of thing. It’s hard to explain. There is just a reverence. There is a train station underneath, or I guess right by there. People just walked through without making too much noise. It was seriously the quietest place we’d been all week. There is going to be a memorial built, but it’s going to take awhile. It looked like they were still cleaning up, but it was hard to tell. Maybe they are just reinforcing. Not sure. But wow, oh, wow. What an amazing place to be. I’d like to go back once the memorial is completed.
It was then time to figure out what to do next. It was about 4:00. We needed to get over to the East Village to see if we could get tickets to Blue Man Group. We had heard they were sold out, but wanted to check just in case. We got to see the Trinity Church on our way to the subway station! There’s not a cave full of treasure underneath, so we didn’t go in. Oh, well. Once we got on the correct train, we made it up to Astor Place. (Shauna and I are even now. We have both gotten on the wrong train once.) We found the theatre and went to the Box Office. I asked the guy if they had any tickets at all for tonight. He said they had actually just had some “limited view seats” returned. (GASP!!) And could we have 4 tickets? Yes, we could!! Further proof that you should never assume a show is sold out. Always check the box office. $65 a ticket (not bad at all) and we are seeing the Blue Man Group at 8:00 tonight! Yay!!
We are now waiting for Guizella & Steph to get here. I’m not sure what happened, but all the girls ended up on the Uptown train instead of the one to South Ferry. Shauna gave them instructions on how to find us, but they aren’t here yet. It’s almost 6:30. We’re not too worried yet, but I hope they get here soon. Nothing worse than getting lost in New York!
OH! MY! GOSH! The Blue Man Group ROCKS!! I have loved their music & loved their DVD, but seeing them in person is like nothing else. Now I’ve seen a lot of shows, and I thought I had seen it all, but Blue Man Group tops it all in terms of pure, hilarious fun. The music is so cool, they are just fall down funny, and it’s a total blast to be there! PVC pipe will never be the same to me again. And streamers. And black lights.
I can’t even begin to describe the show in its entirety. It’s something everyone should experience for themselves. Many of it I had seen & heard before. Some was new. All of it was SO MUCH FUN!!! Laughing burns calories. I probably dropped a pound tonight. ☺ It’s like a Rock Concert-Performance Art-Mega Experience. The first three or four rows have to wear ponchos. What does that tell you? I have never had more fun in a theatre. Seriously.
Oh, I should say that Guizella & Stephanie found us okay. They just had trouble with Rush Hour. We went to a Pizzeria called “Familia’s” or something like that. “New York’s Favorite Pizza”. Apparently it’s a famous place. Signed pictures on the wall of Barbra Streisand, Nicholas Cage, & Ashley Judd. The pizza was really good, too! I had spinach. Very, very good! And cheap! I paid $4.00 for a big slice and a lemonade (the 1st lemonade I’ve found so are, by the way.)
We walked so much today. We are all in serious pain. I could hardly walk after sitting at Starbucks for so long. Ouch!!!! I’m in great shape now. Bolder Boulder anyone?
New York City Trip: Day 4
Original Post Date: March 16, 2006
We got in early enough last night that I could get everything organized for today. That was nice. Today will be an easier day. We won’t be outside as much. Today is “Culture Day”! But first, some little tidbits I’ve forgotten to write about so far:
HOMELESS MAN ON SUBWAY:
Kinda creepy. Begging for 99 cents to buy a burger to eat, but you couldn’t miss the overwhelming smell of alcohol. I sat there thinking, Lay off the booze, buddy, and you’d have money for food. It was sad. He stood there and talked for like 5 minutes while we all tried not to make eye contact. It’s the only time I have been a little scared the whole time we’ve been here.
OUR NEW CATCH PHRASE:
There are people whose job is to stand on the street and either promote something or just hand out fliers. They are always trying to get our attention. I now just say “No, thank you.” I’ve probably said it about 100 times. I’m actually to the point where I don’t even acknowledge them unless they shove the flier in my face. Then I use my catch phrase, “No, thank you!” This also works with street vendors. We could have bought handbags from a guy on the pier. They were all wrapped up in a big sheet. Something tells me they weren’t going to be real Prada.
ASHLEY’S PHONE CALL:
So, Ben Layman called Ashley on Tuesday to set up an appointment with Bishop Hatch for Wednesday. Instead of calling Ben back, she called Bishop Hatch’s cell phone and left the following message:
Hi, Bishop Hatch. This is Ashley Stieber. Ben Layman wanted me to meet with you tomorrow. I lost his number, so I’m just calling you. Yeah, tomorrow will be fine. I can do it at 10:00 am and you’ll just need to meet me at the Statue of Liberty. Oh, and I’m calling you from the top of the Empire State Building, so that’s why it’s so windy. Okay, see you tomorrow! Bye!
SCARF ENVY:
A homeless woman at Starbucks liked my scarf. Should I feel like a true New Yorker? I’m not sure. Maybe it’s good luck, like if a pigeon poops on you. (Thank heavens THAT hasn’t happened yet. KNOCK ON WOOD!)
And now, my adventures with Al Roker! We got up extra early and were able to make the 7:30 ferry. We got up to the Rockefeller Center to where The Today Show films. There’s this little alleyway across from the skating rink. They film right in the middle and surround the whole place with barriers. There were a lot of people there already by the time we arrived. The prime spot was directly behind the two mini-vans they were doing a segment on. We obviously couldn’t push our way to the front there. Shauna and I ended up just to the left of the revolving door. Great for taking pictures, but only if the crew members didn’t get in the way. When Al Roker came out, just after 9:00, he went straight across. Then he walked along to the left as he was doing the weather. Suddenly, he came right towards us! There were some people with a sign just to our left and he talked to them. I practically leapt in behind them. I’m not sure how long I was on camera, but I was DEFINITELY on TV! I’m hard to miss, too, with my bright green coat and fluorescent hat. We’re not sure if Shauna made it on. We’ll find out from Mom later. We called and had her tape it. Woo hoo! I was on TV!! We stuck around after that, thinking the minivan segment would be next. Half an hour later, after almost freezing solid, we finally got to see Al again. Katie Couric and Matt Lauer didn’t come out, but we saw them through the window. Janice Lieberman did the mini-van segment with Al. I didn’t really know who she was, but the lady to my right knew her and called to her. Janice came over to talk to her and I got a good picture. Better than most of the pictures of Al.
Next we caught the subway to Grand Central Station. It was so cool! Absolutely gorgeous inside. And HUGE!! We then walked a couple of blocks to the United Nations. It is really amazing to see all those flags flying out front. There were some neat sculptures, too. We opted to just take pictures from the outside and then call it good. None of us felt like going through security again, especially when we weren’t sure what we would be able to see.
Our next adventure was hailing a cab. It took forever, but they finally got one to stop. (Shauna and I let the other girls get the cab, since she had figured out the subway.) The cab that stopped was a mini-van, but he could only take 4 passengers. Shauna and I had to get our own, and lo and behold one had parked like 10 feet down the street!
