Hi Honey I'm home !


We had a full and lively week
in New York
with my mother in law, sister in law and aunt !

Our journey from the airport was not nice-
over two hours in a crowded shuttle bus
which dropped us at the wrong hotel !

We walked through busy streets
pulling our luggage.

It was a bad start to our holiday
but it did have a silver lining...

someone handed my aunt
four tickets for the tour buses
they couldn't use up.
At 59 dollars each it was a stroke of luck
& meant we only had to buy one from our kitty !

Our hotel was lovely-
right in Times Square.

I said to Jess,
" You have to look up all the time "
and she answered,
" yeah and get run over ! "

From Jess's & my room,
we could just see the Coca-Cola advertising board
which had fabulous graphics.
The steps beneath a great place to sit and people watch.

Tourists, holiday makers,
school groups, street vendors, entertainers, ticket agents
people holding placards demanding,
" I need money for weed !"
Monks wanting donations for a Temple
( yes I gave two dollars and received two shiny cards for luck )
men dressed up as women & a naked Cowboy
( who was not naked )

I really liked sitting here in the evenings after dinner.
During the day we chose lunches from the wonderful delis.

We decided to take the tour bus on the first day
to get our bearings
before heading into New York on foot !

It was a lot of fun.
We sat up on the top deck of an open top bus
and enjoyed our enthusiastic tour guide's lively commentary.

The entrance to Macy's with statues of four women
 where Macy commemorated
the older women on board SS Titanic including a relative of his
who insisted younger women went to the lifeboats first.

That's the Empire State building in the distance !

The wedding cake building
where you can register your marriage...
and divorce !



The next day we decided to go to see
the Statue of Liberty.
This necessitated going on the subway !

Our nearest station had no ticket office
just confusing machines
& broken turnstiles
but with friendly people helping we managed to buy the tickets.

Our journey was hilarious
with groups of buskers entering the carriages
& singing songs like
Under the Boardwalk.
Such a giggle.

I kept imagining the scene in Ghost where Patrick Swayze
sticks his head into the train !

We caught the free Staten Island ferry to see the famous lady herself...
but not able to land on Liberty Island
due to Hurricane damage.

There she is -
Lady Liberty !

Back on land, we walked up through the financial district
towards Ground Zero
the location of the world trade centre.

Jess & I particularly wanted to see the memorial garden
at the location of the September 11 terrorist attacks
on the twin towers.

Below is the freedom tower
which when finished
will be the tallest building in the Northern hemisphere.

I feel quite sad that they decided to build such a tall tower.
I suppose it does stand defiantly against terrorism.

The site itself is incredible.
Where the two towers stood
are amazing marble constructions
with cascading water running into  deep pits.

They are beautiful & mesmerising
known as the footprints.
Jess & I were very moved
and quietly reflected on the lives lost.
I felt like their ghosts were with us.

The south tower was situated above
and north below.
We stayed for a while with water being lightly sprayed onto our faces
as we read the names of those lost.

***



Walking around we met so many characters
& stopped to chat for a while.
A happy black squirrel having his lunchtime treat from a regular visitor.

My mother in law kept asking Police men directions !

They were so friendly & polite.

Big billboards...

Big everything !

Better behave or we might get enlisted !

Wave - you're on the news !


We had two really hot days
so on one decided to go up
the Empire state building-
no queues phew !

blue skies !

but overcast when we got up.
That's the Chrysler building below.

I hate heights but was fine
and loved the views.

Next stop,
grand Central Station
where it was very very hot...

but beautiful.

The constellations painted up there !

Everywhere we went we quoted from films we've seen-

this is where the Mermaid in " Splash " chooses her human name !

A spot of shopping just had to be done !

as well as spotting more sights.

There's Jess & me on a huge screen.
Jess went to the m & m's store three times.
She bought an iPad mini
to use when she's working in America this summer.

Joe wanted more boxers from American Eagle-
all five of us helped to choose them !

***



OMG !!!
that's
Bruce Willis !!!

at Madam Tussuad's of course !

Mr & Mrs Paul Newman

gorgeous boys

and

 great girls !

also 

 recent history becoming part of the collection.

On our last full day we walked to the Hudson river to visit

SS Intrepid

( Nicolas Cage jumps from her in " National Hero " )

We had a guided tour around submarine Growler

which was fascinating.

spotted a Concord 

and enjoyed exploring the Intrepid.

Our last morning was spent in Central Park.

The trees were blossoming

& it was beautiful.

We spent several hours here
and enjoyed a coffee
at the cafe featured in " 27 Dresses " !

We chatted to a group of women
who told us they love Downton Abbey
& think that's how Brits live
that we all know William & Kate
and live in castles !

***


I had a few things I wanted to get photos of in New York

A fire engine...

a Cop car !

Yellow cabs...

a school bus

and a greyhound coach.

New York is an incredible city & I loved being there.
People were friendly & helpful
and I would recommend a visit
but
be prepared to walk a lot  !


***

Since writing this post
we have heard the awful news of the Boston bombing.
My heart aches for the families of those injured or killed.

While in central park we enjoyed watching
 women running in a half marathon race.
A sobering thought
as I sit here and write from the safety of my home.


***