New York, New York I

Our final port of call and it was a doozie. Within one block JS was threatening to return to the ship but we soldiered on. One block later a strong gust of wind blew his Jets cap into traffic.....more grumbling. A kind young man who was walking his dog retrieved the cap for JS. After 5 very long blocks through the gentrified Hell’s Kitchen we arrived at Times Square. WOW!! So many people and flashy billboards. It was a much more compact area than I had envisioned. Next stop was Rockefeller Center with even more people mainly focused on taking selfies. The artificial ice rink was much smaller than it appears on TV. We passed NBC, CBS, ABC, and ESPN TV studios; Radio City famous for the Rockettes; and Broadway theatres.

Our next mission was to get to the 911 Museum in Lower Manhattan. It was extremely difficult to convince JS that I knew where I was going once we went underground to the massive and complex subway system. But we made it! And it was well worth the effort because the Museum was very well done.....disturbing and emotionally challenging.....but very tastefully done. I suggested we have a meeting place as we always get separated in museums but JS didn’t feel it was necessary. Within 5 minutes we had gone separate ways and weren’t to meet again for almost 3 hours. It was very crowded and I took my time with the elaborate displays. Unfortunately JS whizzed through the large museum and then sat at the exit for over an hour in panic mode because he couldn’t find me. He explained that there were too many “white haired women in black jackets” that he followed only to realize it wasn’t me. We retraced our steps and made it back to the ship with less than an hour to spare before the ship’s departure. Finally JS was able to catch his breath and proclaim that he had survived New York City!Read more