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North America 2017

November - December 2017
A 29-day adventure by Danielle and Co travels Read more
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  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 10

    Thanksgiving Part 1

    November 23, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 2 °C

    Today I woke up with a bit of a sniffle, so the boys headed out to Starbucks for breakfast while I had a bit of a sleep-in. We headed off around 10 this morning, and made our way down to the National Mall towards the National Air and Space Museum. We went through a number of the exhibits including Early Flight, the Golden Age of Flight, Boeing Milestones of Flight Hall, Space Race, America by Air, Great War in the Air, World War 2 Aviation, Military Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Sea-Air Operations, Apollo to the Moon, Time and Navigation and Exploring the Moon. Once again great exhibits, great spaces and all for free!

    After finishing at the Air and Space Museum we headed out for some lunch. We found a bunch of food trucks and ordered Quesadillas that we ate on a bench in the National Mall.    Read more

  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 10

    Thanksgiving Part 2

    November 23, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 2 °C

    After lunch we headed to the National Gallery of Art, where we went to a Vermeer Exhibition, and also saw some wonderful art - they have put together an excellent collection, and it is housed in a gorgeous building. We saw works by Van Gogh, Cezanne, Monet, Renoir, Manet, da Vinci, Goya, Turner, Constable, Pissarro, Matisse, Caillebotte, Bazille, Delacroix, Gauguin and Vermeer.

    After spending a couple of hours in the gallery we wound our way back up to our hotel, to give me a chance to catch up on my blog, and to relax before heading out for our Thanksgiving dinner. We may walk down to the Lincoln Memorial after dinner to see it at night.    Read more

  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 10

    Thanksgiving Dinner

    November 23, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 0 °C

    We had Thanksgiving dinner at ICI Urban, Sofitel’s Restaurant. We enjoyed the meal and we had a bottle of red from France. Tomorrow we leave Washington for NYC!

  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 11

    Start spreading the news.......

    November 24, 2017 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 7 °C

    We left gorgeous Washington this morning, and had a short flight to the Big Apple. I sat next to an interesting women. She is an interior designer, who only has a few clients and who has lived in Italy for the past 17 years and really hates everything Trump stands for, and she can’t believe he was elected and that he is still in office. She was extremely passionate and wishes she could move all her family to Italy - unfortunately, their work keeps them in DC. Our taxi ride into Midtown was uneventful, and didn’t take too long. We then settled into our apartment, which will be home for the next 8 days. We did a quick shop at our local Wholefoods grocery store, and had a quick look at the Christmas Market at Bryant Park. We even did a load of washing!

    We had reservations at Bubby’s restaurant in Chelsea for dinner, and decided the walk there and back would be good for us. It took us about an hour to get there, mainly due to all the crowds around Midtown - once we fought through the throng it was an easier walk. We had a lovely dinner. I had baked beef ribs with mash and broccoli, and the boys had southern fried chicken with carrots and mash or fries. There was a really nice ambiance at Bubby’s, and the service was excellent. We even shared a piece of their famous pie (sour cherry) which was yum. We then walked back to the hotel via Times Square. We were all a bit tuckered out from the travelling today. Tomorrow, we will possibly head over to Brooklyn.    Read more

  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 12

    Brooklyn Heights - a well kept secret

    November 25, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    We decided on a slow start to the day, and finally left our digs around 11 am. We fought through the crowds of Time Square, where we entered the subway system to head Downtown. We decided to get a 7-day unlimited metro card, as it will be cheaper than individual tickets every time we decide to take the subway. We are becoming quite proficient at navigating around the place. As it is a Saturday the red line doesn’t travel to Brooklyn, so we got off near the Town Hall in lower Manhattan and made our way to the Brooklyn Bridge with thousands of other people. I think it was particularly busy as it is a ‘holiday’ weekend, but we are learning to push our way through and maintain our ground amongst the throng (and we still seem to be more polite and considerate than most).

    As we made our way across the bridge the crowds thinned out slightly, which made the walk more enjoyable. On the Brooklyn side we headed towards DUMBO, and made our way to the Manhattan Bridge and then walked along the shore of the East River towards and then under the Brooklyn Bridge. We then did a self-guide walking tour of Brooklyn Heights. What a beautiful area, the architecture is lovely and it is so peaceful and quiet compared to the craziness of Manhattan. If we ever had the chance to live in NY, I think I would opt for Brooklyn Heights as it is a quick subway ride across Manhattan.