We took the cabs back to Grand Central and ate at their food court. All kinds of food to choose from, but way, WAY too overpriced. And I did not get my money’s worth. My turkey sandwich was a little dry.
Then it was off to the Metropolitan Museum of Art! I’m going to write down cool stuff we see:
-Greek Art, 6th Century BC-An elephant tusk (a huge one!) completely carved with intricate pictures (18th Century Nigeria)
-Mayan carved pillar from 8th Century
-Beautiful works in gold from South America
-A Picasso painting “A Girl Asleep on the Table”
-A tapestry depicting America, commissioned by Louis XVI
-Four panel Screen with views of Vienna (ca. 1820)
-Huge gate in the Medieval Arts Section
-Armory, swords, etc.
-Full Suits of armor
-4 Jousters on horseback
-All types of guns
-Field Armor of King Henry VIII
-An Egyptian Temple
-You can walk inside it! It has “Leonardo 1820" carved in part of it. He must have discovered it.
-Reminded me (a lot!) of Solomon’s Temple
-Lots and lots of Grandfather Clocks
-“Washington Crossing the Delaware” (1851)
-Largest framed painting in the museum.
-Painting commemorates the event; does not recreate it. (Betsy Ross made 1st flag 6 months after the crossing, but there is one in the picture!)
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS:
-Piccolo from 1897
-Ebonite flute-
DRUMS:
-Dadabwaan (Philippines 19th Century)
-Goblet Drum (Burma)
-Slento (Central Java)
-Yunluo (Mongol Yuan Dynasty 1280-1368)
-Tanggu
-Changgo (Korea)
-Kyobanggo (15th Century)
-Kakko (Theatrical Music “Noh” drama, 14th Century)
-Otsuzumi
-Kotsuzumi
-Shimedaiko (THE ONLY NAME I RECOGNIZED!!!!)
-Long Drums (Africa)
-Ngoma ya mukondo (Congo)
-Mukupiela
-Balo Xylophone (West Africa)
-Ngkul (Cameroon)
-Clapperless Iron Bells
-Zarb (Iran - Inscription“When it sounds, it makes everyone in the world happy.”
-Pipe Organ (1830 Boston)
-Gold Harpsichord
-Pedal Harpsichord (1967)
-Oldest of 3 pianos by Bartolomeo Cristofori (1720)
-Original Piano (first with hammer action)
PAINTINGS:
“The Abduction of the Sabine Women” (Poussin)
(“Oh, them women was sobbin’, sobbin’, sobbin’ fit to be tied...”)
“Study for “A Sunday on La Grande Jatte” (Georges Seurat)
-Final study before he made the 7 by 10 foot painting. Seurat’s final painting of “A Sunday...” was done using pointellism (all dots). This was small brush strokes. Watch Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park with George”.
“By the Seashore” (Renoir)
There are so many things to see here! You could spend a week in here and not see it all! AMAZING!!!
We left the museum and needed to get to the Lincoln Center. I felt like my feet were going to burst into flames at any moment. They hurt SO BAD! However, we decided to walk across Central Park. I misread the map and thought it was a straight shot across to the Lincoln Center. Well, no, it was a straight shot across to the Nature & Science Museum. The Lincoln Center was about 15 blocks away. DOH!! We walked for awhile and then decided to hail a cab. Ashley, Guizella, & Steph got one fairly quickly, but Shauna, Diana, & I couldn’t get one. You have to be pretty aggressive to get one. And it was Rush Hour. All the cabs were either taken or off duty. We walked for a ways, and then...lo and behold, a taxi stopped right in front of us and people got out! We pounced instantly and got it.
The Lincoln Center is a complex of theatres. The Met is one of them. The first thing we did was go get our tickets for “The Light in the Piazza”. As we were decided who should go & who should scout out food, I suddenly looked to my left. There was the Angel Moroni! The temple is kitty-corner to the Lincoln Center! I remembered immediately that that was the case, but it was a total shock to look over and see the Angel Moroni!
So, we got the tickets (Good seats! Not cheap!) while the other girls went over to the temple. There is no Visitor’s Center. (Bummer!) Just a meeting house. And they didn’t have any free Book of Mormons (which I think is so odd) but we got some Pass Along Cards.
While we were standing by the temple, trying to figure out where to eat, Shauna had a close encounter with a celebrity. She almost ran directly into Rupert G., the owner of the Hello Deli, who is on Letterman all the time! I only got to see the back of him as he walking down the street.
We went to a Pizzeria down the street (and passed the ABC studio where Regis & Kelly is filmed. I’m really bummed we couldn’t go to that show.) Then it was back to the Met. Our seats for the opera were in the Family Circle. We were way up high. The opera glasses came in very handy. The opera was “Cyranno de Bergerac”. Placído Domingo was playing the title role. He was absolutely amazing! It was so cool to see him in person. The opera was very good. Gorgeous score. It sounded a lot like Puccini, which is probably because the composer is the one who edited “Turandot”. The chorus was HUGE! The Met itself is absolutely gorgeous. Gold, chandeliers. It is so grand! It wasn’t gaudy, though, which is very nice.
We were all so tired that some of the girls fell asleep during the opera. We are just totally wiped out. Sore mostly, but I’m suffering from lack of sleep. Luckily, I can sleep later tomorrow morning. Speaking of...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
We got in early enough last night that I could get everything organized for today. That was nice. Today will be an easier day. We won’t be outside as much. Today is “Culture Day”! But first, some little tidbits I’ve forgotten to write about so far:
HOMELESS MAN ON SUBWAY:
Kinda creepy. Begging for 99 cents to buy a burger to eat, but you couldn’t miss the overwhelming smell of alcohol. I sat there thinking, Lay off the booze, buddy, and you’d have money for food. It was sad. He stood there and talked for like 5 minutes while we all tried not to make eye contact. It’s the only time I have been a little scared the whole time we’ve been here.
OUR NEW CATCH PHRASE:
There are people whose job is to stand on the street and either promote something or just hand out fliers. They are always trying to get our attention. I now just say “No, thank you.” I’ve probably said it about 100 times. I’m actually to the point where I don’t even acknowledge them unless they shove the flier in my face. Then I use my catch phrase, “No, thank you!” This also works with street vendors. We could have bought handbags from a guy on the pier. They were all wrapped up in a big sheet. Something tells me they weren’t going to be real Prada.
ASHLEY’S PHONE CALL:
So, Ben Layman called Ashley on Tuesday to set up an appointment with Bishop Hatch for Wednesday. Instead of calling Ben back, she called Bishop Hatch’s cell phone and left the following message:
Hi, Bishop Hatch. This is Ashley Stieber. Ben Layman wanted me to meet with you tomorrow. I lost his number, so I’m just calling you. Yeah, tomorrow will be fine. I can do it at 10:00 am and you’ll just need to meet me at the Statue of Liberty. Oh, and I’m calling you from the top of the Empire State Building, so that’s why it’s so windy. Okay, see you tomorrow! Bye!
