October 17-20

I took Amtrak from Boston and met my sister, Jennifer, at Penn Station in NYC. The Airbnb apartment we had reserved in Hells Kitchen was so bad we left immediately and have submitted an appeal for reimbursement. Jennifer got online and quickly found us a nice room at the Manhattan at Times Square for less money. We stayed on the 22^nd floor and were thrilled to discover a deck outside our room. Nice.

Surprise, while in Time Square we ran into a couple I know from San Francisco, Dan and Marie, who I haven’t seen in several years. We had them over for drinks on our deck; they brought Lebanese leftovers including very delicious Brussels sprouts. I enjoyed our visit and look forward to getting together back home.

According to Jennifer’s fitbit, we walked about 26 miles during our three-day visit. I had wanted to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, but it’s closed due to construction. Instead we took a ferry to Brooklyn and walked back across the Manhattan Bridge. I loved the views and took photos in between rumbling trains. The Freedom Tower makes a beautiful addition to the skyline; I like how it reflects the sky and clouds.

The next day we walked the High Line, an elevated railroad track that has been converted to a park: a delightful variety of gardens, art, benches, and views. That was also the day the temperature dropped and an icy wind blew, so we walked briskly.

After dinner, a variety of food from mediocre Cuban to yummy Italian, we saw a show each night. Partway into the musical Once I started to feel déjà vu and by the end I realized I had seen it in it’s original movie form. Overall pleasant; I loved the voice of the lead woman singer, Jessie Fisher. Cinderella was our favorite: great cast, great sets, great music, and a few small twists on this familiar story. We left This is Our Youth after intermission; maybe it redeems itself in the second half, but we were both falling asleep.

We also got to MOMA, where I saw Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs. It was interesting to read about how he transitioned to this art form and to see the 3D originals rather than reproductions. On our final morning, I went to the 9/11 Memorial, while Jennifer went shopping at nearby Century 21. The museum, built around remnants of one of the twin towers, tells the history of the World Trade Center and has lots of displays about the event and aftermath. I viewed a short time lapse video of the ongoing reconstruction. Overall it was sad and I didn’t stay long.

After shopping, we headed back uptown to collect our luggage, stopping at a deli to pick up food on our way, and took a cab back to Penn Station for a train to Richmond.

Tip: If you’re near there, get your discount tickets at the Seaport TKTS booth; it opens earlier and the lines are shorter than at Times Square. If I weren’t going to the theatre, I wouldn’t stay near Times Square; it’s literally wall-to-wall people. Next time I’ll avoid the weekend.