New York!

Our arrival into New York was the smoothest we have had in a while. We find our shuttle and as usual it is full to the brim! There was another Aussie couple on board and they had had a rough time over the last 24 hours. They were due to fly out of Memphis and when they got to the airport their plane had been cancelled and they couldn’t get another flight that day. So the airline put them up in a hotel and told them they would be on the 6am flight to NY, so they were up at 4am to get there and then that flight was cancelled as well and they ended up on a 9.30 flight which only got to NY at the same time we did and they had a Broadway show booked for that night. By this time it was around 4.30 so they weren’t sure they would make. The traffic was horrendous going into the city so I really hope they made it. 

We were all amazed at the traffic chaos or that’s what it looked like to us but the driver seemed very confident of the way he was pushing through the lines to get us to our destination. I now know what horns are used for that’s for sure.

New York traffic

We arrived at our accommodation and were met by a young lady from the agency we rented the apartment from. She showed us what was what and left us to our own devices.

The apartment wasn’t quite as nice as we saw on the internet but we were only here mostly to sleep so we managed. After settling in we went out on the hunter and gatherer trail to find something for dinner.

Empire State Building 

We found an Irish pub on 9th Avenue which was quite nice. We ordered drinks and I had my first Cosmopolitan. It was so nice I went back for another one. Over dinner we discussed what we would do the next day. A nice dinner and we were done for the day. We went back to the apartment ready to really start our time in NY tomorrow. Once back at the apartment we looked into what shows to see on Broadway and decided on A Bronx Tale, bought the tickets online and we were ready for the next night.

Also had a real New York experience that I have seen heaps of time on tv shows and that was going to the basement and doing the laundry. 

Day 1 - A Walking Day

We start our day with a walk along the Hi-Line which is 2.23km public park built on the historic freight line above the streets of Manhattan's West side. It is an easy walk which affords lots of views of the Hudson River and the buildings that lined it and still do. Lots of quirky pieces of art along the way as well. There are quite a few new apartment blocks being built and some back right onto the Hi-Line and you can see right into the apartments one in particular has the bathroom facing it. I think they will need some pretty good blackout shades for those windows. We stop halfway for a coffee and a rest. 

Quirky art on the Hi Line

New apartments

View into the bathroom

Car parking New York style

Quirky art along the Hi Line

Meat packing district. I am sure I have seen the detectives here

The Hi-Line finishes in the meat packing district of NY where I know I have seen umpteen numbers of episodes of Law and Order where they go to this area to interview suspects or there has been a murder there. Very interesting to see how the area is changing now. We walk onto and find Chelsea Market which is another fabulous repurposing of the old Nabisco factory. It is full of shops with all manner of food and delicacies that you can buy. In one of them I even saw Meredith Dairy Goats’ Cheese which is an Aussie Victorian brand! Lots of choices.

Chelsea Market

Chelsea Market

We continue our walk and skirt Greenwich Village as I am not sure we really got to the heart of it. We found a really nice place for lunch where we could have something simple for a change, which is most often not the case in most places we have been. I am looking forward to some crackers and cheese when we get home. We continued our walk to Washington Park and it was the warmest day we had had in quite awhile apart from Niagara Falls. As it was so warm and we weren’t exactly sure where we were, we hailed a cab to take us close to the Brooklyn Bridge and as we found out it would have tested our resilience to have to navigate the best way to get there. 

Washington Park

We arrived quite close to it and there were hundreds of people with the same idea which was as we would have expected.We manage the crowds ok and stop to take quite a few photos along with heaps of others. Cheryl decided to stay on the NY side of the bridge so John, Peter and I made our way across. We lost track of John as we decided to turn back about 1/2 way as it was getting very hot by this stage. We thought we’ll go back and wait with Cheryl but we couldn’t find her either. Anyway Peter and I made our way back to the park at the base of the bridge and waited for awhile but no sign of them. By this stage it is getting on and we have a Broadway show to go to so we message them and let them know we will meet them back at the apartment. 

Brooklyn Bridge

We all eventually meet up back at the apartment and decide to find some dinner close to the theatre. We walked to the theatre to make sure we know where it is and there was a nice pub next door so we decided to go there. A nice meal and then the boys leave us to go and try the subway to go to a free jazz concert down on the Hudson. Cheryl and came out of the pub to a line to actually get into the theatre which we found a bit unusual as even when it is crowded at the theatres at home the line to actually get in doesn't start until you are actually in the theatre. Our seats were in the second row which was great. 

The show was about a young boy in the Bronx who witnesses a crime but doesn't rat out the person who did and that person takes him under his wing in the coming years against his father's wishes. Boy meets girl who happens to be African American, trouble arrives, gets sorted and the father and son walk away together again. A very abridged version but you get the idea. We really enjoyed it. 

We messaged the boys and they walked and met us halfway home. Unfortunately they didn't get to the jazz concert as the subway defeated them but they had a good night anyway. Peter wanted to go to a jazz place but he didn't manage to get there which was a pity.

My impressions of New York after our first day were that is was fabulous! Pretty much what I expected and I was so happy just to be there.