Thanks to all of you for your suggestions, we had a good time!

We drove to Metropark in NJ on Thursday AM, it took about 4.5 hours from VA. We got there about noon and took the train into Penn Station. Parking at Metropark was a bargain - $5 for weekdays, $2 for Sat/Sun, payable in advance, cash only. Train tickets were around six bucks apiece.

From Penn Station we took a cab to the Park Central Hotel. We had changed plans a week earlier to go up on Thursday instead of Friday and couldn'y get into our original hotel for Thursday night. One night at the Park Central was $159 and it was close to the theater district so it seemed a logical choice.

The hotel was mediocre. The room smelled odd, the paint on the ceiling was peeling in areas, but it was reasonably clean. Dim lighting may have contributed to this illusion!

We checked in and decided to start walking. We went to Grand Central Station/Rockefeller Plaza and walkd around. Had a good, inexpensive lunch at Hale and Hearty Soups in GCS. There was a spring event going on - basically vendors from around the area with jewelry, clothes, etc. Fun to look at though we didn't get anything. We walked on to Times Square.

This whole time we were on the cell phone to CareTix, a program through Broadway Cares to benefit AIDS/HIV patients. We figured if we couldn't get seats through them we would report to the Gershwin Theater at 5:30 for the lottery. A very nice gentleman named Jeff found us two FABULOUS seats for Wicked that night. They were twice face value, but the difference is tax deductible.

So we returned to the hotel, cleaned up, had another cheap meal at a cafe and went to the show. One good thing about Park Central - loation, location, location!

The show was wonderful. We sat in the center of the 13th row of the orchestra (just behind Coach Cowher of the Steelers!). The part of Glinda was played by an understudy, who was a bit tentative at first but improved throughout the play. Shoshanna Bean ROCKED as Elphaba. She was just spectacular - the best part of the show. A very entertaining show.

Afterwards we walked around for another 45 minutes and then returned to the PC, lit our little candles to ward off the funky smell and relaxed.

The next AM we walked through Central Park (conveniently located near out hotel). I loved this. It was a brisk morning but not raining. We saw tons of dogs playing with each other and their owners, none on leash but all well behaved - dog heaven. It made me miss our red monster. And I LOVED the elm trees. They were so beautiful and graceful I could have walked that park for hours. But DH was getting hungry, and a little grumpy, so we walked to Cafe Europa and had breakfast (nice atmosphere, pretty presentation, okay food).

We returned to the hotel, showered and packed and moved on to the Affinia 50.

Ahhhh, the Affinia 50. What a lovely hotel! Amazing that $20 more a night (Quikbook - $179) makes SUCH a difference. I really enjoy nice hotels and this was one. It had a boutique feel. We stayed in the 4th floor (nice because we could take the express elevator or the stairs, those in our party on higher floor had a harder time).
Comfy beds with down comforters, a pillow "menu", CD player, cushy carpeting and Aveda products in the bathroom - bliss! Others in the family had HUMONGOUS suites with kitchens. This is definitely the place to stay if you have kids or want to eat in.

The other great part of the hotel was the Club Room. I think many hotels require an extra fee for this, or that you stay on a higher priced floor but the Affinia did not. It was large with a beautiful contemporary decor, plasma TV, newspapers, games, cofefe/tea. We used it to chill out in as we waited for the everyone to get together and when we got back at night.

Okay, enough about the Affinia. After checking in and oohing and aahhhing we took the Subway down to City Hall and walked the Brooklyn Bridge. The sun had come out and it was lovely, more crowded than we expected! Also, DH had decided not to carry the backpack so we got there without txtree's directions to Grimaldi's etc.
As we walked the phone calls were coming in from arriving relatives so we returned to the Affinia, found most our family and headed to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to meet the others.

We got there a bit after 4pm. I found the museum a little confusing to be honest, some exhibits were closed, or hard to find. The maps were not so accurate. I enjoyed much of the medieval collection as well as the American Wing, but thought admission was a bit steep! Also, asked several people about the "Treasure Hunt"for kids with no real results - were given handouts of questions to ask the kids in different exhibits. They had no interest in this (and really, neither would I). We all tired of the museum more quickly than we thought we would. I'm not sure if it was our mood or the museum. I once spent all 3 days of a Chiacgo vacation in the Art Institute so I consider myself a good museum person but this wasn't doing it for me - even with the audio tour!

