New York, New York
I am so fortunate to have friends who live right in Times
Square, and a flight attendant mom who make it possible for me to be a part of
it in old New York at least once a year. I usually fly in and out in a New York
minute for a quick weekend trip, but this year I took the time to really do the
city right, and my good friend Amy joined me for what was by far the best trip
I’ve ever taken there.
The planning began when we learned Billy Joel would be
performing his monthly residency at Madison Square Gardens on July 5th.
With a built in vacation day on the 4th, it seemed the perfect
opportunity to stay and see all that is American in NYC, as well enjoy the
culture of the city from the perspective of the locals. We did it all-
sightseeing, baseball, dining, drinking on rooftop bars with a view of the
empire state building… and the best part? I got to sit in playing xylophone
with a grammy-award winning band!
I’m a terrible tourist or great, depending on your perspective! Though I'm there enough that New York feels like my second home anyway) in that I’ve been to NYC at least a dozen times and never done any of
the traditional touristy things besides Broadway. This year, I did it all with
Amy’s persuasion and enthusiasm for the patriotic elements of the city :)
When we arrived Sunday, we went straight to brunch at one of my favs- rooftop restaurant Hotel Chantelle, featuring live music and .92 cent cocktails! The rest of the day was r and r with our fabulous hosts at their apartment just off broadway in the heart of Manhattan.
Brunch at Hotel Chantelle
Monday we took a train to Coney Island. The beaches were
PACKED (I proclaimed that ‘everyone is in the Hamptons this week, and everyone
else must be here’!). We walked the boardwalk and out to the pier, took a ride
on the nearly 100 year-old Wonder Wheel (eek!), and shared an original Nathan’s
Hot Dog. It wasn’t spectacular, but it was a lot nicer than I expected, and certainly fun to say we did it;)
That evening, I had
the privilege to play with Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks at their house gig
at The Iguana. A friend of mine put me in touch with the band leader who
actually brought a xylophone for me to play (not an easy thing to cart around
in the city I’m sure!). The place was hopping from 8-11pm- make a reservation,
as we barely got in, and probably only did because he had schlepped the
xylophone for me!
Martini at the Iguana- I did it!
Afterward, we headed a few blocks uptown to the Rum Club,
where they host a jazz jam on Monday nights. The music here was just as
fantastic, and cocktails were fairly reasonably priced.
On the 4th of July, we looked into river cruises
to watch the fireworks, but the price tag was steep and didn’t seem worth it.
Instead, we took the Staten Island ferry past the Statue of Liberty. Hint: When
you board the boat, go immediately to the top deck on your right. You’ll get
almost as close to the island as you would on a private tour, and this way it’s
free! When you reach the other side, move QUICKLY to board another ferry back,
or plan to wait 25 minutes.
Staten Island Ferry selfie :)
Afterward, we had dinner at the very interesting
cheese restaurant, Raclette, and then we walked from 9th Ave and 43rd
street all the down to the west river for the fireworks. It was a good
distance, but certainly doable, and necessary, after all that cheese. The
fireworks were lovely; however, unless you plan to spend the day waiting near the main stage, there
is no emotionally- moving music accompaniment to this huge spectacle of explosions. It felt a little anti-climatic compared to the magical displays at
Disney World.
Wednesday, we started the day out with brunch at Bubby’s,
followed by a walk on the high line.
NYC Highline-traintracks converted into a park above the city
We then caught a subway to Yankee Stadium
where I got to see my two teams play- the Yankees and the Blue Jays. Next, was
dinner at Lupa, Billy Joel at Madison Square Gardens (AMAZING!), drinks at the
Vu NYC, and a trip up the Empire State Building. Busy, but oh so fun day :)
Thursday, I finally saw the 9/11 memorial. This was an
emotional moment, as the memories of that day flooded back and I remembered the
panicked feeling of wondering if my mom was on one of those planes. She was
flying for American Airlines at the time, and was based out of Boston, where one
of the planes had left from. And yet my fear could not begin to compare to that
of those who were right there in the thick of it all at the World Trade Center.
It was a solemn moment visiting that site. I was thoroughly appalled by the
people taking selfies, and clearly not recognizing the significance this
monument must have for others who were there visiting the names of their lost
loved ones. I was however glad to see that we have re-built, and life is continuing on
in the financial district. There’s a really neat Occulus mall nearby which houses
lots of unique shops, if you’re into that sort of thing.
I just got my American citizenship in 2014, and I definitely
felt more American after this visit to the Big Apple than I ever have before.
Special thanks to my amazing friends who were the hostesses with the mostess,
and helped us plan our travel and itineraries each day! I promise, I’ll get better
about using my Google Maps for next time ;) It’s such a big city, and it can be overwhelming if you don’t have someone
local to help you sort it all out. Hopefully this blog will serve as a starting
point for some of you, and maybe even suggest some great restaurants you haven’t
heard of to those who live there! Everyone who knows me knows my vacations are
built around eating, drinking, and people watching, so I’ll include details
for each of my current favourite establishments in my next post :)
And here’s to you, NY, NY!
