We're off for New York City to see our granddaughter, Ella, play at Carnegie Hall with her high school band. It was a rainy drive to the airport and after we boarded we had to sit for a couple hours waiting for weather to clear over Jacksonville, but we were eventually on our way.
Here in the Big Apple, and its cold, especially since we just came from Florida, not Yorktown. Our hotel is just a couple blocks from Penn Station.
We're staying at the Yotel near Time Square. Its a modern, automated hotel concept with small rooms, but all the room and amenities that you need. It was very clean and completely acceptable.
The great feature of New York City is you can find small shops and eateries that meet any desire that you have. We saw a kebab place just around the corner and stopped there for dinner. It was a Turkish place with several different Mediterranean dishes. I thought the prices were a little high (although it is Manhattan) until I saw how much food we got. Since we hadn't eaten breakfast and you get no food on the plane, we were ready for a big meal.
The next day we were going to try to meet with Ella, who's school group were touring Rockefeller Center and the "Top or the Rock", so after waking up and watching the Today show on TV from our hotel bed, we then walked over to Rockefeller Center and watched them broadcasting the show from the sidewalk.
When we got to the Top of the Rock, there was Ella and her friends.
It was cold down at street level and really freezing in the 30 mph winds at the top of the building. We didn't spend much time outside.
It was pretty neat seeing the sights you normally only see on TV like the skating rink at Rockefeller Center.
We then had all afternoon to sightsee before being at Ella's concert that night at 8pm. We decided to walk down to the 9/11 Ground Zero. Last time we were in NYC in 2003 there was still a smoldering hole there. Today the new World Trade Center tower has been built and there are memorial pools at the bases of the old twin towers. It is very respectfully redone.
Did I say it was cold? Yes, it was cold, snowing and blowing. I had packed my winter raincoat from Brussels and at the last minute threw in my gloves and ear muffs. Good move!
Sue meanwhile, had only packed a thin raincoat. Fortunately she had been knitting hats along the trip and brought one of them with her. Good move!
Now we know why we live in Virginia and go to Florida for the winter.
For dinner we had decided to eat at a Japanese hibachi restaurant. We didn't realize we would have our own brazier to cook on. What a great choice, enabling us to warm back up.
Here we are at Carnegie Hall waiting for the concert to start. What a great experience for Ella and her friends.
What a great concert. All the different high school bands, orchestras and choirs were outstanding (which is why they are invited to Carnegie Hall).
All too soon it was time to pack up and head to the airport the next day, but still time to walk to Time Square and get an authentic New York hotdog. It was expensive, but actually a very good hotdog. The spicy onions were the secret ingredient.
And then, we were winging our way back to sunny and warm Florida. We waved goodbye to Ms Liberty as we passed by.
