Arriving in Manhattan by subway there was no time to lose – we had a list, 5 days and 5 people to satisfy. Our shoebox apartment was in the East Village and barely large enough for all of us to be there together (except when sleeping!) so it was lucky we had plenty to occupy us outside: Dion wanted food (like, always), Mell wanted venues with no wait time, Koz wanted to be walking, Jane and Rhi wanted department stores and bucket-list items and we somehow managed to keep everyone happy!
With a plan to tick off the major items on Jane’s bucket list it was straight to Central Park for a horse and carriage ride, a hilarious experience where four of us fit in the carriage and Koz ran alongside as our photographer and entertainer. A boat tour around the Statue of Liberty provided even more laughs as we danced to the party tunes pumping through the speakers and drank hot chocolate on a chilly morning of just 3 degrees.
We walked the High Line in the West Village; we ate more Mexican food than Jane ever wants to see again in her life; we wandered through Times Square; saw the inside of various bars and spent a late night at the Comedy Cellar. The food options in NYC are unlimited and we did our best to sample as much as we could from road side carts, to traditional diners and restaurants. There is no doubt it is an expensive city and after you add tax, tips and a poor conversion rate there were a few gasps as our collective funds were slowly eroded, but its NYC and we were having fun so we kept going!
Not all activities were on everyone’s Manhattan list so with a few special items to tick off Jane and Rhi braved the early morning chill and a long line to visit the 9/11 Memorial Museum, a haunting collection of artifacts and information that will serve to remind future generations of what humans are capable of, both good and bad. There was also the trip to the 86th floor of the Empire State Building accompanied by blue skies and sunshine; dreamy visits to Saks, Bloomingdales and Bergdorf Goodman; and afternoon tea at The Plaza of champagne, caviar and fois gras.
One of the key highlights of Manhattan though was the celebration of Christmas everywhere. This is a city that knows how to be festive, and the department store windows, ice skating rinks, Christmas trees and lights everywhere were exactly as the movies depict: a magical winter wonderland. A performance of the Radio City Rockettes at Radio City Hall was the cherry on the Christmas cake!
And just like that it was the end of 2016 and time to celebrate what was and what will be. Although we didn’t see the ball drop, we were in the barricaded Times Square district accessible only by ticket holders, and enjoying the benefits of an open bar and watching on screens the thousands of people who had braved the cold to stand outside for hours on end to watch Mariah Carey lip sync and a ball slide down a pole.
There were an estimated 2 million people in Times Square and we were impressed by the way the crowd was managed and how quickly we could get out of there, its a very well run event. Stumbling home and sharing greetings with randoms on the street and subway we all agreed we had ended our NYC adventure with a bang (and/or hangover).
After 10 action packed days we packed our luggage, our new memories and the jokes that will live on after NYC (ask us about Rays, -30 degrees and “feels like”) and took the subway one last time to the airport. Tired and satisfied with our touring efforts we enjoyed Dion’s privileges in the member lounge at JFK (a welcome surprise for us gypsies!) before heading west. San Fran, you’re up next.
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