In past trips I'd always stayed around Midtown or Times Square/Theatre District. Our search for a hotel would be different this time. I was looking for a place that wasn't too pricey, had parking (that also wasn't too pricey), was close to a Subway station, could fit 4 adults, and had breakfast if possible. Which meant, of course, that I wasn't looking at Midtown at all. I found such a place in Brooklyn. It was perfect!
So after our long drive which ended by driving across the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge into Brooklyn, we located our hotel, checked in and then I hustled my parents and Katie back out the door to the Subway station right outside where we purchased out metro cards and....I took them the wrong way. {Face palm} In my defense, it wasn't that I got them on a train going the wrong direction. I just took them down the wrong side of the station. I realized before we got on that we wanted to be going uptown and these trains were only going down. I was used to the bigger stations in the center of Manhattan where you can access trains going both directions no matter which set of stairs you use to go underground. We made our way back up, across the street to the correct station and I shepherded my parents {who truthfully looked a little overwhelmed at being in an underground NYC subway station} and Katie onto the train. We popped out again a few stops later right at the base of the Brooklyn Bridge. And as we started walking across this famed bridge, a bucket list item of my dad's since reading "The Great Bridge" by David McCullough many years ago, a huge smile broke out across his face. We were treated to a gorgeous sunset right as we arrived at the middle of the bridge and oh, it was amazing. We bought dinner from a food vendor on the other side. I happily ordered a lamb gyro...one of my favorite meals when in NYC. My dad grumbled a bit about the price of his hotdog. Admittedly yummy, but when you are used to paying $1.50 for a hotdog and a soda at Costco, an $8 wiener does seem pretty steep. Walking back across the bridge in the dark was equally beautiful seeing all the city lights. It was the perfect way to start the NYC leg of our trip.
The next day was filled to the brim. We started with Rockefeller Center and the view of the city from The Top of the Rock.
After viewing St Patricks Cathedral from above, we went down and viewed the grandeur from the inside.
We found a little deli inside Rockefeller Center for lunch. As we were walking through the maze of shops and restaurants, finding our way back outside, Dad was making comments about this being where the power brokers all worked. We passed by the fancy and expensive Sea Grill Restaurant that opens up onto the plaza and he said, this is where they all come for their high powered business lunches...and then pointing to a couple of nicely dressed businessmen said, "See there's Tom Brokaw right there." He was of course, completely joking. But as we walked by, Katie did a double take and said, "Dad! That IS Tom Brokaw!!" We all whipped our heads around to look for ourselves, and what do you know...it really was! We laughed long and hard!
I walked them up the posh 5th Avenue to Central Park where we explored a bit, and then took time to rest our feet. Mom even got a solid nap in.
We hopped the Subway to the Theatre District where I introduced my parents and Katie to the glorious craziness that is Times Square. After exploring a bit, we decided to have dinner at Junior's Cheesecake, not realizing that it was actually a rather famous restaurant. While eating we could see out the window a huge crowd forming outside the Marriott Marquis. We asked our server if he knew what was going on and he came back with the news that the Songwriter Hall of Fame ceremony was being held there and the crowd and paparazzi were waiting for Jay Z, Peter Cetera and Ed Sheeran. Well, okay then.
It was about a 45 minute train ride to and from Midtown and our hotel in Brooklyn. Made for some nice reading, chatting or napping time. One evening Dad was wearing a BYU jacket and he ended up making friends with a 21 year old kid sitting next to him who had also gone to BYU. They chatted the entire 45 minute long ride.
Our last day in NYC was chilly and overcast and threatened rain. We were less than thrilled about this seeing as our plans included a ferry ride, but we prepared ourselves with jackets and umbrellas and hoped for the best. No rain, lucky us! And kind of funny that after our hotter than normal, sweltering days in D.C. and Virginia, our NYC days were quite cool.
We took the subway from Brooklyn to the 9/11 Memorial. As always, such a beautiful but sobering place. We didn't think we'd have time to also visit the museum so that stays on my bucket list for another trip in the future.
We took the ferry to the Statue of Liberty and then Ellis Island. I was particularly interested to see if I could track down any sister missionaries from Julianne's mission serving at Ellis Island. I sent my parents and Katie off to watch a little film they were interested in, and I looked at the big map of the museum, trying to figure out where they might be stationed. When I saw an arrow pointing towards the American Family Immigration History Center Records Search, I knew immediately that's where they would be if they were on the island at all. And what do you know, I bumped right into them. I introduced myself, told them that my daughter would be serving in their mission and was leaving for the Mexico MTC in just a week and a half. Hermana Virgin said that she would actually be going home the day Julianne arrived in New Jersey but that meant she'd probably run into her at the mission home. They both said they'd watch for her, told me it was very likely Julianne would serve on Ellis Island quite a bit, and raved about how much they loved serving the people of New Jersey. It was so wonderful talking to them! I immediately sent Julianne a text with pictures of the two sister missionaries and also the family history area where she'd be serving.
{Edit 5/25/19: Julianne has completed her mission and did indeed spend a lot of time on Ellis Island, which she loved. She did meet Hermana Virgin the first day of her mission and has spent time with her since she has returned home as well, having many mutual mission friends. She also got to know Hermana Gaytana also, though not quite as well...they were never in the same zone, but did see each other at mission conferences.}
I had tickets to see "Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812" for that evening. Josh Groban was playing Pierre so to have the chance to watch him perform in a Broadway show? I wasn't about to pass that up! It was not a show my parents and Katie would've liked so we hadn't purchased any tickets for them. I told them they were welcome to head back to the hotel and I could make my way to Brooklyn on my own after the show was done. They didn't feel comfortable with that, despite the fact that the Subway stop was in the middle of Times Square and a straight shot to our hotel..I would be perfectly safe. They said that they'd rather stick around and wait for me and decided to see another show themselves. We stood in line at the TKTS booth and picked up some discounted tickets for the play "Present Laughter" with Kevin Kline, which had just won a few Tony Awards a few weeks earlier, including best actor. I have to admit, I was a little envious and wishing I could see both shows. But "The Comet of 1812" was phenomenal! So very different...quite interactive. The actors were out in the audience regularly and the whole theatre was set up in a way to make you feel like you were a part of the show. I loved it so much!
The next morning we checked out of our hotel and Mom and Dad dropped Katie and me at JFK Airport. While we flew home to Salt Lake, they continued their road trip up to Vermont and then meandered their way cross country to home. They arrived in Utah just in time for Julianne's missionary farewell a week later. What a trip we had...starting with the choir tour in Washington D.C., spending time as a family with Rachel in Virginia, then our whirlwind visit to New York City. So much history and culture, so much family and laughter. What a great experience.
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