Sounds great so far...

It's a miserable, rainy day here in NYC. Seeing the start of your trip report is a real cheerer-upper. Hope the rest will appear quickly!

Oh yay--another entertaining NYC trip report to read! Almost as good as getting to go myself.

Whoo hooo!! I'm so glad you all got to make this trip; looking forward to reading the rest of your report.

Lee Ann

Yay! Can't wait to read more. I'll be in NYC in a few weeks and look forward to reading about your restaurant choices. I love the Chelsea neighborhood too!

Another fabulous trip report! I admit, as a fellow cat person, that as soon as I read about the resident cat I immediately googled "Chelsea Pines". We chose a hotel in Istanbul because there was a picture of the resident cat on their home page that sealed the deal!


Can't wait for the rest!
Tracy

Have really enjoyed the first installment of your NYC trip report. Although we do quite a bit of traveling, we have never done a trip report, possibly feeling that our experiences aren't unique. But we've now gotten kind of hooked, especially reading about places we really like, such as NYC. Glad you had such a great time! We'll await Chapter 2!

In!

Looking forward to the safari section. I fear subways and am directionally challenged. I'll be in NYC in a few months trying to navigate the thing myself, hoping you have good advice.

Looking forward to more of your adventure. Everything tastes better with percorino.

So glad to be reading the next saga of the Maitai Four, and so glad Tom is here to tell it.

Chapter 2, please!!!

"It's a miserable, rainy day here in NYC."

We really lucked out on the weather the week we visited. Temperatures were in the high 60s to low 80s with plenty of sunshine. That was good because, as you will see, we had a lot of ground to cover in our next five days.

How absolutely wonderful to see you up and traveling again, maitai! Fodors wouldn't be the same without your humorous TRs.

Looking forward to more!

Ah, decisions, decisions. Do I wait until this whole report is finished so I can savor it in one sitting or do I follow along as MTT writes it? Obviously I couldn't wait!

Glad to see you back on your feet and hitting the ground running after your health crisis. Can't wait for the rest.

Wow! I found myself here on the US forum after clicking a random link, and what a treat to also discover a new MaiTaiTom trip report!

Looking forward to more...

Sharona~I'm into instant gratification. I'll read his trip reports as soon as he posts them........

BTW, MTT~that was a hint!!!

Just because you teased the grimm reaper doesn't mean you should tease us! On with the show!

So happy to read Tom's trip report of the Delayed Adventure in NYC! So glad you were able to be here, finally! More! more!

DAY TWO: Parks And Recreation, Perth Control, The Village Stompers, In The Garden Of Eden, The First Skyscraper, A Trip To Eataly, Good Morgan, Great Expectations, Where’s Cary Grant, Book ‘Em, Glad We Didn’t Stay Here, Deafening Dinner and Charlie Makes His Move

Unlike most of our previous trips, we had made a vow that we would sleep in a little later on this vacation. Thanks to the peaceful room, I didn’t meander down to the breakfast room until about 8:15, and by the time I arrived our early birds, Kim and Mary, were already engaged in a conversation with two couples from Australia.

As I perused Kim’s spreadsheet for the day, I noted that it included a lot of walking and a lot of parks, I overheard one of the couples mention they were from Perth.

“I used to date a girl who lives in Perth now with her husband,” I said. Since Perth has slightly less than two million people, the odds were slim they would know them, but sure enough when I mentioned their names they said, “Oh yeah, we know Ray and Judy.” Fortunately Judy had not ever mentioned my name, so I was safe for the week. The more I travel, the more the world seems like a smaller place.

After conversing with the Aussies for a while, Tracy came down and the four of us were off on our first day exploring the Big Apple. It would be the last time I had any feeling in my feet until the following Tuesday.

First we walked past Jackson Square, and within about 15 minutes I was humming a tune by The Village Stompers, which seemed normal since we were not only in Greenwich Village but entering Washington Square (a song made famous by a New York City group, The Village Stompers, in 1963. Useless information dominates my life).


We stopped and said hello to a Corgi and its master, which reminded Tracy and me of our two Corgis who were manipulating their pet sitter for treats at about the same time.

There is a beautiful fountain in Washington Square park and the Washington Square Arch on the north edge of the park reminded us a little of the Arch Of Constantine in Rome. The park was beautiful on this crisp autumn day, and Mary’s nephew who attends NYU met us there, so we chatted with him for a bit. However, taskmaster Kim had three-dozen other things for us to see (he is still getting back at me for the Prague Death March of 2008 that nearly killed the troops on Day 1 of that trip), so the conversation was brief.

We happened by the Forbes Galleries, and once we found it was free, we ducked in. This wasn’t even on our list, and it doesn’t take very long to go through it. If you’re near there, you might want to stop by, but as for me, when someone asked me how I liked it, I said, “I’m glad it was free.”

Kim added that the combination of Southwest and Cubist art was not for him either, and that, although he usually is intrigued by photography, that part of the gallery was not particularly interesting either, although a photo of the Duchess of Windsor did catch his eye.

With so many places to attempt to visit while in NYC, Kim asked where we wanted to go to next. I saw the Empire State Building in the distance, and since this was Tracy and Mary’s first visit to NYC, I said, “Let’s head in that direction,” pointing to the famed building.

Walking along 14th Street, out of the corner of my eye a place that would be fit for Adam and Eve came into focus. Sure enough, it was The Garden of Eden Gourmet, a grocery store that overwhelms your senses as soon as you step in their produce department. The displays were dazzling, and I wished we had this store in Los Angeles.

Then we walked a short distance to Union Square, where off to the side we saw an elephant standing on its trunk. Not a real elephant, of course, but one created by Spanish artist Miguel Barcelo. This very large bronze sculpture of an elephant balancing on the tip of its trunk certainly grabs your attention.

The next thing that caught our eye was standing at 175 Fifth Avenue. We actually walked right by it, but as she turned around after crossing the street, Tracy said, “Look, it’s the Flatiron Building.”

This groundbreaking, triangular skyscraper finished in 1902 reminded me of my high school geometry class, but before I could say hypotenuse, I thought I heard Tracy exclaim, “Hey, let’s go to Italy.”

I said, “But we just got to New York City. Let’s think about going to Italy another time.”

“Not Italy, you idiot,” Tracy said endearingly (I think). “Eataly, the Mario Batali place that’s right across the street.”

Tracy had mentioned this place at 200 5th Avenue on the flight over, and I had remembered some mixed reviews on Fodor’s. However, my first thought when walking inside Eataly was, “Wow.” And then “Wow” again…about ten more times.

It’s a store. It’s a restaurant. It’s a bar. It’s a deli. It’s a wine and olive oil store. It’s a produce paradise. Most of all, it’s an experience. We all agreed it was one of the best uses of space we had seen in an establishment.

The center region downstairs (La Piazza sans Mike) has cool, rectangular, marble tables and bar counters where people can consume prosciutto di parma, prosciutto cotto, oysters, pasta, fresh soup, sandwiches and more.

If it’s Italian, odds are you can find something here for lunch, or if you lived in New York, something to buy to take home to eat.

We wanted to go upstairs and check out their rooftop restaurant, Birreria. On a Tuesday at 11:30, the restaurant upstairs was nearly vacant. There were great views of the Flatiron Building and other NYC buildings, and since it was nearly noon, we plopped down at the bar.

Kim and Mary tried some of their unfiltered and naturally carbonated Cask Ales, while Tracy and I opted for glasses of Prosecco. The bartender was nice and kept plying us with samples of their different beers, just what we all needed at noon on a Tuesday. They also had a great 80s music mix going, so this was a terrific place to get a load off for a bit.

As we would discover, the later you arrive, the more crowded Eataly and Birreria would get, so we hurried downstairs after our early libation consumption and grabbed a couple of large Prime Rib paninis with roasted potatoes that we all shared that came out to about 20 bucks a couple.

We shared a standing table with Chris from Brooklyn who just started yapping with us with a machine-gun delivery on places to see in New York City. He was one of the many great characters we met throughout the week, and by the time our stay was over we all agreed that the people in New York City were among the nicest and friendliest we had met anywhere in the world on our travels.

Two suggestions for those that visit Eataly: Get there by 11:30 on a weekday. It really started filling up about an hour later. We visited again on Saturday and it was incredibly crowded about 1 p.m., and just about every sit down restaurant had about a 30 – 90 minute wait. Eataly made our Top Seven in NYC List at the end (Top Five didn’t seem enough).

Back outside, we walked by the Empire State Building on the way to The Morgan Library. In hindsight, since there was no line to go up, I wish we had spent the $21 and gone to the top, but what the hell, I need some excuse to come back. I also realized at this point that my feet and legs had not experienced this much walking in quite some time. The puppies were beginning to bark, and we still had a few places left on the first day agenda.

We (slowly) walked up the steps to The Morgan Library & Museum (225 Madison Ave. @ 36th Street). After paying our 15-dollar tickets, the four of us strolled over to pick up our free audio guides. Lisa at the desk then said the fateful words, “By the way there is a ‘Dickens at 200’ exhibit you can see, also.”

That’s all I needed. “It was the best of exhibits. It was the worst of exhibits,” I said. Much to Kim’s dismay, Lisa laughed, thus I quickly followed up with, “I have Great Expectations for this exhibit.” After a few more terrible puns, Kim, Mary and Tracy dragged me away. “At least I didn’t say he lived in a Bleak House,” I added. By then, the other three had their audio guides turned on and pretended I was part of the Occupy Wall Street Movement.

The collection of John Pierpont Morgan is truly amazing, and the audio guide provided some great tales to go along with the visuals. The first room is where Morgan gathered a group of bankers, locked the doors and persuaded them to save the banking system in 1907. It also looked like a cool room to sip a martini.

In the middle foyer, there was a George Washington Life Mask (our first president definitely had a large head), a hand written poem by Abraham Lincoln and a document with signatures of some of the American Revolution’s most prominent figures.

The Library, complete with three-story walnut bookshelves is quite impressive. The audio guide also said that Morgan had not one, but three, Gutenberg Bibles, one that was out for display.

After seeing those rooms, and checking out the Dicken’s exhibit (with a Charles Dickens's manuscript of A Christmas Carol), we had a choice to make; go back to the hotel or keep on going. Being an idiot and ignoring my aching legs, I said let’s keep going.

Our next stop was Grand Central Station. I wanted to don some sunglasses and pretend I was Cary Grant trying to buy a ticket in North By Northwest, but by the time we reached Grand Central, I just settled on some photos and a place to lean (Mary and Tracy quickly brought out the Purell and said the words we lived by all week, “Don’t touch that!”

I didn’t know the Chrysler Building was so close, so before we entered Grand Central, we got photos of that famed structure, too. It was only three o’clock, and we had seen a lot, but not everything for the day. Not yet. This intrepid crew had more places to visit and more muscles to strain.