SCARF ENVY:
A homeless woman at Starbucks liked my scarf. Should I feel like a true New Yorker? I’m not sure. Maybe it’s good luck, like if a pigeon poops on you. (Thank heavens THAT hasn’t happened yet. KNOCK ON WOOD!)
And now, my adventures with Al Roker! We got up extra early and were able to make the 7:30 ferry. We got up to the Rockefeller Center to where The Today Show films. There’s this little alleyway across from the skating rink. They film right in the middle and surround the whole place with barriers. There were a lot of people there already by the time we arrived. The prime spot was directly behind the two mini-vans they were doing a segment on. We obviously couldn’t push our way to the front there. Shauna and I ended up just to the left of the revolving door. Great for taking pictures, but only if the crew members didn’t get in the way. When Al Roker came out, just after 9:00, he went straight across. Then he walked along to the left as he was doing the weather. Suddenly, he came right towards us! There were some people with a sign just to our left and he talked to them. I practically leapt in behind them. I’m not sure how long I was on camera, but I was DEFINITELY on TV! I’m hard to miss, too, with my bright green coat and fluorescent hat. We’re not sure if Shauna made it on. We’ll find out from Mom later. We called and had her tape it. Woo hoo! I was on TV!! We stuck around after that, thinking the minivan segment would be next. Half an hour later, after almost freezing solid, we finally got to see Al again. Katie Couric and Matt Lauer didn’t come out, but we saw them through the window. Janice Lieberman did the mini-van segment with Al. I didn’t really know who she was, but the lady to my right knew her and called to her. Janice came over to talk to her and I got a good picture. Better than most of the pictures of Al.
Next we caught the subway to Grand Central Station. It was so cool! Absolutely gorgeous inside. And HUGE!! We then walked a couple of blocks to the United Nations. It is really amazing to see all those flags flying out front. There were some neat sculptures, too. We opted to just take pictures from the outside and then call it good. None of us felt like going through security again, especially when we weren’t sure what we would be able to see.
Our next adventure was hailing a cab. It took forever, but they finally got one to stop. (Shauna and I let the other girls get the cab, since she had figured out the subway.) The cab that stopped was a mini-van, but he could only take 4 passengers. Shauna and I had to get our own, and lo and behold one had parked like 10 feet down the street!
We took the cabs back to Grand Central and ate at their food court. All kinds of food to choose from, but way, WAY too overpriced. And I did not get my money’s worth. My turkey sandwich was a little dry.
Then it was off to the Metropolitan Museum of Art! I’m going to write down cool stuff we see:
-Greek Art, 6th Century BC-An elephant tusk (a huge one!) completely carved with intricate pictures (18th Century Nigeria)
-Mayan carved pillar from 8th Century
-Beautiful works in gold from South America
-A Picasso painting “A Girl Asleep on the Table”
-A tapestry depicting America, commissioned by Louis XVI
-Four panel Screen with views of Vienna (ca. 1820)
-Huge gate in the Medieval Arts Section
-Armory, swords, etc.
-Full Suits of armor
-4 Jousters on horseback
-All types of guns
-Field Armor of King Henry VIII
-An Egyptian Temple
-You can walk inside it! It has “Leonardo 1820" carved in part of it. He must have discovered it.
-Reminded me (a lot!) of Solomon’s Temple
-Lots and lots of Grandfather Clocks
-“Washington Crossing the Delaware” (1851)
-Largest framed painting in the museum.
-Painting commemorates the event; does not recreate it. (Betsy Ross made 1st flag 6 months after the crossing, but there is one in the picture!)
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS:
-Piccolo from 1897
-Ebonite flute-
DRUMS:
-Dadabwaan (Philippines 19th Century)
-Goblet Drum (Burma)
-Slento (Central Java)
-Yunluo (Mongol Yuan Dynasty 1280-1368)
-Tanggu
-Changgo (Korea)
-Kyobanggo (15th Century)
-Kakko (Theatrical Music “Noh” drama, 14th Century)
-Otsuzumi
-Kotsuzumi
-Shimedaiko (THE ONLY NAME I RECOGNIZED!!!!)
-Long Drums (Africa)
-Ngoma ya mukondo (Congo)
-Mukupiela
-Balo Xylophone (West Africa)
-Ngkul (Cameroon)
-Clapperless Iron Bells
-Zarb (Iran - Inscription“When it sounds, it makes everyone in the world happy.”
-Pipe Organ (1830 Boston)
-Gold Harpsichord
-Pedal Harpsichord (1967)
-Oldest of 3 pianos by Bartolomeo Cristofori (1720)
-Original Piano (first with hammer action)
PAINTINGS:
“The Abduction of the Sabine Women” (Poussin)
(“Oh, them women was sobbin’, sobbin’, sobbin’ fit to be tied...”)
“Study for “A Sunday on La Grande Jatte” (Georges Seurat)
-Final study before he made the 7 by 10 foot painting. Seurat’s final painting of “A Sunday...” was done using pointellism (all dots). This was small brush strokes. Watch Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park with George”.
“By the Seashore” (Renoir)
There are so many things to see here! You could spend a week in here and not see it all! AMAZING!!!
We left the museum and needed to get to the Lincoln Center. I felt like my feet were going to burst into flames at any moment. They hurt SO BAD! However, we decided to walk across Central Park. I misread the map and thought it was a straight shot across to the Lincoln Center. Well, no, it was a straight shot across to the Nature & Science Museum. The Lincoln Center was about 15 blocks away. DOH!! We walked for awhile and then decided to hail a cab. Ashley, Guizella, & Steph got one fairly quickly, but Shauna, Diana, & I couldn’t get one. You have to be pretty aggressive to get one. And it was Rush Hour. All the cabs were either taken or off duty. We walked for a ways, and then...lo and behold, a taxi stopped right in front of us and people got out! We pounced instantly and got it.
The Lincoln Center is a complex of theatres. The Met is one of them. The first thing we did was go get our tickets for “The Light in the Piazza”. As we were decided who should go & who should scout out food, I suddenly looked to my left. There was the Angel Moroni! The temple is kitty-corner to the Lincoln Center! I remembered immediately that that was the case, but it was a total shock to look over and see the Angel Moroni!
So, we got the tickets (Good seats! Not cheap!) while the other girls went over to the temple. There is no Visitor’s Center. (Bummer!) Just a meeting house. And they didn’t have any free Book of Mormons (which I think is so odd) but we got some Pass Along Cards.
While we were standing by the temple, trying to figure out where to eat, Shauna had a close encounter with a celebrity. She almost ran directly into Rupert G., the owner of the Hello Deli, who is on Letterman all the time! I only got to see the back of him as he walking down the street.
We went to a Pizzeria down the street (and passed the ABC studio where Regis & Kelly is filmed. I’m really bummed we couldn’t go to that show.) Then it was back to the Met. Our seats for the opera were in the Family Circle. We were way up high. The opera glasses came in very handy. The opera was “Cyranno de Bergerac”. Placído Domingo was playing the title role. He was absolutely amazing! It was so cool to see him in person. The opera was very good. Gorgeous score. It sounded a lot like Puccini, which is probably because the composer is the one who edited “Turandot”. The chorus was HUGE! The Met itself is absolutely gorgeous. Gold, chandeliers. It is so grand! It wasn’t gaudy, though, which is very nice.
