This Stuff is Made in New York City

W_pretzelDespite raining almost our entire weekend in NYC, I forced myself to have a good time.   Seriously, Allan and I had fabulous kid-free getaway!   For Allan’s first trip to The Big Apple, we simply had to visit the typical tourist stops.

 

Times Square

times square

 

The Empire State Building

ESB

 

Central Park

Central Park

 

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Met

 

Allan had only one small request: Eat a real NYC hot dog from a  vendor in the street.

 

NYC Hot Dog

 

His company supplied us with tickets for In the Heights, a Tony award winning, upbeat and very entertaining Latin musical.  The comical characters are endearing and the music will make you move!    

 

In the Heights

 

On a side note, the play takes place in the part of Manhattan where my dad grew up.  I really connected with the characters and their stories since I could relate them to my dad’s memories and experiences of Washington Heights.

 

Our meals were also provided by Allan’s company.  On Friday evening, we dined at 5 Ninth.  The exposed brick walls and narrow iron staircase of this romantic restaurant gave a comfy feel of an old tavern.  Our table over looked the worn cobblestone roads of Ninth Avenue in Chelsea.

 

5 Ninth

 

Even though our wine glasses never went empty, they should have been paired with a better meal.  Honestly, the food was a bit disappointing.  Dining in this culinary paradise, I held NYC to a higher standard.  Unfortunately, I have had better meals here in Tampa. 

 

Being a business trip, we were obliged to attend a banquet on Saturday evening which served an atrocious meal at the W Hotel.  Simone (my sister) and Matt (her husband) also attend this business trip and were forced to attend the banquet as well, but for me, it made the evening more palatable.

 

NYC_Matt and Simone

 

NYC_Simone and Me

 

 We also had a few pints at the oldest ale house in NYC, McSorley’s.  To honor it properly, McSorely’s will get its own post.  More on Mc Sorley’s another time!

 

As we drove through Queens to JFK on Sunday, I gave Allan a tour of my mom’s old ‘hood.  Allan enjoyed putting a face to the places in my mom’s stories of life in Rego Park and Forest Hills.  

 

Even though it rained for most of the trip, I truly enjoyed our spring time trip to the Big Apple.  With patches of tulips and blooming Redbud trees, I’ve never seen the city so alive with color! 

 

NYC tulips

8 comments

  1. Raffi says:

    Ahh, new york. Do u miss me as much as I <3 you, NY?

    Brian first came to visit me in NYC about 14 yrs ago. We saw “Tommy”, went to Tower Records, MOMA and the Cloisters, ate at Ellen’s Stardust Diner and the incomparable Mercado’s Pizza. And we did a lot of dreaming about the future together. I don’t think our dreams were nearly as awesome as reality turned out to be.

    I’d like to take my daughters to NYC on their 16th Bdays as a one-on-one mommy trip…I should start saving up now!

  2. lindsay says:

    love his one request! the pics are all great, and glad you got to reminisce a little, show off your roots, and eat/drink for free 🙂

  3. Harriet says:

    Thanks for stopping by.
    I love your photos.
    I agree- I’m not sure the food there is any better. It’s just that there are really no grocery stores in NYC and everyone has to eat out.

    thanks!

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