Archive for the ‘Travel’ Category

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Dec
21
2012

City Sidewalks, Busy Sidewalks, Dressed in Holiday Style

 

My answer to, “Do you want to go to New York?” is pretty much always yes, but especially so when my cousin Tracey asked me to be her tour guide and partner-in-crime for her first-ever foray into the Big Apple.  We picked dates and got flights and then it was down to the business of planning an itinerary that would ensure that she got to see as much of New York as humanly possible.

 

We had two full days in the city, and two half days in the city, with the other half of those days consumed by travel.  I showed the itinerary to Jessica, who has gone to NYC with me many times, and she asked, “Are you trying to show her everything at once in case she never goes back?”  And, that’s exactly what I was doing.  When I presented Tracey with an itinerary of four 18-hour days (6am – midnight), she didn’t even flinch.  She thought it was fantastic, and that’s how I knew it would work.

 

I asked her what tourist things she wanted to do, and I added some of my favorite NYC discoveries to the list, and then I added some things that would be new to me as well.  To that end, I decided we should make a point to go to all five New York City boroughs.  You know what they are, right?  Thanks to the Beastie Boys?  “Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, and Staten [Island], from the Battery to the top of Manhattan…”

 

Saturday

 

We got up bright and early to drive to RDU, and by 1:00pm, we had landed and checked into our hotel in Queens.  (1 borough, check!)  We bought our unlimited 7-day MetroCards for $29, which is absolutely the way to see NYC on a budget.  Even though we were only in the city for a little over 3 days, less than half of the time our 7-day pass was good, we each took $56.25 worth of rides (16 subways, 7 buses, and 2 trams) around the city, reducing our cost by nearly half.

 

Tracey had a crash course in subways, because our first subway ride was jam-packed.  Then we had a transfer, and it was similarly packed.  So, she got to dive right into the thick of things.  Literally.

 

We rode the subway out to Brooklyn Heights (borough #2!) and walked along the Promenade for our first (slightly foggy) view of Manhattan.

Next stop was Grimaldi’s for Brooklyn’s famous pizza.  We got ham, mushrooms, and ricotta – in addition to the usual fresh mozzarella and basil.  Delicious!

After dinner, it was getting dark, so we walked down to the river, under the Brooklyn Bridge.  I snapped this photo and it turned out incredibly blurry, but there’s something about it that I like very much all the same.

 

Someone else was also checking out the waterfront, except they had arrived in this stretch hummer limousine with party lights in the back.  Just another day in New York.

Since we were visiting New York in December, there was one attraction that couldn’t be missed.  So, our next stop was Manhattan (borough #3, though technically, we went through it earlier, just underground) and the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.  I’m not sure if it was because my visit this year was a bit closer to the lighting of the Christmas tree, or because I had another person to keep up with, but Rockefeller Center seemed even more packed with people than I remembered.  It was crowded, to be sure, but we were all united with a purpose – to stand there and marvel and take pictures of the most amazing Christmas tree in the world.  (Or, at least that I have ever seen or heard about.)

 

Saks 5th Avenue, across the street, was running their projection show again this year, but it had definitely been upgraded.  Parts were even in color!

 

The top of Rockefeller Center was obscured with fog, accenting the incredible height of this building.

 

I snuck up on this tourist gawking at the tree.  (Shhhh, it’s Tracey.)

Tourists everywhere!!!

 

We found a spot overlooking the skating rink that wasn’t filled with tourists, but quickly realized it’s because they were distracted by another incredible sight – this enormous dog!  I am disappointed that the picture doesn’t do justice to his size.  He had all the humans quite matched (or over-matched) for size.  Even so, he was the sweetest thing.  He kept glancing up at his owner, as if to say, “I don’t know why all these people are petting me and taking pictures with me, but I think we should go home now.”  Quite a gentle giant.

I took a picture similar to this last year – the actual Rockefeller tree in the background of the Swarovski star replica – but it’s just so cool that I had to take another one this time.  And of course, make sure Tracey got a chance to take one, too.

It seemed for the best to conquer all of midtown on our first night, when we were already wading through tourists like a champ.  So, we headed south to Bryant Park, for another Christmas tree, another ice skating rink, and a cool foggy view of the Empire State Building, emitting an all-red hue through the clouds.

