Day Two In The City

Today was exhausting but full of fun at the same time.  We started the day in Central Park, and ended it with a touristy bus ride through Manhattan and Brooklyn.  We rode on the upper level and I now have wind burn on my face.  It was totally worth it, and was a great way to see the city at night, and to see places we just didn't have the energy nor the time to walk to.

First up though was Central Park.  What a beautiful place in the heart of the concrete jungle.  We did not see everything, but did enjoy what we did see.  The last time I was here, all the trees were bare and the fountains empty, because it was still feeling the effects of winter.  This time, however, it was just beautiful!  The leaves on the trees are getting ready to turn, but there is still plenty of green.  I consider Central Park a must see in New York, because it is just perfect.

After our walk through the park, we headed to subway station so we could head downtown to Lower Manhattan to eat lunch.  The subway hates me.  That metro card just will not swipe for me on the first try.  Sometimes it won't swipe on the 2nd or 3rd try either.  Thankfully, Kira was very patient, and made my mom and I stand in front of the turnstile while she swiped for us.  I felt like a toddler!  The subway itself is pretty seamless after that and the ride is pretty comfortable if you get a coveted seat.  I have no core strength, so holding onto the bar means that I am one jerk of the train away from falling onto someone's lap.

We had lunch at Sweet Chick and had delicious chicken and waffles.

After biting into that chicken, I am convinced their chef is a Southerner, because that chicken was delicious and moist all the way through.  The waffles were tender, and the flavored butters were very tasty.

After lunch, we decided to get an Uber to take us back to the hotel to rest a bit before heading out again later in the afternoon.  That may have been the scariest Uber ride I have ever taken.  The driver definitely knew what he was doing, but all I kept hearing were horns blaring, and buildings whizzing past.  When we finally arrived, I exhaled, and Kira looked at me as if I had lost my mind because the ride did not faze her at all.  She actually rested her eyes a bit, while my mom and I were white knuckling it in the back seat.  More power to the Uber drivers in NYC.  They must have nerves of steel.

After a nice rest at the hotel, we headed back to the subway station, and after our "caretaker" got us through the turnstile again, we headed to Rockefeller Center.  I wanted to walk around FAO Schwartz, but we ended up walking from one door to the other, because it was very crowded and there were so many children.  We headed over to the ice rink that opened for the season today, and watched people try to skate.

Once we got our fill of ice skaters and the Plaza, we headed to the Port Authority area to board our hop on/off bus for the nightly tour.  The line was very long, as was the wait, so we ate NY pizza slices while standing there.  Not exactly how I wanted to eat my slice, but it was necessary since we knew the tour would last 90 minutes and it would be too late to eat when we finished.  The bus boarded in Times Square, and I  wanted to upload a video of that craziness, but could not get it to work.  If you have been there, you know words do not describe the sensory overload.  I can see why New Yorkers try to avoid that place.  It was nuts!!

Once we left Times Square, we could concentrate on the tour guide's presentation.  He was knowledgeable but also a bit self-aggrandizing.  He kept referring to himself as "rain man" because he knows a lot of facts about street numbers and such.  After about an hour of listening to him, I just stopped.  Leonardo DeCaprio, if you are reading this, the dude gave out your home address.  Or did he?  All in all, it was a great way to see the city lights and I don't regret it at all.

After disembarking from the bus, we found ourselves back at the subway station for the final time tonight, and it was a breeze, except for finding Mother on one side of the turnstile and Kira and I on the other, because ONCE AGAIN, the subway hates me.  We finally reunited and away we went back to our hotel, or as close as we could get.  We parted ways with Kira and Mother and I walked back to the hotel, where we proceeded to wind down really quickly.  The day was long but worth it.  I was very proud of our transportation "caretaker."  She handled us with ease and lots of patience.