Last Day in NYC

And then on the third day...

Whew! I didn't think there'd be anything left to see of NYC but we barely scratched the surface!  We didn't have anything pressing time-wise to do, so we took our time in the morning. I got my lovely Starbucks hot chocolate again. Even if it's 97 degrees outside, it's still a good idea to start your day with free hot chocolate. #lifetip

We had tickets to see a show in the early afternoon- so until then we just see'd as many sights as we could cram in. 

Our first subway stop was Grand Central Station- another one of those I've-Heard-About-It-My-Whole-Life-And-I-Want-To-See-It-For-Reals places.

It was really pretty inside. I honestly had no idea what to expect. It was much... er... more grand than I thought it would be.(ohhh.. NOW I get it!) Definitely a fancy station, for sure. 

I took some pics of the ceiling- which depicts astrological signs- but only the ones from the summer months. Boo... The pictures are really hard to see though, so I deleted them from this post. Meh. Trust me, you're not missing much.  This is the only one that kinda turned out. 

It was neat to see that they still have the train boards flashing. They're digital now, but you can still hear the echoing of the little flipping tiles (there is a *slight* chance I've watched too many movies).

Just as you walk out of the station- Kablam! The Chrysler tower is *Right There* 

Let's pause here to quote a couple of lines from Broadway shows:

"I'm supposed to be the Grand Duchess, Anastasia- but I think I look more like the Chrysler building!

- The Producers

"... and if this floor don't shine like the top of the Chrysler building, your backside will!"

-Annie

Are you quite finished? Ok. moving on. 

As we were walking to our next destination, we passed the main entrance to Grand Central. It's pretty fancy too!

One of the must-sees on Kristen's list was the New York Public Library.  I've wanted to see it because of movies like Breakfast at Tiffany's, so I was down to see it too. 

It's definitely one of the fancier libraries I've been in. And puzzling as there seems to be no books. Haha I knew from Breakfast at Tiffany's that it was not a browsing library- but I thought there would at least be *some* way to look for books. There was a study room- but we didn't have the qualifications to get in. Hopefully next time we can figure out the system. 

Heading nowhere in particular, we stumbled upon Bryant park. I only know this name because I'm a fan of Project Runway and this is where they have Fashion Week. 

We were getting hungry- but not lunchy just yet. So we stopped at this adorable little French Patisserie 

You can never go wrong with an éclair- so I got one. 

Here I am, all happy with my little éclair. What is usually in an éclair, cream, right? 

Imagine my astonishment and delight when I bit in and it was CHOCOLATE MOUSSE! OH my gosh! I should have gotten eight more! It was SO GOOD!

Being near Bryant park, and walking past stores completely dedicated to selling buttons (yes, buttons. walls and walls of buttons) we realized we'd wandered into the Fashion District. And once again, the Project Runway geek in me surfaced and we tracked down Mood- the fabric store where all the contestants run around like maniacs trying to find the perfect textile. Oh my gosh. It is a maze in there! They give them 30 minutes on the show- that has got to be just for production purposes. There is no way you can find what you're looking for in under 30 minutes. 

There was an upstairs and a downstairs- fabric stuffed in every corner. 

No. I did not see Swatch. He was not there that day. 😞

By this time we needed to get closer to the theater so we kept walking. This is the closest  we got the Empire State building- but it was close enough, a block away. I can say I've seen it. 

We had a little time before our show, so we were going to eat lunch at Junior's but it was SO BUSY we only had time to get a slice of New York cheesecake. It was probably the best NY style cheesecake I've ever had. It was kind of weirdly crumbly, but then you'd put it in your mouth and it was like buttuh. Oh my goodness, it was so smooth and creamy. Yum-O!

Not far from Junior's was our theater. The Richard Rodgers Theater where we got to see Hamilton. 

HAMILTON! Did you hear...er...read that? Ham. Il. Ton!

When we were planning our trip, we both knew we wanted to see a show, but which one? There are so many to choose from. We *really* wanted to see The Music Man with Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, but they wanted $450 a ticket! YIKES! So we narrowed it down to Wicked and Hamilton.

I've seen Wicked before (you know I'm obsessed right, my cats *are* named Elphaba and Nessa Rose, after all)- but there's nothing quite like seeing a show on Broadway- so I would have been ok with that. I had seen the Disney+ version of Hamilton and already loved it. Kristen had not seen either- or heard the music from either- so I let her pick. I was secretly glad she chose Hamilton- I'd never seen it on stage so it was a first for both of us. 

You know how sometimes you see a show, or hear the soundtrack with the original cast and then when you see it with a different cast, you're a little bit disappointed? Nope. Not this time. It was fan.freaking.tastic and I would not have changed a thing. 

We had really good seats. We were in the mezzanine, but honestly, looking around, I don't think there's a bad seat in the house. 

