The City So Nice, They Named It Twice!

For our 16th anniversary this year, I wanted to give Sarah something she truly wanted.  Let's face it, the woman deserves so much for putting up with my mug and mouth for so long.  She's an angel of patience and tolerance and she has earned an anniversary gift beyond the nice dinner, gift cards, theater tickets and the like.  So this year I gave her a choice of several different trips and she chose....

NEW YORK, NEW YORK!

We had a blast.  Other than my youth when I would hike all over the Sierra Nevadas, I don't think I've ever done so much walking!  It really is a great way to get around though.  There is always plenty to see in NYC.  It's a smorgasbord for the senses, no doubt.  In fact, I'm going to suggest you try something new here.  As you look at these pictures, Mom (cuz she's the only one that reads my blog), click on the pics.  It will open them up to a larger format and allow you to experience The Big Apple along with us.  If you've never been, you gotta' get!

Day 1 was mostly a travel day.  We got in at the wrong time...rush hour traffic.  In hindsight we should have studied out a route using the subway or bus, but we hailed a cab and it took us an hour and a half to go 16 miles from JFK to our hotel at Times Square.  We always stay at the Marquis for it's spacious rooms and central location.  First on our agenda was to get a slice of New York City pizza!  We walked over to John's right by our hotel and then hit Junior's for some authentic New York style cheesecake.  It was dangerous getting a hotel across the street from that place.  We walked around Times Square a bit just to get our bearings and then retired for the night.

Our room with a view

The view

John's Pizza!  Thanks for the tip, Erin!

This is an old converted house of worship.  A very cool place to have a pie.

The cathedral ceilings and stained glass of John's Pizza.

If there's a Disney store nearby, you'll find Sarah there with me following
behind with an expressionless face.

Advertisements galore.  You know you've made it when you advertise on
Time's Square.  The cost is $1-4 million a year for an average space there.

Day 2 was your typical touristy stuff.  Last time we came to NYC, we got passes for the Double Decker Grey Line bus tour.  It was fantastic!  We could go anywhere and see all the spots with a simple jump on and jump off approach.  So, we were eager to do so again.  Well, there are now 4 or 5 big Double Decker Bus tours and the traffic is very congested on the weekends compared to the first time we went which was during the week.  Long story short....not a great idea.  We loved it the first time, but we won't do it again.  We did get to go downtown and see some sites before heading back to change and get ready for a night at the theater.  

Me and the best traveling partner a guy could ask for.  

Leah had just learned about 9/11 in school and was quite interested to see and hear about the place.  She had a hard time wrapping her head around the entire thing and that is understandable.  How can people do that to other people.  It's hard for innocence to grasp.  We face-timed them when we were there so they could see how big the One World Trade Center is.  It was cloudy all day so we never saw the top of it.  

Seeing the names of the victims that died that die make it
a more real experience.  I still remember the day it happened
and will never forget.  

It's an interesting complex.  I remember visiting the Twin Towers when I was 15 or 16 with my family and being amazed at how tall they were.  If you stood between them and looked up it felt like the whole place was spinning around you.  Then, the year after they fell, Sarah and I visited the cleanup site as they removed the debris and prepared for the memorial complex that is there today.  You have the One World Trade Center which name implies we are all "One" together, yet stands higher than the original towers as if a middle finger extended saying, "F-You!  You can't bring us down."  It has the memorial ponds that are most definitely a solemn place of reflection.  It seems to have a certain level of quiet and reverence in such a loud and bustling city.  There are murals that share positive messages of love and equality and a big fancy sculpture that looks like the skeleton of a sail fish that houses an upscale mall.  And finally, across the street is St. Paul's Trinity Church which withstood the collapse; tombstones, trees and building.  The whole place is certainly worth visiting. 

St Paul's Trinity Church

Since we were going to see Phantom later that night, we
snuck a pre show shot.

I think truly my favorite part of NYC is the architecture.  Every
building intrigues me.  It's interesting to see the layers of civilization
upon layers of civilization that evolves and becomes a city.

Much of the city was engulfed by clouds most of the day.

Place gum here.

Flatiron Building

Armed Forces Recruiting Station at Times Square

We stopped at Chambers Street Station for another slice of Za and a Coke.
NY Style pizza is the BOMB!

I don't know if this is a Lipschitz, but it looks like one. 

I used to be enamored with late night talk shows, but as of late, I can't stand them as they
spew their vitriol and sling their hate.  Why can't they just focus on being funny instead of
doing so while peddling an agenda?

