Thanksgiving 2006
Pre-trip intro: So my older brother and his son (who's 11) decided they wanted to fly up from Florida for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and stay for a couple days to do some sightseeing. They got in early Wednesday morning and I met up with them at the hotel that night. It was their first trip to NY.
WED/Nov. 22nd
My trips are never without an airport or airplane incident and this trip was no different. I flew out of Orlando and the flight was delayed for over 3 hours due to the weather conditions at LaGuardia. I thought they would cancel the flight but we managed to get into NYC just after 1 a.m. I got to the hotel and my brother and nephew were still awake and in awe that you could see Macy's from our 12th floor windows.
THU/Nov. 23rd
Parade day!! We got up and out around 10'ish and decided to walk down the street to Rockefeller Center to the Today Show but the streets were so blocked off we couldn't get around anywhere so we ended up at the Tick Tock Diner and had breakfast. It was cold, wet and windy - a perfect day to sightsee. Before breakfast we did see one balloon go down 34th Street - Snoopy and Woodstock. Pretty cool. After breakfast we met up with Amelia (my high school friend) at Penn Station where she was off to visit relatives for Thanksgiving. Then we hit the streets and picked up some umbrellas from street vendors. One corner sold them at $3 the next at $2. We managed to get a peek at the Garfield balloon before we all finally decided "okay, we're over it" and trekked towards the Empire State Building. The top of the building was barely visible due to the clouds so my brother and I talked my nephew out of going up. There wouldn't be much to see and chances are the observatory deck would be closed because of the gusty winds and heavy rain. Besides, he was just at the Top of the Rock the day before at Rockefeller Center and got a bird's eye view of the city. So we skipped the E.S.B. and ducked into Starbucks so we could warm up with some hot chocolate. We alternated hands between holding the cup and holding the umbrella because it was THAT frigid. We walked a lot and took the train. We were pros by the end of the day - even if we did end up going the wrong way on the right train a couple times.
We took the train down to the World Trade Center site and walked around in amazement. There was a single American flag waving through the rain and wind and it was so peaceful. We walked towards Battery Park and marveled at how some buildings were still being rebuilt from 9/11. We stopped in at a coffee shop on the corner where my nephew got his caramel mocha espresso coffee (whatever kept him going!) and I got another coffee to stay warm, and we strolled down by the river. We joked about seeing dead bodies floating in the river and 'sleeping with the fishes'. We got a great look at the Statue of Liberty through the rain and the haze...such a beautiful picture opportunity. It almost looks like a black and white photo, but that's how gray and dreary it was. And we loved every single minute of it.
Our patience was getting tested though because the wind started to pick up and it seemed like the temperature dropped 10 degrees down by the water. Our jeans and shoes were soaked...we were literally sloshing as we walked, but our toes were so cold and numb we couldn't feel it. Next stop was Grand Central Station.
We took a quick look around, warmed up and then headed back to the hotel. We needed to thaw out, dry out and pass out. We had high hopes for a fun Thanksgiving dinner later on that evening. So we got back to home base and put our shoes on the heater to dry out and sat back and watched "Malibu's Most Wanted". It got us back in the mood to go out again in the rain in search of dinner. We got dressed and took the train down to Bleecker Street. Finally a place I could navigate with ease and I was so excited to show my brother around the area. We get above ground and the wind was unbearable. Everything was closed. Village Lantern was open for dinner but my brother refused to, and I quote, "bring an 11 year old into a bar". He was pretty pissed that I suggested Bleecker Street for dinner. The way it all looked, I can't say that I blame him. NOTHING was open except the bars and it just made Bleecker seem seedy and shady. We ran into my friend, Jen, lurking in the shadows which prompts my brother to ask, "Is she homeless?" Again, he was umimpressed. So we start walking back towards the train and by this time we're hungry, annoyed, cold and wet. And perfectly timed, both of our umbrellas turn inside out in the middle of the pouring rain and we just stand there looking at each other shaking our heads. Finally back at the hotel, we duck into the restaurant there and order up some food. Service was awful and it wasn't our first choice to spend Thanksgiving dinner, but beggers can't be choosers. Chris and Christopher had the turkey platter, I had the tuna fish. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
Highlights: "Jesus Take the Wheel" blaring from my cell phone at the diner; buying a hat and gloves and my brother calling me Brittany Murphy all day because of the hat and my sweet nephew giving me his 11 yr. old approval on my purchase.
FRI/Nov. 24th
The day started out really nice. My nephew came over to where I was in the suite and sat and watched the "Today Show" with me and wanted to go down and try to get on TV. Andrea Bocelli performed that morning!! It took us a little long to get up and out but we finally did and hit Dunkin Donuts before walking down to the ice skating rink at Rockefeller Center and decided it was too busy to try to skate. We took some pictures, naturally, and walked down past St. Patrick's Cathedral and on to the next train to take us to Central Park. We thought we'd try Wollman Rink instead. Good choice. We got there and the zamboni was just coming off the ice. Perfect weather, perfect day - it couldn't have been more perfect in my book. As a matter of fact, a couple got engaged center ice during the session...it was so...perfect! haha My nephew fell a couple times but was a trooper and got right back up again.
I think we skated for almost 2 hours before finally stopping to grab a bite to eat. It was getting late and they had to catch a 4:45 flight so we grabbed lunch at the hotel at Joe O's.
We checked out of the hotel and hopped in cab together and they dropped me and my many bags off on the corner of 3rd and St. Marks. My nephew was so sad. He hugged me forever and said, "Do you think I could stay with you and your friend Amelia? I won't take up too much room." awww, it broke my heart. It was definitely one of the most memorable Thanksgivings I have ever had.
