Part 3 - NYC!
How could I be so close to New York City and not visit for a few days? Impossible! I love NYC and haven't come close to doing and seeing it all. So Cindy and I said good bye to the Theta's and the yurts and hopped a train to Grand Central station.
Top left - beautiful Grand Central Station where we got off our train and were able to jump right over to the subway and head to our apartment on the lower east side - pictured on the bottom. A great room, bathroom and a small kitchen - perfect!!
We got settled and then realized we needed to grab a tiny bite to eat before heading to Brooklyn to have dinner with Tom and Anna. I used Yelp to locate a good sandwich close to us and we both laughed when it recommended a spot literally right next door to the apartment!
The Lower East Side Kitchen and typical for the neighborhood, had seating for about 10 people. We shared a turkey burger and it was great!
We hopped the F train to Brooklyn and made our way to see Tom's new apartment. Loved it! A really great neighborhood called Park Slope and he has a nice one bedroom with a beautiful rooftop patio with a spectacular view of Manhattan.
We love NY!!
Anna arrived from Manhattan and we headed over for dinner to a place Tom thought we would like called Lot 2. On Sunday evening they offer a Prix Fixe dinner that includes salad, entree and dessert served family style. Choice of one but they do have a vegetarian option also. We all loved it!
Delicious salad, flank steak & broccoli with rice and a vegetarian option of fried rice with veggies. Caramel brownies for dessert - Yumm!
On Monday Cindy and I were up early as we had tickets to visit the 911 Memorial and Museum. That's something I have wanted to do and just never planned far enough ahead to do it. You can purchase tickets 90 days in advance and there are only so many sold for each day. You can take a chance and try and buy one day of but if you have a date I recommend buying in advance so you know you will get in. We followed Tom's directions for which train to take and ended up in exactly the right spot to be on time for our slot!
The weather was perfect - I couldn't help but remember that the weather on 9/11/01 was exactly the same.
There are 2 beautiful pools that have the names of the victims carved into the marble surrounding them at the entrance to the former twin towers location. I will admit I have dragged my feet a bit to visit this place. That horrific day is etched into all our minds and hearts - and I knew that it would be a tough morning. It definitely was - but I'm so glad we went. So much time and thoughtfulness has been put into making it a meaningful experience - not just focusing on the events of the day - but of the lives and individuals that died that day. 2,983 people were killed between the attacks of 2001 and 1993 and my favorite piece was a huge wall that had 2,983 blue squares to remember each person - and every single square was a different shade. So meaningful.
No Day Shall Erase You From The Memory Of Time. Virgil
We spent almost 3 hours there - there is a lot of different parts to see, but we both felt like we needed to wrap it up. But we were both so glad we got to see it.
Top left - The Vesey St. Stairs called the "Survivors Stairs" because they provided an unobstructed but dangerous exit for hundreds seeking to escape. Top right - The "Last Column" supported the South Tower and was the last piece removed from the wreckage.
Next up a little lunch. One of my favorite places to grab a great sandwich in NYC is Lennies. They have multiple locations and we easily found one close by.
Grilled chicken - the sandwiches are big so best to share one - which we did!
We jumped on the subway and headed to the west side - first stop - the Chelsea St Market.
The Food Network is right above the market! It's a great place where you can get just about anything to eat.
Next stop The Highline. Located on the west side it's an old train track that has been converted to a public space above the city. Originally built in 1934, the last train ran in 1980. The Highline opened in stages from 2009 to 2014 and is a very cool park like space that has gardens and artwork. And Cindy shared with me that her niece was involved in the design of the space!
Beautiful views of the city and Hudson River.
What's a day in NYC without stopping at a museum? So we headed to one of my favorites - The Whitney Museum of American Art. The building alone is worth seeing - and it's filled with spectacular art. It has a number of outside patio's offering wonderful views of the city and Hudson River.
Bottom left - Andy Warhol, Bottom middle - Statue of Liberty off in the distance, Bottom right - Carmen Herrera special exhibit.
That was a full day of sites so we headed to meet Tom for dinner at a restaurant in Chelsea called Westville. A great little local place that specializes in vegetables - which Tom knows I love! It didn't disappoint.
My entree was all veggies! Brussel sprouts, green beans, zucchini & tomatoes, and cauliflower. All deliciously prepared.
Tuesday we started off with a great breakfast at one of the most popular and hard to get into spots in Manhattan. The Clinton St Baking Company is rated as having the best pancakes in town - and walking distance from our apartment! There can be as much as a two hour wait to get in, but I was happy to see when we arrived that they had expanded and taken over the space next door - so we got right in! And the food was as good as I remembered!
Blueberry pancakes and eggs with grits and fried green tomatoes - both great!
We had a small window of time to do a little shopping in Soho so along the way I was able to point out to Cindy a few well known places.
Katz's Deli - famous scene from the movie "When Harry Met Sally," Russ & Daughters - great bagels! Crazy fruit in Chinatown and dog walker with his hands full.
We did get to shop - mostly at Uniqlo and ended up getting some great deals on clothes for fall. Then we hopped on the train and headed up to the Upper East Side to see The Solomon Guggenheim Museum. Cindy and I both were anxious to visit because the building architect was Frank Lloyd Wright- who's home and studio is In Oak Park, IL. It's a really interesting building both inside and out.
Located at 89th and 5th Ave. Interesting art inside too!
Is it a visit to NY without stopping at The Metropolitan Museum of Art? I don't think so! I love the Met! It's huge and I can best compare it to the Louve in Paris. Such a beautiful building and packed with extensive collections of art of every genre. Tom told us not to miss the rooftop bar for a spectacular view of Central Park and the city so we headed there first and he was correct.
Looking out over Central Park!
The Metropolitan Museum of Art - inside and out!
We browsed through a few areas - spending most of our time seeing the extensive Impressionist collection. But then decided to take a walk through Central Park since the weather was perfect.
A musician playing in almost every tunnel.
We came out of the park right at The Plaza Hotel so decided to take a peek inside. Gorgeous!! Who hasn't seen Home Alone Two which is set there!
Central Park carriage and inside the Plaza.
We were heading to Times Square and decided to browse down 5th Avenue and do a little window shopping. I definitely can't afford real shopping there!
Windows at Bendel's - as entertaining as Christmas! And 30 Rock statue.
This was my final night so we had purchased tickets to see The Color Purple on Broadway. Tom and Anna were meeting us and we were all really looking forward to seeing it. The reviews were great but we were all totally blown away by the emotion and the talent of the performers. At one point when the lead female was singing the audience spontaneously gave her a standing ovation - I have never seen that ever happen! It brought many people in the audience to tears - us included. I can't say enough great things about it!
Cindy and Anna waiting to go in. Times Square!
It was almost time to leave - I hated to have to say good bye to Tom and Anna. We headed for a night cap at a very cool swanky place called The Tavern on 51 right off 5th Avenue.
Dark wood paneling and low lighting - just like in the movies.
Another great trip in the books - and it was so much fun to share one of my favorite cities with Cindy, spend time with Tom, and meet Anna! Thanks to all 3 of you for making it so memorable!!