NYC Day 5
Our fifth and final full day in NYC began with a trip to the filming of the Early Show. Going to this aptly-named show required that we drag our weary butts out of bed in time to get ready, grab our stuff for the day and walk to the subway station.
We got there in time for the final segment, which is usually shot outdoors. We watched as they filmed a cooking segment, and closed out the show.
Afterwords, as the crew dismantled the lighting, Maggie and Harry talked to the few people that stuck around. I believe that for Robin, the highlight of the entire trip was getting her picture taken with those two.
The Early Show studios are next door to the Apple Store and FAO Schwartz. We had already been in the former, and the latter wouldn't be opening for another hour. Not wanting the boys to miss that experience, we went across the street to Central Park.
There, we walked around the pond, watched some ice-skaters, and rode the Carousel. It was a very nice walk, and when we were done, the toy store was open. It is truly a great toy store. Of course, while we were there, we had to try out the giant piano.
We rode the subway down to the Empire State Building area and grabbed a bite to eat. Tickets to the observation deck were pretty expensive ($67 for the four of us), and the lines were VERY long, and numerous:
1) A line to get your ticket
2) The line to have your picture taken (not optional)
3) A line to take the first elevator
4) A line from the first elevator to the express elevator to the 68th floor
At the 86th floor observatory, you can walk around as much as you want. Unfortunately for us, visibility was pretty bad.
For an additional $60 we could have purchased tickets to go up to the 105th floor, but by then I was pretty much done
with the place... but not done with lines...
5) A line to get on the elevator down to the gift shop (I bought a zipper slide)
(plus the line to check out!)
6) And finally, the line to get down to the escalators.
Each line took between 20 - 30 minutes to get through. It took us over an hour to get out of the place, and I've heard that in late September / October when it is "crowded", it can take as long as 6 hours. No thanks!
I would say that this was probably my least favorite stop on our vacation. My advise to you would be to make friends with someone who works on the 85th floor and visit them at work some time! You'll get the same view, with fewer hassles.
After the Empire State Building, we visited Macy's (where Kyle works).
It was also pretty crowded... but was a much nicer environment. Plus, we had a tour-guide! We saw the first escalators (made of wood) and where they had the New Year's Eve ball on display (but not while we were there).
That's it for pictures... I was still feeling pretty crummy and exhausted. After Macy's we walked 3 avenues to visit B&H Photography. Adam's feet were aching after 2 blocks, but we assured him that it wasn't much further. When we got there, we
learned that they close early on Fridays. Ugh!
Sorry Adam!
So we went back to Kyle's apartment on the Upper East side. The kids played with a slinky on the stairwell while we caught up.
It was getting late, and we had an early flight, so we hopped on the subway back to our hotel. Once on the surface, we stopped at a tiny pizza shop and grabbed a slice each.
It was the end of a great vacation. And while it's sad to part with our friends, it's never good-bye!!!!!! <3
===Epilogue===
We arrived on the ground, and the sun was shining and clear. I made my way through baggage claim and the parking shuttle as if it was a dream. How strange it was to drive on a highway with nothing around but fields and the wide open sky. Slowly, as we drew closer and closer to home, all the troubles and stresses that had been so eagerly forgotten seemed to pile on. Exhausted, sick, and in a mental fog from sinus medication, I had neither the strength nor the energy to begin tackling the mountain of tasks that was my "real life". But slowly my to-do items got crossed off the list and my sinuses cleared out, and real-life became real again!
*And that, kids, is the story of how I got my INY zipper slide*
Some observations, IMHO
It seemed that overall the general population that you meet in in NYC are in better shape than those in the midwest. I think that the amount of walking that people do has a significant benefit.
Living in the city requires a bit more detailed planning for the day's events. Once you leave the apartment, you had better have everything you'll need for the day. In the midwest, people can throw stuff into the back of their car in case they'll need it sometime (umbrellas, extra shoes, jumper cables...) but when you're on foot, you must carry everything that you're going to use that day... shoes if you know you'll be going to the gym, umbrella if it may rain, and sorry, no jumper cables!