We were all so tired that some of the girls fell asleep during the opera. We are just totally wiped out. Sore mostly, but I’m suffering from lack of sleep. Luckily, I can sleep later tomorrow morning. Speaking of...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
New York City Trip: Day 5
Original Post Date: March 17, 2006
St. Patrick’s Day in New York! We slept in this morning, which was so nice! We made the 10:30 ferry after our usual stop at the bakery.
We didn’t take the South Ferry train, because we were going to the Lower East Side. Because of construction, we ended up walking through Battery Park. We got offered Rolexes and handbags. I didn’t make eye contact. I’m getting very good at ignoring pushy vendors. We also saw some guys dressed up like the Statue of Liberty. You’re supposed to get your picture taken with them, but they were a little creepy.
We happened upon a memorial to the World Trade Center. It was a sculpture that had been on the grounds. There was the eternal flame there, too. It was lit on September 11, 2002. If we hadn’t gotten detoured by the construction, we never would have found it!
Our first stop was Chinatown and Little Italy. Well, okay, it’s more like China Big City and Very Little Italy. The boundaries used to be so definite, and not it has blended together. Pretty much, Little Italy is a lot of restaurants.
Shauna and I went off in search of a Hat Shop we had read about that sold Bowler hats. We found the address, but it wasn’t there. So, we were going to take the subway back to Chinatown, but the signs were very confusing. We got on the right train, but it was going in the wrong direction. We didn’t realize this until the train went out of the tunnel and across the Williamsburg Bridge. Whoops! Normally when you get on the wrong train, the next stop isn’t too far away. But, when you have to cross a bridge, it takes o much longer! So, we crossed the river into Queens. Or maybe Brooklyn. I’ll have to check. It was a very lovely station, either way. Then we got on the correct train and went back across the river.
Back in Chinatown, we went down Mulberry Street and saw lots of Italian Restaurants. Boy, they smelled GOOD! We met the girls at a Chinese Restaurant for lunch.
After lunch, it was time to head up to do some shopping. Shauna and I got on the train right away, but the other girls got held up. Ashley has problems with her Metrocard, and it sometimes won’t let her through. So, we got off at the next stop and waited for their train. Luckily we all go together again.
We went to Bloomingdale’s first. What an amazing store! It’s huge and a total maze! Shauna and I just looked around for a bit and then left. There was no way we could afford anything there. When they have a DJ in the jeans department, you are in a super fancy store.
Our next stop was Tiffany’s. On the way, I had my crowning moment of the trip. We were about 2 blocks down the street and these old ladies, probably from England, asked me if Bloomingdale’s was close by. I told them to stay on that street and it would be on their left. They couldn’t miss it. Little did they know that I only knew that because I had just been there myself for the first time. Someone thought I knew where stuff is and I didn’t have to look at a map or say “I’m sorry, I’m not from here.” Yay!!
We got pictures of us having Breakfast at Tiffany’s. We’re such dorks. It was a croissant, and not a pastry like Audrey Hepburn had, but it’s the thought that counts.
We had decided not to go to the St Patrick’s Day parade, but who knew that it lasted all day! It was 3 o’clock and the parade was still going on. It made getting around on the sidewalk very, VERY hard. But we managed. At one point, we were walking along the parade route, in the same direction as the parade, with a marching band. We were in step with them. Without thinking about it. Once a band geek, always a band geek.
We saw the Plaza Hotel. They are in the process of restoring it, so there was scaffolding everywhere. After a little searching (So much construction everywhere!) , we found F.A.O. Schwartz. That was an amazing store! Life-sized stuffed animals, huge toys, the huge piano keyboard (featured in the Tom Hanks movie “Big”). We had to get Emily something, but everything was so expensive. We settled on a bear wearing a robe with “F.A.O. Schwartz on it. We had it shipped directly to her (which cost way too much, but we don’t have room to pack it home.)
Next, we walked along the South edge of Central Park to Carnegie Hall. It is gorgeous! The old architecture in New York is just breathtaking. We would have loved to have seen the inside, but we’re saving all the backstage tours (except “Wicked”, of course) for our next trip.
Then it was time to head back to Time’s Square to meet the girls for dinner. We went to the Hard Rock Café. It was 4 o’clock and really too early for dinner, but it was Friday and St. Patrick’s Day, and we knew we’d never get in later. They told us it would be a 25 - 30 minute wait, and it ended up being 5 minutes. Not bad! The food is so expensive there, so we all split a jumbo platter of appetizers and each had a side dish. And we got dessert.
Then Shauna, Ashley, and I split off and headed to J.C. Penney’s. Okay, that was the lamest J.C. Penney’s ever. They have very few things on display and then computers everywhere that you can use to order online. Lame! Then we went to the “Spirit of Broadway” store. It was packed full of souvenirs. Some cheap, some tacky, others good. Lots of funny t-shirts.
Next we headed uptown to the Lincoln Center. We wandered around a bit; tried to find the Julliard Bookstore but couldn’t. We killed time until we could get into the show I just HAD to see in New York: “The Light in the Piazza”. That show is the most gorgeous piece of theatre that I have seen in a long time. Years, even. Beautiful score by Adam Guettel, grandson of Richard Rodgers. The set was breathtaking. The show was...WOW! Amazing. Victoria Clark played the lead. (She was the original Alice Beane in “Titanic”, so I’ve loved her forever!) She won the Tony for this role. What a performer! WOW!!! We were so glad we went tonight and not Wednesday. She doesn’t do the show on Tuesdays and Wednesday nights. I’ve heard her understudy is fantastic (She plays Senora Nacarrelli. She was wonderful in that role.), but I only wanted to see Victoria. Bonus that Chris Sarandon (Prince Humperdink in “The Princess Bride” was Senor Nacarrelli) and Giuseppe was played by the guy we saw as Bill in “Kiss Me Kate” that was on PBS. Michael Berresse. He’s an amazing dancer and very funny.
I just can’t get over how incredible that show was. It’s been a long time since I have seen a show I knew practically nothing about. (I kind of knew the story and I had heard only 2 songs.) I cried at the end, of course. Now, normally when I cry at a show, I get over it, wipe my eyes and I’m done. This one had me choked up. I was trying to talk to Shauna and Ashley, and I sounded like I was going to cry again! Crazy!! I can’t wait to see this show again! The tour is coming to Denver!!
Saw some interesting people on the subway and ferry on the way home, but I need to go to bed! Tomorrow is a long day. I don’t think I’m going to bed at all tomorrow, so we can see another show!
St. Patrick’s Day in New York! We slept in this morning, which was so nice! We made the 10:30 ferry after our usual stop at the bakery.
We didn’t take the South Ferry train, because we were going to the Lower East Side. Because of construction, we ended up walking through Battery Park. We got offered Rolexes and handbags. I didn’t make eye contact. I’m getting very good at ignoring pushy vendors. We also saw some guys dressed up like the Statue of Liberty. You’re supposed to get your picture taken with them, but they were a little creepy.
