I want to be a part of it...

New York, New York!
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Yes, I am finally going to post about my amazing weekend in the Big Apple! I sat down tonight to pull together a few collages of the "hot spots" - I didn't think anyone would want to sit through 819 pictures!! Let the tour begin!

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This is 7th Ave., passing through Time's Square, at about 9:00 on Friday morning. It wasn't even rush hour yet! We used our feet and cabs the entire time we were there. The most expensive trip was from Battery Park up to Saks 5th Ave, and it was about $15. Most cab rides cost us between $6 and $10. We had planned to try the subway, but they were slightly odiferous - and that was just passing by the stairwell entrances! We arrived at our hotel around 8:15, but our room wasn't ready. The hotel kept our luggage for us and we hit the streets - literally! We walked and walked and walked; our room ended up not being ready until 3:30 that afternoon. When we got in, we were so tired we decided to rest for a "few minutes". Two hours later we woke up! **Side note - little black flats are cute. They are NOT good for walking around NYC for 8 hours!!
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One of the places we visited during our walk was the Metropolitan Museum of Art. And they were having an exhibition of Picasso's work - that was ending 2 days later!! I taught an art block this year on Picasso - can you imagine how incredible it was to see the works I had showed my class on the internet in Real Life?? Unbelievable!! We also toured the Egyptian display - which featured several pieces from the actual tomb of King Tut. We saw Medievil knights, Cathedral artifacts, historical American pieces, Greek and Roman statues - the place was huge! The top left picture doesn't even show the whole building - I could not get a spot that allowed me to get a full building shot. The place was stunning, the entry was teeming with people but, aside from the Picasso display, the building didn't feel in the least crowded.

. After the Met, our poor little toes needed a break, so we hailed a cab (that is SO much fun to do - it's just like on T.V.!!) and took a drive down 5th Ave to Grand Central Terminal. Yes, I have always called it Grand Central Station, but our cabbie was very explicit about telling us it is actually a "terminal" (NOT like on T.V.!). This place was absolutely breathtaking. The main lobby area (Lower right picture) is about 4 stories tall, there were hundreds of people and it was so clean. The hanging "chandeliers" were probably about 10' tall and the detail work in the building was stunning. Above each of the windows in the ceiling (which was painted a gorgeous robin's egg blue and had various constellations painted on it in gold paint) there were carved stone toppers (I don't know the correct term) - each different from the other. Jamie is the one who noticed that - I was too awestruck to take everything in!

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Our hotel was on 47th St, about mid-way between 6th and 7th Ave. Time's Square falls between 7th and 8th Ave. Our street was really quite quiet - it was a one way street and the only time we had to wait to cross the street was when the lights on 6th were green. However, the minute you came to the cornere of 47th St. and 7th Ave, it was a whole different story! And the later in the evening you were out, the more crowded it was! Theater shows ended between 10:30 and 11:30, so from then until midnight (the latest we were out), it was wall to wall people. And, at the crosswalks, as soon as the sign said walk, you had to hoof it to the other side because as soon as the sign changed, the cars started honking and driving! We did witness one person get bumped by a cab - and he proceeded to slam his fist down on the hood. Jamie grabbed my arm and hauled me into the crowd so I missed what happened after that. Sometimes he has no sense of adventure!
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Now you see it, now you don't! Several of the buildings in Time's Square sported extremely large television screens - mostly 2 stories or taller. Some buildings actually had complete televised facades. The one showing the Staute of Liberty is the same as the one showing black - and we walked past it about a kazillion times (okay, 8 or 10 times...) before we noticed it was televised!.

On Saturday, we did some shopping. Well, we went into the stores but didn't actually buy anything! I had been dying to visit FAO Schwarz - and it was so worth the wait! The prices were actually better than the TysRUs in Time's Square. I wanted to dance on the big piano myself, but there was a huge line of kids waiting. Of course, the parents insisted their kids were more deserving of the privilege than a grown woman. Hmph, I didn't really think that was fair!
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In the afternoon we hit Rockefellar Center and visited the "Top of the Rock". We were on floors 67, then 69. I am terrified of heights, but this adventure didn't bother me in the slightest. Seeing Central Park from this height really helped us to understand just how big it reall is (834 acres to be exact!). The views were stunning and I couldn't imagine anything more thrilling.

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Until Saturday night when we went up the Empire State Building! The bridge picture was taken from floor 102!! The other shots are from floor 86. Simply breathtaking! On floor 86, instead of plexiglass, there was a fencing type surround. The holes were large enough to stick your arm out with your camera - or your head if you wanted a better look down. That was the evening I discovered just how much heights bother Jamie. Seriously, it wasn't like my whole body would fit through the hole.
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On Sunday we visited the American Museum of Natural History. If you have seen either of the "Night at the Museum" movies, you have seen parts of this building. Again, it was huge - 4 floors (which in New York equates about 8 stories!) In the entry way there was a full size skeleton of a brachiosaurus - and it didn't come anywhere near the ceiling area. Of course we had to find the Easter Island Head. I brought gum, but I think he was a little shy because he didn't ask me for any. Which was probably good, because I would rather not be called Dum Dum.

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When it was time to head out on Monday morning, we went down to our "cab" - to find a stretch limo! We left the city with class! It was an amazing, exhilirating, exhausting weekend. Although I wouldn't want to live there, I will definitely be going back to visit again!
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I hope you have enjoyed your tour as much as we enjoyed being there!
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