I went to Bryant Park last year, but only during the day.  I must say, their tree is much more impressive at night.  It was also situated where we could walk right up and stand under its enormous branches.  Can you tell that I’m actually under the tree here?

And this was my view looking up.

After getting our fill of interacting with the tree, and checking out the little Christmas shops, we set off toward Grand Central Station.  With the fog framing the Chrysler Building over Grand Central Station, this may be one of my favorite pictures I’ve ever taken in New York.

The inside of Grand Central is renowned for its beauty.  I am still smitten with it after all of this time.  However, it’s also impossible to photograph its splendor.  I can stand in the middle of the room and look at everything at once – take it all in.  My camera can’t do that.  Maybe a video would do the trick, but I think the only way to appreciate Grand Central Station is to be there.

Another grand New York Christmas tradition is the décor in the shop windows along 5th Avenue.  Certain stores go all out (like Saks with the huge projection show, for example), so I noted them on the map so we could take a look as we walked by.  Lord & Taylor won the prize for my favorite windows again this year.  Tracey agreed.  Their theme was “Wish for Tradition.”  Here are a few shots of their windows.  It’s hard to tell from simple photographs, but the attention to detail in these displays is mind-boggling.

Macy’s continued their “Believe” theme from last year, and I’m pretty pleased with this angled shot I got of the outside of Macy’s with the Empire State Building in the background.  I like that it has both red and green.

 

Macy’s windows showed “The Magic of Christmas” throughout New York.  I thought the display was cute of the family watching the parade balloons go by their living room window.

After Macy’s, we walked north again toward Times Square.  Tracey commented on how it kept getting brighter as we got closer.  Here she is – first time in Times Square!

We stopped at Café Un Deax Trois for dinner and to rest our tired feet before continuing through Times Square.  We glimpsed Toys R Us, the Hershey’s and M&Ms stores, and the iconic red steps before hopping on another subway up to Lincoln Center.  Dante Park, next to Lincoln Center, had a Christmas tree lit up as well.  Somehow, I missed seeing it last year, but I was only there during the day.  With or without a Christmas tree, Lincoln Center is magnificent at night.  But everything is better with Christmas lights.

 

Sunday

 

I didn’t plan any part of our trip with a leisurely pace, but since we had planned to do some walking in Central Park on Sunday, I had some wiggle room built in for that.  It was fortunate, then, that Sunday is the day our schedule got a little sideways.  We realized while doing inventory on our purse contents Saturday night that we’d left something behind at Grimaldi’s, so we had to schedule a return trip to Brooklyn.  However, we had timed tickets for the NBC Tour at 30 Rock, so we started our day there (back in Rockefeller Center!) and saw the studios for Dr. Oz, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and Saturday Night Live, along with the control room and hair and makeup.  I had actually never done the tour before, so it was a first for me.  Tracey is the NBC viewer, but I have seen a few YouTube videos from Jimmy Fallon or SNL, so even with my limited knowledge, it was cool to see those places.

Our tour finished just in time for our scheduled time at the Top of the Rock, but because of the dense fog that was still hanging around that morning, there was zero visibility, so we went in and changed our time for later, and hopped the subway out to Brooklyn.

 

Grimaldi’s didn’t open until noon, so we used the extra time to walk down to the Brooklyn Bridge Park that had closed at dusk the night before.  The sky was clearing on the Brooklyn side, but the view to Manhattan was still foggy.

When we left the park, I happened to notice this graffiti on the side of a warehouse building.  Right on!

We had a successful stop by the Grimaldi’s Lost and Found, so we were back on the subway just a few minutes past noon.  Our new Top of the Rock time was 1:15pm, so we had time to ride up to Columbus Circle and look around that side of Central Park before walking back down toward Rockefeller Center.

We also seized the opportunity to get a hot dog, which is a New York staple, but much to our disappointment (and disbelief), our hot dogs were really pitiful.  That was certainly a first for me in NYC, and not a first I enjoyed.  Oh well.  At least it was only $2.

 

This “LOVE” art installment has been there for as long as I can remember, but I’ve never stopped to take a picture there.  Since we were embracing the tourist thing, it seemed as good a time as any.