We happened upon a memorial to the World Trade Center. It was a sculpture that had been on the grounds. There was the eternal flame there, too. It was lit on September 11, 2002. If we hadn’t gotten detoured by the construction, we never would have found it!
Our first stop was Chinatown and Little Italy. Well, okay, it’s more like China Big City and Very Little Italy. The boundaries used to be so definite, and not it has blended together. Pretty much, Little Italy is a lot of restaurants.
Shauna and I went off in search of a Hat Shop we had read about that sold Bowler hats. We found the address, but it wasn’t there. So, we were going to take the subway back to Chinatown, but the signs were very confusing. We got on the right train, but it was going in the wrong direction. We didn’t realize this until the train went out of the tunnel and across the Williamsburg Bridge. Whoops! Normally when you get on the wrong train, the next stop isn’t too far away. But, when you have to cross a bridge, it takes o much longer! So, we crossed the river into Queens. Or maybe Brooklyn. I’ll have to check. It was a very lovely station, either way. Then we got on the correct train and went back across the river.
Back in Chinatown, we went down Mulberry Street and saw lots of Italian Restaurants. Boy, they smelled GOOD! We met the girls at a Chinese Restaurant for lunch.
After lunch, it was time to head up to do some shopping. Shauna and I got on the train right away, but the other girls got held up. Ashley has problems with her Metrocard, and it sometimes won’t let her through. So, we got off at the next stop and waited for their train. Luckily we all go together again.
We went to Bloomingdale’s first. What an amazing store! It’s huge and a total maze! Shauna and I just looked around for a bit and then left. There was no way we could afford anything there. When they have a DJ in the jeans department, you are in a super fancy store.
Our next stop was Tiffany’s. On the way, I had my crowning moment of the trip. We were about 2 blocks down the street and these old ladies, probably from England, asked me if Bloomingdale’s was close by. I told them to stay on that street and it would be on their left. They couldn’t miss it. Little did they know that I only knew that because I had just been there myself for the first time. Someone thought I knew where stuff is and I didn’t have to look at a map or say “I’m sorry, I’m not from here.” Yay!!
We got pictures of us having Breakfast at Tiffany’s. We’re such dorks. It was a croissant, and not a pastry like Audrey Hepburn had, but it’s the thought that counts.
We had decided not to go to the St Patrick’s Day parade, but who knew that it lasted all day! It was 3 o’clock and the parade was still going on. It made getting around on the sidewalk very, VERY hard. But we managed. At one point, we were walking along the parade route, in the same direction as the parade, with a marching band. We were in step with them. Without thinking about it. Once a band geek, always a band geek.
We saw the Plaza Hotel. They are in the process of restoring it, so there was scaffolding everywhere. After a little searching (So much construction everywhere!) , we found F.A.O. Schwartz. That was an amazing store! Life-sized stuffed animals, huge toys, the huge piano keyboard (featured in the Tom Hanks movie “Big”). We had to get Emily something, but everything was so expensive. We settled on a bear wearing a robe with “F.A.O. Schwartz on it. We had it shipped directly to her (which cost way too much, but we don’t have room to pack it home.)
Next, we walked along the South edge of Central Park to Carnegie Hall. It is gorgeous! The old architecture in New York is just breathtaking. We would have loved to have seen the inside, but we’re saving all the backstage tours (except “Wicked”, of course) for our next trip.
Then it was time to head back to Time’s Square to meet the girls for dinner. We went to the Hard Rock Café. It was 4 o’clock and really too early for dinner, but it was Friday and St. Patrick’s Day, and we knew we’d never get in later. They told us it would be a 25 - 30 minute wait, and it ended up being 5 minutes. Not bad! The food is so expensive there, so we all split a jumbo platter of appetizers and each had a side dish. And we got dessert.
Then Shauna, Ashley, and I split off and headed to J.C. Penney’s. Okay, that was the lamest J.C. Penney’s ever. They have very few things on display and then computers everywhere that you can use to order online. Lame! Then we went to the “Spirit of Broadway” store. It was packed full of souvenirs. Some cheap, some tacky, others good. Lots of funny t-shirts.
Next we headed uptown to the Lincoln Center. We wandered around a bit; tried to find the Julliard Bookstore but couldn’t. We killed time until we could get into the show I just HAD to see in New York: “The Light in the Piazza”. That show is the most gorgeous piece of theatre that I have seen in a long time. Years, even. Beautiful score by Adam Guettel, grandson of Richard Rodgers. The set was breathtaking. The show was...WOW! Amazing. Victoria Clark played the lead. (She was the original Alice Beane in “Titanic”, so I’ve loved her forever!) She won the Tony for this role. What a performer! WOW!!! We were so glad we went tonight and not Wednesday. She doesn’t do the show on Tuesdays and Wednesday nights. I’ve heard her understudy is fantastic (She plays Senora Nacarrelli. She was wonderful in that role.), but I only wanted to see Victoria. Bonus that Chris Sarandon (Prince Humperdink in “The Princess Bride” was Senor Nacarrelli) and Giuseppe was played by the guy we saw as Bill in “Kiss Me Kate” that was on PBS. Michael Berresse. He’s an amazing dancer and very funny.
I just can’t get over how incredible that show was. It’s been a long time since I have seen a show I knew practically nothing about. (I kind of knew the story and I had heard only 2 songs.) I cried at the end, of course. Now, normally when I cry at a show, I get over it, wipe my eyes and I’m done. This one had me choked up. I was trying to talk to Shauna and Ashley, and I sounded like I was going to cry again! Crazy!! I can’t wait to see this show again! The tour is coming to Denver!!
Saw some interesting people on the subway and ferry on the way home, but I need to go to bed! Tomorrow is a long day. I don’t think I’m going to bed at all tomorrow, so we can see another show!
New York City Trip: Day 6
Original Post Date: March 18, 2006
Our last day here! How sad! We only have 24 hours left in New York City. Now, about the interesting people we saw yesterday:
In Chinatown, people would walk right up to you, practically right in your face, and say something about DVDs. I guess they were selling either cheap DVDs or Black Market ones. I just ignored them completely. (The first guy that did that to me, I couldn’t understand a word he was saying!)
On our “Oops” trip across the Williamsburg Bridge, there were some Orthodox Jews sitting right in front of us. A mother and two cute little boys. The boys both had the long hair in the front. And all three looked straight out of “Fiddler on the Roof.”
Since it was St Patrick’s Day, there were tons of extra people around. It seemed like most were large groups of annoying high school students. All they did was act obnoxious and show off. I just wanted to slap them. But I ignored them.
Once we found the parade, there were spots along the route where everyone was nicely watching the parade. But other spots, especially in front of the General Motors building, the sidewalk was just packed! And some people were already drunk. So much fun to navigate that mess.
A nice, older man took our picture by Carnegie Hall. And he didn’t try to steal the camera! Nice guy!
