NYC Details!

May 27. After a smooth and uneventful flight I met up with Mondo at JFK. We got on the Super shuttle around 5:00 pm and the driver and pax were so confused and traffic was so bad it was almost two hours before we reached our hotel. I just had to think of it as a city tour, even though we passed some of the same sites several times! That poor driver, his boss kept yelling at him over the speaker and most of the pax didn't speak English.

Arrival at the Leo House was a nice surprise. As some of you know, this is a less than traditional hotel. It used to be a Catholic Convent that is now a travel hotel run under the direction of the nuns. The building is old and the paint is fading and cracked but the hotel is clean and safe. There's a breakfast buffet option for an additional $6.00 (no tax, no tip) that's pretty good. I would stay here again.

Once settled in, it was time to explore. We walked downtown to The Slaughtered Lamb Pub for dinner. Based on American Werewolf in London, the pub has the werewolf theme but it doesn't look like the actual pub in the movie. Food was okay. I suggest coming here for a drink but eat somewhere else. It's fun for a look but you don't need a long stay.

We set off again and walked through a couple of parks, saw the arch, and then headed uptown again. We wanted to go up the Empire State Building at night but it was so foggy they told us to save our money. It's late and we head home.

May 28. What is that alarm doing going off so early? Ugh, 3 hour time difference is great at night but sucks in the morning! We trudge on downstairs to check out the buffet and it's great. Hot fresh food, cooked right there, baked goods, fruit and those nuns brew a great cup of coffee. Too bad we're not hungry. People are piling stacks of food on their plates.

It's raining this morning. I have my umbrella and Mondo buys one from a street vendor. We go into the Subway and a few minutes later there's an announcement that the train is stopped due to a police investigation. We decide to walk to Ground Zero and see the Memorial. It was a long walk! When we finally arrive the rain has stopped. What I'm looking at is exactly the image I've seen on tv for so long. There's an odd disconnect between the calm of the day and the visual in my head from 9/11. I understand a little more why this dominates every conversation with New Yorkers. We walk across the street to St. Paul's Church which opened up as a relief center. It has displays of the artwork that people did to honor the victims, NYPD, and FDNY. All of this shows how the city came together during the crisis.

On to Wall Street where we just miss a large union demonstration. I'm not quite sure what the issue is but they were loud. We take a brief moment to look inside Federal Hall, then we're off to Battery Park to purchase advance tickets for Liberty Island. After that, it's getting late in the afternoon and we're hungry so we head off to the Gramercy Tavern. We had appetizers and split the salmon entree. It was all good and reminded me of the Kensington Grill in San Diego. It's now starting to pour rain so we pop into the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace for a tour. This turns out to be a hour well spent. The guide knew his stuff and we were a small group so we learned a lot about the president but also about brownstone houses.

The rain has stopped and we return to the Leo House to recover from all the walking. We have tickets to Bombay Dreams, so we only have a few minutes to relax. It's time to take the subway to the theater district. I have to make a quick stop at the Hard Rock Cafe and get my pin. It was closed for a private party last time I was there so I need to take advantage of this opportunity. Dinner is at Mars 2112, a Mars theme restaurant. It was fun and silly and if you have time and want a sandwich (overpriced but you pay for the entertainment) this is the place to stop.

Bombay Dreams, a play about a slum boy who becomes a Bollywood start, is fun. It won't be the next big thing but the dance numbers and costumes are great. One of the leads played the Queen of Naboo in SW Attack of the Clones. The other lead was Madhur Jaffrey, a great actor whom we had just seen in Shakespeare Wallah- Merchant/Ivory 1965. We spill out onto Broadway with the rest of the world and begin the congested and lively walk through Times Square. We end up walking all the way back to the hotel.

May 29. That alarm is going off again. Same routine as yesterday but this time the trains are running so we get to Battery Park in a few minutes. The security to get on the ferry is tighter than airport security but it's also quicker. They don't mess around here. The Statue of Liberty looks impressive as always. It's closed right now but you can still look around the island. The Ellis Island exhibit really pounds into your brain about the trauma of arriving in this country. E = eye disease, L = Lame, X = mental. 3 hours later we're back in Battery Park and it's time to walk to Hester Street and find a place for lunch. We're starving and we end up at Landmark Restaurant. Don't eat there. I couldn't tell you how to get there but if you find it, don't go. Unless you want fries and those were okay. After lunch we walk around Hester and Orchard streets and see the tenement houses where most of the Ellis Island arrivals lived. Once again, it's later than we thought so we head back to the Leo House. Our feet and legs are sore from all the walking and it's time to go back underground. Again we have only a few minutes of down time, then we're off to the Met for art and dinner.

After touring the Egyptian Wing we go over to the second floor where you can eat and drink among the exhibits while a quartet of musicians play classical music. It was so relaxing and we needed a glass of wine. After the last two days, both our brains are beat and we can barely walk anymore. Or so you'd think because it's now closing time and we decide to walk through Central Park. It's still light out and there are tourists about so it's safe. As we come out on the other side, we find Tavern on the Green, which is where we should have eaten. It's the most beautiful restaurant I have ever seen. We walked all around the restaurant, through the dining rooms, upstairs. This is where I'm eating when I go back to Manhatten. We walk back to the hotel, stopping at Baskin/Robbins for ice cream.

May 30. Time for me to go home. Mondo is staying two extra days then going to Boston to visit her dad. I chose the right time to go home, there were no crowds at JFK and I checked in and went through security in less than 10 minutes. It was good to be home.

May 31. I'm already planning what to do on my return. I've never seen Coney Island and I have to eat at Tavern on the Green. There are more plays to see! I'm done with the major tourist sites, so on the next trip there will be no early wake up calls for me!

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