Gathering my fourth wind, I ducked in The Campbell Apartment to see if we wanted an afternoon cocktail. After seeing the prices of the cocktails, we said that we were part of the “99%” and departed for our next stop, the Reading Room at the New York Public Library.

I was then able to pull out my favorite fifth grade joke.

Q: “What’s the tallest building in New York City?”

A: “The Public Library. It has more stories.” True to the library regulations, my three companions stayed silent.

Unfortunately, there were about 200 stairs to reach the Rose Main Reading Room, and my grunting as I climbed them came perilously close to breaking the Library “Quiet Rule.” I was sure they would throw the book at me.

The Rose Reading Room was worth the climb (well it is now upon further review). This beautiful room was restored in the late 1990s and has beautiful murals on the ceiling.

Before heading back to the Chelsea Pines, our group had one last stop, Bryant Park. “Is there anything left on our list after today?” I asked Kim facetiously. Then I remembered that tomorrow we would climb the Statue of Liberty.

As we reached Bryant Park, I had hoped that I had not overdone my first day of real activity in more than a year. Another lovely space in the heart of NYC, Bryant Park looked like it would be a nice place to hang out and smell the flowers. There were a number of people out on this graying afternoon (the last clouds we would see on our trip).

It was a little after four that the words that saved the trip for me were uttered. I don’t remember who said them (it might even have been me). “Let’s take the subway back.” At this time (Kim told me later), Tracy and Mary were a little concerned about my well being, since I guess I looked beat. As I stated throughout the trip, being beat beats being dead any day!

To get to the subway, we walked through Times Square. Upon seeing the clutter and mass of people, Tracy said, “I’m sure glad we didn’t stay over here. It reminds me of Vegas.”

Finding the subway, we walked down the stairs and made the decision to buy the $29 per person Weekly Pass (a good decision since we became subway regulars for the remainder of the week).

Fortunately, the subway let us out ½ block from the Chelsea Pines. When we told our friend at the front desk all we had seen on our first full day, he shook his head as if to say, “You guys are nuts.” Of course, he was right, but by the end of the trip, all the front desk guys wanted to know how many things we had knocked off during the day. It became kind of a running joke.

After a shower, we all shared a bottle of a wine in the breakfast room, and headed a few blocks to our 8 p.m. reservations at Piccolo Angolo, an Italian restaurant that had garnered some rave reviews on Zagat.

Piccolo Angolo was jam packed at 8 p.m., which is always a decent sign. I’ve been to rock concerts that weren’t as loud as this place. Through the noise, we selected our dishes, and although the food was good enough, there was nothing really special about what we ordered. The pasta dishes were good (I had a nice pesto gnocchi), and the house red was pretty cheap.

We saved our eardrums and turned down dessert (proportions of dinner were more than ample). Back at the hotel, we bid good night to Kim and Mary, and suddenly our little friend Charlie appeared at our feet. Charlie and Tracy spryly climbed the stairs while I slowly trudged after them.

As we opened our door, Charlie ran in and jumped on our bed, ready to spend the night. Having not brought our litter box from home, we had to gently remove him after about 15 minutes of continuous petting and purring (oh, Charlie got some of that, too).

Tracy asked how I was feeling after a full day of walking the streets of NYC, and I admitted I was a tad nervous about how I would feel in the morning. The reason for my apprehensiveness was due to the fact that the four of us had 9 a.m. tickets for the Statue of Liberty, and in an overly optimistic moment last summer, I purchased the tickets that allowed us to climb to the crown of Lady Liberty.

At this moment in time, I didn’t know whether my tired legs would be able to handle that stress. My concern over the predicament of the following morning was short-lived as I was asleep about six seconds after my head hit the pillow. I wouldn’t have to worry about climbing 350 or so stairs for about seven hours.

DAY THREE: Assault On Battery, Statue Of Limitations, Crowning Achievement, The Agony Of Da Feet, They're Coming To America, Hamilton's Buried Here, Changing The Course Of History, Up Against The Wall Street, Living The Hi-Line, and Going Green

Oy vey..... my feet hurt just reading this. Good thing you headed up Fifth Ave. after Eataly. Otherwise you might have been seduced by the Shake Shack scene in Madison Sq. Park.
(Tho after Eataly that would have taken gargantuan appetites.) I must confess the Morgan Library is high on my list.... but since we live in NYC have not been there yet. - Your report is an inspiration to get my...... moving.

You visited many of my favorites . . . Can't wait for more. (I was sure the Cary Grant reference would be to North by Northwest, but was guessing if you had visited the Plaza Hotel, the U.N. or GCT.)

"(I was sure the Cary Grant reference would be to North by Northwest, but was guessing if you had visited the Plaza Hotel, the U.N. or GCT.)"

I missed going to the Plaza Hotel. I wanted to sit in the Oak Bar and have Tracy page George Kaplan.

Loving this report! Onward and upward!

Is the Oak Bar still extant? I remember going there in my youth...(probably before Maitai took his first sip..). One of my best memories is one night when my husband and I arrived at the Met. Opera to discover a repeat of an opera we'd just seen. They graciously gave us a refund..(in cash - and we took it and ran to the Oak Bar. It was great fun... even without Cary Grant.

(And, ellenem, I assume you are a woman - Remember that great dress Eva Marie Saint wore in N by N.? The one with roses on a black background. I had a similar one... that I'm sure I wore to the Oak Bar.)

Sorry for the hijack Maitai.

Sorry, I wasn't noticing Eva's outfits as much as Cary Grant's.

You write so well, and funny!

You can see it here - scroll way down

http://www.hitchcockwiki.com/wiki/1000_Frames_of_North_by_Northwest_(1959)

All's right in the world, MTT and company are back in action. Glad you had such good weather. We have been in NYC in freezing sleety cold and stiffling heat.

After writing today's installment, I'm amazed I'm around to write today's installment.

DAY THREE: Assault On Battery, Statue Of Limitations, Crowning Achievement, The Agony Of Da Feet, They're Coming To America, Hamilton's Buried Here, Changing The Course Of History, Up Against The Wall Street, Living The High Line, and Going Green

I awoke early with sore feet, sore legs and a slight hangover, not exactly the perfect trifecta for climbing the Statue of Liberty. Tracy was just wondering why I had scheduled a wake-up call so early on vacation.

If I have a personality disorder…let me start over. One of my biggest personality disorders is something I call, “I hate to be late syndrome.” My therapist might say I cope with this affliction by “grossly overcompensating.” Today would be no different.

I had politely asked Kim, Mary and Tracy to be ready by 7:15 so we could be at Battery Park early for our 9 o’clock cruise to the Statue of Liberty. They’ve seen me beg and grovel before (it ain’t pretty), so they immediately said “yes” when asked. It beat my other plan, which was just to camp out in the park overnight. I thought we could be the “Alternative Occupy Wall Street,” but the group eschewed that idea immediately.

Even the good folks at the Chelsea Pines were not awake this early for coffee, and Charlie, who was outside our door when we exited, took one look at us, shook his head and curled up as if to say, “It’s only about a seven-minute subway ride. What’s your hurry old man?”

I had been told to get to Battery Park about an hour before the boat departed, so getting their 75 minutes before we departed could be seen as overkill. The park was virtually empty upon our entrance.

At 7:45 a.m., about the only living things in Battery Park were a couple of wayward squirrels, a disheveled guy who looked like he had taken a wrong turn to the Woodstock Festival in 1969 and the four of us. It took all of Tracy’s willpower not to give me “the look,” however that did not preclude Kim and Mary from the same thing. At least it was a beautiful morning, and Lady Liberty’s torch was beckoning us from afar.

I had reserved these tickets months ago, so after strolling around Battery Park for what seemed to the group an eternity and catching a glimpse of The Immigrants, a statue by sculptor Luis Sanguino, we walked over to Clinton Castle where we exchanged the confirmation email for our SOL tickets that would allow us to go to the crown. We got in line and went through the first of a couple of tight security checkpoints.

After a short boat ride, with New York’s skyline glistening in the background, the boat docked at Liberty Island. We had paid an additional eight bucks apiece for audio guides to the SOL and Ellis Island, so we picked them up, went to a building where we received our “Crown wristbands,” and were told that we could not take anything up to the crown except a camera. No bags, no purses and no cell phones.

There is a place to stash your gear/purses/phones in lockers, and the system works by fingerprint identity. Knowing that Tracy had never pulled off a bank heist, we put her in charge.

The “Crown People,” as the four of us now called ourselves, were put in a “special” line and soon we started ascending the 350 or so stairs to the top. I did not have a clue if I could make it, and paramedics throughout the city were alerted.

We made it to the pedestal (where the non-crown people have to stop), and after a brief respite we began the steep (and very narrow), spiral climb to the crown.

They only let in about 10-15 people every fifteen minutes to climb to the crown. We were in the first group of the day.

As we neared the crown (or at least I hoped we were near), the Statue of Liberty poem by Emma Lazarus began taking on new meaning. I was not so much yearning to breath free as I was just yearning to breath at all. I was tired and feeling poor and really hoped not to become a huddled mass or some wretched refuse clogging up the miniscule stair well. Where were those lower Conquering Limbs when I needed them?

When I heard the friendly voice of a park ranger, I knew we had made it to the top. Truthfully, it’s cramped at the top (maybe room for three or four people to look out) and the view isn’t all that terrific through the windows. However, for me it was a satisfying feeling of accomplishment, especially considering a year ago I was unable to walk, had a feeding tube down my throat and made Calista Flockhart look overweight.

Our park ranger gave us some interesting facts such as the SOL has an exterior copper covering that is less than the thickness of two pennies. I thought abut giving him my “two cents worth,” but decided otherwise. He also told us that Gustav Eiffel designed the interior structural elements a few years before he designed he famous tower that bears his name.

Then came the phrase I didn’t want to hear. “What goes up, must go down.” Luckily, for me anyway, down was easier than going up, although by now my feet were really sore. We stopped at a couple of outside spots for photos, made a quick tour of the museum, picked up our stuff and it was back on Statue Cruises for the short hop over to Ellis Island, where we would look for our relatives later (by computer, of course).

We picked up a new set of audio guides and we were off seeing how immigrants were treated upon their arrival in their new country. The tales they told could be uplifting as well as heartbreaking, and after touring the different rooms, we came out at a place where you can research when different family members made their voyage (or voyages) to America.

My Norwegian grandfather seemed to make a few crossings in the early 20th century. I hoped I wouldn’t learn that he was actually a Lutefisk, Reindeer or Smoked Salmon smuggler.

Back on the boat, we headed toward Battery Park. We spent about 3½ hours touring the SOL and Ellis Island, which we thought was enough, but you certainly could spend more time if you wanted. I’m an audio guide guy, but I thought the SOL part of the audio guide was virtually worthless (the park rangers tell you a lot more interesting tidbits, plus you can ask questions). The Ellis Island audio guides were better, but personally I don’t think the guides were worth the eight bucks.

Walking through Battery Park as we exited, we saw The Sphere, which at one time was located between the World Trade Centers. There is also an eternal flame at this spot.