On the train home after “Piazza”, this group got on and this one blonde girl was incredibly obnoxious. She was so annoying. Reason #10321 not to drink. She’d had a few too many and thought she was the life of the party. (I think all people who’ve had “a few too man” should someday have to sit down and watch a video of every time they acted obnoxious while drunk. And be able to hear the thoughts of the people who witnessed it.) I just pretended to be asleep.
On the ferry, a scruffy looking man got on and sat near us. First he was going on about a murderer and the woman sitting by him was going to kill him, so we’d better watch his back. Then he announced that he was Jesus and wanted to let us know that he was down among the people. Hmm...that’s interesting. I got a little nervous at that point, but he quieted down after that.
There was a firefighter riding along in the cab we took from the ferry. Not sure why he was there. He was taking to us and couldn’t figure out why we would spend our Spring Break in New York City. Or why we were going home so early. (It was midnight!) He told us about a bar close by. No thanks, buddy.
WICKED “BEHIND THE EMERALD CURTAIN” BACKSTAGE TOUR:
Tour Guides: Sean McCort (Dr. Dillamond/Elphaba’s Father) & Anthony (Swing)
Costumes –
Asymmetrical (ensemble)
Symmetrical (principals)
Elphie & Glinda’s go from asymmetrical to symmetrical during the show
Costumes are first made in muslin, because it’s cheaper
Shoes are custom made
Everyone has their own costume; not shared by understudies/swings
Costumes designed specifically for each cast member – reflect their personality
The show made $1.6 million in one week. The show costs about $700,000 a week.
$35,000 for Glinda’s blue dress. Took 3 months to make
$1500 - $3500 for one pair of shoes
Idina’s dress - everyone looks amazing in the dress. Dimension/depth. Yards of fabric. It’s not just all black. There are many colors in it!
Masks - each built specific
Real human hair, several people’s hair in Midwife’s mask
Props–
letters all look real, have the actual writing
“Oz Week Magazine”
Scale model of Gershwin used in model of set
72 line sets and that’s not enough!
100 foot pipes
At intermission, they take down draperies and switch to Act 2 ones
Rehearsal every Thursday and Friday
Eddie Pierce - Technical Director
14 truck tour
90 wigs
Universal swings–
Know all roles in NY, Chicago, & Tour
Gershwin Theatre built in 1972
1805 seats (1933 total seats)
Percussion room
Percussionist wears a hat with a mic on it
Harpist room
One orchestra member is 70 years old. His first show was “The Music Man” with Robert Preston.
½ inch per foot rake
Stage is about 2 ½ feet higher than Gershwin floor at upstage line
Dog – reverse clothespin.
Sleeve in back of scenery. Knife goes inside sleeve to put set on the track.
“Knifing the Dog”
30 foot light towers – fly out during scene changes
4250 light bulbs, 19 miles of cable, 1,900,000 watts
Stage manager in the house! Above exit sign, house left balcony.
Show is called with music.
750 electric cues
32 cues before 1st line of dialogue
Rotate SMs – max 4 shows in a week
125 people make the show work
Computerized lights in “Defying Gravity” are rented. Probably $100,000 a week.
Shauna stumps the tour guide!
“How many people did it take to build the set, and how long did it take?”
They didn’t know! They knew it was built all over the world in different shops, and took about 9 months.
*This certifies that Angela paid up on the $5 bet*
Wow, that tour was absolutely amazing! So much goes into make that show work. So cool!
Once we left the Gershwin, we split up again. Shauna and I had lunch at Applebee’s. Our justification in going to restaurant that we have at home is this: A) It’s in Times Square. B) It is the largest Applebee’s in the world. So there.
Next we went to Colony Music. That store is chock FULL of sheet music & music books. Racks and racks worth. I could have bought half the store.
We went to the Hershey’s store next. I was a good girl and did not buy any chocolate. I did, however, drool over all the kinds of chocolate they had there. Huge variety. I bought a stuffed Hershey’s Kiss dressed up like the Statue of Liberty.
We are now at the Time’s Square Information Center. We had to get out of the wind. It’s so cold outside today!!
Okay, I just did the dumbest thing I have ever done in my life. I stood in line for over and hour to get discount tickets. I was frozen solid by the time the line even started moving. The wind was so cold. It just cut right through me!! The lamest thing is that Shauna left to go to the Post Office and showed up about 10 minutes before they started selling tickets. Lame! She’s standing in line next time and I’m taking off!
All that standing in line and we only got 35% off our last choice show. Shauna, Ashley, and I are seeing “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” and Guizella and Steph are seeing “Drumstruck”. Diana is going home early.
We probably could have gotten in to some of our other choices, but we just had to try TKTS. I’ll never stand in line again for that. It’s not worth the discount (unless it’s 50% off.)
I’m just barely thawing out now. We’re back in the Times Square Visitors Center. Compared to the windy outdoors, this place is heaven!
We had dinner at TGI Fridays, after locating the theatre where “Drumstruck” is at. Then we split up. Shauna, Ashley, and I went to see the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Oh, my gosh that made me feel poor when we walked through the lobby. It is so extravagant!! Cole Porter’s piano is in the lobby. That’s pretty cool.
We’re now at Starbucks across the street, killing time until we need to go to the theatre. I AM SO TIRED!!!
First of all, the Imperial Theatre is absolutely gorgeous. It’s so elegant! Huge chandeliers, beautiful molding.
“Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” was so funny! It’s great to see actors genuinely having fun onstage. We got to see several well known actors. Norbert Leo Butz, for one. He won the Tony for that role, and it was obvious why. He was amazing! So much energy! (Norbert was the original Fiyero in “Wicked”.) We also saw Jonathan Pryce. What an honor to see such a wonderful actor. He was the original Engineer in “Miss Saigon”. He also played Governor Swan in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies. He is SUCH a good actor! An absolute joy! We were most excited, however, about seeing Rachel York. We’ve seen her on video playing Lili/Katherine in “Kiss Me Kate” and on TV playing Lucille Ball in the movie “Lucy”. She is also on Shauna’s “Scarlet Pimpernel Encore” CD. She is so cool! She was fantastic! The show has some questionable stuff and got a little vulgar, but overall was a super funny show.
Our last day here! How sad! We only have 24 hours left in New York City. Now, about the interesting people we saw yesterday:
In Chinatown, people would walk right up to you, practically right in your face, and say something about DVDs. I guess they were selling either cheap DVDs or Black Market ones. I just ignored them completely. (The first guy that did that to me, I couldn’t understand a word he was saying!)
On our “Oops” trip across the Williamsburg Bridge, there were some Orthodox Jews sitting right in front of us. A mother and two cute little boys. The boys both had the long hair in the front. And all three looked straight out of “Fiddler on the Roof.”
Since it was St Patrick’s Day, there were tons of extra people around. It seemed like most were large groups of annoying high school students. All they did was act obnoxious and show off. I just wanted to slap them. But I ignored them.
