It's true, I love NYC

Thanks to my cousin living in NYC and deciding to get married there, I finally made it.  It was amazing.  I can't wait to go back (in the winter, fall or spring) or move there for one of my adventures. Brooke and I met there on Monday.  We had a great hotel about a 2 minute walk from Times Square, and right across from Broadway theaters and the Church of Scientology which we did not attend.
Monday:
Seeing what Central Park has to offer: explored Times Square; walked to Central Park; had fancy dinner at the Loeb Boathouse restaurant overlooking the Lake in CP; sat outside the arena and listened to Young the Giant while people watching and trying to keep the lightening bugs and mosquitoes off of us in CP; went to the free NY philharmonic concert in CP, followed by fireworks; walked back to hotel via 5th Avenue.  Did I mention everything was free? 


Jimmy Fallon time

Tuesday:


Matthew Broderick

Went to Rockefeller Center for Jimmy Fallon tickets; Took subway to Little Italy and Chinatown; I wish we could have spent more time here, but we had to hurry; saw Jimmy Fallon monologue rehearsal (not the actual show, we didn't want to wait in lines all day long for a chance)- this was fun to see a behind-the-scenes kind of thing, then watch the show and see what they changed, plus Jimmy was funny, entertaining and personable- good times; it was about this time that Brooke had a work emergency and went back to the hotel to work- I went to the booth in Times Square around 6:30 when the lines were super short, and went to see Jersey Boys.  I loved it- there were some really cool and creative scenes (I could have done without the language, but...); as I walked back to the hotel (I'll skip the foot blister story and how I was walking slower than a turtle and grimacing with each step) all the broadway actors were coming out to sign autographs and take pictures, so I decided to call Brooke and wait right outside our hotel to see Matthew Broderick... mission accomplished.

Wednesday:
Pouring rain, Brooke working, and my foot blisters making it impossible to walk (I'm not exaggerating- but why did I wear new shoes on the first day???? dumb.).  However, we did walk around Times Square, eat, and shop.  I realize Times Square is not all of NYC, but I LOVE that it's just as busy at 1 a.m. as it is any other time of day.  So every night we would spend time here- or around here.  I love NY pizza and cheesecake (I just found a place close to my apt here in SA that sells NY pizza by the slice- yay- so I'll have to try it soon).  In the evening, Lion King!  LOVE!  I knew I would- the costuming is amazing. 

Ground Zero

 Thursday: 
For the life of me I can't remember what we did Thursday morning (I mean early afternoon)... but I guarantee it was fun!  Then we went to Vaniero's for Brooke to get mille foglie (some Italian dessert that is amazing), and I got cheesecake, and we both took goodies home- this place was reasonably priced and delicious!  On the subway, locals mentioned how great it was.  Then Ground Zero.  It was not what I expected, but glad I got to see it.  We got in the ticket line again around 6:30 for whatever we could get and went to see Mary Poppins.  It was good- they had some neat effects- but I don't want to ruin it for anyone.  Then around midnight, we walked to the Empire State Building and took in the city at night. 


Rehearsal Dinner... Party

Friday:
Brooke left.  All in all, I felt like we did a ton, and we only really had about 1/2 days worth of activities, the rest of the time, we'd just explore.  I loved out schedule of getting out around noon and staying up late- you wouldn't even know though with all of the activity. 


The Bower Family

Then I packed up and went to meet my sister at a friend's house.  After a few hours there, Ally, Naomi and I got a car service, and Ally enjoyed our ride to New Jersey speaking Spanish to the driver as I just pretended I knew what they were saying.  We met mom, dad and Memaw and drove to New Paltz, NY for the rehearsal dinner.  I love my dad's family- they are all so fun, sincere, and sweet! 





Wedding Fun

Saturday:


Lunch with Uncle Ron and Aunt Rena

Woke up to the sounds of my sweet niece; went to help with wedding preparation; ate lunch at a German restaurant with a beautiful view with all the family; headed to town to explore New Paltz; got into an argument with an anti-fracking group; lost track of time, and had to get ready for the wedding in 10 minutes; I love my cousin Jen, she is so fun, talented and nice- I could learn a thing or two from her.  She and Steve's wedding was great- outdoors on a farm.  The ceremony was under a big tree, cocktails were in the gardens; dinner under a beautifully decorated tent near the apple orchard; and dancing in the barn; I stayed until almost 3 a.m. singing along and playing guitar by the bonfire. 


In the Garden, at the farm, Wedding Site

Sunday:


In Central Park

Went to breakfast, and said goodbye to everyone, as most the family left Sunday.  Mom, Dad, Memaw, Ally, Naomi and I went back for an evening in the city.  I conquered driving a mini van in NYC (no big deal), and I took mom, dad and Memaw on a whirlwind tour- as they had never been and were leaving early in the morning. We "saw" Ground Zero from the road (can't really see anything with construction, but I informed them they weren't missing anything); hailed a cab to Times Square (it was fun getting a cab for 5 1/2 and having my mom ride in the storage area); walked down Fifth Avenue to Central Park; went to Empire State Building (way too many people at 7 p.m. as opposed to 1 a.m.); had a delicious dinner outside at a place near out hotel; walked to Battery Park for a night-time view of the Statue of Liberty.  I'd say it was a pretty good tour in only a few hours.

Naomi swinging in CP

Monday:
After Dad, Mom and Memaw left, Ally, Naomi and I braved the sweltering heat and humidity, to return some baby things to a friend; took a break to cool off; decided we had to do inside things to avoid dying; walked through CP- with a quick stop to let Naomi swing, to the Museum of Natural History; we are cheap so we just paid a few dollars and did almost nothing inside (it was just a really hot day); Whatever happened, I loved spending time with my sister and niece! 
 It was a great trip and I can't wait to go back to experience new things there!