Our 1st full day in NYC

On the High Line

Before we hit the ground running for our second full day in the big city, I just wanted to give a brief accounting of what we have done since we landed at LaGuardia.

First of all, our flight landed 30 minutes early. We must have had a good tailwind! I have to say that after all the flying we have done this year, LaGuardia wins the award for getting our luggage to baggage claim the fastest. Pleasant surprise!

Next was a "brisk" cab ride to our hotel - the cab driver only almost ran over someone crossing the street twice! Yes, I wore my seatbelt, but Beckie sat there grinning from ear to ear. Ron didn't seem to notice anything wrong as he was taking in the scenery and chatting with the cabbie!

We met Mandi, jb and Causten at our hotel and set off to have dinner. Coppola's Italian Restaurant gave us a nice place to chat and one by one go around the table and fill each other in on what's been going on in our lives since we were last all together. It is so good to be able to just sit and look at their faces!

Since we weren't ready for bed, we decided to see a movie (review when I get back home). At this point the 3 hour time difference was definitely to our advantage. We went to see Breaking Dawn Part 1. That certainly gave us more to talk about! After the movie, the kids headed off to their apartment with Beckie in tow. Ron and I are staying at a hotel on 76th and Broadway called On The Avenue. Some sleep was in order. We went to bed at 3 am EST.

After some much needed sleep, we got ourselves together and headed out to enjoy the city. It was a beautiful day - sunny and a bit cool - a perfect NY day. Ron and decided to walk down Broadway to the theater district so that we could see what shows we might be able to see. We also stopped in to a few souvenir shops and the biggest Disney Store I've ever seen.

The kids met up with us and we went to a great pizza joint called John's Pizzeria. Delicious! More great conversation with the family. jb then suggested a walk on the High Line. We walked through Hell's Kitchen and went to a flea market on our way there. The High Line is a walkway and park built on an old freight line. An interesting view of the West Side of Manhattan. At the end of our walk we ducked into the Chelsea Market for lattes and baked goodies.

Empire State Building as seen from the High Line

Next it was time to hop on the train back to the Imperial Theater to see Billy Elliot - The Musical. We all enjoyed the show - but I LOVED IT! Very talented kids in it.will add this to the list of reviews I will post when we get back to the West Coast.

It had been a long day - so it was back to the subway to catch a train back to the hotel. I wish I had been wearing a pedometer to record how many miles we walked! I have to say that my Skechers Shape Ups are doing a great job - my feet didn't hurt after all that walking! Still haven't seen jb and Causten's apartment, but maybe we will do that today. Our plans today include more sightseeing and going to the 9/11 Memorial. Mandi and jb are both working today, so we will meet up with them later.

I should get up and get dressed now. Time to get Day 2 underway!