Dining in NYC is an absolute pleasure. There are endless, quality mom-and-pop non-chain dining opportunities around every corner! We had a lot of fun picking some place to eat wherever we happened to be.
We got there in time for the final segment, which is usually shot outdoors. We watched as they filmed a cooking segment, and closed out the show.
Afterwords, as the crew dismantled the lighting, Maggie and Harry talked to the few people that stuck around. I believe that for Robin, the highlight of the entire trip was getting her picture taken with those two.
The Early Show studios are next door to the Apple Store and FAO Schwartz. We had already been in the former, and the latter wouldn't be opening for another hour. Not wanting the boys to miss that experience, we went across the street to Central Park.
There, we walked around the pond, watched some ice-skaters, and rode the Carousel. It was a very nice walk, and when we were done, the toy store was open. It is truly a great toy store. Of course, while we were there, we had to try out the giant piano.
We rode the subway down to the Empire State Building area and grabbed a bite to eat. Tickets to the observation deck were pretty expensive ($67 for the four of us), and the lines were VERY long, and numerous:
1) A line to get your ticket
2) The line to have your picture taken (not optional)
3) A line to take the first elevator
4) A line from the first elevator to the express elevator to the 68th floor
At the 86th floor observatory, you can walk around as much as you want. Unfortunately for us, visibility was pretty bad.
For an additional $60 we could have purchased tickets to go up to the 105th floor, but by then I was pretty much done
with the place... but not done with lines...
5) A line to get on the elevator down to the gift shop (I bought a zipper slide)
(plus the line to check out!)
6) And finally, the line to get down to the escalators.
Each line took between 20 - 30 minutes to get through. It took us over an hour to get out of the place, and I've heard that in late September / October when it is "crowded", it can take as long as 6 hours. No thanks!
I would say that this was probably my least favorite stop on our vacation. My advise to you would be to make friends with someone who works on the 85th floor and visit them at work some time! You'll get the same view, with fewer hassles.
After the Empire State Building, we visited Macy's (where Kyle works).
It was also pretty crowded... but was a much nicer environment. Plus, we had a tour-guide! We saw the first escalators (made of wood) and where they had the New Year's Eve ball on display (but not while we were there).
That's it for pictures... I was still feeling pretty crummy and exhausted. After Macy's we walked 3 avenues to visit B&H Photography. Adam's feet were aching after 2 blocks, but we assured him that it wasn't much further. When we got there, we
learned that they close early on Fridays. Ugh!
Sorry Adam!
So we went back to Kyle's apartment on the Upper East side. The kids played with a slinky on the stairwell while we caught up.
It was getting late, and we had an early flight, so we hopped on the subway back to our hotel. Once on the surface, we stopped at a tiny pizza shop and grabbed a slice each.
It was the end of a great vacation. And while it's sad to part with our friends, it's never good-bye!!!!!! <3
===Epilogue===
We arrived on the ground, and the sun was shining and clear. I made my way through baggage claim and the parking shuttle as if it was a dream. How strange it was to drive on a highway with nothing around but fields and the wide open sky. Slowly, as we drew closer and closer to home, all the troubles and stresses that had been so eagerly forgotten seemed to pile on. Exhausted, sick, and in a mental fog from sinus medication, I had neither the strength nor the energy to begin tackling the mountain of tasks that was my "real life". But slowly my to-do items got crossed off the list and my sinuses cleared out, and real-life became real again!
*And that, kids, is the story of how I got my INY zipper slide*
Some observations, IMHO
It seemed that overall the general population that you meet in in NYC are in better shape than those in the midwest. I think that the amount of walking that people do has a significant benefit.
Living in the city requires a bit more detailed planning for the day's events. Once you leave the apartment, you had better have everything you'll need for the day. In the midwest, people can throw stuff into the back of their car in case they'll need it sometime (umbrellas, extra shoes, jumper cables...) but when you're on foot, you must carry everything that you're going to use that day... shoes if you know you'll be going to the gym, umbrella if it may rain, and sorry, no jumper cables!
Dining in NYC is an absolute pleasure. There are endless, quality mom-and-pop non-chain dining opportunities around every corner! We had a lot of fun picking some place to eat wherever we happened to be.