new york things – part 1

Max and I waited for 12 months for the trip.  Last summer, we would talk about the trip.  During the school year, we would think about the trip whenever there would be a trip fundraiser.  When we made our final payment in February, we celebrated the trip.  After we received the itinerary with all it's details, we planned for the trip.  Then, on Thursday, April 22, we hopped on an airplane and began the trip to New York City.

Each year, the sixth graders in the Gifted Education class at Max's school have the opportunity to go on an educational trip to New York City.  I have to admit that I had questioned how educational it really would be, but  those doubts did not sway us from signing up to go.  I should not have doubted the educational claim.  We were  heading out by 7 each morning and did not return to the hotel until after 10 pm and each moment was filled with morsels of trivia about the history, architecture, politics, and geography (just to name a few) of New York City.  We had a remarkable tour guide (Robert Westfield from Worldstrides) who has been serving in the capacity (along with being a caterer among other things) for the past 20 years after he first moved to NYC to attend Columbia University.  He had such a way with the children (and adults) as he filled us with so much information, only to 'test' us afterwards with sweet bribes rewards.  Max soaked it up like a sponge.

We arrived and La Guardia Airport on Thursday morning around 11 am and were immediately whisked away on a tour bus for a driving tour of some of the city as we headed from Queens to Manhattan, where we would spend the next four days.  We began with a trip through Harlem, which proved to be so different than I had always pictured.  It is full of beautiful architecture and history.  We made our first stop in Harlem at the largest mausoleum in North America -- Grant's Tomb.  The memorial to Ulysses S. Grant included a mesmerizing domed ceiling as well as a unique outside sitting area filled with mosaic benches. Next stop, lunch -- we stopped at a Pizzeria across the street from the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.  After eating, we spent awhile at the Cathedral which is also called St. John the Unfinished (for the obvious reason that it remains unfinished after being reopened briefly being closed for repairs after a 2001 fire).

After touring the Cathedral, we made a quick stop at our hotel to drop off luggage before hopping back on the bus and heading to Little Italy and China Town.  En route we passed the New York City Ballet with it's beautiful fountain and newly-added lighting welcoming everyone  in many languages.  We took about an hour to visit China Town and do a little souvenir-shopping before meeting back at Da Nico's for dinner, where we were able to dine in the beautiful outdoor garden area.

After dinner, we took the subway to Midtown Manhattan to take a view of the skyline from Top of the Rock, the observation deck atop Rockefeller Center.  As we were leaving, we walked by Radio City Music Hall where the first night of the 2010 NFL draft was underway -- but, alas, we did not see any famous sports figures.  We walked back to Park Central Hotel around 10 and took the opportunity to unpack and rest our weary feet -- because we had a busy day (or two) ahead!

We were up and at 'em bright and early Friday morning as we walked to Rockefeller Plaza to try our hand at working the fence outside the Today Show.  By the time we arrived around 7:15 am, the lines were 10 deep and we saw there was no way our plan to show our sign "Hey Ya'll! from Wetumpka, Alabama", so we grabbed a quick breakfast and looked around at some other sights for awhile until the crowds died down.  We finally  made it up to the front and Max held his sign hoping to get on camera.  We came seconds from being successful, but they panned towards the skateboarding bulldog just before reaching Max.  But, it was fun!

We then headed to 5th Avenue where we visited FAO Schwarz, the Apple Store, and St. Patrick's Cathedral before a quick lunch at Prime Burger.  Then off to Radio City Music Hall for the grand tour, where Max enjoyed a visit with a Rockette and thought it was cool to see one of Meatloaf's guitars.  After a quick ride on the subway, we landed at Central Park for a guided walking tour with Robert.  What a beautiful place and so different from what I remembered during a quick carriage-ride that Dan and I took in the 1980s.  I do believe my favorite part of the park was the Cathedral of Trees -- so tranquil, beautiful, and big.  While we were there, Max took a ride on the very fast carousel.  We were so tired as we headed back to the hotel to get ready for our very first Broadway Musical -- Wicked!  But first, dinner at Gossip Bar (yes, it was a bar, but it had a dining room downstairs and our group took up the whole room -- they kept it appropriate for our middle-schoolers).

We walked to the Gershwin Theater for the show.  Max told me that Wicked was his favorite part of the whole trip.  I really enjoyed it, once I was able to ignore much of the underlying tones that are a little more to the left than I swing.  I was amazed at the talent -- especially with the actors portraying Glinda and Elphaba.  It was the debut for the actor portraying Fiyero and, although he was good, he just did not seem to have the caliber in the voice department of the other leads.  After the play, we walked to Time Square where we had our group photos taken right in front of the red stairs.  Boy, did our feet hurt and we still had to walk back to the hotel.  It was after 11 pm when we arrived at the hotel and we were back up at 7 Saturday morning to start all over again!  Can we make it???  Stay tuned to find out what happened on Saturday and Sunday...

05.04.10