As we headed up toward Wall Street and the Trinity Church area, we realized we had only consumed a couple of sweet rolls that Kim and Mary bought during the longer-than-needed “Tom Lull Time” before we headed over to the SOL.

We took a quick look at the Merrill Lynch Bull (there is now a protective barrier that I assume was put up to protect it from protesters). Then we walked past the graveyard at Trinity Church, saw Alexander Hamilton’s tomb and walked a couple of blocks to George’s New York, located at the corner of Greenwich and Rector Streets.

George’s had to be torn down after the 9/11 attacks, but they rebuilt, and it was packed this Wednesday about 1:30. It was the best of both worlds as Kim and Mary had breakfast, Tracy and I had lunch while my feet were able to get some very necessary rest.

Back on our feet, the crew toured Trinity Church and took photos of heads inserted into a large ten-dollar bill, taking the place of the aforementioned Mr. Hamilton’s visage. Fortunately, no one challenged us to a duel, and we were off on our next quest. I’m sure our first Secretary of the Treasury would be proud to know that people take great pleasure in sticking their heads in a cardboard cut-out at the very church where he worshipped.

We passed by the New York Stock Exchange, where my retirement savings used to hang out, and then walked by Federal Hall and its large statue of George Washington in front, the site of his first inauguration. That was fitting because we were on our way to a place where Washington actually changed the course of United States and world history.

At 54 Pearl Street stands Fraunces Tavern. At this spot, on December 4, 1783, General Washington, who at this point in his life could have formed a military regime or whatever the hell he wanted, said farewell to his Continental Army officers in the Long Room of Fraunces Tavern.

Upon hearing that Washington was going to retire as commander of the Continental Forces, King George III supposedly said, “If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world.” When Washington told his men he was retiring there was hardly a dry eye in the room. Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge wrote, “Such a scene of sorrow and weeping I had never before witnessed and fondly hope I may never be called to witness again." Thankfully, he never lived to witness Jim Brown’s death near the end of The Dirty Dozen.

The museum at Fraunces Tavern is located above the restaurant and bar, in operation since 1762. Entrance to the museum is seven bucks, and with that you get to see a recreation of the Long Room plus a number of paintings and documents in various rooms. Kim is a big Washington fan, so he and I took the tour while Mary and Tracy made history downstairs with a beer and a Manhattan.

I cannot tell a lie, I did not see the sign that said “no photography” and took a photo of the replica of the Long Room. Hopefully I won’t be cursed with wooden teeth (yes, I know he didn’t really have wooden teeth…they were actually carved from hippopotamus ivory and gold).

Since none of us were entirely crippled by this point, we hopped on a subway to our next point of interest, St. Paul’s Episcopal Chapel at 209 Broadway. St Paul’s also has a graveyard in front that we walked through before reaching the entrance.

Keeping with the George Washington theme of the past couple of hours, this is the church where he worshipped (you can see his pew) after his inauguration, and the church has been around since the 1760s. It also was a place where 9/11 responders received care (podiatrists used Washington’s pew to help treat workers’ feet). Inside was a large banner sent from Oklahoma City telling rescuers to “…keep your spirits up.”

Suddenly outside, there was spirit of another type. Drums were banging. Horns were blowing. People were yelling. Sure enough, Occupy Wall Street was now occupying the street behind St. Paul’s. Wave after wave of protesters were singing songs and carrying signs, mostly saying “hooray for our side.”

“There’s something happening here,” I said. “What it is ain’t exactly clear.” Fortunately, there wasn’t a “man with a gun over there.”

Then a chorus of, “This is not a Photo Op,” came from the crowd. The dozens of people taking pictures disagreed.

After St. Paul’s, we stopped by the 9/11 Memorial Visitor Center (90 West Street/corner of Albany). We had not gotten advanced tickets to visit the recently opened 9/11 Memorial, so we checked to see if you could get “Day Of” passes. They said we could, but it would be best to get here before 8 a.m. to pick up tickets for the same day.

After my early wake up fiasco of this morning, this decision would be ultimately be made by the rest of the group. We decided to take it on a day-by-day basis, depending on how we felt each morning.

Speaking of how we felt, the consensus answer at this moment of the day was “pooped,” so it was back on the subway to the Chelsea Pines. We told Daniel about our itinerary, and once again he just shook his head in disbelief. We almost didn’t have the heart to tell him that we were just back for a few moments to shower, and then it was off to the Hi-Line and the Chelsea Market, but we were glad we did.

“At Chelsea Market, check out The Green Table. We really like that restaurant.” We made a mental note of it. He added, “Don’t forget, tomorrow is the Chelsea Pines’ 25th Anniversary Party. There will be free wine and cheese.” The last time I turned down free wine was when I was 13, so we told him we’d be there.

A quick shower and three-minute power nap, and we were on the move again, this time down to the High-Line. Built in the 1930s, for years the High Line was where trains would move freight until 1980. In the late 90s, in a move to keep the High Line from being demolished, a movement started to preserve this area as a public park.

In 2006, groundbreaking began and the first section was opened in 2009. The second part opened this summer. The High Line is open from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m., and it was amazing to see a place that was not even in use just two short years ago now full of New Yorkers who have obviously embraced this project.

When we arrived a little past six, the High Line was hopping with people strolling, enjoying the sunset or even doing a little aerobic exercise. Like an idiot, I tried to join in a “High Line; High Stepping” workout,” momentarily forgetting my body was under siege from all the walking earlier in the day. Tracy had me stop before I pulled a groin in full view of a number of shocked (and chuckling) New Yorkers. We walked along the High Line for about an hour enjoying the lights flickering on in skyscrapers throughout the city. It was very cool.

We dragged our weary bodies down the stairs, and made a beeline for our next and (thankfully) final stop of the evening, the Chelsea Market (75 9th Ave. between 15th and 16th Streets).

Inside Chelsea Market, one business caught our eye immediately. Amy’s Bread was obviously making dough by making dough. I knew there would be a croissant in my future there later in the week. Then we saw The Green Table, the restaurant Daniel at Chelsea Pines had recommended. We lucked out and got the last available table about 7:30.

This was a really good dinner with a diverse menu. Tracy started with a bowl of the vegan White Bean Soup ($7) that was really quite good.

Kim and I each got a seriously delicious Corn On The Cob grilled with cilantro-aleppo butter and lime ($4). I have got to try this at home, although at the time I thought “Aleppo” was one of the Marx Brothers.

Kim also ordered a Mac & Cheese appetizer for the table ($10). It was made with goat cheese, Colby, cheddar & Parmesan, organic pasta and herbed breadcrumbs. My arteries hardened just while looking at the ingredients.

For her entree, Mary had the Shellfish Pasta, a house made squid ink black linguini, gulf shrimp, scallops, calamari, basil and tomatoes ($24). Kim opted for the organic chicken breast roasted with braised local greens, buttered spätzle and thyme jus ($19).

Following her soup, Tracy went with another starter dish. She tried the Roasted Baby Beets with fennel, ricotta salata and fines herbs ($11). She had me taste it (beets are not my favorite), and I had to admit it was delicious. It would not be my last beet awakening this week.

Finally, I tried the Beef Bourguignon Pot Pie with red wine braised local beef topped with a flaky pâté brisée crust ($20). It also was really good, but was a little too hot to enjoy for a while after it came out.

A bottle of Les Baux de Provence (where the four of us are scheduled to be next fall) Mas de Gourgonnier 2009 ($30) and a half bottle of a Montepulciano D’Abruzzo 2008 ($18) complemented the meal perfectly. As you can see, we are equal opportunity country of origin wine drinkers.

Near the end of dinner, an alert came over (what else) our iPhones that Apple’s Steve Jobs had passed away. I’m sure he wouldn’t have wanted us to hear about it any other way. By the next day, the window at the Apple Store in Chelsea (and everywhere else) was filled with notes of condolence.

We limped the short distance back to the hotel after getting quite full at The Green Table and completing another full day of activities. There would be no respite for any of us tomorrow, because our first appointment was walking over to Brooklyn. As we petted the ever-amorous Charlie before we turned in, Tracy asked, “Do you think you can make it?”

“Well,” I replied, “I’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

Next: DAY FOUR: Bridge Work, No Time For Pizza, But We Don’t Want The Irish, Pastabilities, Old St. Pat’s, What The Hell Did He Say, Anniversary Party, Looking For Art In All The Wrong Places, Mary To The Rescue, C’est Trés Bon, Subway Pole Dancing and Ménage à Trois

>>Fortunately, no one challenged us to a duel, and we were off on our next quest. I’m sure our first Secretary of the Treasury would be proud to know that people take great pleasure in sticking their heads in a cardboard cut-out at the very church where he worshipped.<<



Lee Ann

Lee Ann, The one that got me was Aleppo . . . and, I'll admit it, Jim Brown.

"and, I'll admit it, Jim Brown."

I have to give a little credit to Sleepless in Seattle who had a bit about guys crying in the Dirty Dozen. When I saw that quote by Tallmadge at Fraunces Tavern it somehow reminded me of The Dirty Dozen and Jim Brown. My mind works in crazy ways. And don't forget Franco!

MaiTai... I recognized that allusion to Sleepless. (It's one of my husband's favorite movies so we watch it more than we should.)

Perhaps we think along the same lines because we're Scandinavian.
Tho as a Swede I was disappointed to hear your have Norwegian blood. -

I'm not Scandanavian, but as soon as Tom mentioned Jim Brown I pictured Victor Garber and Tom Hanks in tears.

(Looking forward to that bridge and Mott St . . .)

once again, thank you for bringing a little joy to my day

What a wonderful report

Ahhh ... another MaiTai tale to savour. Good to see you're in fine fettle again, Tom.

This trip report is brilliant.

So happy to be reading another trip report. Always makes me smile. I agree, New Yorkers are some of the friendliest people we have ever met. Looking lost and clueless more than once, we were approached by locals with a smile and an offer to help with directions.

We were there two weeks before 9/11. I developed our pictures but couldn't look at them for nearly six months. The one that still gets me is on the boat ride to the SOL with our kids against the backdrop of the Twin Towers.

I'm so glad you're having a great, albeit exhausting, trip.

Michele, I feel that way every time I see a movie or TV show filmed before 9/11 that shows the towers.

I'm loving this report, but I didn't know NY city had local beef. Does it graze in Central Park?

sf307... many thanks for that link. Almost as good as the actual movie!

Hope MaiTai will be back soon.

MaiTai - Welcome back to the forum and to trip reporting. You are one of the best, and I love reading your reports. (though I must confess I was rather glad to be out of New York state when the MaiTai truck drove in to New York City - Ya never know.....)

but I'll keep reading as will everyone else, to see how much damage you really did!

I just received some photos from Kim including a photo of me on the subway from either our second or third day, and after looking at it I can see why Tracy and Mary might have been concerned about me. I might have been a little more wiped out than I had mentioned in the report. I look like one of those zombies from Invasion of The Body Snatchers. I'd put it up as my profile photo on Fodor's, but they might have to shut down the website. I'll put it up on my website whenever I get this report finished. Thanks.

