NY Trip - Dec 2, 2008
After arriving in NYC and checking into our hotel, lessthan90sheep and I decided to walk on over to the Empire State Building and pick up our NYC Passes. We got to go up to the observatory & have an audio tour that we didn't really finish because it was way too freaking cold. We got many good NYC pictures though, and even managed to commandeer a couple Brits to take our picture together. We met so many Brits in NY! And Germans - Possibly more than New Yorkers. We were both so glad to get out of our little Southern towns (NC for me, AR for Steph) and into an actual diverse city!
There, I bought the best damn snow globe in all of NY for Eden, and a Big Apple gorilla for Ivy. The first picture I took, a big old pigeon came and landed right in front of my camera. He stayed with me for quite a while. Now, I realize that NYC has an abundance of pigeons, but I really felt like he was my travel totem for this trip. He was very friendly to me. Actually, with the exception of one bitchy hotel lady and one smart-mouthed ho, everyone was so extremely nice and helpful. I'm not sure why everyone was warning me about the city. I had such a delightful time and was really impressed by all the friendliness. No one even sent us the wrong way when we asked for directions. It was swell.
So our very first stop was technically Times Square, as we looked around trying to figure out how to get to the Empire State Building. All the sudden I was like, “Hey! This is exceptionally shiny and electronic everywhere - do you suppose this is Times Square?” It was! Right around the block from our hotel. We ended up spending more time running back and forth through there than anything else, I think. We don't have nearly so many giant movie adverts in Asheville. I was kind of afraid of the giant Jim Carreys and Britney Spearses that I saw everywhere, but I guess I'm just too darned sheltered. Still, some people's faces just weren't meant to be that darned big. P. Diddy, I'm talking to you, too.
We stopped at Macy's afterwards and had to go all the way up to the top. Boy, they sure are festive there! However, since it was officially December, I didn't really have any problem with the abundance of Christmas everywhere. It was fairly cool. I even bought a pair of shoes at Macy's, since my tennies had broken just before my flight and all I had was my pinchy boots. Macy's shoes were actually little better, but hey, I bought NY shoes! Woot woot. I've come a long way from Asheville's K-Mart keds (thanks, mom).
After that it was pretty late, so we just copped a squat in the nearest restaurant and had dinner. We went all that way to eat at Ruby Tuesday's, but it was actually much nicer than the ones we have in NC. Everything was so fancy. I tried my best not to stick out like a big, pulsating, lost sore thumb, but I don't believe it worked. Everyone kept stopping us, asking us if we wanted show tickets or a ride or a souvenir. We realized we made pretty easy marks, so we started cultivating that, “We're local, don't stop us, got some place to be” vibe. Steph quickly realized the importance of linking arms so we didn't get separated in the throngs, and I quickly realized the importance of sticking out that other elbow so the sheeple would quit knocking you out of their way. It worked wonders, especially when coupled with a sharp jab in the ribs.
New hair cut, tousled-ish.
New hair cut, sleek version
Pretty, cloudy sunrise
My friend.
Ooooh, shiny.
Steph listens to a tour guide go on and on...
More New York from on high.
Ellis Island as seen from Empire State.
Me, Steph, & my mad picture taking skills.
Me & Steph on the Empire State Building.
Amanda survives the subway.
Steph survives the subway.
The Statue of Liberty.
Steph & Lady Liberty.
Me & Lady Liberty.
I'll continue posting the rest of our excursions, which include the Museum of Sex, Strawberry Fields, my review of Equus, our failure (or is it?) at getting Daniel Radcliffe's autograph, & why Richard Griffiths is my new hero. Oh, and my very first real-life mob!
Also, for those of you who don't listen to voice posts...I'm back in NYC again with the family! You'll be hearing about that too, but first things first.
There, I bought the best damn snow globe in all of NY for Eden, and a Big Apple gorilla for Ivy. The first picture I took, a big old pigeon came and landed right in front of my camera. He stayed with me for quite a while. Now, I realize that NYC has an abundance of pigeons, but I really felt like he was my travel totem for this trip. He was very friendly to me. Actually, with the exception of one bitchy hotel lady and one smart-mouthed ho, everyone was so extremely nice and helpful. I'm not sure why everyone was warning me about the city. I had such a delightful time and was really impressed by all the friendliness. No one even sent us the wrong way when we asked for directions. It was swell.
So our very first stop was technically Times Square, as we looked around trying to figure out how to get to the Empire State Building. All the sudden I was like, “Hey! This is exceptionally shiny and electronic everywhere - do you suppose this is Times Square?” It was! Right around the block from our hotel. We ended up spending more time running back and forth through there than anything else, I think. We don't have nearly so many giant movie adverts in Asheville. I was kind of afraid of the giant Jim Carreys and Britney Spearses that I saw everywhere, but I guess I'm just too darned sheltered. Still, some people's faces just weren't meant to be that darned big. P. Diddy, I'm talking to you, too.
We stopped at Macy's afterwards and had to go all the way up to the top. Boy, they sure are festive there! However, since it was officially December, I didn't really have any problem with the abundance of Christmas everywhere. It was fairly cool. I even bought a pair of shoes at Macy's, since my tennies had broken just before my flight and all I had was my pinchy boots. Macy's shoes were actually little better, but hey, I bought NY shoes! Woot woot. I've come a long way from Asheville's K-Mart keds (thanks, mom).
After that it was pretty late, so we just copped a squat in the nearest restaurant and had dinner. We went all that way to eat at Ruby Tuesday's, but it was actually much nicer than the ones we have in NC. Everything was so fancy. I tried my best not to stick out like a big, pulsating, lost sore thumb, but I don't believe it worked. Everyone kept stopping us, asking us if we wanted show tickets or a ride or a souvenir. We realized we made pretty easy marks, so we started cultivating that, “We're local, don't stop us, got some place to be” vibe. Steph quickly realized the importance of linking arms so we didn't get separated in the throngs, and I quickly realized the importance of sticking out that other elbow so the sheeple would quit knocking you out of their way. It worked wonders, especially when coupled with a sharp jab in the ribs.
New hair cut, tousled-ish.
New hair cut, sleek version
Pretty, cloudy sunrise
My friend.
Ooooh, shiny.
Steph listens to a tour guide go on and on...
More New York from on high.
Ellis Island as seen from Empire State.
Me, Steph, & my mad picture taking skills.
Me & Steph on the Empire State Building.
Amanda survives the subway.
Steph survives the subway.
The Statue of Liberty.
Steph & Lady Liberty.
Me & Lady Liberty.
I'll continue posting the rest of our excursions, which include the Museum of Sex, Strawberry Fields, my review of Equus, our failure (or is it?) at getting Daniel Radcliffe's autograph, & why Richard Griffiths is my new hero. Oh, and my very first real-life mob!
Also, for those of you who don't listen to voice posts...I'm back in NYC again with the family! You'll be hearing about that too, but first things first.