Month: December 2018

December 21st 2018

Posted on by billanddawntravel

Our last day in New York

Got up around 8am to allow us time to pack and take in breakfast at the Westway Diner in Hells Kitchen. The diner was packed, always a good sign, and the food was excellent – by far the best breakfast we have eaten in NY. Why is always the last one you find is always the best!

Used the rest of the morning for some last minute shopping – the purchase of a new comforter (duvet) to properly fit some duvet covers we bought over here a few years back. Lunch at the Le Pain Quotidien, a coffee at Starbucks then back to the hotel to check out and await the taxi to the airport.

Since Wednesday there have been warnings of gridlock on the roads in Manhattan but fortunately for us the trip to the airport while relatively slow was free of nose to tail traffic jams. Boarded on time, but spent an hour on the tarmac before take-off. Better luck than the couple sitting next to us who’d been delayed by 24 hours and put on the Heathrow flight because of the problems with drones at Gatwick. A bit of a turbulent flight back, and BA needs a better catering contract breakfast was really awful! A further hitch on arrival, when the plane couldn’t ‘dock’ at the first finger because of a technical problem, but all went smoothly after that.

Well did we find Christmas in New York (Manhattan) – yes to a point.  Our general impression was that it did not live up to the hype.  New York is vibrant throughout the year but somehow does not quite raise its game for Christmas.  Whether this is down to the fact that that the council / local government does not appear to organise Christmas street lighting or that many stores do little to celebrate it I do not know. What I do know is that I’m very fortunate to live near Manchester (England) who do go all out at Christmas time to provide street stalls for European and UK vendors to sell their wares, food and drink in true continental Christmas Market style.  Add to that the street decorations and the effort that many shops go to to decorate themselves for Christmas and I can honestly say that Manchester is by far the better place to be.

Whilst not everything was as Christmassy in New York as we’d hoped, all in all it was still a very enjoyable break.

Bryant Park at Night

Night Skating at Bryant Park

December 20th 2018

Posted on by billanddawntravel

Today we decided to leave Christmas behind and do something we have always enjoyed on our road trips. That is to take a closer look at local neighbourhoods.

So we set off from our hotel in the garment district walking through the slightly less prosperous Hudson Yards to Chelsea where we had breakfast at Murray’s Bagels (tasty).

It was then on to Greenwich Village, Soho and the upmarket TriBeCa to the World Trade Centre. As many may remember, Dawn, Andrew, Victoria and I were in the US (Orlando) when terrorists brought down the Twin Towers so the event has a personal memory for us. The twin reflecting pools built where the original towers once stood are a poignant and appropriate memorial to that awful event. The new One World Trade Tower, or Freedom Tower as the locals prefer to call it, is almost complete and will stand as the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere and 6th tallest in the world.

After a short stop for a coffee and to rest our legs it was on through the back streets of Chinatown to Lower Manhattan. and the famous Katz Deli for lunch. Katz is famous for its huge sandwiches and that little incident “When Harry Met Sally”. When we arrived the deli was packed and the queue was huge. Once inside each customer is given a ticket and sent to queue at one of around 20 cutters who make the sandwiches. You place your order, wait for them to prepare it and then find a table. The cutter marks the price on your ticket and you pay at the cashier’s desk after you’ve eaten. Mind you, if you loose your ticket there is a standard charge of $50 for the meal!

Then it was back to the hotel via the East Village and the lower stretches of Broadway for a welcome couple of hours rest after our 11.5mi walk! The interesting thing about walking these neighbourhoods is that there are no signs to tell where they start and end but quite often it is more obvious than you would think. Today the boundary between two of the neighbourhoods was as obvious as crossing the road.

Finally tonight we stepped out for dinner at the Heartland Brewery. Fairly basic meal but a very drinkable pint of the company’s Old Red Nose Ale.

Trade Center Plaza
Reflecting Pool
Freedom Tower
Katz Deli
Old Red Nose Ale

December 19th 2018

Posted on by billanddawntravel

If yesterday was slightly disappointing, today was the very opposite, and felt much more christmassy.

We set off down 8th Ave heading for the New Yorker hotel (where we’d stayed 16 years ago on our first visit to New York for my 50th birthday). Their foyer has a reputation for being well decorated for the season, and lived up to it. Then we headed for Macy’s, calling at Au Bon Pain in Penn Street Station for a bagel based breakfast. In some ways Macy’s window was too Christmassy – overly sweet, with a really soft story about rescuing Santa so he could make deliveries on 25th, successfully of course (not a patch on Fenwicks in Newcastle last Christmas with its Paddington 2 based story).