Great report Tom, it's almost a replica of my trip to NYC in May. NYC is the only time I've ever had blisters! I hope your feet survive the next few days and I'm looking forward to reading the next installment.

What a fun, fun read. I too wonder Cathies, what the bottom of Tom's feet looked like. My blisters got blisters from walking in NYC. After pounding the pavement there, shoe shopping has taken on a whole new dimension for me, comfort over style any day!!

I have too many favorite witty wordings in this report to pick a favorite so far. I have learned from this report that I really really need to go to Eatily. I also love that Charlie Chaplin lives at the Chelsea Pines. My kind of place.

Take care of yourself. Your fans will still be waiting -

DAY FOUR - Bridge Work, No Time For Pizza, But We Don’t Want The Irish, Pastabilities, Old St. Pat’s, What The Hell Did He Say, Anniversary Party, Looking For Art In All The Wrong Places, Mary To The Rescue, C’est Trés Bon, Subway Pole Dancing and Ménage à Trois

There would be no early wake up call this morning after yesterday’s marathon day. We were all down in the Chelsea Pines breakfast room between 8:30 and 9 where a United Nations meeting had broken out. There were our new friends from Australia, newlyweds from London, a couple from Western Canada and a French guy from Normandy who repeatedly kept correcting me on my French pronunciations. I felt like I was at a restaurant in Paris.

Thanks to the previous day’s events, we were now known as The Walking Dead, but that didn’t mean we couldn’t muster the energy for a morning adventure. It was off on another subway safari that took us near where we would take our stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge.

A little confused as we exited the three million stairs from the subway to the street, another friendly New Yorker, originally from Budapest (we all make it a point to learn everyone’s history before letting them get away) noticed our collective looks of bewilderment and guided us to the street where we would begin our journey.

Temperatures were expected to be in the low 70s, the sun was shining and for a moment our feet had renewed vigor. We all took photos of a large, silver building that looked as if it could have been designed by someone on his fourth martini, but the structure was cool looking, and we took a bunch of photos of it with the sun glistening off its façade.

Soon we were crossing the Brooklyn Bridge. The bridge is under renovation, but still it was a nice walk, although we would recommend taking the subway to Brooklyn and then walking back toward the city to enjoy all the views heading in that direction.

There are walking lanes and bicycle lanes on the bridge, so it is best one keeps focused to make sure they are in the correct spot, especially when stopping for one of the frequent photo ops. A bridge policeman told me that there used to be a lot of collisions on the bridge, but they have decreased with increased awareness. The walk was relatively easy compared to some of our other activities, and I was glad it turned out not to be A Bridge Too Far.

I had heard about a pizza place called Grimaldis located under the Brooklyn Bridge. Sadly we arrived there a little too early after our morning croissants, so we just took a quick photo, walked back to a subway station and headed toward our next destination.

We had 12:45 reservations at The Tenement Museum. Since Kim and Mary are Irish, Mary had booked the Irish tour. There’s an old line from Blazing Saddles (as usual in poor taste, but in context, funny), which ends “…but we don’t want the Irish.” While funny in the movie, the tale told of the Irish immigrant family at the Tenement Museum is anything but a happy story.

The tour lasted about 90 minutes and gave details of the tough life in the small dwelling inhabited by the family. Once inside, there are no photos, and having been a scofflaw the day before at Fraunces Tavern, I stuffed the camera in my pocket.

Afterward, I wished we had grabbed some pizza at Grimaldi’s, because we were starving. However, it was only a short walk to Little Italy, and a place called La Mela Ristorante, recommended by some friends of Kim and Mary. It was located at 167 Mulberry Street, which was apropos since I was once again Mulberry bushed. It was nice to sit down.

Our waiter sat us down and explained to Mary about the menu. After he left, she asked, “Did you understand a word he said?” We didn’t, but when he returned we smiled and pretended we knew what the heck he was talking about and ordered. I believe he did use the word “pasta” and “fresh,” so we ordered some fresh pasta. Sharp as tacks, this crew.

Similar to our other Italian experience, the food was fine, but not memorable. We shared platters of pesto gnocchi, penne vodka and rigatoni Bolognese, which turned out to be the best dish of the three. Two platters would have been plenty for the four of us.

Not far away from Little Italy was the next item to be eliminated from the spreadsheet, Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral (263 Mulberry Street). This was New York City’s first cathedral church that was dedicated in 1815.

We walked around the interior of the church, and then meandered through the charming streets of SoHo. There were galleries galore, but we didn’t stop in any of them because Kim (our official art aficionado) had a scoop abut a Chelsea Art Walk on this evening that would have free libations (foreshadowing alert).

It was getting later in the afternoon, so we hopped on the subway so we could arrive in time for our first free drinks of the evening at The Chelsea Pines' 25th Anniversary celebration. When it comes to freeloading, our foursome has become quite proficient.

On the first leg of our subway trip, the reoccurring theme of a subway conductor calling out stops in garbled static that could not be understood by the human ear happened once again. “What the hell did he say?” I asked the group.

Another New Yorker, recognizing our plight asked where we wanted to get off. After we told her, she said, “You will be getting off in three stops.”

“We don’t understand anything he is saying,” Kim said. “How do you know?”

She politely answered, “Because I’m a New Yorker.”

“How does a tourist know?” Kim asked.

She quickly answered, “You ask a New Yorker.” Damn, I love this city!

We arrived back at the hotel (thanks to the kindness of strangers) at 4:45. Some quick showers and change of clothes and we were downstairs, and the United Nations had grown to include some additional people from England. We had traded my morning French professor for another Frenchman with the appropriately movie-themed name of Olivier. I was going to ask him if it had been a Long Day’s Journey Into Night for him to get here, but was afraid I might end up like Hamlet.

We kibitzed, drank wine and broke bread with the other guests, along with Jay, Al and Troy of The Chelsea Pines, until about 6:15, and then Tracy and I followed Kim and Mary to our next round of free drinks at the big festival that was taking place in the Chelsea Art Gallery District.

As we entered the area of many galleries, the only thing missing were open art galleries, a festival and free wine. “Where did we read this?” Kim asked his lovely bride. By now, Mary was walking with Tracy and remembering fondly her single days.

I didn’t help things by quoting my own version of Shakespeare. “Paintings. Paintings. Wherefore thou art?”

Finally, after passing by a number of closed art galleries, there was one that was open, and it did have a number of people hobnobbing (I believe that’s what art people do). Kim ducked in for about five seconds, and it was time to head for the East Village and our French restaurant for the evening.

As we neared the subway, Kim reached in for his subway pass. Obviously in his excitement for the upcoming Non Art Festival, he had left his pass in his other pants. Not wanting to risk further blisters, Kim paid five bucks for his round-trip to the East Village.

Although our reservations were for 8:30, we arrived about a half hour early because of all the art we didn’t get to see. They said they would clear a table soon, and we bellied up to the bar for a pre-dinner cocktail.

Lucien (14 1st Avenue) is a quaint little place, and like most things New York, it was quite loud, but not nearly the decibel level that we had a Piccolo Angolo a couple of evenings before. Lucien was very cute and reminded me of a Paris bistro. After ordering our cocktails, Mary noticed the female bartender grasping her hand in pain.

A little background: Mary is not a doctor, but she plays one on vacation. No matter what ails you, Mary seemingly can reach into her bottomless purse and pull out any medication that can help you. I was sure that if I’d have had a heart attack on the streets of New York, Mary would have pulled out a defibrillator, yelled “Clear” and we’d only lose about five minutes of time to our next stop.

At the bar, our bartender was losing some blood due to a pretty nasty cut on her finger. Not to fear, Mary pulled out band-aids and an ibuprofen from her medical bag (um, purse). In gratitude, the bartender poured us all a free glass of champagne, although with her injury and our resident doctor’s help, Bloody Marys would have been a funny touch.

After being seated for dinner, I started with Escargots de Bourgogne ($13). Tracy and Kim opened with the Salade d’Arugala et Fenouil ($10), arugula salad with shaved fennel and parmesan. Mary tried the Salade de Betteraves et Chèvre ($11), a salad of beet, goat cheese and sprouts in vinaigrette. We were off to a great start.

For our entrées, I had the Steak Frites Traditionnelle ($26) with an incroyable au poivre sauce that was perfect for dipping my Pommes Frites (delicious). Tracy went for the Short Ribs with mashed potatoes and Brussel sprouts ($26). Mary had the Onglet au Vin et Champignons, Hanger steak in a red wine mushroom sauce ($24), while Kim decided on the Saumon Grillé avec une Réduction de Porto et Balsamic ($20), which was served on some seasonal fresh veggies. Everything was very, very good.

A bottle and a half of red wine later, we had thoroughly cleaned all our plates with a completely satisfying meal. My sweet tooth finally showed up, so I also had a Tart Tatin with Cinnamon Ice Cream ($9) for dessert. Lucien gets four thumbs up from our group.

Speaking of thumbs, before we departed, we made sure the bartender was still upright, and after thanking “Dr. Mary” one more time for her medical expertise, we were outside on what could definitely be considered a warm October New York night.

On the subway home, obviously the wine had begun to take effect on Kim. As subway trains are wont to do, this one came into the station hot and stopped rather abruptly. Standing and holding on for dear life, Kim went into an impromptu version of what could only be called a very poor rendition of Elizabeth Berkley as a stripper in Showgirls. Although no one threw dollar bills at him for his pole dancing prowess, there was some very genuine laughter tossed his way for his efforts. Thankfully, there was not a two-drink minimum.

Back at the Chelsea Pines, Tracy and I said good night to Kim and Mary who had another flight of stairs to navigate. Curled up next to our door was our little friend Charlie. Jay had told us that sometimes Charlie sleeps with the guests, and he will let them know when he needs to leave to take care of business.

We climbed into bed, and after a few strokes on Charlie’s fur, the little guy nestled in at the foot of the bed, and was asleep before you could say “Meow.”

In our three full days in NYC, we had seen a lot and not slowed down for a moment, but still hadn’t wandered into any major museums. Tomorrow that would change. We would also go on a great outdoor stroll and be treated to our best dinner of the trip.

NEXT: DAY FIVE – AROD Sucks, A Walk In The Park, Friends, Strawberry Fields Forever, Membership Has Its Privileges, Walking in The Footsteps of John Paul II, Bottom Of The Rock, Taking The Plunge While Kim & Mary Take A Hike, Hip To Be North Square

Blazing Saddles - hehehehe favorite movie
great report, and of course you ask a new yorker......

The first time I walked the Brooklyn Bridge was towards Brooklyn as a pilgrimage of sorts to honor those we witnessed on the telly on 9/11 after the Twin Towers fell. So in a way, for me, you did it right. Next time train or water taxi,pizza and a stroll back to Manhattan!