We made it to the Top of the Rock on time, and although the sky looked bright and clear from the ground, the building is so high up that we were told it was still about 50% visibility from the top.  We didn’t have binoculars on us, anyway, so I figured we’d be seeing about as far as usual, but just through a bit of haze.  Thus, this snazzy photo of the Empire State Building’s silhouette looking quite prominent amidst the fog, while the sun does its best to burn through the gray.

We could still see the enormity of Central Park, too!

Having seen Central Park from high above it, we were ready to explore the inside a bit.  We caught the bus back to the base of the park and I “hustled” (his word, not mine) a pedicab driver into giving us the tour we wanted at the price we wanted, and to drop us off at a different location than usual.  His face conveyed the brief consideration to argue the terms (or more specifically, the price), but he seemed to read me just as quickly to know that I was going to get my way, so he just said, “Ah, you know what?  Come on.”

He turned out to be one of the best pedicab tour guides I’ve ever had.  He was friendly and funny and actually came up with a few tidbits of information that I hadn’t heard before in addition to giving Tracey the general rundown as we rode along.  I think he was grateful that he didn’t have to give the big spiel every time he stopped at a new location and let us out, because I already knew where to walk and where to meet him to continue the ride.  He commented on how expedient we were at going to take our photos and then coming right back.  “Places to go, people to see!”

 

Here are some shots of the FRIENDS fountain, Bethesda fountain (drained to protect the pipes for cold weather), the San Remo towers, bow bridge, and the tall buildings hiding in the background of the trees that have shed their leaves.

 

We concluded our tour by the Museum of Natural History, as Jessica and I did last time, so we could walk into the park for a bit.  We opted to walk around the turtle pond so we could see Belvedere Castle from the ground, which was pretty cool.

We actually did a great job not getting lost amidst all the paths, and went by Cleopatra’s Needle and through the Greywacke Arch, which had a flower sprouting out of the stone on one side, and a saxophone player serenading passersby.

We came out on the other side of the park at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, where we sat for a bit before setting out in search of some dinner.  We took a chance on a little café where Tracey had Greek food and I had breakfast for dinner.  It was pretty tasty, in fact.

 

Then, we hopped a bus up to the East River, where I gave a local woman directions so she’d “remember how to get home later.”  That always cracks me up.

 

The fog was still hanging around, but it made for this awesome picture looking over toward Roosevelt Island and beyond that to those smokestacks in Queens, not far from our hotel.

Most of the Christmas tree lightings and related events take place in New York during the week after Thanksgiving, but there are a few others that are scheduled a little bit later.  Two lightings took place while we were in the city, and they were both on the Upper East Side.  Because we had a schedule conflict with the lighting of the Park Avenue Trees, we opted to attend the tree lighting and candlelight carol sing at Carl Schurz Park.  It was clearly the kind of event that only the neighborhood residents attend, and is certainly not a tourist destination.  They passed out thick books of Christmas carols to the folks who had gathered ‘round the tree, and a professional choir sang some Christmas songs, local leaders gave short speeches, and then we all had a New Year’s Eve-esque countdown to the moment that they lit the Christmas tree.  The tree itself was nothing special compared to the ones New York has to offer, but it was still fun to do the countdown with the “neighbors” and then have a whole host of people burst into “Joy to the World” as the lights came on.

 

I kept trying to take a picture of the hundreds of candles all around us and on the hillside in every direction, but never got a clear shot.  That kind of lighting is a bear to photograph, and I was too excited to hold still, anyway.  A fellow standing close by us offered to take our picture, though, so we got a shot of us holding our songbook with the stage in the background.

 

We stayed singing carols for about 45 minutes before heading out to be sure we made it to our show in time, but that was a wonderful experience.  Quite a dose of Christmas spirit with a feeling of community togetherness and pride, and we got to blend right in as if we’d strolled right over from our Brownstone down the street.  We sang verses of beloved Christmas songs that I never even knew existed, and just about the time I saw that “Twelve Days of Christmas” was on the next page, the choir leader said, “Everybody hates this song, anyway!  Let’s skip it!”  Hurray, hurray!