Final recommendation: GO. SEE. HAMILTON!

The theaters are almost all near Time's Square- so while we were there, we stopped by the Disney Store...

...because we're all well aware of the fact that I am just a six-foot-tall five year old. 

This is my- good riddance, Time's Square face. I was there. I don't need to return. 

Kristen's husband was driving into the city to bring us the car. We had a little time before he got there so we wandered down the street to Trinity Church. It was just down from our hotel. I wish I would have realized its significance sooner. ALEXANDER HAMILTON is buried there! What!?! 

We hustled over- but same old story- everything closes early there. It was 5:45 and they closed at 6 so they were not letting new people in. I begged. Please! I just want to take a quick picture and I'll leave. Nope. Dang. 

Luckily- his gravesite is near the fence so we were able to peek in and see it anyway. I do need to go back though, because a lot of the people mentioned in the play, including his wife, son, and sister-in-law, Angelica are buried there. 

After seeing that show, the church the previous day where George Washington and other founding fathers worshiped, then Hamilton's grave- I was definitely in history mode- which was really convenient because the next week would be filled with history. 

We met up with Kristen's husband- thank you thank you for bringing the car in, and then taking the train back home. You didn't have to do that and it was very kind of you! 

The original plan included walking across the Brooklyn bridge- but time and feet wouldn't allow it. So I was perfectly content to drive across it. We said our goodbyes to Manhattan and blew it a kiss in the rearview mirror. 

That one's ok.. let's try another one. 

No, no... try again... ok good. This one's better. 

Hello Brooklyn!

Ok, one last one of Manhattan...

We were in Brooklyn a grand total of about 10 minutes and then crossed the Verrazano Bridge.

The we crossed the Staten Island Bridge- which I've actually been on before- that one time I got lost on my mission and ended up crossing it. 

[Insert time travel waves]

I was with my greenie. We were going back to our area after a zone conference and I got lost. I was so freaked out, I thought I was going to get in so much trouble, maybe even sent home! The lady at the toll booth asked for my money and when I said I didn't have any, she said she'd just bill it to the license plate. 

"Ma'am," I said, "I am a missionary and I'm not supposed to leave my area. I will get in so much trouble if you tell on me." 

She was very understanding and said, "Sweetie, just head down the road, take a left, turn around, and go home. You'll be fine." So I went along my way but I was flipping out so much, I missed the left and went even *further* into Staten Island. Oh my gosh. 

When we finally got home I called my district leader to tell him everything. Poor Elder McKay, having to deal with hysterical sisters. "Are you ok?" I confirmed I was fine. "Is your companion ok?" I confirmed she was fine too... "Then don't worry about it."

WHEW!

Ok... back to the present... 

Speaking of New Jersey- we passed through it. My mission was the northern part, so we were only in my mission for minute...

...but we accidentally took a wrong exit (see? It's not just me! It's confusing!) and ended up going a little further into my mission. My last area was Elizabeth- so it was almost close to home. 💚

On our drive, we were both in history mode so we listened to documentaries about Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr- we wanted to see how historically accurate the play is. 

We drove and drove; I recall only stopping once for food and loo- and then kept on driving. We passed out of New Jersey and on through Delaware and Maryland down into Virginia.  I've always heard that the Washington DC temple just kind of sneaks up on you. You're driving down the highway and then KAPOW! There it is! They aren't kidding! I was right there- just floating above the road. 

I'm glad I got to see it at night- and experience this phenomenon. We headed into Leesburg and crashed at Marie's house. Anadine was already there, and Megan came sometime during the wee hours while we were all still asleep. 

New York was a wonderful adventure! There's still so much to see and do, but I think that was a pretty good first go. Our feet definitely needed the long drive to rest- because the next week... well, you thought we did a lot in NYC- just you wait till the DC posts! Whew!

 

New York Day 2

Whew! Thanks for returning for day 2. It was a long. LONG. day. We put in about 15 hours of sightseeing and somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 miles of walking- and it was a museum heavy day so there was also a lot of standing around. Spoiler alert- my feet were *killing* me by the end of the day.  

Further spoiler alert- my feet took a month or more to recover from this whole trip. 

We had a lovely breakfast at our hotel. They had a Starbucks machine so I got to make my own hazelnut hot chocolate. It was a lovely way to start the day. 

Our first goal for the day was the World Trade Center Memorial. It was nearby so we started to walk. We passed this church- you know I'm a sucker for a cemetery so we stopped to explore. The workers invited us in so we checked it out. 

There was a lot of awesome history here! This was the church George Washington worshiped in just after his inauguration. Wow! That's really neat!