MTT: Good for you guys to go to the Tenement Museum. I think they do a great job and wish more people would go.

You lot are seeing more of NYC than many nearby livers (like moi). Keep it up!

<<<I think they do a great job and wish more people would go.>>>

Aren't their tours often sold out?

Yes, some (maybe a lot) of their tours sell out, but it doesn't mean that everyone who goes to NYC goes to or even knows about the Tenement Museum. I've talked to a lot of people who have visited NYC who didn't even know about these tours.

Another great report, so sorry I missed you all during your stay, but it sounds like you did just fine.

Can't believe you went to La Melas, used to go there many years ago with big groups for parties as the waiters were a hoot, usually no menu, they just bring you food, which is/was just ok.

Growing up in NYC, one of our school field trips was to the SOL where we climbed into the crown, even now I remember it was quite a hike up! This is when it was always open

Anyway, will look forward to the continuation!

maitai, I was only referring to the comment that "more people should go" -- I'm not sure they could handle more people!

I LOVE Lucien. One of my all-time favorites. I dream about the lapin à la moutarde often.

This is such a fun report - thanks.

BTW congrats on the climb. Had you visited the StatofLib about 40 years ago you would have seen a very angry young child at the top, when they didn't allow her to take the ladder to the torch. I mean, she had just climbed all those stairs with her little legs, and just when she's almost to the top, they shut her down and tell her she can't, when the ladder is right there and it looks really cool. And face it, she was promised to climb up to the top, and the crown is certainly not the top! So she stomped and pouted and cried just a tear in her frustration, descending Lady Liberty and knowing for certain that life's not fair.

Again, thank you for sharing your life and friends and journey with us.

"I'm not sure they could handle more people!"

Today, there are 10 tours that are still not sold out for this afternoon. Tomorrow there are 18. Randomly on November 3 there are 25. I think they will take more.

"I dream about the lapin à la moutarde often."

Another reason to return.

"So she stomped and pouted and cried just a tear in her frustration..."

So did I, but Tracy whacked me beside the head and told me to "Get moving!"

DAY FIVE - AROD Sucks, A Walk In The Park, Friends, Strawberry Fields Forever, Membership Has Its Privileges, Walking in The Footsteps of John Paul II, Bottom Of The Rock, Taking The Plunge While Kim & Mary Take A Hike, Hip To Be North Square

When we awoke a little after 6 a.m., we looked at the end of the bed and Charlie was in the exact same position as he had been about seven hours earlier. “He’s either dead or the soundest sleeping cat in the world,” I mused.

On cue, Charlie opened his eyes, stretched and walked to the door. “I need my cat box,” I thought I heard him say. I’m guessing it was the last glass of wine still playing tricks on me from the night before.

Some more muffins and coffee downstairs, and we were back on the subway again, headed for Central Park on a gorgeous Friday morning. Since temperatures were expected to reach 80 over the weekend, we decided to have our stroll today, believing that every New Yorker would be out tomorrow to enjoy the last remnant of summer.

Digression: All week we had navigated the New York subway system thanks to the knowledge of subway guru Kim, who was armed with a guide and sense of direction that never led us astray. Even when we got a little confused, Kim was able to channel his inner Christopher Columbus (although Kim did not slaughter any of the natives) and always lead us in the right direction.

I had picked up a copy of the New York Post, known for its “subtle” headlines. I was reading about the demise of the Yankees when the guy sitting next to me, turned and said, “ARod sucks!” Besides being friendly, New Yorkers also don’t seem to have a problem expressing their opinions. Of course, since I hate ARod (unless in the unlikely event he would become a Padre), I was quick to agree.

Speaking of Columbus, we exited at Columbus Circle and soon we were entering Central Park. We picked up a map from a very nice young lady and walked past a bronze sculpture of Robert Burns, meaning we were at the Literary Walk.

We walked to the overlook of a lovely fountain, and I burst into a rendition of, “I’ll be there for you.” We had been told that this was the fountain where the characters from Friends frolicked in the opening credits. We found out later, the fountain in the TV show was not even located in New York City.

It was already very warm by the time we walked into Strawberry Fields where people kept lying down in a circle to have their pictures taken. “What would John Lennon think?” I asked. One could only “Imagine.”

We took a quick look at the Dakota, where Lennon was assassinated, and then it was a rather long walk through the park to our appointed destination, The Metropolitan Museum Of Art. As Kim got some pointers from the information lady, I paid for all our tickets, and since I spent enough money, I was now a member of the museum and could get a discount on merchandise. I think if I come back to NYC in the next year, I get in for free, too.

Being a member also meant that I could be snootier than the others, so I purposely didn’t talk to anyone in our group for at least five minutes and pretended to actually know more about the paintings than I really did. Walking into the first room after climbing some more stairs (oh boy), I said to Kim, “Wow, this place reminds me of all those cool galleries we saw last night.” I think at this point he was trying to figure out how to get me on the wrong subway when we headed back.

The MET is a place you could spend an entire day…or weekend. One thing I do know about art is that I like a painter by the name of Jacques-Louis David, and in that first room is one of my favorites, The Death Of Socrates. I have liked his paintings ever since I saw The Coronation Of Napoleon in the Louvre (now that I am a member of the MET, I can name drop, too).

We did not get the audio guides for the MET, since we figured if we did, we would spend the rest of our vacation here. After about an hour, we took the elevator to the roof to admire the expansive views over New York City, and then went downstairs to the café for lunch.

After spending about 2 ½ hours (which is about “Museum Maximum Threshold Time” for this group, we started on a little walk through the tony neighborhood that is near the MET. I could almost hear Eva Gabor sing, “Goodbye City Life…” as we looked at the penthouse views. I half-thought Tracy would say, “Darling I love you, but give me Park Avenue.”

St. Patrick’s Cathedral became our next anointed (I mean appointed) stop on the NYC tour. Kim is a big John Paul II fan, and JPII made a couple of appearances here along with many other popes in its history. We spent about 20 – 30 minutes wandering the interior.

Then we scooted over to Rockefeller Center, a place where Tracy’s company has an office. We thought about going up to visit, but after all the insurance money I cost them last year, we decided to lay low. We had also contemplated going to the Top Of The Rock, but by now the crew was dragging, and the Bottom Of The Rock looked fine to us.

We walked by people who were already camping out for Saturday Night Live (taping was still more than 24 hours away). I was going to ask one of them if John Belushi was still funny, but was whisked away by my compatriots before I made more of an ass of myself that I usually do.

When we got back to Chelsea Pines, Kim and Mary said they were going to walk the length of the High Line. My feet looked up at me and immediately nixed that idea. Instead we could go even higher than that beautiful elevated expanse, and more importantly, an elevator would take us there. So after showering, while Kim and Mary finally freed themselves of us to take a hike along the High Line, Tracy and I decided to take the Plunge.

Plunge is actually a rooftop bar atop the Hotel Gansevoort. The reviews of the place said, “Tough guys in T-shirts and gawking tourists bump up against stylish professionals and trendsetters -- all of them drawn by the absolutely stunning views of the Hudson and midtown Manhattan” and “a place where beautiful people meet.”

Well, Tracy and I consider ourselves trendsetters and beautiful people, we’ve been known to be gawking tourists and I own more than one t-shirt, so we thought this is the place for us. It certainly had captivating views, and we drank an incredibly over-priced martini and Manhattan (but worth every dollar of it since we got to sit down) as the sun set. Meanwhile, we looked for Kim and Mary on the High Line, but alas all the “little people” looked the same from that height, so we finally gave up and relaxed (while looking very hip and cool for being the oldest people by far on the rooftop) for about 45 minutes.

Occasionally, Tracy and I have slightly different impressions of a place we visit. She enjoyed her drink and the stupendous vistas, but was not impressed by our server, who she thought was inattentive. She wanted to stiff her a little bit on the tip or at least give her “the look.”

I, on the other hand, enjoyed my drink and the stupendous vistas, but was impressed by our server who I thought was really hot (what, me shallow?). I wanted to tip her my 401k, but saner minds finally compromised on an 18% gratuity (which coincidentally happens to fall exactly in between nothing and my 401k).

We met up with Kim and Mary, and soon we were on our way to Greenwich Village (by subway, of course) for dinner at North Square. This turned out to be our favorite restaurant of the trip, edging out Lucien and The Green Table.

Located on the edge of Washington Square, this is a cool, little New York bistro hat Mary heard used to be an art gallery. We had 8:30 reservations, and although we arrived a tad early (our M.O. for the past couple of nights), we were quickly seated.

For an appetizer, I tried North Square’s signature Tuna Tartare with crushed avocado, ginger cured vegetables in a lemon-lime vinaigrette ($10) that was very tasty. Tracy had the Chile Relleno with crab-meat, red pepper, almonds, yellow mole sauce and queso fresco ($11). So far, the place was a winner.

Kim began with Lobster and Crab Cakes, seaweed and vegetable salad with a Thai curry coconut sauce ($12). Mary tried the Radicchio and Boston Lettuce Salad (Boston, in NYC?) that included roasted beets, goat cheese, honey spiced pecans and blue cheese dressing ($9). Everything had been great so far.

Now it was on to the entrées and they also did not disappoint. I had a great meal of Grazin’ Angus Acres Short Ribs with crispy potatoes, sautéed vegetables and an Asian barbecue sauce ($22). Tracy went for the Slow Roasted Organic Chicken Breast, sautéed wild mushrooms, white truffle polenta cake and an herb au jus ($20).

Kim dined on an Herb-Crusted Rack Of Lamb, grilled asparagus, potato and leek galette with rosemary au jus ($28) while Mary decided on the Pan-Seared Alaskan Halibut, with corn and mushroom couscous and lemon herb sauce ($23). Some delicious French wine and, voilà, a perfect meal for slightly less than $200 (not including tip).

The service at North Square was top notch as was the ambiance. By this time, we were dragging a little more than usual; Kim and Mary because of their long High Line walk; Tom and Tracy due to that extra martini and Manhattan at Plunge.

As we all crawled in to our beds (sadly, Charlie was AWOL), we knew we just had one more full day to see what we had missed so far. We wouldn’t get to everything we had come to see, but as it turned out, we came pretty damned close.

NEXT: DAY SIX – Harlem Shuffle, Home On The Grange, Divine Cathedral, Celebrating Summer’s End, A Frickin’ Great Museum, Eataly Part Deux, Giving Tom The Bird, Just Wynn Baby, Fore, Smoke Gets In My Eyes and In The Chips

t

enjoying this!

Really enjoying your report of NYC, Tom! It's a fav US city of ours, and fun to re-live a lot of our experiences there. We were in the northeast of US and Canada at the time you were in NYC, and though we experienced a lot of beauty/culture, it doesn't match the excitement of the Big Apple. That's on our horizon for another visit in spring! We're eagerly awaiting the next chapter of your report, and so happy that you had a great time!