 

After we left, we could still hear the people singing for several blocks as we walked to the bus stop.  We were tired after our busy day, and the bus was the least labor-intensive way to get back to the Theater District, since we were going to see Wicked!

 

We got a little pre-show entertainment on the bus, however, as the guy sitting behind us carried on a very loud phone conversation with what I assume was one of his kids.  It ran the gamut of everything imaginable, and I know I would not do it justice if I attempted to convey what we heard.  I did relish the irony of him telling his kid that he/she needed to stop complaining about everything all the time, except that he paused that anti-complaining rant every 30 seconds or so to exclaim things like, “This is the slowest bus EVER!  It stops at every block!  I’m never gonna get there.  This is ridiculous!  I should ask for my money back – that’s how slow this bus is!”  We were delayed a bit at a stop because a man in a wheelchair was getting on, so the bus driver had to get out and let down the chair lift for that passenger to board.  The grumpy gus behind us gave his very loud opinion that there should just be some kind of a forklift for that sort of thing.  Charming.  He did eventually get frustrated and disembarked “the slowest bus ever,” and when I looked at Tracey and lamented his departure, an older couple in front of us turned around and said, “I know!  I’m sorry to see him go, because that was really entertaining!”  New York, ladies and gentlemen.

Even with a few delays, we made it to the Gershwin Theater with just enough time to hit the ladies’ room and find our seats before the show started.  Even better – it began to sprinkle rain when we were half a block from the theater, but it did all of its heavy raining while we were dry inside the theater.

 

I saw Wicked in 2009 and had been eager to see it again ever since.  I had forgotten some of the plot twists, but knew some of the music this time, so it was excellent to see it again and enjoy some laughs.  Tracey liked it, too!

 

Monday

 

Monday morning, we got up early and headed downtown like a couple of Wall Street traders.  We beat the rush on the subway, and we beat the tourists to the Charging Bull, too.

We proceeded to board the Staten Island Ferry so we could ride by Lady Liberty and visit borough number four on our list!

 

We had a nice view of downtown Manhattan as we disembarked from Battery Park.

The fog was sticking with us, too, so as we drove off toward Staten Island, we watched Manhattan disappear like Atlantis.

We hopped off the boat when we reached St. George, and walked along the water down to Staten Island’s own 9/11 Memorial.  Ordinarily, the buildings of downtown Manhattan would line up right in the middle here.  Due to the fog, it’s harder to tell, but you can still see WTC 1 peeking up a little higher than all the rest off in the distance.

We sat by the water for a while, just watching the boats and the birds, and then walked back to board the next ferry to Manhattan.

 

We hadn’t caught even the slightest chill riding on the back of the boat from Manhattan, but on the way back, we rode on the side, and it was a little colder.  Still not bad for riding on the water in December!

 

Here I am with Lady Liberty (and another Staten Island Ferry) behind me.

 

And a closer shot as we rode past.

Once we were back on dry land, we walked back up toward Wall Street and saw the New York Stock Exchange and paid a visit to Trinity Church.  The outside was under construction, but the inside was as lovely as ever.

We had reserved a time slot to visit the Ground Zero Memorial, so we went there next.  It wasn’t brimming with tourists as much as it was on my first visit in May, but there were still a lot of people there, which makes it difficult to appreciate the solemnity.  Once construction is complete on the new World Trade towers, the intention is to have the Memorial open via sidewalks on all four sides, so it would act more like a public park than a tourist exhibit.  I look forward to seeing it with new eyes then.

 

I had read online that the World Financial Center had a display of Christmas lights in their Winter Garden, and I had never been in the World Financial Center before, so we went to do that next.  That just so happens to be a series of buildings, so we walked several “blocks” indoors before finding what we were looking for.  The sight reminded me of the hotels in Vegas or the Opryland Hotel in Nashville.

We exited the building on the opposite side, so we could look out at the water again.

By this time, the nagging headache that I’d woken up with that morning had become a raging monster of pain, so I called a time out and walked toward that shining beacon of hope known as the Shake Shack.  I got an enormous Diet Coke and washed down some pain meds and we both ordered up some cheese fries and sat for a while.  Whether it was the food, the caffeine, or the medicine, I emerged half an hour later feeling like a new person.  My body still ached from the waist down, but my head felt fine and dandy, so we went roaring off to the next adventure.