Once we found the parade, there were spots along the route where everyone was nicely watching the parade. But other spots, especially in front of the General Motors building, the sidewalk was just packed! And some people were already drunk. So much fun to navigate that mess.
A nice, older man took our picture by Carnegie Hall. And he didn’t try to steal the camera! Nice guy!
On the train home after “Piazza”, this group got on and this one blonde girl was incredibly obnoxious. She was so annoying. Reason #10321 not to drink. She’d had a few too many and thought she was the life of the party. (I think all people who’ve had “a few too man” should someday have to sit down and watch a video of every time they acted obnoxious while drunk. And be able to hear the thoughts of the people who witnessed it.) I just pretended to be asleep.
On the ferry, a scruffy looking man got on and sat near us. First he was going on about a murderer and the woman sitting by him was going to kill him, so we’d better watch his back. Then he announced that he was Jesus and wanted to let us know that he was down among the people. Hmm...that’s interesting. I got a little nervous at that point, but he quieted down after that.
There was a firefighter riding along in the cab we took from the ferry. Not sure why he was there. He was taking to us and couldn’t figure out why we would spend our Spring Break in New York City. Or why we were going home so early. (It was midnight!) He told us about a bar close by. No thanks, buddy.
WICKED “BEHIND THE EMERALD CURTAIN” BACKSTAGE TOUR:
Tour Guides: Sean McCort (Dr. Dillamond/Elphaba’s Father) & Anthony (Swing)
Costumes –
Asymmetrical (ensemble)
Symmetrical (principals)
Elphie & Glinda’s go from asymmetrical to symmetrical during the show
Costumes are first made in muslin, because it’s cheaper
Shoes are custom made
Everyone has their own costume; not shared by understudies/swings
Costumes designed specifically for each cast member – reflect their personality
The show made $1.6 million in one week. The show costs about $700,000 a week.
$35,000 for Glinda’s blue dress. Took 3 months to make
$1500 - $3500 for one pair of shoes
Idina’s dress - everyone looks amazing in the dress. Dimension/depth. Yards of fabric. It’s not just all black. There are many colors in it!
Masks - each built specific
Real human hair, several people’s hair in Midwife’s mask
Props–
letters all look real, have the actual writing
“Oz Week Magazine”
Scale model of Gershwin used in model of set
72 line sets and that’s not enough!
100 foot pipes
At intermission, they take down draperies and switch to Act 2 ones
Rehearsal every Thursday and Friday
Eddie Pierce - Technical Director
14 truck tour
90 wigs
Universal swings–
Know all roles in NY, Chicago, & Tour
Gershwin Theatre built in 1972
1805 seats (1933 total seats)
Percussion room
Percussionist wears a hat with a mic on it
Harpist room
One orchestra member is 70 years old. His first show was “The Music Man” with Robert Preston.
½ inch per foot rake
Stage is about 2 ½ feet higher than Gershwin floor at upstage line
Dog – reverse clothespin.
Sleeve in back of scenery. Knife goes inside sleeve to put set on the track.
“Knifing the Dog”
30 foot light towers – fly out during scene changes
4250 light bulbs, 19 miles of cable, 1,900,000 watts
Stage manager in the house! Above exit sign, house left balcony.
Show is called with music.
750 electric cues
32 cues before 1st line of dialogue
Rotate SMs – max 4 shows in a week
125 people make the show work
Computerized lights in “Defying Gravity” are rented. Probably $100,000 a week.
Shauna stumps the tour guide!
“How many people did it take to build the set, and how long did it take?”
They didn’t know! They knew it was built all over the world in different shops, and took about 9 months.
*This certifies that Angela paid up on the $5 bet*
Wow, that tour was absolutely amazing! So much goes into make that show work. So cool!
Once we left the Gershwin, we split up again. Shauna and I had lunch at Applebee’s. Our justification in going to restaurant that we have at home is this: A) It’s in Times Square. B) It is the largest Applebee’s in the world. So there.
Next we went to Colony Music. That store is chock FULL of sheet music & music books. Racks and racks worth. I could have bought half the store.
We went to the Hershey’s store next. I was a good girl and did not buy any chocolate. I did, however, drool over all the kinds of chocolate they had there. Huge variety. I bought a stuffed Hershey’s Kiss dressed up like the Statue of Liberty.
We are now at the Time’s Square Information Center. We had to get out of the wind. It’s so cold outside today!!
Okay, I just did the dumbest thing I have ever done in my life. I stood in line for over and hour to get discount tickets. I was frozen solid by the time the line even started moving. The wind was so cold. It just cut right through me!! The lamest thing is that Shauna left to go to the Post Office and showed up about 10 minutes before they started selling tickets. Lame! She’s standing in line next time and I’m taking off!
All that standing in line and we only got 35% off our last choice show. Shauna, Ashley, and I are seeing “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” and Guizella and Steph are seeing “Drumstruck”. Diana is going home early.
We probably could have gotten in to some of our other choices, but we just had to try TKTS. I’ll never stand in line again for that. It’s not worth the discount (unless it’s 50% off.)
I’m just barely thawing out now. We’re back in the Times Square Visitors Center. Compared to the windy outdoors, this place is heaven!
We had dinner at TGI Fridays, after locating the theatre where “Drumstruck” is at. Then we split up. Shauna, Ashley, and I went to see the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Oh, my gosh that made me feel poor when we walked through the lobby. It is so extravagant!! Cole Porter’s piano is in the lobby. That’s pretty cool.
We’re now at Starbucks across the street, killing time until we need to go to the theatre. I AM SO TIRED!!!
First of all, the Imperial Theatre is absolutely gorgeous. It’s so elegant! Huge chandeliers, beautiful molding.
“Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” was so funny! It’s great to see actors genuinely having fun onstage. We got to see several well known actors. Norbert Leo Butz, for one. He won the Tony for that role, and it was obvious why. He was amazing! So much energy! (Norbert was the original Fiyero in “Wicked”.) We also saw Jonathan Pryce. What an honor to see such a wonderful actor. He was the original Engineer in “Miss Saigon”. He also played Governor Swan in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies. He is SUCH a good actor! An absolute joy! We were most excited, however, about seeing Rachel York. We’ve seen her on video playing Lili/Katherine in “Kiss Me Kate” and on TV playing Lucille Ball in the movie “Lucy”. She is also on Shauna’s “Scarlet Pimpernel Encore” CD. She is so cool! She was fantastic! The show has some questionable stuff and got a little vulgar, but overall was a super funny show.
New York City Trip: Day 7
Original Post Date: March 19, 2007
We went back to the house and packed up as quick as we could. The taxis came at 1:30 am, and we are now on the ferry back to Manhattan. I can see the Statue of Liberty out the windows to my left. We have to take the subway to Queens and then catch a bus to the airport. We weren’t sure how long it will take, so we aren’t taking any chances. We can’t check in at the airport until 5:00, so we may be sleeping on the floor for awhile before then.