But the Rooftop Cafe was great! We had a couple of drinks, enjoyed the spectacular views of the skyline and the park. The kids ran around (they had been troopers in the museum!) and we had a nice time.

My in-laws got in much later than they thought they would - almost 7pm. Our plans for dinner on our own morphed in the excitement of seeing everyone and somehow all 15 of us ended up at O'Neills Steakhouse, just next to the Hotel on E 50th. I did appreciate being able to seat all 15 of us, no mean feat. But honestly he service DRAGGED. It was 90 minutes from the time we ordered until we got our appetizers! The kids were asleep in their chairs by the time we left, around 10:30pm. And the food was no great shakes. I was (am?) a little bitter to have spent so much time and money on a dinner that left everyone a little tired and cranky!
Anyway, we did get to bask in each other's company ;-)

Saturday, as small group got up and went to get ferry tickets to Ellis Island at 8am. The rest of us moseyed down at around 9:15. We got on the ferry and crossed the water in the fog. One cool moment was when, halfway there, the fog lifted a bit and we saw that right next to us was a large barge with "BUCHANAN" across the side. That is the side of the family that was reunioning/reuniting. Several of us got a bit misty, taking it as a sign that Grandma Buchanan was announcing her presence to us.

We got to Ellis Island and split into small contingents - some talking the audio tour, others a guided tour and others walking around on their own. As the day progressed it became clear that early morning was a god time to get there - it was too crowded by one'o'clock to get around comfortably. Ate in the food court and got on the 1:30 boat back. Almost got on the boat to NJ - be sure to ask which boat you are getting on!

The weather was grey and drizzly. We walked from Castle Clinton to Ground Zero. The weather was appropriate. It's funny, the gaping hole in the ground was awful, but looking at the surrounding streets was worse for me. I kept remembering those hours after the attacks, and all the videos of the debris covered people running from the towers, and those desperately looking for the friends and family. It is odd somehow to see such an orderly construction area there when the emotions are still so rampant and chaotic. God bless those people and their families.

We split up again with most people heading back to the Hotel to rest and dry out a bit. DH's aunt and I headed to Chinatown. She was great to pal around with - surprisingly adventurous. We tried a couple of chinese bakeries and did a lot of shopping. We looked at a million knock off bags. ven got "invited" into one store's back room to view the "good stuff". She loved that! We didn't buy and knockoff bags but it was fun.
I did get a couple of cheap watches, a great beaded evening bag and a polyester "silk" brocade jacket. Bargains, all.
We headed back uptown around 5pm. For some unknown reason it had been decided to have drinks at Mickey Mantle's. Now, if anyone in the family was a Mantle or a Yankees fan this would make sense - we are not. But off we went. It struck me as a kind of TGIFriday's with a Mantle theme.
Half of us were anxious to get down to Little Italy for dinner so we left a little earlier.
Turns out only 4 adults can get into a taxi so we split up (had to do this a lot!). We had a very nice West African driver who educated me about Indian films I had to see (I am Indian) and I gave hin American must-sees. It was an amusing ride downtown.
My SIL/BIL had recommended Angelo's on Mulberry street so that is where we went. They were packed and had a half hour wait so we walked around in the rain a bit. Boy - this place was phenomenal!

There were 5 of us and they put us in an alcove in the way back. We got a nice bottle of red and some appetizers to start. Almost immediately we realized this was no ordinary Italian place! This was the best Italian I have ever had, and was one of the best meals I have ever had. We had gotten some sort of an appetizer special. It had baked mozarella in a slightly spicy sauce, stuffed mushrooms, seafood. It was so good we took the bread and sopped up the sauces - the plates were clean by the time we were done.
We each got something different - I got seafood (calamari, shrimp, fish), DH got eggplant, DH's 2 uncles got chicken marsala and salmon, DH's aunt got swordfish. We all shared and it was all SO good. Really good service too!