    On our way back from Brooklyn we stopped at Union Square and Broadway to locate a shoe store Angus was interested in called Flight Club. We found the store and I was impressed with the sheer number of runners on display - it was pretty crazy in there. They had some special runners in a glass case - I think the most expensive I saw was US$9,750, and they weren’t even that nice in my opinion. Angus tried on a number of styles before he found ones he liked and were a comfortable fit, so we had a satisfied customer. A couple doors down from Flight Club was another store that was very much to Angus’s taste - Forbidden Planet - full of comics, Star Wars, Simpsons, Marvel etc paraphernalia. Again, I think Angus was a little overwhelmed by the sheer size and range of things.

    We then headed back onto the subway up to Grand Central Terminus (which also has a Xmas market that I will visit later this week). We did walk through their fresh food market which was amazing - so much choice - filled with fresh produce and a range of other food stuffs. We then made our way over to 6th Avenue to the Whole Foods Supermarket to pick a few things, so that we could have dinner in tonight - very relaxing and good for the budget!

    Tonight we had Provolone, Prosciutto & Peas ravioli with a Napoli sauce, salad and baguette, accompanied by a Californian red (which I thought was pretty ordinary). We had also picked up some delicious cookies from Ben’s Cookies - so we sampled them tonight with a cuppa - very nice.

    Tomorrow we plan to head to Chelsea.    Read more

  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 12

    Brooklyn Heights Photos

    November 25, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    We really enjoyed this part of Brooklyn. We met some friendly locals over lunch who recommended a Pizza and Calzone Restaurant in Cobble Hill, which one of them had been going to since she was a kid. We will try to get there during the week. They also recommended an Italian place on 46th street, which is only a couple of blocks from our apartment. I haven’t put captions on these photos as they were all taken in Brooklyn Heights.Read more

  • TravelerNorth America 2017
    Day 13

    We walked the line.

    November 26, 2017 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 6 °C

    Sunday in New York - we will get some steps in today but in may be difficult to beat yesterday’s total of 22,272 (a personal best). Another beautiful day = sunshine and blue sky, not that we see that much of the sun with the shadows of these skyscrapers! As we headed out this morning on our way to the High Line, there was a brisk wind blowing and not much sun to warm us. We walked the High Line, a linear park built on a disused rail line, admiring the scenery and the sculpture exhibition by multiple artists titled "Mutations". Some pieces were easier than others to work out ... there were even a few with explanations that I still didn’t get! Not sure if that is a reflection on me or the “art”.

    After the High Line, we headed to Chelsea Market for a bit of a browse and then had some lunch. We went to the "Green Table" restaurant who believe that the best food is grown, raised and harvested within a day’s drive of the table. The food we had was delicious and fairly priced. As we were leaving the market, we ran into the Greens who are also here on holiday, which was a nice surprise. We will catch up with them for dinner on Monday night.

    We caught the subway back up to 42nd street, and had a bit of down time before we needed to head out again for our first show on Broadway. We got up to the August Wilson Theatre only to find it closed, and no "Ground Hog Day". Apparently it closed in September after opening in April to rave reviews. The lady in the box office was very nice and helpful, and advised me that Ticketmaster would have refunded the money. I checked when we got back to our apartment, and yes it was refunded in late August. I don’t understand why they wouldn’t send an email to advise us of this. Very disappointing - I have now got a ticket to "Waitress" on Tuesday night, and the boys elected for a night in, so everyone is happy.

    As we had a free couple of hours, we decided to walk up to Central Park and take it all in. We watched with amusement as a guy let his dog off the lead and he then (the dog) had a stand off with a squirrel - the dog came off second best, as those squirrels can move at lightening speed. It didn’t deter the dog from trying to creep up on the next squirrel or bird in its sights. We also saw people ice-skating, and we may give it a go at the Rockefeller Plaza ( I used to skate when I was young, hopefully I is like riding a bike and it will all co e back to me).

    We then walked back to our apartment down 5th Avenue past Tiffany's, but I couldn’t persuade Ian to buy me anything🙁. Some of the Christmas decorations are now up and they look fabulous. We have again broken the 20,000 step barrier, and so we rewarded ourselves with a cuppa and shared a brownie from the Fat Witch.

    Tonight we went to a local restaurant (next door to our apartment) called "Un, Deux, Trois", which was very nice.

    Another big day planned for tomorrow so a good nights rest is required.    Read more

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