New York City for a long weekend

Yes, I did!  I went to NYC to see Eric Clapton in concert.  The concert was fabulous!  I went early last year and again this year.  One of my friends said, "But you went last year!"  I didn't understand her concern.

This year I had a great seat and wonderful seatmates.  On one side was a mother and daughter; the daughter had flown in from Bermuda for the concert. (Still not as far as California.)  On the other side was a couple; he was a pharmacist and she was a winemaker from North Carolina.

I'm not high-end; so I ate mostly at diners and street food stalls.

There's always something going on in the city, early on Saturday morning there was a Korean Day parade; then in the afternoon an informal "parade" of these trike/bikes showing support for Breast Cancer Awareness.

I spent a lot of time walking.  NYC is a walkers paradise.  Above the Empire State Building and below the Flatiron Building.  I never tire of these two great buildings.

 On Sunday I went on a half-day food tour of Brooklyn.  It was the best food tour I've ever been on and highly recommend the company, New York Fun Tours.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my life with me,

New York City 2017, Part Two

On Wednesday afternoon, I had my first Book Expo event, so I made the most of the morning.  First I wandered around the Upper East Side.  When I came out of the subway I spotted this wonderful building.

The reason I came uptown was to seek out this "vest-pocket" park that I read about in the NYTimes.

Everyone knows about Central Park, but NYC is full of small pocket parks.  This is the most sophisticated one I've come across.  The sound of the waterfall was so wonderful, I didn't want to leave.

I don't know the address of this building on East 52nd, but I'd sure like an apartment there.

Greenacre Park, seek it out next time you're in NYC.

I still had some time and I hadn't visited Alexander Hamilton's grave.  I usually visit his grave on every trip to NYC.  So back on the subway to downtown, to Trinity Church.

His wife's grave is next to his.  I don't know the meaning of the coins left on her marker, but I guess it's a sign of respect.  I know that leaving coins on veteran's headstones is a military tradition.

After visiting Hamilton I wondered around the Little Italy and SoHo neighborhoods and stumbled upon another wonderful small park the Elizabeth Street Garden.  What a wonderful jumble of "stuff"!

The sign says "Please do not lean back".

For the next two and a half days, I was busy at the Javitz Convention Center for Book Expo.  On Saturday, my last day in town, I had a relaxing morning and in the afternoon I went to another B'way show, Cats!

The musical was wonderful and fast paced.  The darnest thing happened at intermission, the audience wandered onto the stage!  This is the first time I've ever see that happen.

New York is a wonderful town, there is so much to see, it's remarkable.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my life with me,

New York City 2017, Part One

I'll remember 2017 as the year of the TWOs.  I'm visiting places twice this year, unheard of for me.  I visited NYC in March specifically to see Eric Clapton.  I'm so glad I did because his LA shows later in the month were rescheduled for health reasons.

In late May I was back in NYC for Book Expo America.  This is how my week went.

Sunday I had a ticket to Hamilton.  It had been surprisingly easy to get one ticket for a sold-out show.  It was a good seat, too, in the center of the fifth row.  When I got there, there was a man in my seat!  He asked if I was alone and when I said yes, he said, "have I got a deal for you!"  It really was a good deal.  My seat was next to his two teenagers and his seat was at the end of the same row.  Of course, I traded with him.  My new seat was even better because of the way the seating was configured, there was no one in front of me.

The play was outstanding.  I was thankful that I'd brushed up on my U.S. History, never my strong suit, before attending.  They keep the story very factual, not fictionalized at all.  I loved it.  I have the CD set and I'll enjoy it for years.

Monday was Memorial Day and I'd planned on doing the Memorial Day Walk Tour in Central Park.  I did this walk 6 years ago, and I loved it.  The walk kicked my butt, too.  I wanted to do it again to see if I'd have less trouble. It rained all morning, so I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art instead.  I'd read that there was a Shaker Exhibit, so I headed right to the American Wing to see it.  It was small but outstanding.

On Tuesday, I went on my 2nd ever helicopter ride.  It wasn't raining but it was cold and overcast and the ride was with the doors off!  The ride was only 15 minutes, not nearly long enough, but if I go again, I'll try to pick a warmer day.

This is a long post so I'm going to finish with Part Two.

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my life with me,