" it doesn't match the excitement of the Big Apple."

tomarkot, after spending six nights in NYC, I really don't think anywhere I've ever traveled matches its excitement and energy. The word we all agreed upon as to what describes New York is "electric." Thanks for the comments.

maitaitom:
Public transportation can be a great way to travel and view others. Please take a peak at the post by clara in the lounge about her bus trip to a ball game.

Terrific report, Tom!

Sounds like the Four Musketeers ("Must Get Theres") struck again!

There once was a girl from Perth
Who lisped and had a wide girth
When she heard that Tom's Tracy
Had driven him crazy
She said "Sad, because I saw him firth"

Just remembered to check the US for your TR. Because you have lived to tell the TR, I'm assuming that the rest of the trip went as well as the first days. OMG, the meals sound wonderful and I can't wait to visit Eataly.

Hub finally bought a compass as we always got turned around coming up from the subway.

We all want to hear about the other 25% of your hospital promises. LOL. Bravo to all who got you back into good enough shape to do this trip. Nothing better than a maitaitom read.

"Hub finally bought a compass as we always got turned around coming up from the subway."

Kim was our human compass, but I'll file that good idea away if we ever go back without him.

"We all want to hear about the other 25% of your hospital promises."

Since I hadn't seen sunlight for so long, one thing I repeatedly said (moaned) was, "All I want to do is sit in the backyard and sip an iced tea." Well, since I've been out, I have sat in my backyard, but more times than not I must confess, I have had a glass of wine or martini in my hand, although I have come to like iced tea more than I used to.

Great report! So glad you had such a great time here.

Tom: I'm seriously glad you all went to NYC, because I'm learning about a lot of things in the city that I probably should have known a long time ago, living only a couple of hours away, and going to the city for weekends countless times!!

So thanks to you all.. and more, please.

" because I'm learning about a lot of things in the city that I probably should have known a long time ago.."

I do the same thing with California, Los Angeles and Southern California trip reports on Fodors. I'm always learning something about stuff in my own backyard. Thanks. Now get back to that France report!!!

DAY SIX – In The Dough, Harlem Shuffle, Home On The Grange, Divine Cathedral, Celebrating Summer’s End, A Frickin’ Great Museum, Eataly Part Deux, Giving Tom The Bird, Just Wynn Baby, Fore, Smoke Gets In My Eyes and In The Chips

Damn, I felt good this morning (must have been that $18 Manhattan), we awoke knowing this was our last day to see what New York City could throw at us. I looked down at my feet and said, “Get moving losers! This is it!”

Charlie greeted me outside our door, and I met Kim downstairs in the lobby. We had made a date to go back to Amy’s Bread in The Chelsea Market to check out their assortment of delectable-looking creations to bring back for the four of us to try for breakfast at the Chelsea Pines.

Obviously, I should have had dessert the previous night, because my sweet teeth (it’s an unusual condition, but I have more than one) began to throb as I looked at the numerous offerings Amy’s had to offer. In a case of stomach-trumps-brain, I ordered a chocolate croissant, a blueberry muffin and a cherry scone.

If that wasn’t bad enough, before anyone could say “heart attack in a bag,” I also ordered a large slice of Red Velvet Cake, the perfect complement to a chocolate croissant. The gigantic latte would help wash it all down quite nicely I rationalized. Kim, on the other hand, ordered a couple of pastries like a normal person would do in that situation.

We approached our wives with our goodies, and as I emptied my bottomless pit of sweets, Tracy said. ”Did we invite another couple this morning?” Mary, forgetting her husband had pole danced on a subway a couple of nights before, turned and gave him a big hug.

We said goodbye to our United Nations’ friends who were aghast by the overconsumption of what they thought were normal Americans, and we were bound for our longest subway journey yet to take a gander at the house where Alexander Hamilton lived for a couple of years before that silly dueling thing. It had just reopened in the past few weeks after being moved to St. Nicholas Park and having some restoration work done on it.

We got off the subway and started walking. We moved to the left, and we moved to the right, and we took it kind of slow with a whole lot of soul. Yeah, we were doing the Harlem Shuffle. Not because we were hip, but because we were old, and our feet weren’t picking up like they were about a week ago.

We arrived at St. Nicholas Park and there was Hamilton Grange, so named to remind Hamilton of his dad’s home in Scotland. The Hamiltons moved into the home in 1802, but only got to enjoy it for a couple of years. Hamilton, of course, was shot in a duel in 1804 by Awon Buww, the man who became famous thanks to the guy who had consumed a peanut butter sandwich without milk. Sometimes I wonder why I even bothered to attend college when such fascinating facts are available through informative commercials.

We went inside and saw some Hamilton artifacts and a short clip on what looked like previews of an upcoming movie on Hamilton’s life (which would be fascinating). Sadly, we had just missed a guided tour of Hamilton Grange, and the next one would not start for an hour. Fearing that some of Aaron Burr’s (Kim set me straight on the name) relatives might show up packing heat, we decided to walk up the stairs through the park (the stairs were become daunting by this time), and then get started on our next adventure of the day.

Getting off the subway at our next stop, I was saddened to see an uphill climb, but fortunately I was excited to visit The Cathedral Church Of St. John The Divine. I was hoping for some divine intervention that would beam me up to the church, but onward we trudged.

Just before we got to the entrance we stopped by a pretty park with some interesting sculptures. We were in the St. John The Divine Cathedral Children’s Garden, and instead of seeing children growing in the garden there were a number of sculptures of Ghandi, Noah’s Ark, Rudyard Kipling and an elephant in the park’s Sculpture Garden. The giant sculpture triumphing “Good Over Evil” (also known as “the Chargers over the Raiders”), is the Peace Fountain. There’s a lot going on in this piece, and we took the artist at his word that Good once again won out at the end.

St. John The Divine Cathedral is one of the largest Christian churches in the world and it been “under construction” since 1892 (sort of like my living room). It is really quite a place to wander around, and the church appreciates donations. The cathedral has a beautiful Rose Window above the main entrance. I was going to light a candle for my feet, but Tracy said that God probably had better things to do on a Saturday morning than to do than worry about my feet.

Jumping (well, none of us were really jumping by this stage of the game) on the subway, we got off at Central Park Midi (not its real name) and made one last walk through Central Park. As we had surmised the previous day, the park was full of families knowing that they would not see weather like this unless they moved to California (yes, a cheap shot).

The spreadsheet was dwindling down to a precious few as we headed toward the Frick Collection (1 East 70th Street). In the tradition of “saving the best for last,” this became the consensus number one spot we visited on our six-day New York City sojourn.

Tickets were $18, and the very informative audio guides were free. For the most part, our favorite types of museums are the ones where you can gain knowledge not only about the art contained within the museum, but historical knowledge about the actual structure and, more importantly, the person behind it. In addition to the audio guides, there was about a 15-minute film on Henry Clay Frick that presented great historical background on the man and is a must for people to get the utmost knowledge about his collection.

Kim went downstairs afterward to see a Picasso exhibit and exiting he said that there a couple of pieces he found interesting, which were two more than either of us had ever seen before. Sorry Picasso, you do not move me.

The lunch hour found us back at Eataly, and what a difference a weekend makes. At about 1:30 on Saturday, the wait for the upstairs restaurant was an hour, and there were long lines at many of the take-out places. Never deterred, Tracy and I found a Focaccia sandwich and a huge slice of pizza, while Kim and Mary went back for another Prime Rib sandwich.

Instead of eating inside the crowded Eataly, we scampered (OK, we’re not scampering by now either) across the street and grabbed a table outside on a day that was now approaching 80 degrees.

Located at the table next to us was an unusual couple, a lady sitting down with a rather sizable green and yellow bird attached to her arm. Looking at me, she said, “Come on over and put him on your arm. He won’t hurt you.”

Forgetting all the prednisone and other drugs I have been taking for the past year that makes my skin easier to tear apart than a flaky croissant, soon there was a bird (a rather heavy bird) sitting on my arm. He wanted to be there just about as much as I wanted him there. After about 20 seconds, Tracy removed the bird from my arm, and sure enough, there was blood from his nasty, little feet (or whatever birds walk on).

Always one to be serious in a crisis, Kim yelled, “Bird flu!” Luckily, there were no Federal agents around to take him into custody for alarming the public (who happened to be laughing at Kim’s humor). Before you could say “Dr. Mary,” our own Florence Nightingale had reached into her purse and deftly pulled out some anti-bacterial ointment and a band-aid. The potential Parrot Parasite epidemic was nipped in the bud (although I have had a craving for crackers ever since this incident).

Since we had seen so many people from so many different parts of the world, it put us in the mood for a quick trip to the United Nations. Some of the subway lines were down for maintenance but by subway and shuttle, we were soon at Grand Central Station, where we walked over to the U.N. For the second time today, we were told we had barely missed the last tour of the day.

“Are you sure?” I asked.

There was no answer.

For a moment I was going to go into my best Adlai Stevenson Cuban Missile Crisis impersonation and say, “I am prepared to wait for my answer until Hell freezes over!”

We did walk over to the Marc Chagall Peace Window that was a 1962 memorial to the Swedish U.N. Secretary General Dag Hammarskjøld who perished in a plane crash in Northern Rhodesia (Zambia) in 1961. The Peace Window was quite beautiful.
Then I heard Kim say, “Let’s get out of the U.N.”

“Who do you think you are,” I answered, “Rush Limbaugh?”

Kim replied, “No you idiot (obviously he had been hanging around Tracy too long). Let’s get out of the U.N. and get back to Chelsea.”

I was done walking unless it was straight to a watering hole. We walked across the street; hailed a nearby cab and about 12 bucks later we were back in Chelsea sitting at the La Bottega Trattoria Bar sipping a well-earned martini and other libations.

As we chatted at the bar with Heather Sellers, author of the book You Don't Look Like Anyone I Know, Tracy looked at me in a peculiar fashion (not uncommon), because someone she didn’t know was closing in on me. Standing directly behind me was a rather strange fellow who for some reason was wielding a golf club. I knew I wasn’t at a Bob Hope USO Show or at The Masters, so this was shaping up to be a weird moment in travel, even for this crew.

Before I could ask him what his handicap was or if he wanted to play through, he said to me, “Buy Wynn on Monday morning.”

I’m guessing the guy was a stockbroker (or Steve Wynn’s crazy nephew), and he kept yammering on how I should buy Wynn stock the first thing on Monday morning. A few days before we had seen an “Occupy Wall Street” march, and now I was in the middle of a “Wall Street Occupies My Bar” moment.

This was also the day that “Just Win, Baby” Al Davis (owner of those “evil” Raiders) passed away. Wynn and Win? Could it be a sign? The dude just kept on talking, and really the only thing I hoped for was that he would leave before putting a divot in the top of my head. Finally, he and his three-wood departed. We all thought he was just a drunk, crazy guy, although Tracy had an inkling he was trying to pick me up.

Digression: Two days later, on Monday afternoon, I was at work when Tracy called and said, “I wonder what Wynn did today?” I checked on my computer and the stock had climbed more than 10 points. “Just Wynn, Baby!”

