NYC with the girls! I hope this becomes one of many girls trips! Earlier in the year, I had casually mentioned that in April (for Laurin's 30th birthday and Audrey's official university graduation) we should cash in on our "Broadway show" gift certificate from Dad a couple of Christmases ago and actually go to Broadway. Of course, all the girls were in! We hammered out our schedules (which gets more difficult with time), found a weekend that would work, and booked the tickets. It actually worked out that Amber had a work conference in NYC a few days before our trip so she went over early then the rest of us caught a red eye on Wednesday, April 15th (so Audrey could button up tax season first). We spent all day Thursday, Friday, and Saturday exploring the city, enjoying good food, and experiencing the talent on Broadway before flying home early Sunday morning (April 19th).
Laurin, Audrey, and I flew out just before midnight (MDT) on Wednesday, April 15th. We landed around 6:00 a.m. in NYC on Thursday, April 16th and headed straight for the hotel. Amber was already staying in our room so we grabbed a key, snuck in (even though she still heard us), and took a couple hour nap before embarking on the first day's adventures.
We tried to keep today a little lighter on the activities because we knew we would be tired, but I think it was the day we walked the most! We started by heading to the Museum of Ice Cream. Thankfully, all of us had been to NYC before. We had already tackled most of the iconic city sights so we didn't feel rushed to fit it all in. When we saw there was a museum dedicated to ice cream, we decided to check it out. On the way, we enjoyed the city streets and walked through Washington park. The museum was super cute. There were themed rooms, activities, and lots of ice cream to enjoy. I think we all loved the slide and sprinkles "pool" the best (other than the ice cream, of course). We spent about an hour there before we decided to grab lunch. We didn't have any specific plans so we walked the streets and stumbled onto a cute French themed restaurant. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was so cute.
From there, we had some time to kill before going to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. We wandered through the gorgeous Trinity Church, saw where Alexander Hamilton was buried, and briefly walked through the financial district before finding a plaza to take a break from the heat. Finally, we toured the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. This is such a somber experience. The fear, pain, grief, anxiety, etc. of that day feels unimaginable. I can only describe it as heavy. I'm grateful for the the heroes of that day (and beyond). I still can't understand the "why" behind the tragedy and terror, but I'm grateful that there was still good that day amidst the evil.
After we toured the museum, we headed to Little Italy for dinner. We actually started with a little dessert from Ferrara's Bakery. This bakery has been serving delectable treats since 1892! We grabbed some gelato and a couple pastries before wandering Mulberry Street. We ended at Cafe Napoli for dinner and it did not disappoint! I think this was both mine and Laurin's favorite dining stop of the trip. We shared steak ravioli with mushroom sauce. I'm pretty sure we both would have licked our plates if it would have been socially acceptable. We ended the day with a stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge. Last time I was here, I had been sick the night before we came to the bridge so I didn't make it all the way across. Today, I did. We dropped down into Brooklyn and headed to the East River. We found a place along the shore to relax and enjoy watching the sun drop below the Manhattan skyline. We walked a little further down the river to the ferry dock, hopped on a ferry, and rode back up to midtown where we walked a few blocks back to our hotel as the sunset. It was the perfect ending to a fun first day.
Thankfully, we all got some sleep that night and woke up feeling more refreshed than the previous day. For our first stop of the day, we headed to Hudson Yards then up 101 floors to the Edge. I have seen the city from the Top of the Rock, the Empire State Building, the One World Observatory, and now the Edge. They are all unique experiences. This was fun because there was a glass floor! We could literally see 1,200+ feet to the street and buildings below. We enjoyed taking pictures and soaking in the views before moving on.
Next, we walked the Highline to Chelsea Market. This used to an elevated industrial freight line from the 1930s until about 1980. Since then, it has been converted into a beautiful elevated walkway. They have planted gardens, set up art installations, and even created a viewing platform where the walkway crosses a busy street. We stopped on the platform and watched the cars drive under us. It was here that disaster struck! Ok...that might be a little dramatic, but it felt disastrous to me. I decided to squat down to get a picture of the street below only when I tried to get up, my knee decided to not cooperate. Something was wrong. I quickly hobbled (with Audrey's help) to the bench we had been sitting on. I initially assumed it was the same problem I had in January. I had Laurin and Audrey help me extend my leg in hopes that it would pop back into place, but it wasn't that. It seems that I may have torn my meniscus. I was absolutely devastated. I logically knew that everything would be ok, even if that meant that I sat at the hotel and just met up with the girls from time to time, but I didn't want that. I was heartbroken. Once I calmed the thoughts in my head, I realized that I could put weight on my leg and, with Laurin's assistance, I hobbled up the stairs from the platform to the walkway. Thankfully, I had packed a compression knee brace. Audrey and Amber headed back to the hotel to grab the brace while Laurin and I considered options. Ultimately, we decided to rent a mobility scooter (more for peace of mind than anything else), but thankfully, I never needed to use it. My knee could move. I could put weight on it...even if I had a limp. While we may have done a few more things than what we ended up doing, I didn't have to miss out on anything thanks to ibuprofen and sheer willpower.