This is the New York Seal. "This depiction of the official seal of New York State dates back to circa late 1700s. The seal, adopted in 1777, depicts the state's coat of arms and a banner inscribed with the official state motto, "Excelsior," meaning "ever upward" in Latin. The seal also depicts allegorical figures representing Liberty and Justice; Liberty is seen with one foot on a crown, symbolizing the nation's independence from the British monarchy, and Justice is blindfolded, representing the American judicial system's impartiality"  (description plate by the painting. I could never sound that educated. haha!)

The Marvel geek in me giggled at EXCELSIOR , but it was beautiful either way. 

This was the original Great Seal of the United States from 1785. 

I think it's funny because I was thinking it looked like a turkey- which was originally recommended as the national bird by Benjamin Franklin. The description plate confirmed my suspicions. 

Also, I learned that George Washington's pew sat below this painting. Coooool! 😀

It was a very pretty church, very modest compared to some I've been inside, but it holds so much history- Also, it has the distinction of being the *only* building in the area that was not damaged when the towers fell. Which is really quite a miracle considering how close it is. 

 

The older the cemetery, the more fun I have. I could have easily spent all day there- but the two headstones that stood out the most to me were these two: 

The name on this one might be my favorite name EVER. I want to write a book and use this name! Mrs. Mehitable Nesbit. Oh my gosh. People just don't name babies like this anymore and it is a darn shame! Just say it over and over. Mehitable Nesbit, Mehitable Nesbit. Isn't that just delightful? 

This was also a favorite. I kind of want this inscribed on my headstone when I die: 

Behold and see as you Pass By

As you are Now so Once was I

As I am Now you Soon will Be

Prepare for Death and Follow Me

Absolutely fantastic!

Cemeteries just fill me with joy (usually- we'll talk about this later). I know. I'm a weirdo. I just love to imagine what life was like for people. Were they happy? What were they like? 

Like I said, I could have spent all day there- but we headed on over to the One World Tower. We stopped and paid respects at the Twin Towers Memorial. It was a very nice, peaceful place. 

We had tickets to go to the One World Trade Center Observatory, the tallest building in the western hemisphere.

Up, up, up we went to the 102nd floor. The elevator ride (48 seconds) was so "long" they showed us a movie on the way up. Hahaha! Oh my gosh. 

It was fun to walk around the observatory and see the whole city- and New Jersey 😉 It allowed us to plot out some of the places we wanted to see. It was in the plan to walk across the Brooklyn bridge but (spoiler alert) it didn't happen. 

Our next adventure took us to the subway and we headed waaaaay uptown. Our plan was to spend a few hours at the Met- and then a few hours at the Natural History Museum... 

There was a lot to see. I've already forgotten more than I learned. Prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for a barrage of art photos. I want to always remember what I saw there. I wish I could have taken pictures of everything!

We started to the left- classic art. If it wasn't for this mask, you wouldn't be able to tell us apart, huh? 

We saw all the legends. Odysseus, Perseus, Theseus... A lotta eusses!

I stopped and spoke with Zeus. He did not respond. 🤷 

I loved this sculpture of Perseus. I didn't want to shock or offend my more sensitive viewers though, so the picture was strategic. 😂😆😂

Here is our good friend, Hercules wearing the Nemean Lion, once again, begging the question: Who wore it better?

We found our way to The Eatery. 

I took these next few as future decor references. I do love a good French Rococo parlor 💚

Tale as old as time... true as it can beeeee..... Oh... uh. sorry. I'll stop there. 

The next section was the Modern Art. I'll tell you now. I just don't *get* it. I do not understand modern art . At. All. 

I mean, I know the name Jackson Pollock. I've seen is stuff before (not in real life)- but I just don't get it. There were lots of others that I didn't even take pictures of because I don't understand how they are fine art. Some of it looks a lot like the stuff I have on my fridge from my niece or the aftermath of my painting T-shirts. 🤷

Am I a total unsophisticated neandterthal? I'd like to think not. I was pretty impressed with myself at knowing so many of the artitsts we saw- but I will admit- Modern art is out of my realm of comprehension. 

These were my first Picasso. There were several and I geeked out all over the place. 

Henri Matisse. MATISSE guys!

A room filled with Degas took my breath away. 

And then Manet. 

I was overjoyed to see a room-full of Renoir.

I *squeeeeeed* a little when I saw my first Van Gogh.

And then I flat out cried when I saw Monet. He's always been a particular favorite of mine. 

This is a Rubens. There were also Van Dykes and so, so many others. I really wish I'd taken pictures of everything. It was amazing! All these paintings and artists I've heard about my whole life- right there!

As we made our way to the American Art Exhibit I was on the hunt for a particular sculpture. I am related to the artist, Cyrus E Dallin and I learned before going that one of his pieces was on display there. We searched and searched and I finally found it in a room that was blocked off. D'oh! Because they were short handed, a lot of rooms were closed off. But I could *see* it. So I asked a worker there if she could accompany me into the room so I could see it. She didn't want to- for fear of losing her job- and I totally don't blame her. The compromise was that she took my phone in and took a picture of it for me. 

