This past weekend in NYC was a birthday present. My sister and I decided that this is how we would celebrate ’cause our birthdays are only 12 days apart. GOOD IDEA!!!
We left Friday morning, late. We drove through the mountains… correction, my sister drove and I knit.
The weather was beautiful for driving. We even stopped at this little airfield in the mountains and had a snack.
We parked the car in Poughkeepsie and took the train in. Check out this train station… well, it’s actually the restaurant near the station (in the same “square”).
The packs that we brought were hiker’s packs. We even brought our rubber boots. I hate wet feet and they were calling for rain on Friday and Saturday. I realize we may have looked a little stupid walking around Manhattan with backpacks and rubber boots but, who cares when you’re having a blast with your little sis.
You already saw pics (in my last post) of Grand Central Station at just about 5:30 on a Friday… well, try getting a cab to take you the 55 blocks to the apartment we were staying in.
About an hour later, we managed to get one of those black (fancy – which just means expensive) to take us for $20.00. By this time, with that pack, I hurt everywhere.
So we get to the apartment at about 6:30. We find the front door. No door man, no super… I look at France’s instructions and I see (with horror)that there’s a section called KEY PICK-UP. It’s 10 blocks away. So, off we go, 10 blocks there and 10 blocks there. The only thing that made me feel better is that it was on 5th Avenue, which is right at Central Park’s edge. So we basically had a little strole by the park to pick up our keys.
Finally, we drop our gear, hit the baño and off we went on the search for an Indian restaurant. Madison Avenue doesn’t have much of anything around where we were. We were in the Upper East Side.
I FOUND A YARN SHOP only a few blocks away… it was closed. We walked by it again on Saturday… it was closed.
We decided to head to mid-town. That’s where all the lights are. We figured, with that many lights, we should be able to find a place to eat.
Bombay Indian Restaurant at 148 49th Street – AWSOME. The waiter was adorable and we had a good laugh at the guy (with his wife and son) who was sitting behind me because he kept farting… loud ones! Not cool when you’re trying to eat. I’m one of those people who thinks that no matter how old you are, farts are always going to be funny as hell. So, try not laughing when you’re looking at your sister who’s also trying not to crack!
We walked around Time Square for a bit and then hopped on the subway. France was a little worried about taking the subway at night, but I’m a pro. I’ve done this a kazillion times. Ok, maybe not a kazillion but, this was my 5th trip to NYC and I’ve taken the subway all the time, every time I’ve gone so… I was pretty ok with it. She loved it.
Only thing with the subway was that we got off on the west side of Central Park and had to cross the throughway at 96th Street at 10:00 p.m. Bah…
Pretty no?
Saturday, we did the Central Park thing ’cause there were a lot of things that France had never seen. See pics in my last post.
I liked this one…
BUT, I also have to show you this one ’cause it’s probably my favorite part of Central Park. It’s right by the Bathesda Fountain.
Oh, and this guy!
It was probably about 11:30 Saturday morning and this guy was out like a light. He WAS alive though. I checked for chest movement.
Other sights we saw before Coney Island:
The Plaza Hotel:
St. Patrick’s Cathedral:
Rockefeller Centre:
The Waldorf Astoria:
More on Coney Island:
See the cruise ship in the distance in the beach shot?
Look at this:
Where I come from, we have trucks like this that sell french fries. In NYC, they have trucks that sell cupcakes! How cool? (If you have a sweet tooth, which I don’t.)
Sunday, which was the best day of the tour, was the day we did our Sex and the City tour! We hit some of their hot-spots but I won’t bore you guys with all that stuff.
Apparently, this park is where Sarah Jessica Parker takes her kids. France and I walked around to see if we could see anyone famous. Hugh Jackman? Tom Brady and Gisele? We looked… no luck. We did see Will Farrel jogging to Central Park. He had socks up to his knees! How funny is that?
That was our tour guide, Emily. She was totally adorable and really into her job.
A nice dinner at La Nonna.
We had a canolli from here:
Check out their cruisers! Scott would love this!
Our last day waiting for the subway.
We went for breakfast.
I finally got to see the NYC Library.
This is where Carrie dropped her cell when she found out Mr. Big wasn’t coming to their wedding.
And I finished a sock.
Oh, and I didn’t have a needle to graft the toe so I used the two bobby pins I had in my pocket to hold the stitches until I got home.
It was a wonderful weekend. I can’t wait to do it again.
Today, October 9th, is the celebration of the birth of my son. He’s 15 today. Holly SHIT! I can’t have a 15-year-old!!! Either way, no matter how I feel about his age, he’s the best kid in the world. He’s sweet, polite, considerate, smart, funny and he still likes me. Amen…