We got a little dressed up for the theater.  I thought that is what we were supposed to do.  I
saw people dressed in everything from sweats to shorts to flip flops.  I was wearing trousers
and a nice shirt, but I might as well been wearing pajamas!  Disappointing. That being said,
the show was amazing.  This is now running in its 30th year!  30!  That's success for sure!
The main singers voice was so powerful it nearly had me in tears.  Seriously a great show.  

Sarah was in heaven the whole time.  

The theater itself was not all that fancy, or at least not as
fancy as I would have hoped for being on Broadway.  The
theaters we visited in Europe and even the Capitol Theater
here in Salt Lake City was for better preserved and elegant.
The Majestic needs a facelift, but then again, if it gets filled
every night in spite of it all, why spend the money?!

New York City's Finest

Souvenirs for Sarah.  Ignore the "Raymond" part there. 

Sarah wanted a picture of the chandelier.  

After sleeping in for a few minutes longer than we normally would, we ventured accidentally to the Hershey's store.  There, Sarah purchased the world's largest S'more and got a cup of water with a pathetic paper straw.  We visited Uptown, had some more good food and walked a ton!  I think we walked 8.5 miles that day.  We took the non-scenic way through Central Park, had a bagel from Russ & Daughters at the Jewish Museum, walked some, visited the Museum of New York City, walked some more, went to Ripley's Believe it or Not (only because our hotel gave us free tickets), walked some more, had an expensive shake and then made it back to the Marquis just in time to change and hit the theater again.  It was a great day!  Did I mention we walked?  Luckily I brought my prednisone so I doped up and attacked my arthritis head on.  All was well. 

Paper Straws Suck!

As we walked, we stopped a few times around Central Park to rest and enjoy
the scenery.

This is what happens to Sarah when she misbehaves.

This is what happens to me when I misbehaves.  Guess who's more afraid to misbehave!?

Yes.  Yes, I can.

We stopped to visit the Manhattan temple, but it was General Conference
weekend so it was closed.  We got a sweet picture of this wall though.  ;)

I tried to talk Sarah into getting a bike, but she wasn't interested.

Tavern on the Green

Stopping to smell the flowers.

Where John Lennon was shot.  Across the street from
Strawberry Fields.

Every time we asked Dax what he wanted as a souvenir from
The Big Apple, he replied, "AN APPLE!" 

We walked forever to get Sarah this shake at Serendipity. Apparently it's a
big thing to chicks.  There were about a dozen women in front of the store
getting their pictures taken and an equal number of men leaning against
something with that "What am I doing here" look on their face.  

If Sarah's happy, I'm happy.

In case you were wondering what a $15 chocolate shake looked like that you had to walk
1 mile and a half to get.  

Central Park is pretty in a way that most parks are not.  There is this HUGE
city all around it yet it offers a sense of peace.  The mature trees are the key
to separating the peace from the chaos. 

The Museum of the City of New York.  

One of, if not THE, oldest bagelries in town.  AMAZING! 

We ate at another place that was referred to us, but it was only mediocre.  Well,
at least their pastrami was.  This is the place for bagels though.  

We scored some tickets to School of Rock.  I didn't know what to expect.  It
was really good.  I came to mock, but stayed to ROCK!

More souvenirs for Sarah

We next had dinner at Bond 45.  DELISH!  

It was a great location with great food and a great atmosphere.

Our last day was a travel day, but our flight didn't leave until late.  So we hit one final food stop and walked through central park.  We also saw the Columbus Day Parade.  It was a good finish to the trip.

We were hoping to see Fall colors, but it wasn't cool enough yet.  This was
the lone tree that had turned in Central Park.  

We visited Zabars for their corned beef, but it was only okay.  Their black and white cookies
though were the BOMB!  It was nice to eat lunch in the park.  Corned Beef, black and white
cookies and knishes.  

The Christopher Columbus monument on Columbus Day

When we got back to Times Square, we met the Naked
Cowboy.

Our last ride (EVER) on the Double Decker Bus Tour

Sarah wanted to cut across Central Park so we did.  We took the wrong turn along with all
of these other people and this was our view for about 20 minutes of walking.  It was just a
thoroughway for the vehicles with a sidewalk next to it. 

After a long day of travel and sightseeing, we were excited to see the kids and tell them of our adventures.  Leah's biggest questions were about Ground Zero and she wanted a Statue of Liberty statue.  Dax was bummed he didn't get an apple from The Big Apple, but he was excited to get his set of NYC Police vehicles to play with and a statue of One World Center.  It was such a fun trip.  Sarah deserved every bit of it. 

Thanks for the good times NYC.  We loved visiting you.  You are an amazing place.  While we loved it and will definitely be back, it also makes me grateful to live where we live.  There might not be as much culture to experience, but it sure smells better.  ;)