Once Amber and Audrey returned with the compression sleeve, I slipped it on and hobbled along. We made our way down to Chelsea Market where we enjoyed lunch and browsed several little boutique stores. From there, we made our way to Central Park. The park was in bloom. There were flowers and blossoms everywhere. We strolled (I hobbled) through the park to Bethesda Terrace. We had just reached the Terrace when it started to rain. We sought shelter under the terrance and enjoyed a show from an incredibly talented street performer. It was actually pretty perfect. We listened to his beautiful voice for awhile then decided to press on...even if it was still drizzling a little. We found our way to the Boat House where we had dinner and waited out the rest of the rain. In spite of my knee pain, it was a pretty perfect afternoon in the park. Before we left, we made our way through the Ramble and to Belvedere Castle.
Finally, it was time for our first Broadway show of the weekend, Hadestown. I think this is my new Broadway obsession. I absolutely loved it! The music was phenomenal, the actors were amazing, the storyline was poignant. It was the perfect trifecta.
Saturday, April 18th, was our final day in NYC. We started the day at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This museum is incredible! There are over 2 million pieces of art. It is overwhelming! It is simply impossible to see it all in the few hours we had to dedicate to it so we picked a few "must-see" items and checked those off while browsing other areas as we walked through. There are two things I'm sure of after visiting the museum: (1) I know very little about the intricacies of ancient (and modern) cultures and (2) there is an unfathomable amount of beauty and talent in this world.
We probably could have stayed longer, but once lunchtime hit, it was time to move on. We grabbed a taxi and made our way to a pizza place near the Stephen Sondheim theater where we would be seeing a matinee of &Juliet. This was the coolest little pizza place. It used to be an old church. The stained-glass ceiling was still in place and many of the booths looked like church pews. The pizza was fantastic too. It was a fun find.
From there, we made our way to the theater for our second Broadway experience. Originally, I was most excited to see this production and while it was super funny and completely brilliant in the way it wove modern pop songs into a rendition of the story of Romeo and Juliet, I was surprised at the amount of swearing and more mature themes, especially for how many kids I saw at the theater. Still, there were positive themes throughout the production that elevated my overall opinion; however, I don't need to see it again.
After that production, we made our way to Times Square. This is always such a vibrant location! We wandered in and out of a few stores, grabbed some final souvenirs (or rather Laurin and Amber did for their families), then enjoyed a quick dinner followed by some authentic NY cheesecake from Juniors before our final Broadway show, Chicago. This was a very last minute addition to our itinerary. The woman (Whitney Leavitt) who currently plays Roxie Hart, was a celebrity who recently competed in Dancing with the Stars. Laurin had watched the show and really liked Whitney and her professional dance partner, Mark Ballas. Well, it turns out that Mark was also recruited to be in the production so when Laurin found this out, she expressed a desire to go. She didn't think it would be possible, especially after looking at ticket prices, but I found some seats and made the purchase. I'm grateful that Jeff and I are in a position to do that. She was sooooo excited when I told her I got tickets. Her reaction was worth it for sure! Chicago has been on Broadway for 30 years. It's a classic story of everything wrong in relationships (adultery, murder, greed, fame, etc.), but its iconic jazzy feel and simple stage presence has endured. I just loved seeing the girls get excited about Whitney's performance (unfortunately, Mark was sick and was unable to perform that evening).
And just like that, our trip was over. We left the theater, went down to the subway, and headed back to the hotel to pack up and catch a little sleep before our early flight the next morning. In spite of my knee injury, this was such a fun weekend! I love that the girls and I are at a place in life where we enjoy being together. I would have never imagined a weekend like this happening 13 years ago. It has required each of us to be humble, to forgive, and to keep showing up. I'm grateful for the life we have created and the weekend we had together!