After our episode, Kim and Mary went looking for a beer while Tracy and I went looking for another martini and a potential spot for dinner. We stopped in at the bar at Pastis (9 9th Avenue), a French bistro we had all walked into a few nights earlier to check out. We had all liked the space, so Tracy and I made reservations for 8 p.m. for the final dinner of the trip.

There are outdoor tables at Pastis that are hard to come by, but we were seated right next to open French doors (well it is a French restaurant), which I thought would be great because (1) this place is deafening so we might be able to hear each other and (2) it was rather warm inside so we might catch a breeze.

The place was loud and the food was good. Tracy started with the Fresh Arugula salad with Parmesan and Lemon ($13).

I had the Soup du Jour, which happened to be Lentil ($10). It was a rather strange choice for me, however when I was hospitalized last year, for some reason Lentil Soup was one of the first things that tasted good to me on my road to recovery. I decided to thank the oft-forgotten Lentil here in NYC, and the soup was quite good.

For dinner, Kim went for the Steak Frites with Béarnaise sauce ($37) and a side of Gratin Dauphinois ($9), otherwise known as scalloped potatoes. All at the table shared his Béarnaise sauce as we dipped our Frites (which is legal in NYC and a few other places in America).

Mary had the Barsteak ($20), while I opted for the Prime Rib Special ($30) with French Fries. However, it was Tracy who would be in heaven with her choice.

It doesn’t sound like a dish that would “wow” you, but Tracy said her Fish and Chips with Tartar sauce ($19) was one of the best thing things she has ever tasted. Taking a bite, I had to concur that these were the best fish and chips I had ever tasted. The fish basically melted in your mouth.

However, by this time, I also had other things on my mind (and in my lungs). I don’t know if someone was smoking out on the patio or if it was just people walking by, but the smoke was getting to me. Before my little ordeal of last year, cigarette smoke never bothered me. As a matter of fact, sometimes it even smelled good to me in a bizarre way.

However, thanks to some lungs that aren’t quite back to snuff, now cigarette smoke is totally annoying to me. By the time, we had paid our check (a little more than 200 bucks after cocktails and vin rouge), we were on the street and I looked like I had just seen Gretel tell Julie Andrews that she hurt her finger in The Sound Of Music. My eyes were tearing up, and I was coughing. Not even a rendition of My Favorite Things could help me now.

The trip was all but finished. Finito. Kaput. Over. Back at the hotel, we petted Charlie good night just in case we didn’t see him in the morning and started packing.

Next: Epilogue – Reflections Of New York City

Thank god you finally took a taxi....... my feet were just about to give out.

I lobbied hard for the taxi. If we hadn't taken it, I never would have met the crazy guy either, so it was well worth the 12 dollars.

Maitaitom: Digging your trip report. Seriously digging it. But especially your report of dinner at North Square. Why? Because of probably over 5000 possible dinner choices in NYC, that's precisely the place I picked (long before reading your report) for our upcoming Thanksgiving-day dinner while visiting NYC over the holidays! Thanks for your great trip report! We love NYC, too, although have never previously been there over the holidays. David.

Awaiting the grand finale. Aloha maitaitom, suze

maitaitom, thoroughly enjoying your report and awaiting the finale. Enjoyed your remarks about "Bah Hahbah" on our Maine report, and added a few additional thoughts to you.

Thanks David. I also went through a lot of potential dinner places before choosing the few I did. North Square really hit the mark on all counts, and I hope you guys have as good a time (and meal) as we did. Have a great trip!

I haven't been to NYC in years but your report
makes me want to be there agaIN
I salut you.

Epilogue – Reflections Of New York City

Obviously, if you’ve read my report, you know how much we all loved New York City. I like to wait a few weeks after returning from a trip to make my selection of the places that had the biggest impact on me, and what turned out to be my favorites. I will comment on most.

So I will list Tom and Tracy’s Top 15 New York City rankings and then follow them up with Kim and Mary’s Top 15 (these do not reflect restaurants or our hotel, which I will get to later).

15) Fraunces Tavern – I have to include a place where such an important event in our nation’s history took place. That I was able to partake in a cocktail afterward only made it that much better.

14) Ellis Island – If you think my ranking is low, Ellis Island doesn’t even make Kim and Mary’s Top 15. I know that many people who come here are quite moved by going to Ellis Island, but obviously it did not have the same effect for us. It was an interesting experience, and it was cool we could look up our relatives who came over more than a century before, but I thought the immigrant experience hit home more at the Tenement Museum.

13) Cathedral of St. John The Divine – My favorite church of the trip, although St. Paul’s 9-11 connection (on Kim and Mary’s list) was compelling.

12) Walking The Neighborhoods – And walk we did. Although my feet at times felt like they would give out, walking so much of NYC gave us a great perspective of this great city. From Greenwich Village to Park Avenue, we got a wonderful feel of NYC. Even at our slowest, I don’t think any of us ever impeded the flow of walking traffic on the sidewalks of New York. I saw the “Rules Of The Sidewalk” thread, and in the six days of walking around the city, we never saw any blatant violations of the “do’s and don’ts.”

As far as jaywalking was concerned, Mary became quite a pro at it, and by the time we headed home, Kim had already written her eulogy, in part thanks to her many near-misses as cabs went whizzing by her as she scurried across the street against the light.

11) Riding The Subways – Whether Kim was pole dancing, or we were just getting a heads up from a knowledgeable local, riding the subway system of NYC was a blast and a great way to navigate the city. Thanks to so many New Yorkers, we never missed a stop.

10) Walking The Brooklyn Bridge – It was made even better by being able to walk it on such a beautiful day, although we all agree it would have been a good idea to subway to Brooklyn and walk back across the bridge. Now if they could just upgrade the sound system so visitors could know exactly where to get off without bothering anyone (although it’s a great way to meet locals).

9) The Tenement Museum – The story of the Irish immigrants living in such a cramped space was brought to life by our knowledgeable guide.

8) Climbing to The Crown of the Statue of Liberty – Although the view from the cramped Crown is kind of anticlimactic, especially after huffing and puffing up those 354 stairs, knowing that not many people were allowed to do it in a day, made it special for us. For me personally, I was just happy that I was healthy enough to accomplish the feat, something I thought impossible only nine months before.

7) Eataly – Yeah, it’s commercial. Yeah, it was built to make money, but so what. Capitalism has its place, and this is one of them. We were all blown away by the use of space in Eataly, and if I lived in NYC, I am sure it would be somewhere I visited often (sipping vino on the rooftop) and would be a highlight to show out-of-town visitors. I hope they put one in Los Angeles some day, although I don’t know if L.A. would support it like NYC does. Next time, I am going straight to Gelato and then grab a huge plate of prosciutto and sip wine in the center (yes, I often do things backwards).

6) High Line – Speaking of a great use of space, the former elevated freight train tracks, now an incredible urban park and walkway, is something to behold. Walk it at sunset as you look out over the river and as lights go on throughout NYC. Marvel at its ingenuity. Bravo!!

5) Metropolitan Museum Of Art - I rank it much higher than Kim and Mary, but that’s because I am now a serious MET member and dedicated art aficionado, while they are just freeloaders who don’t appreciate the nuances of great artists. Seriously, the museum is amazing and is a place, like many great art museums, that you could return to time and time again to see many of the paintings and sculptures you missed before. Tracy and I would definitely rent an audio guide the next time we go. I’ll wear a tie now that I am an important museum member.

4) The Morgan Library & Museum – We all agree on The Morgan Library. History, art, great pieces of literature all on display, and an audio guide that helps the place come alive. This was a big surprise for me, as I rarely went to the library in college.

3) Central Park – I rank Central Park as another big surprise. I had not been here since I was about 14. It didn’t hurt that the weather during the couple hours that we spent in the park was perfect. It’s funny, but the whole Strawberry Fields/Imagine Memorial did not make me want to sing All You Need Is Love, but the entire experience of walking in Central Park was enjoyable.

2) The Vibe Of NYC – “Electric.” That is the one word that sums up NYC to me. As I have stated time and time again, every person we met, whether on the subway, on the street, at our hotel or our many servers (although Tracy might disagree on my imaginary lover at Plunge) were helpful and pleasant. People in NYC move fast, they talk fast and get straight to the point. If there is a stereotype of a “gruff New Yorker,” we never met one.

1) The Frick Collection – Incredibly a museum takes top honor for Tracy and me. From the audio guides to the informative movie to the pieces in the collection, this place was our favorite.

Kim and Mary’s Top 15:

15) NYC Library (Reading Room) – The library and its famed reading room just missed my list

14) Metropolitan Museum Of Art

13) Lennon Imagine Memorial (Hard for me to Imagine how it made their top 15, but it must have had Instant Karma for Kim and Mary)

12) Old St. Paul’s 9-11 Connection – I certainly can’t disagree with this pick.

11) Tenement Museum

10) Central Park

9) Subways (Kim bought a pole at home for his own use)

8) Walking the Brooklyn Bridge

7) The Crown of the Statue Of Liberty climb

6) Fraunces Tavern (I told you, Kim loves George Washington)

5) Eataly (Kim and Mary are capitalists at heart, too)

4) The Morgan Library & Museum

3) Bryant Park – This one didn’t make my list, but Kim has more of a developer’s eye than I do, and he likes parks more than I do.

2) The Frick Collection (Consensus Number One)

1) High Line – Kim and Mary said it might have ranked higher for me had Tracy and I had walked the entire length of it when they did. Of course, had I attempted that walk, they might have had to administer last rites before I made it back to Chelsea, so I think cocktails were a good choice.

Here is what we didn’t quite have time to fir into our busy schedule. We did not get to The Cloisters, The Whitney Museum, and we did not go to the Top Of The Rock or Empire State Building. We all think that Hamilton Grange probably would have snuck into the Top 15 if we had taken the tour, but yet again that is a reason to return.

We were also fortunate to dine at some really good NYC restaurants.

I would recommend five, with the caveat that the fourth ranked restaurant is very, very loud.

5) Co. (Company) – Pizza place in Chelsea was a good start to our trip with pizzas that had crusts that were “thin as air.”

4) Pastis - Good French restaurant in Chelsea. Quite loud, but with the Fish and Chips Tracy calls “the best ever.” Pommes frites here and at Lucien were great.

3) Green Table – Also in Chelsea, located in the Chelsea Market. Try the corn on the cob and the Roasted Baby Beets with fennel, ricotta salata and fines herbs.

2) Lucien – East Village – Cool, little French bistro. Cool vibe and very good food. Bring band aids for the bartender.

1) North Square – Located at the edge of Washington Square in Greenwich Village, this was our best meal in NYC.

My only food regret is not getting to a typical NYC steakhouse or The Shake Shack. I guess I wouldn’t have minded returning to the Stage Deli, but I’m not sure if my mouth opens as wide as it used to.