 

As we walked, we stumbled on this odd kind of park.  I have since looked it up and found that it is the Irish Hunger Memorial in remembrance of the Great Irish Famine from 1845-1852.  It contains stones, soil, and vegetation brought in from Ireland, including stones from every county of Ireland.

We were headed to St. Paul’s Chapel (known for having sustained no physical damage when the World Trade Center buildings collapsed across the street, and for the ministry they provided afterward), but we passed by St. Peter’s on the way (New York has all the apostles in vast supply), so we peeked inside.  They were having a service (you don’t have to go far to find one at seemingly any time of day), so we just peeked inside and continued on our way.

St. Paul’s was also setting up for a service or concluding one, so we glanced inside and then spent some time taking photos from the courtyard, including the Bell of Hope, which was a gift from London on the first anniversary of 9/11.  The bell rings each September 11th and has also chimed in remembrance of victims of other tragedies since.

 

We left the church and walked through City Hall and past the Brooklyn Bridge on our way to the subway to whisk us up to SoHo, which remains one of my favorite areas to this day.  We were quite a ways from the iconic 5th Avenue shop windows, but we found a different kind of Christmas window as we walked.  What do you think?  A social commentary on Christmas consumerism?  A Grinch with no holiday spirit?  Whatever the reason, I had a hearty laugh.

 

Of course, whenever I am nearby, I never miss a chance to stop into Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral.  I have assumed that my partiality to this comparably small and inornate church rests on sentiment, as it’s the first church I ever visited in NYC, and I stumbled on it unexpectedly, but Tracey said it was her favorite so far, as well, so it certainly has something special to offer.

Just across the street from Old St. Patrick’s is another place that is my favorite of its kind in all of New York, and simply named:  Little Cupcake Bake Shop.  We stopped in for cupcakes to power us on our walk to Greenwich Village.  Tracey got strawberry, and I got a blue and white one that looked like Christmas to me, and turned out to have blueberries in the cake batter.  Yummmmmmmmm.

Our cupcakes were gobbled up long before we reached the Village, but that was OK since we were headed there to get lunch.  MacDougal Street is lined with restaurants, and our plan was to pick up a few different items to go and have a picnic in nearby Washington Square Park.  While a MacDougal creperie owner was making our order, we related this plan, and he directed us to the Risotteria on Bleecker Street for something to pair with our crepe.  Bleecker is a pretty famous street, anyway, so we threw in a little extra tourist-ing with our lunch order.

 

Having procured our lunch, we walked to nearby Washington Square Park and sat on a park bench to eat.  This park’s most famous attribute is its arch, pictured here with their Christmas tree below it.  Their lighting ceremony is later in December, so the tree was not decked out just yet.

 

We proceeded up 5th Avenue toward Union Square, which took us past the rather gothic-looking First Presbyterian Church.

Also, just before entering Union Square, we found “The One.”  We were on a mission and therefore did not stop to inquire further, but I am curious whether he was conducting some sort of social experiment or legitimately hoping to find a date.  It was funny, either way.

 

Union Square, which usually has a farmer’s market on the weekends, also had their Christmas shops set up around the entrance to the subway station.  These little Christmas villages spring up all over the place in NYC.

We were in a good rhythm of walking 10 blocks, seeing a park, walking 10 blocks, seeing a park, so we carried on until we reached Madison Square Park, which is one of my favorites.  After all, it has the original Shake Shack, in case you need a snack, the Flatiron Building, a great view of the Empire State Building, and they even had their own Christmas tree.

We were keeping an eye on the time because we wanted to have a nice sunset view, so we hopped the subway from close to Madison Square Park up to 59th Street to catch the tram to Roosevelt Island.  Tracey’s camera battery had given up the ghost for the day, so I handed her my camera so she could snap some shots as we crossed the river, such as this one, as we’re taking off from traditional Manhattan and headed up over the streets below.

We got onto Roosevelt Island at the perfect time.   We walked to the south end of the island as the sun was setting, admiring the view along our way.

Then, we walked part of the way back and chose a park bench with a great view of the Chrysler Building and rested our aching… everything… while we watched the sky darken and the lights brighten.

