NYC - Day 6

Tuesday was our last full day in New York City. As I wrote earlier, the hotel was just 2 blocks from the bus and subway. The subway is quicker and there's often an interesting event taking place but I really like taking the bus. From the bus, you can see where you are going and take in the sites en route. Every day as we walked from our hotel in Queens to the bus stop for the short ride into Manhattan, we would see this...

One of the companies for the street vendors was just across the street and they would pull out every day as we were stepping out. This was our bus stop, right past the fruit stand. You can see the subway enclosure in front of the tall building.

After MoMA, Scott wasn't quite sure he wanted to take in another art museum but I convinced him that he would be glad he did... and he was. I think we could enjoy the museums much more if we weren't worn out with walking, and standing (which is worse). The pictures don't even begin to display how massive the Metropolitan Museum of Arts is. The Met (main location)is located on the 5th Avenue side of Central Park.

When I was at the museum in October, I didn't have much time and told my Mummy that I could skip the Egyptian section. I had no idea how good it was. Scott headed straight there and took dozens of pictures in the Egyptian gallery. Here are some highlights:

While on the trip, I completed Ron Chernow's exceptional biography titled, Washington: A Life, so I was particularly interested in portraits of the Father of our County. There were many more than this.

 Ben and me.

 This was my favorite from the Arms and Armor gallery:

 I could not find this one again last month but

I was drawn to this one in October. If you 

know me, you know why! Hint: color.

Most museums run special exhibitions throughout the year so a good museum never gets old!  This song book was from an exhibition in October: Jerusalem 1000-1400: Every People Under Heaven.

Did you feel safe riding the subway? We've been asked this a few times. My answer is always, "Yes", and has been since I took my first subway ride in Washington DC, as a teenager. Since then, I've journeyed on the transit systems in 10 cities. It's better than 6 Flags! Even when strange people get on a car, it still felt safe. Once, a young couple entered, introduced themselves to the entire car and he turned up a small amplifier and played guitar while she sang. He emphasized over and over how he just wanted to brighten our day but that bit of goodwill didn't stop them from collecting tips:) Three different times, persons boarded the train and in a loud robotic voice, introduced themselves and told their hard luck story. They made sure we knew they just wanted any granola bars, sandwiches, etc. that someone might have but, they too were happy to take money. Interestingly enough, their scrips were all the same with just a few details changed - I thought it had to be some kind of organized racket. 

Below is one of the Times Square entrances (yes, we were back there again!). This station is the busiest in the United States with more than 60 million passengers passing through in 2016. The picture in this article shows the entrance we used the most. I guess that makes us a statistic.

You can also see a Duane Reade store in this picture. DR was bought out by Walgreen's in 2010. One of the two is around every corner! There are over 300 of the 2 stores in NY with over 150 in Manhattan alone. Find the one you need by checking out the website map link.

Need to park your car? Here's a solution. We passed by several of these from the bus and didn't get a good picture so I had to ask Google for a picture:

We finally got to take our boat ride. 

 

I actually enjoyed the view of the Statue of Liberty from the boat as much as being up close. Unless you are wanting to see Ellis Island (coming up in the next post), spend your money on a boat ride - this too is better than 6 Flags.

 

From the October trip:

It's time for Ray's.

My parents love to visit NYC (and I understand why). They stay with someone very close to Times Square and have taken in a few Broadway plays through the years. The "day of" ticket booth is right at 7th Avenue and 47th Street. There, you will find same day tickets anywhere from 20-50% off and availability can change at any time. Following my dad's EXACT instructions, I went to the last booth looking for the black lady, about my age. When I walked up, she asked her routine question, "what are you wanting to see." I said, "Well, my dad sent me to your booth." The look said it all - I was crazy. Then, using his words, I said, "He's the fat man from Arkansas." She immediately lit up and said, "That's your daddy!" Scott showed her a picture of him and we immediately became friends as she stuck her hand through the tiny payment cutout and grabbed mine. We visited like long lost friends. She recommended we see Bandstand and set us up on the 11th row with aisle seats. He told me she'd take care of us! So, since we can't afford "The Room Where it Happens" (that would be Hamilton)...

We very much enjoyed the 1940's music and dancing in this play about musicians who had just returned from WW2 and were trying to start a new band. The story line wasn't exceptional. It basically provided a good backdrop for some excellent music and choreography. Although it was a pleasant PG-like for the adult content, it did contain some unnecessary language. 

Currently only 4 theatres are actually on the street, Broadway. But it's not the street name that designates whether a show is a Broadway show or an off-Broadway show of off-off-Broadway. Off-off Broadway theatres hold fewer than 100 seats. Off-Broadway has 100-499 and Broadway theatres, like this one, hold 500 plus. I guess not everyone can have The Muny with it's 10,000 seats!

  

And when the shows let out, it a madhouse (click here) - the fun kind - you know, better than 6 Flags. Along with a few hundred other people, we stopped at Juniors Diner after the show.
It did not take long to decide we weren't staying in line half the night to get a table but we did get in the bakery line for some Junior's Cheesecake. Some say it's the best in New York. I think they might be right. Scott was excited to see that they had a sugar free version. I opted for the devil's food cheesecake. We didn't munch until we got back to the hotel but it was well worth the wait!

Scott finally got a Nathan's hot dog in NYC. 

PSA: Notice the mesh drawstring pack he's sporting (it's Cardinals, in case you can't tell, but that's not the point). We found this to be an excellent way to carry a few things (water, water, and more water) around for the day. It's light weight and if we needed anything else, it keeps expanding. Many people carry full backpacks and they look so uncomfortable - especially when they are in front. This is the recommendation from many travel websites. It's too easy for the bad guys to open the zippers from the back. Not so with our little drawstring option.

It was our last night crossing over the street from the subway station. I had to stop, look, and take pictures. It's hard to tell but there's a train straight ahead and others in the station on the right. Standing there, I really thought I'd miss it all - I was right. I wonder if I could have pitched a cot and stayed the night there? Maybe not.

 Crossing the bridge with cheesecake in hand.

NYC - Day 1 
NYC - Day 2 
NYC - Day 3 
NYC - Day 4a 
NYC - Day 4b 
NYC - Day 5 
NYC - Day 6 
NYC - Day 7
NYC - Buildings 
Sabbatical Trip Part 2 - Day 8
Sabbatical Trip Part 2 - Day 9
Sabbatical Trip Part 2 - US Naval Academy
Sabbatical Trip Part 2 - The Last Days including Ocean City, NJ, West Point Academy, Flushing Meadow-Corona Park