Finally, our hotel, the Chelsea Pines Inn, is a place I would reserve when we make it back to NYC. It might not be your choice if you’re a big hotel-type who likes lots of frills, but for price + location + quiet + incredibly friendly service, this place cannot be beat. Not to mention, we still miss Charlie (but don’t tell our cats).

On a personal note, this entire trip was a very big step for me. Although I had nine months of physical therapy, this was the first major venture back into the world of travel for me. I knew New York City would throw everything it had at us, and I was somewhat wary that I might not be able to handle the fast pace we are accustomed to on past journeys.

However, we all survived the long walks and 1,000 Stairs-A-Day, and I lived to write another too long trip report on our six incredible days here.

Looking back on the entire ordeal of the past year, there was certainly a point when I believed my days of travel (not to mention my days on earth) could be finished forever, so this trip, even more than any of our previous adventures, exemplified what I always truly believe:

Enjoy The Journey!
Attitude Is Everything!

Bravo!

Maitaitom: Congratulations on your amazing ability to handle this adventure to NYC, following your wonderful recovery! We're so happy for you!!! We really enjoyed following your adventures. NYC is exciting; "electric" as you say, but exploring all that it has to offer requires a lot of energy, as you well know. Having been there several times in the past few years, we enjoyed re-living experiences you described. It's also surprising how many things there are to explore in NYC. . .many places still "on our list". So happy that you had great weather and a wonderful trip.

After our fall trips, sounds like we'll all be prepping for another great city experience: Christmas in Paris!

As a fellow distinguished Member o' the Met, I look askance at your relative ratings of the Frick and Morgan, but find I must echo ellenem: Bravo!

Yeah! Come back soon.

Glad you enjoyed your trip.

Ah.... another Frick fan. Come back soon.... and the next time we fast moving New Yorkers must get that electricity going and make sure the Maitai GTG comes off. Best wishes for continued good health and I hope your Xmas trip is even better!

Another Bravo from me! I'm also a fan of The Frick. Two years ago was the first time I explored that museum, after half a lifetime of frequent trips into the city with my parents while growing up, why we never "found" The Frick before I'll never know, it was actually a friend who lives in Rome who told me about it!

And thanks to your report the Morgan Library is now on my NYC "to visit" list, haven't been there either.

I'll be in NYC in a couple weeks and will have the pleasure of meeting up with a friend and her husband at the rooftop beer garden at Eataly, thanks for reminding me it was there!

Bravo, bravo maitaitom! on the hard work you put into your recovery and on yet another wonderful trip report!

Another fan of the Frick here! Love their small bronzes!

MTT: Super trip report, with your usual flair for the sublime and the ridiculous!

You pegged my favorite: from 1952, when I lived on E. 69th Street and enjoyed free Sunday afternoon chamber concerts at the Frick, up to today, when I try to get there as often as possible, the Frick is the quintessential small museum in NYC.

The old, the newer, and the newest Morgan Library are also among my favorites.

Both used to be known only to intellectuals and close neighbors, so I used to pretend I was one of those, and now they are better and better known. Hooray for that.

I am also pleased that your museum going was highly featured in this report, thus giving drinking a somewhat less elevated position, though I have little fear that that sport will be eliminated in ensuing MTT foursome's reports.

Great job, good luck in planning Dordogne, keep up the good recovery and the good writing.

Enjoyed your trip report. I live 1 hour away from the city and will definitely try some of your fav restaurants.

Again, a super report!

Add me to the list of Frick fans. Ellis Island really grabbed us but we didn't get to Tenement Museum-as you said, maitaitom, perhaps that would have changed our minds. Except I couldn't get past the idea of leaving home forever and having to choose your most important belongings to take with you. Or sending your children off without you.

It was necessary to return 2 more times to cover more on our list. A second trip for the Opera and a third where we had a fun trip to Coney Island. The High Line adds to the list.

Thanks everyone for the nice comments. I have Day 1 and Day 2 up on my website with photos (link below). They include never before seen pictures of my hospitalization, including a nice photo of my best friend offering a "dazed and confused" Tom a "Cocktail in a Can" on Thanksgiving day 2010 (the day I awoke after seven days of unconsciousness after my operation).

Lest you think that was in bad taste; that is a tradition we have going back almost 40 years. You will also see a lovely photo of Tracy's lover Charlie Chaplin and some good shots we have of Eataly, too.

I'll try and have all the photos with the report up this weekend.

Thanks again for the replies. We love New York!

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/New_York_City_2011/New_York_City_2011.html

While I would have read and enjoyed this most entertaining trip report anyway, now that DD and I are planning a trip to New York in the spring, I am loving it even more!

You are a great writer and sound like a delightful person who would be a lot of fun to be around--thanks for sharing your experience, and attitude with us!

I just read the entire report beginning to end and first, it's such a thrill to see you back traveling, Tom! And to benefit as always from an entertaining and informative trip report is a bonus for us all. I've been to NYC numerous times, but you've given me new reasons to return. Hello Beef Bourguignon Pot Pie!?!?!?

Travel on, Tom!

I forgot to ask.... is Charlie Chaplin's mustache real? I mean... not assisted in any way. What a cutie pie.... I've never seen a cat like that...(mine was like your orange one...)

Yeah, I think you really should get the prize for best Fodor's trip reports. As a native New Yorker it was really nice to see it through your eyes. I've read many of your reports while planning trips to far away places and gotten much useful information. I'm really glad you didn't die so you can keep traveling and keep writing reports. Thanks for this one.

You are a national treasure to the travelers amongst us. Please don't stop.

"is Charlie Chaplin's mustache real? I mean... not assisted in any way."

Tracy is the only one who kissed him, so only she knows for sure. She said it was real.

"I'm really glad you didn't die so you can keep traveling and keep writing reports."

Me too!!!!

Well.. I hope our paths will cross with Tracy some day so the truth will out. In the meantime, I envy you those beeyooteefull Corgis. I always wanted a Corgi, but my husband is a Scottie fan.
The Scotties were so cute but Corgis are sooo smart.

"I envy you those beeyooteefull Corgis."

Since we got them, the Corgis have wanted equal time to the cats, so they are excited they have been "discovered" in their first trip report.

Finally catching up with the final installments of your wonderful trip report. NYC is a great walking city, isn't it? I once walked from the Guggenheim to Grand Central to Times Square to my hotel on the UWS. Exhausting but so much fun.

I've also been on that tour at the Tenement Museum - I took my then 18 year old nephew there with me in 2010. He was very quiet throughout the entire tour and for some time afterward. Sometimes it's hard to tell if teens are getting anything out of an experience, but I found out later when his mother told me she overheard him telling his friends all about it: the dark, tiny rooms, the terrible sanitation, how hard the lives of the immigrants were. That makes it sound a lot more depressing than it is, but the Tenement Museum would make my Top 15 list too.

Thanks for another great trip report, Tom!

Hi there, I have just come across this great read during my research for our own visit next year.

I love the look of the Chelsea Pines, just the sort of place we love. Could you please let me know what type of room you booked? Was it a standard?

Your top 15 lists are really interesting and helping me narrow down my huge list, I think I can relate to Kim's list!

Very, very enjoyable, thanks for taking the time to post.

Thank you for yet again sharing your wonderful stories. I was in NYC last October & we visited many of the same spots - it was fun to hear your take on them. We stopped by the rooftop bar at Hotel Gansevoort late one afternoon & loved it -- we had the gorgeous views all to ourselves! So glad you're feeling better & back to traveling.

So glad yo had such a great time in my city.

BTW - Don't worry about missing The Shake Shack. Why anyone would wait on line for 45 minutes for a hamburger or milk shake is beyond me. I see tourists lined up at lunch time and think - there are other places to go.

And, just to speak out for the rest of NYC - running around Manhattan doesn't constitute seeing NYC. You're seeing Manhattan, only. But I understand that that's the center the of "my" city and so that's where tourists go.

Great report.

Days 3 and 4 are now up with photos for anyone who wants to visit NYC without spending any money. Photos from our SOL climb, Brooklyn Bridge walk and also Tracy "cheating" on me with another guy in our room are included in Days 3 and 4.

Yes, a link would help. Click and go to "New York City 2011."

http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/

Checked out your link.

You're really a talented writer and the whole blog project is wonderful.

Loved "Charlie Chaplin" the cat. (I'm a cat lover.)

I am enjoying your blog so much, lots of great ideas for our holiday next year. Love all the photo's too, nice to see it in the flesh, so to speak. Lucky Tracy having a furry visitor, just the thing when you are missing your own cat. I can relate to this!

Trip report with photos is finally finished, and there is also an NYC slide show if you need a New York fix. Click on the link below and go to "New York City 2011" for the trip report or "NYC Photos" for the slide show. Still trying to get funding for the major motion picture.

http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/

Your trip reports are awesome and the slide show is just as impressive. I can't wait to go to some of the places you have been. Thanks!!

Maitaitom, when I first joined Fodor's before a trip to Italy, your account "uncensored we didn't drink all the vino" was (and remains) one of the funniest things I've ever read on the web. It also was, in an odd way, reassuring that yes, we could take our clan to Italy.

I did start to plan a trip to New York a couple of years ago and did know that you were ill--I didn't realize then how much so. So glad you have pulled through.

I think we are finally going through with the NY/DC trip, with teens now. Love your report and thanks to Tracy for letting you post all the wonderful and embarrassing details that make us all travel vicariously with you. Also appreciate your honesty about the Ellis Island tour. I am now rethinking that piece.

Five Alive

"So glad you have pulled through."

Me too! I came to the realization that if I died it would seriously put a damper on many of our travel plans. We loved both NYC and DC. Have a blast.

Nice to see this one again. Hope all is well with the maitai's.

5alive, maitaitom and I agree completely about the Frick (specially) and everything else, but I was moved to tears at Ellis. I was amazed and appalled at what the early immigrants went through. DH and I ran out of time for Tenement Museum and many have said it brings home what life was like then. Tom, did you have a tour at Ellis? We did and he was good-made a difference. Hub and I really talked about what we would take of our belongings if we were moving for good and could only take a certain number of items. Anyway, to each his own. And please write a trip report!

We did not take a tour, but did have the audio tour. I certainly would not tell anyone not to go to Ellis Island, and I agree that the four of us are probably in the minority where we rank it on a trip to NYC. I can't say why it did not not "move" us the way it does others, but I had to be honest in sharing our opinions. It's not that I am completely without sentiment. I cry at the Sound Of Music every time Julie Andrews returns from the convent. And td, the maitais are doing fine and hope you are well, too.

Great report and thanks for the restaurant list...we head to NYC (for the first time in 7 years) in May.

The Fodor's site is filled with mixed reactions so not to worry, tom!

DH and I returned to places that moved us unitially, only to be unmoved. Ya never know. All is fine here, thanks.

You know, many are looking forward to another enjoyable TR from maitaitom!

TDudette, what was your Ellis Island tour? Did you pre-arrange it? Sorry to derail the topic a bit...I wish these boards had private messaging...

thanks
Five Alive