This is Appeal to the Great Spirit. Fun fact, a copy of this sculpture is in the White House collection and President Clinton had it in the Oval Office. I was excited to see it- even it was from the doorway across the room. 

We were running out of time and we were barely half way through the museum! We ran through weaponry- this is Henry XIII's field armor. I've seen his dress armor at the Tower of London and his size, it seems, never diminished. 

We ran through the Egyptian section. I had just finished watching Moon Night so I would have liked to have had more time here, but they were sounding the closing bell. 

This is the Temple of Dendur. The ethics of removing all these antiquities nags at the corners of my brain, but I guess there's no other way I'd ever get to see them because it's not likely I'll end up in ancient Egypt anytime soon. 

The last thing I geeked out over- the dumbest thing- was this quilt coat. I am a fan of the fashion from the Met Gala and I remembered seeing this coat made from a thrifted quilt worn by A$AP Rockey in 2021.

We spent six hours in the Met and still barely made it half way through. So, I'm gonna have to plan another trip to see the rest of it- and the Natural History Museum. 

By this time, our feet were killing- but we still had a lot of walking to do! 

We walked through central park for a while. The park is kind of a miracle. You're in the middle of this crazy city- but it was so peaceful. Except for the occasional siren, you would have never known you were in crazy place!

There we so many beautiful things to see. The flowers were lovely. I wish I knew what any of them were. ha! 

We made sure to go by Bethesda Fountain. 

And this tree was probably the most beautiful. My picture doesn't do it justice. The whole tree was purple with blossoms. 

We also walked up to Belvedere castle but somehow I didn't get any photos of it. 

We found our way over to Strawberry Fields. Pot is legal in New York and everyone made sure to sit here and smoke it. Oi! We walked through quickly to avoid second-hand high. 

One of Kristen's favorite haunts is the little hole-in-the-wall cookie place. Oh my gosh- this cookie was amazing! 

We walked down the street and found the Manhattan Temple. We did not make an appointment for anything, but I still wanted to see it. By this time we both reeeeeally needed a loo- so we asked the security guard- yes- there is a security guard- if we could go to the church upstairs and use the loo. 

Once again, I wish I'd been better about taking pictures. They had amazing Book of Mormon art that I've never seen before. 

I get to check another temple off my list. Next time I'll make sure to take time to go inside, but for now, this was close enough. 

I was at the meeting where President Hinckley announced the Manhattan Temple so I was happy to see it. It's so strange- right there in the middle of the city- no temple grounds- no flowers or landscaping. Just there- on a street corner. Right where it belongs. A little oasis. 

I was only too delighted to walk a block or so down the road and come upon Sesame Street!  After all that sophisticated, fancy-pants art, the next few pictures are really going to show the 5 year old hidden inside. 

We continued our way downtown. We were on our way to Rockefeller Square when we passed the building where the Tonight Show is filmed. It's right next to Radio City Music Hall where I sang "Let's Go to the Movies" to myself and did a little Rockette kick... uh... in my mind, that is. 

We also passed Christie's. So many times has this place been in headlines. I just think of all the amazing things that have passed through there. 

I also got a little over excited when we went by FAO Schwarz. I thought they'd all closed so I was happy to see this one still exists. It was closed for the day- but just being by the door was enough to make me grin like an idiot. 

We finally made it to Rockefeller Plaza. I didn't realize they had skating year round. I knew they did the ice skating in winter- but I guess the rest of the time it's roller skating. 

There she is: 30 Rock. No Liz Lemmon, no Jack Donaghy, but still, it was fun to see with my own eyes.

Also on the plaza was the studio for NBC news. You can peep through the windows and see where they film the Today Show. I could have been one of the weirdos jumping around outside the window! 

We walked on down to Time's Square. I wanted to see it all lit up at night. And I did. It's another one of those iconic places that you feel like you just *have* to see. Well. I've seen it. I don't ever have to go back. I can NOT imagine wanting to be there on new year's eve. Bleh. I was there on a Tuesday in May and it was bad enough. It was cool to see the lights and banners flashing- but there was far too much humanity for my taste- and the whole place smelled like pot. 

Someone even offered some to Kristen. Does she *look* like a pot smoker? I would say heck no- but I guess these days you never can tell. 

I was the most excited, of course, when I saw they had a Disney store. It was closed. You know, for the "City that doesn't sleep" things sure close early in New York. 

I think according to Kristen's fitbit, we'd tracked at least 10 miles that day. And most of that was standing around looking at stuff in the museum- so even though we weren't walking, we were standing. My feet were absolutely dead by the end of this day. I'd brought my massager with me and two pairs of shoes. I'm really glad I did because this was still just the beginning!