New York NEW YORK! - LittleWanderingWren

It is nearly thirty years since I was last in New York,

that’s way too long!

However, now our middle daughter is currently on

exchange at New York University
it was a perfect excuse to reacquaint ourselves with this great city.

Spring in New York

Does it happen like this in your house?

You travel half way round the world excited to catch up with your kids

and they tell you they’re busy?

Some 5 km ‘Run or Dye,’

where the students run like the clappers and have paint thrown at them…

“No, don’t come and watch, it’s out on Long Island.

You go off to explore,

I’ll see you after lunch…”

Whaaaat???

Two days on a plane to get here, and she’s busy???

Oh well!

We are glad to see that she has lots of friends,

is keeping fit, and fully throwing herself into NYU life!

View from the Top of the Empire State building

So we went off to explore the Empire State Building.

Well actually, we went off to stand in a massive queue for the lift,

for the Empire State Building!

If you’ve ever been in a queue for Space Mountain at Disneyland,

you’ll know that Americans do the best queues in the world.

You snake round and around, entering into smaller and smaller rooms,

by the time you have taken the 68th turn,

you’ve worked out that this is one of the most popular tourist sights,

and you’ll be dammed if you’re going to give up, without making it all the way!

Hey, it was totally worth it.

It was a beautifully clear day and we could see five States from the 86th Floor: New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.

It was so good, that by the night time we went back for a whole load more queueing, to see The Big Apple at night time. It was just lovely.

‘That Guy just proposed, over there.

DH reported matter of factly, and then added in a very unimpressed voice

Got down on his hands and knees as well’…

Men!

It’s all romance on the night tour of the Empire State building

We spent the rest of the morning shopping,

I think that will be a bit of a theme…

Everything is cheap here for Australians

Luckily we bought fairly empty suitcases!

Shopping is fun in New York!

By the time we eventually caught up with our daughter, we were hot,

the warm sunshine causing us to shed ever increasing layers.

The following day, we even spotted people sunbathing in Central Park.

‘You are so lucky, it’s been freezin!’ we are told by everyone we meet.

We spent the afternoon exploring the area around the

University in Lower Manhattan.

What a great place to spend five months studying!

We went to the Bookstore to stock up on the obligatory NYU sweatshirt,

and dropped in to meet room mates at her two bedroom

NYU Palladium apartment,

Happy to off load the Tim Tams and other requested Aussie snacks.

NYU – Student digs and Stern Business School

The next day we hired bikes for two hours to cycle around Central Park. Boy that park was busy! We were dodging half marathon runners, walkers, mad cycle rickshaw drivers, dogs, and not to mention the other Sunday drivers on their bikes, who would stop suddenly to take photographs!

The park was looking lovely. The Spring cherry blossom was out, we sat and watched budding tennis players in action, and admired a variety of dogs. We found a lovely lady who directed us to the Strawberry Fields John Lennon Memorial which was not easy to find, nor were the toilets….

‘By 3 – 4pm People will be hopping around the park, trying to find the facilities’

How very public spirited of her!

Now if I was Bill de Blasio, NYC Mayor I would put both these things on my ‘To do’ list. I know he promised to ‘do the hard stuff first,’ but decent loos for Central Park should be up there…

Oops never talk politics – how about a nice photo?

Arriving in Central Park in style

Ermmm – how about some sport?

Thanks to Stubhub, we have bought some tickets off a Mr Stephen Wu to watch a NBA thriller between the Brooklyn Nets and Orlando Magic. We head out to the impressive Barclays Center for a very entertaining Basketball match. Not only are T-shirts being blasted around the stadium, whole rows won different prizes and one lucky spectator went home with a brand new car. Basketball is great fun and for the record the final score was Magic 88 Nets 97.

Great evening at the NBA

Now before I finish, I must tell you about a brilliant off Broadway show that we saw last night called Heathers – the musical. Now it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, and I’ll leave you to check out the reviews to see why… But if you want a high energy fun show, that will guarantee that even the most jet lagged teenager will enjoy, then this is the show for you. Currently playing at New World Stages, hopefully soon to make it on Broadway!