Then it was off to the Rockefeller Centre, famous for its magnificent Christmas tree and the ice skating rink. There were probably a couple of hundred people of all ages and abilities out on the ice. From there we could also see the full frontage of Saks, which we’d missed yesterday walking alongside the store (more of this later).

On to the magnificent Grand Central Station, which we learned today had been saved from demolition in the 1970s through the foresight of Jackie Kennedy. Enjoyed lunch there in their elegant and thriving food court. The station, too, was decorated for the holiday season. Then a bit of shopping and back to our hotel for a brief respite (we walked around 38,000 steps yesterday and have done another 35,000 today!).

An hour or so later we were on our way back to Saks of 5th Avenue, where a bit of research yesterday had told us we’d missed their light show. Indeed, when we got there they were playing Christmas music, and the lights on the front of the building were in a synchronised display. Quite impressive. By this time area around Rockerfeller Plaza was packed, the lights on the tree were on and the whole plaza was lovely to see .

Then dinner at PN Wood-fired Pizza, about 2 blocks south of our hotel. Good, freshly made pizzas served by friendly staff.

Back to Bryant Park to see it in the dark, nicely atmospheric. We sat watching the skaters for a while. It was nice to see so many happy, smiling people enjoying themselves, albeit some were definitely more accomplished skaters than others!

Finally picked up some Cinnabon rolls to have with coffee back at the hotel, mmmm delicious!

34th St – Macy’s on left and the Empire State Building ahead
Grand Central Station
Rockefeller Plaza
Obligatory Bad Selfie
Sak’s at night
Rochefeller Plaza at Night

December 18th 2018

Posted on by billanddawntravel

Bit of a strange old day today, although we packed more into the day than we’d expected.

Started well with breakfast at the Times Square Diner. As usual American portion control is still at least 2 to 3 times what Dawn believes is good for me. (Although I didn’t manage to completely clear my plate!)

We then went off to find Bryant Park via a couple of shops where we did purchase the obligatory Christmas bauble from our travels for the Christmas Tree. Got to Bryant Park to find it didn’t open until 11. The Park is one of three areas in Manhattan with an ice rink (the others being Central Park and Rockefeller Plaza).

Skating is free, the downside is if you need to hire skates it’s $20 but is for the day. The Park also hosts the Christmas crafts market. Unfortunately none of the vendors sell mulled wine only spiced apple cider.

Christmas street decorations are very much absent in Manhattan with the notable exception of spots around 6th Avenue. We began to think that the large retailers had declared their shops a Christmas free zone. Only a couple, notably Macy’s and Saks, had made any effort to put on a seasonal window display.

Most disappointing was the lack of Street Santas collecting for charity. Many like myself will remember them being very noticeable in American Christmas movies. It appears however that times have moved on and it is now the Salvation Army manning the charity boxes – not with their brass bands or singers but with boomboxes, bells and dancing. That said some were very entertaining. We ended our wanderings at the ice rink in Central Park.

This evening we took a bus tour into Brooklyn to see the light displays put on by the residents of Bay View and Dyker Heights – most of which were spectacular to say the least. the bus then stopped near to the base of Brooklyn Bridge to allow us to admire and take photos of night time downtown Manhattan and the bridge.

Finished the day with a meal at Red Lobster in Times Square – portions defeated me again!

 

December 17th 2018

Posted on by billanddawntravel

Good journey over to New York. Despite taking off from Heathrow 24 minutes late we arrived at JFK 50 minutes early but lost 20 minutes waiting on a deplaning space.

Our hotel, the DoubleTree, New York Times Square West is on 40th and is pretty central for the places we plan to go.

Although 9.37pm in the evening (2.37am 18/12 GMT), we took a short walk from the hotel to familiarise our selves with the immediate area and have a quick look at a lively and, as usual, very bright Times Square.

Tomorrow we set off on our Christmas in New York Quest.

 

December 16th 2018

Posted on by billanddawntravel

Its now been a couple of years since we last visited the States. This is mainly due to looking after our daughter, Victoria, both in the lead up to and recovery from a heart transplant. As she is now fit and well, we decided on a short trip to New York which we will follow up next year with our 6th and final road trip. This road trip will see us complete our objective of visiting all 48 adjoined states in the USA.

Anyway enough about our future travels. The objective of this short trip is to get a feel for how New York celebrates in the run up to Christmas.