New York City

The morning was an early one, as we had an 8 am "reservation" for the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island tour. On our way we grabbed some breakfast from Fresh & Co, which was located at the corner of 7th and 30th. We both got the “AM Energy”: Egg Whites w/ spinach and chicken in a WW Wrap, some fruit and some coffees. Generally speaking the place was OK (IMO), Sherilyn liked it more than I did. Their concept was quick to-go healthy food. We packed the food and subway-ed down to South Ferry where we checked in/boarded for an 8:30 departure to Liberty Island. We ate on the boat. Ride was quick, it approached the island and offered a great view for those on the starboard side. After docking we started the process of security checks, queues and exploration that ended with us at our crown stair climbing experience. To start with we had to buy the crown tickets many months in advance. The climb was 188 steps from the Pedestal to the top on a very small winding spiral staircase up the center of the statue, quite uncomfortable for those of use larger than normal. The top was very warm, it did offer some nice views through the small winders in the crown. The top was quite cramped, luckily we arrived as a small group left and were the only ones up there for a short time before another group arrived. This gave us some time to look at all the views without much difficulty. Climbing down was actually harder than going up (IMO). At the bottom we exited, walked around the pedestal and base some more before boarding the ferry for Ellis Island.

Ellis Island was included in the rest of the experience. We stopped briefly for about 30 minutes and explored building (we skipped the Museum), One could really see how our ancestors must have felt while they waited to be allowed into the country. Some of the small mock-ups gave old pictures and descriptions of the experience. After the brief walkthrough we went to the American Family Immigration Research Center (or whatever the hell it was called), disappointingly, we quickly discovered that what was available was nothing different than what was available online (unless we were doing something wrong). We took left, boarded boat back to Battery Pack.

At this point we walked through lower Manhattan and made our way to the Fulton St. Subway stop. Along the way we passed through wall street, the NY stock exchange, a few pieces of “art”, and the NY federal reserve bank. At Fulton we boarded the train to Brooklyn The plan here was to grab lunch/ice cream before walking back to Manhattan over the Brooklyn Bridge.

Lunch was at a small Pizzerias called “Julianas”. We ordered the #4 (Mozz, Arugula and Proscuitto), the Arugula Salad and a couple of Beers . Was very filling. We probably could have gone without the Salad. After this point we walked down to waterfront and walked around a small park and generally just enjoyed the warmth/scenery. Before our walk back over the bridge was topped at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, which was located by the pier we were spending some time on. Sherilyn got chocolate chocolate chip, I got a Root Beer Float. The Ice cream was pretty good, very basic, but made well. After the Ice Cream we climbed back to the base of the bridge and walked across. The walk was a mile from end to end. It was a rather cool experience. Lots of people were doing this. The walk took about 20 minutes or so, stopping a number of times to enjoy the views/photo ops. After crossing we jumped on the subway and rode to Grand Central. Grand Central is an impressive structure, it brings to mind images of the grand European train stations. Not staying long, we made our exit and stumbled onto a small Exhibition entitled “Eat the Art”, where some still life paintings centered around cheese were recreated with actual cheese (and whatever else was in the painting). It was very small, with only 4 or so paintings. We made our rounds sample the cheese and viewing the art. This quick stop/snack ended with us departing onto 42nd? Street and walking a few blocks west till we passed the NY City Library.

At the Library, which is another grandiose piece of architecture, we noticed a sign advertisting the showing of an “original” copy of the declaration of independence. Taking the opportunity we entered found the gallery where it was located. While waiting in line we learned from the pamphlet given that it was one of 2 copies in existence that contained the original writings of Thomas Jefferson. After writing and presenting to the continental congress, the document was edited for content, (specifically parts about the vilification of the slave trade were removed), and this edited version is the signed/displayed copy in DC. This original was rewritten/kept by Jefferson. After getting to the front and seeing the document (with an obligatory selfie), we departed and walked down 6th Avenue and returned to the Hotel to get ready for our night.

The night started at Bobby Flay's American Grill, an “expensive” steakhouse-esque restaurant in midtown by Broadway. We enjoyed a drink at the bar before sitting at our table. Dinner was fairly straightforward. Our first course consisted of an Oyster flight for Sherilyn and French Onion Soup for Me. Our entrees were a more intense. Sherilyn got the Swordfish special, and I got a plantain crusted snapper with sautéed spinach over black bean puree. We got sides of the American fries, which came with a red pepper mayo, and kale with cheese & crispy shallots. Dinner was good, very pricey, about $220 after tip. I don’t think we would have gone here, had it not been for the gift card. Forgoing dessert, we departed and headed to the Belasco Theatre for Hedwig and the Angry Inch. We had a little time to kill so we walked over to McGee’s the bar that MacLaren’s in How I met your mother is modeled after. We didn’t notice much similarity, at least from the outside.

The Belasco Theatre is a small theatre, a short walk from the restaurant. Getting in line we got inside and sat in our seats. The general plot centered around Hedwig, monologuing about his/her life from young boy in East Berlin to the Stage, opening night of their show. The show was very good. Skipping intermission, it ran for about 2 hours. Neil Patrick Harris was excellent and showed why he won a Tony for the part. He interacted with the audience and (to our guess), displayed a lot of improv with a few ongoing bits that the audience was a part of. After the show we hung around the cast exit with the hope of meeting NPH. In the end we got a few autographs of the other cast members (Lena who also won a Tony), and a Band member who’s name I would have to look up. We did get a few papperazzi shots of NPH before he left. Taking this cue to leave, we departed, walking back to our hotel before calling it a night.Read more