I fell asleep on the subway. All of the sudden it was our stop, and it hadn’t seemed long enough. It only took about half an hour to get from the south end of Manhattan to Astoria, Queens. Once we got off, however, at Astoria, and got all the way down all the sets of stairs with our suitcases, and then found the bus stop...we discovered that the next bus wasn’t coming until 4:20. It was 3:20. And it was freaking cold. And there was a bar or nightclub or something across the street. Taxi, anyone? And me, the only one with cash left. But we got two taxis and headed to the airport. That’s where we are now, sitting in the food court close to the American Airlines check-in desk. I’ve now been awake for almost 23 hours straight and I’m not really thinking straight anymore. I’m surprised I can write.
I finally have had my random celebrity siting. Now, granted, it was a celebrity I had seen before, but it was still random. We were sitting at our gate at LaGuardia and our flight was about to board. The people next to me started talking about seeing Al Roker down the concourse. The mom went to go see and I watched how far she went. When I saw it wasn’t far, I got up and sauntered over. Sure enough, Al Roker was standing in line for food. I pretended to check out the menu while really checking to make sure it was Al Roker. Sure enough, it was! I went back to my seat, satisfied with my celebrity siting. Well, it got better! When I stood up to wait to board the plane, I kind of watched the concourse to see if he would walk by. A minute later, I saw him carrying just coffee. I had seen him with luggage earlier. Suddenly, he turned around and reappeared about 10 seconds later with his luggage. I almost laughed out loud. How would that be for Al Roker to get his bags confiscated (and maybe destroyed) by leaving them unattended at the airport!
I slept most of the way to Chicago. Not very comfortably, I might add. I’m thoroughly exhausted.
I can’t believe our trip to New York is almost over! I’m so tired and I just want to go home, but I’m so sad that we have to leave. It’s been SUCH a fun week!! I can hardly wait to come back to New York again. I didn’t like the huge crowds or standing in lines, but the vibe of the city is just so cool!!
I don’t think I could ever live in New York City. There are so many amazing things about it that I wouldn’t want to become blasé about. I wouldn’t mind not having to drive, though. The traffic is insane! Thousands of people on foot and thousands of cars, trucks, taxis, and busses. I was amazed when we’d hear a siren and the fire trucks would be able to weave through all the cars.
I was amazed at all the different people, too. You’d hear one language, then another. Some we could figure out, other were totally unrecognizable. Some people looked right out of another century, like the Orthodox Jews on the subway. So many different kinds of people. If the United States is a melting pot, then New York City is a very thick, concentrated stew. It gets diluted in other parts of the country. Colorado is a thin soup compared to New York City. (Okay, the food analogy is making me hungry!)
Some classic New York staples I saw: pigeons, street vendors, guys selling handbags, watches, etc., homeless people, and I think I saw a tiny cockroach in the rest room at LaGuardia. I did not, however, see a rat. Nor did I get mugged. And I didn’t see anyone peeing in the subway. (I’m not sad about missing out on any of that, by the way.) I do have to say, though, that it wasn’t cool when we finally figured out the subway and then they changed it for the weekend. That was lame!! We never did figure out the bus system. Maybe next time!
We made it home safely. Everyone’s luggage got home safely, too. It’s weird being back in Colorado. It rained a little on the way to Greeley from the airport. I’m so glad it didn’t rain on us in New York.
The week seems almost like a dream now. We had a fabulous time! I can’t wait to go back!
THE END!!!!!
We went back to the house and packed up as quick as we could. The taxis came at 1:30 am, and we are now on the ferry back to Manhattan. I can see the Statue of Liberty out the windows to my left. We have to take the subway to Queens and then catch a bus to the airport. We weren’t sure how long it will take, so we aren’t taking any chances. We can’t check in at the airport until 5:00, so we may be sleeping on the floor for awhile before then.
I fell asleep on the subway. All of the sudden it was our stop, and it hadn’t seemed long enough. It only took about half an hour to get from the south end of Manhattan to Astoria, Queens. Once we got off, however, at Astoria, and got all the way down all the sets of stairs with our suitcases, and then found the bus stop...we discovered that the next bus wasn’t coming until 4:20. It was 3:20. And it was freaking cold. And there was a bar or nightclub or something across the street. Taxi, anyone? And me, the only one with cash left. But we got two taxis and headed to the airport. That’s where we are now, sitting in the food court close to the American Airlines check-in desk. I’ve now been awake for almost 23 hours straight and I’m not really thinking straight anymore. I’m surprised I can write.
I finally have had my random celebrity siting. Now, granted, it was a celebrity I had seen before, but it was still random. We were sitting at our gate at LaGuardia and our flight was about to board. The people next to me started talking about seeing Al Roker down the concourse. The mom went to go see and I watched how far she went. When I saw it wasn’t far, I got up and sauntered over. Sure enough, Al Roker was standing in line for food. I pretended to check out the menu while really checking to make sure it was Al Roker. Sure enough, it was! I went back to my seat, satisfied with my celebrity siting. Well, it got better! When I stood up to wait to board the plane, I kind of watched the concourse to see if he would walk by. A minute later, I saw him carrying just coffee. I had seen him with luggage earlier. Suddenly, he turned around and reappeared about 10 seconds later with his luggage. I almost laughed out loud. How would that be for Al Roker to get his bags confiscated (and maybe destroyed) by leaving them unattended at the airport!
I slept most of the way to Chicago. Not very comfortably, I might add. I’m thoroughly exhausted.
I can’t believe our trip to New York is almost over! I’m so tired and I just want to go home, but I’m so sad that we have to leave. It’s been SUCH a fun week!! I can hardly wait to come back to New York again. I didn’t like the huge crowds or standing in lines, but the vibe of the city is just so cool!!
I don’t think I could ever live in New York City. There are so many amazing things about it that I wouldn’t want to become blasé about. I wouldn’t mind not having to drive, though. The traffic is insane! Thousands of people on foot and thousands of cars, trucks, taxis, and busses. I was amazed when we’d hear a siren and the fire trucks would be able to weave through all the cars.
I was amazed at all the different people, too. You’d hear one language, then another. Some we could figure out, other were totally unrecognizable. Some people looked right out of another century, like the Orthodox Jews on the subway. So many different kinds of people. If the United States is a melting pot, then New York City is a very thick, concentrated stew. It gets diluted in other parts of the country. Colorado is a thin soup compared to New York City. (Okay, the food analogy is making me hungry!)
Some classic New York staples I saw: pigeons, street vendors, guys selling handbags, watches, etc., homeless people, and I think I saw a tiny cockroach in the rest room at LaGuardia. I did not, however, see a rat. Nor did I get mugged. And I didn’t see anyone peeing in the subway. (I’m not sad about missing out on any of that, by the way.) I do have to say, though, that it wasn’t cool when we finally figured out the subway and then they changed it for the weekend. That was lame!! We never did figure out the bus system. Maybe next time!
We made it home safely. Everyone’s luggage got home safely, too. It’s weird being back in Colorado. It rained a little on the way to Greeley from the airport. I’m so glad it didn’t rain on us in New York.
The week seems almost like a dream now. We had a fabulous time! I can’t wait to go back!
THE END!!!!!
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