I’LL start with a nice cliche…’New York is my favourite place in the world’.
BUT it is. It’s the one city that is on nearly everyone’s bucket list and it deserves to be. I’m lucky enough to have been to the Big Apple a few times now and I haven’t come close to scratching the surface.
AS with all visits to cities, this trip was filled with a ‘lets make sure we see that/do this’ list, but in reality we missed stuff, of course we were going to miss stuff. At least it gives an excuse to go back, which we are already planning!
WE flew out for a few days in December, getting home just before Christmas. Flights and hotel were booked with British Airways during their September sale. The flights were pretty good; Premium Economy on the way out and Club World on the way back. If we book with British Airways again I’d probably do it the other way around, the return flight isn’t long enough to get a proper night’s sleep (between 5/6 hours) I woke up just as tired as I was when I hit the pillow. The pillows are really comfy though. If money is no object then sure, but if that was the case surely you’d be flying First?! Interesting to note is that when we are looking at flying out again, the return sector is £500 cheaper in Premium Economy than Club.
I can’t remember if it was the first flight of the morning out of Heathrow, departing around 08:30, our flight home was one of the last flights out of JFK. We stayed at the InterContinental New York Barclay which was simply amazing. The staff couldn’t do enough to help us, full of helpful tips on getting breakfast and securing dinner reservations. During his time as President, Obama would have stayed at the Waldorf Astoria but as it is closed until 2021 for restoration works he stayed in the Barclay! So if its good enough for the President it is good enough for me!
OUR flight got in around midday and so we dropped our bags at the hotel and went off for an explore. As usual I can’t remember what we did on each day, maybe if this blog ever takes off I’ll give it some more consideration.
ARRIVING around lunchtime/early afternoon meant that we had a good few hours to put to use…shopping. Jess was very keen to visit Bath and Body Works, it seems like a long way to go just for scented candles! After a quick bite to eat we set off towards the lights of Times Square. Grand Central Station sits between the hotel and Rockefeller Centre and was our first port of call. The station is always adorned with festive decorations over the holidays, wreaths are mounted on the walls and the whole concourse is bathed in a gentle yellowy/white glow. Of course it is also jam packed with New Yorkers heading out to the five boroughs and even further afield.
GRAND Central has two unique features tourists may miss, the first of which is a small black patch on the ceiling, left over from when the station was renovated. The black patch is actually dirt which accumulated over the decades of neglect before the ceiling was finally restored and serves as a reminder to keep these historic buildings in good order. The other feature is an archway, where two people standing at opposite sides of the arch can whisper to each other without any passer by being privy to their conversation.
WE left Grand Central and continued towards Times Square, our path took us past Rockefeller Center and the world famous Christmas tree. Although the area was full of fellow tourists, Jess and I battled through the crowds and made it to the tree. We didn’t hang around for too long however, it had started raining and we could easily pop back on one of our days to come.
WE made it to Times Square without any hitches, but as time (lol) was pressing on, Jess and I went ahead to grab a table at the Hard Rock Cafe whilst mum and dad caught up. Does the HRC have the best food in the world? No. But do you know what you’re getting? Yes. There was a rough 30 minute wait for a table but we were seated without any issues, ate our burgers and took a walk back to the hotel. Long day, time for an early(ish) night.
OUR first full day was rainy and miserable, so we set off for breakfast. Junior’s is the best place in New York for breakfast, try and change my mind. Massive stacks of pancakes, fruit salads, that filter coffee you only get in America all wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of a city starting its morning shift.
THANKS to the rain our itinerary went out the window. Our first day was planned to be much more outdoors, instead we set off to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. We’d got our admission tickets as part of a ‘New York Explorer Pass’ which at the time proved to be the best deal but you might want to double check before you book.
WE didn’t anticipate how long it would take to get around, we must have been there around 3 hours so factor in plenty of time. The main part of the museum is a time-line of the events on the day, it covers the story and events in each tower, then the pentagon and Flight 93.
THE main exhibition includes multiple artefacts from the day, including a huge concrete slab which is actually floors (I can’t remember exactly how many) of the building compressed together. There are also small cinema booths which tell the stories of the aircraft, displaying their flight paths along with actual messages and telephone conversations of passengers and crew. It isn’t comparable to anywhere else I’ve visited, it is emotionally draining on a whole new level, but these are stories that need to be told.
THERE are numerous fire trucks and ambulances in the exhibition, along with the gear and personal effects of those first responders who perished on the day. Of course all the stories of the day are powerful, yet it was that of Capt. Billy Burke which really hit home. Burke and his men were sent into the North Tower to conduct search and rescue, Burke encountered a man who was refusing to evacuate without his severely disabled, wheelchair bound, colleague and friend. After the South Tower collapsed he ordered his men to evacuate the building while he waited with the two workers to try and devise an escape plan. He made numerous calls to one of his friends, asking her to tell his family he was okay. His final words to his friend, after she urged him to leave the Tower were: “This is what I do.”
IT is incredibly humbling to know there are people in uniform out there who are willing to sacrifice it all to save you.
WE came out of the Museum and set off in search of dinner. One of the staff had given us some suggestions of places to try and we eventually found and instantly agreed on PJ Clarke’s. There are three restaurants in NYC, one in DC and another in Philly. We ate at the branch along the Hudson, which during the day (and when it is a little warmer I should add) would provide a great backdrop to dinner. If I remember correctly we had Sea Bass, Proper Fish and Chips, a Chicken Pot Pie and something else which escapes me (we went with my parents, we weren’t being that greedy!). Great food and brilliant service, not the most expensive but certainly not the cheapest, but hey.
POST dinner taxi ride complete it was time for bed. It might not have been the most physically demanding day but it certainly took an emotional and psychological toll.
I’LL get round to writing part two now…
Peace out!
Just Another Typical Travel Blog 
Great read about a great city! Definitely somewhere you’ll never see enough of, I’ve sadly only been once but long overdue a return trip! The 9/11 museum you can visit for free (on a Wednesday I think) which we took advantage of. It’s certainly a moving place, I thought the memorial was excellent too.
LikeLike