We hadn't seen the rest of the family yet - turns out they had gotten there a half hour after we did but the kids were so hungry by that point they didn't want to wait so they went to a place across the street (can't remember the name - started with a T).
We met them there. They said the food was good, but got jealous everytime we mentioned how good Angelo's was. Their restaurant had a magician walking around which was entertaining.
It was probably 10pm by the time they got their bill. Most everyone left to go back to the hotel (by limo - fun for the kids, $5 a head but no need to split the party up!)
Ben's eldest brother, Ben, me and his 2 uncles stayed behind. The guys found cigars and then we sat at a sidewalk table (under an awning!) and had coffee and dessert at a place that I think was called Pellegrino's.
This was so nice - lights were strung across the street, sparkling onto the wet pavement. The coffee, cheesecakes, custards and canolli (sp?) were all good and the company was outstanding!
We got back to the hotel at around 11:30 and collapsed.

I'm enjoying your report, shaya.

One question: which tour (guided or audio) of Ellis Island got the best reviews from your group?

Thanks!

Unfortunately, I'd have to say audio (I took the guided!). The guided tour mostly covered what was in the exhibits, although the guide was very personable. The audio tour included more of the oral histories (they have these in the exhibits as well but the majority didn't work).

Great report! Thanks for a candid review of the Park Central and the restaurants, this is very helpful! How old are the kids that you took to the MET? I took a 6 and 8 year old recently and found that giving them the video "Don't Eat The Pictures" prior to our visit helped a lot to boost their interest level. Sometime give the Met another shot, maybe on a day that you don't have kids in tow. Judging from the amount of time you spent at the Art Institute of Chicago (isn't it wonderful?) you are obviously a museum person - maybe if you had time to look at your own pace, etc. it would make a difference.

Thanks again for sharing your trip with us!

We had a 6, 7 and 8 year old with us (I know - isn't my SIL brave ?). And they really were awfully well-behaved, but I felt for them...

When we get back to NYC I plan on a visit to MOMA and maybe the Met as well - I may read Don't Eat the Pictures myself ;-) Or From The Mixed Up Files...

Sunday AM we got up and packed, stored our bags in my in-laws room (they were staying an extra day) and went to Tavern On The Green. We sat in the Crystal Room. I have to say, it was pretty much what I expected from reading posts here. Although the decor was worse! It looks like it has needed to be refreshed for well over 15 years! The topiaries (sp?) of an elephant, ape and horse were impressive though. I got the feeling that cocktails under the Japanese lanterns one evening would be lovely. Brunch unfortunately, was not so lovely. Oh well, now we can all say we've been there.

We took one last walk under the elms in Central Park, saw some bikers there for the race. As we got back to our hotel the sun came out and it looked like it was shaping up to be a beautiful day!

We unfortunately couldn't stay - we got on the 1:55pm train to NJ and were home in VA by 7:15pm. So nice that it was still light out!

Thanks again for all your suggestions - as always, it made our trip more enjoyable. I look forward to incorporating more of them into our next trip!

Thanks, shaya. I really enjoyed reading your report.

Nice report. My only question is what does "relatively clean" mean? To me a place is either clean or it is dirty. Does relatively clean mean there's only a thin layer of dust on everything instead of a thick one? Or does it mean there are a few old candy wrappers on the floor, but not too many? Reading between the lines, I get the impression that in addition to the peeling paint and the funky smell, the place was NOT clean. Were you just trying to be nice?

Nice report, Shaya. As a resident of NYC, I haven't done half the things you did in one weekend. I am ashame of what I take for granted

So good to hear you enjoyed your trip.

"Relatively clean" means I doubt it was clean, but have no specific claims to make. It smelled funky but the bathroom was without toilet or bath rings, stray hairs or stains in the sink. The sheets weren't stained but both my husband and I commented we didn't want to know what we couldn't see on them. No dust, but again - very dim lights! So I guess what I am trying to say is it looked okay, but didn't FEEL clean, does that help?