I have a problem sitting still in New York, so I kept going back and forth between where the Empire State Building was visible, and where the Chrysler was visible.  Gorgeous views from any angle.

 

The only time I thought Tracey might try to off me and leave my body in the East River was about here…

 

Me:  “Ready to hop back on the tram?”

Tracey:  “Yep!  Are we going to dinner next?”

Me:  “Well, we have one more walking tour, and then dinner.”

Tracey:  “Today?  We have one more walking tour today?”

Me:  “It’s a short one.  And then we go eat.”

Tracey:  *glares, considers*  “OK.”

 

True to my word, we did about a 30 minute loop to see the rest of the prominent shop windows and peek inside the Plaza hotel.

Bergdorf Goodman had some pretty cool windows this year.

 

We also checked out the UNICEF snowflake at 5th Avenue and 57th Street.

I also thought the storefront of Torneau was cool.

We had dinner at the original PJ Clarke’s location at 3rd and 55th.  My friend Lana had some friends in town from Texas, so they all came to meet us there so we could spend a few minutes catching up, which was really nice.  PJ Clarke’s is known for their burgers, so that’s what we ordered.  Tracey had a traditional burger, and I got mine subbed out for a turkey burger.  We both thoroughly enjoyed them, and had juice dripping out onto our hands, which seems like the mark of a good burger if ever there was one.

 

We were both pretty wiped out after dinner.  We’d covered a LOT of ground, and had done most of it on foot.  In fact, I had sent Lana a copy of the itinerary ahead of time, so as soon as she saw us and hugged me, she turned right to Tracey (who she’d just met) and said, “How are you?  Are you OK?  Her itinerary is like a torture device.  I told her not to wear you out.”  Tracey, however, replied that she loved the itinerary and the crazy pace, so ha ha!

 

Even so, I thought we’d both appreciate catching the bus back over to Radio City.  It wasn’t a long walk, but why walk if you can ride?  We got to the bus stop, though, and the next bus wasn’t coming for about 10 minutes.  That would have gotten us there in time (barring any extraordinary traffic), but it seemed silly to wait on a bus for 10 minutes if we could walk and be there in 10 minutes, so we opted for that.  After all, the best way to really SEE New York is on foot.

And, it meant walking past Rockefeller Center again.

 

We got to Radio City Music Hall in time to admire the general splendor and find our way to our seats just before the lights went down.  I attended the Rockettes’ Christmas Spectacular last year, but it was so much fun that I definitely wanted Tracey to get to see it.  It was also the 85th anniversary of the show, so that added to the excitement, and it’s a great way to get on the fast track to the Christmas spirit.

The show was magnificent, but 90 minutes was also BY FAR the longest either of us had sat down all day long.  When I stood up, my body showed me exactly how it felt about the day’s activities, and it was none too pleased.  We knew we just had to make it a few short blocks to the subway station, and then we could head back to the hotel.  We used the last bit of my camera battery to get some photos of the Christmas decorations across the street from Radio City, and then we were more than happy to get back to Queens for a hot shower and a bed.

 

Tuesday

 

Tuesday was our last day in the city, and we’d be leaving mid-afternoon for the airport, so we got up bright and early and packed our bags so we could check out and leave them with the bell hop.  I also printed out our boarding passes in the business center so we could save some time when we got to the airport.  Tuesday was supposed to be the warmest of the days we were in New York, and given that I’d been a little too warm with my jacket on the previous days, I had decided to leave that with our bags and just go out in my long-sleeved t-shirt.  That is, until we got to the lobby and looked outside to see that it was raining!  So, my jacket had to come along.

 

We rode the subway to the Upper West Side and visited the Church of the Ascension before folks started coming in for their 8:30 service.

Then, we walked just down the street to Neal Caffrey’s house for a visit.  The house has been on the market for a long time, and I can’t imagine what the price tag must be for such a big house in such a stately neighborhood.  Whatever the cost, we didn’t have enough to buy it, but we had a good time just being a couple of goofy White Collar tourists, pretending we were dropping in on Neal and June.

 

Fortunately, though the rain was hanging on, it was barely a mist, so it didn’t put much of a crimp in our plans.  We walked up Broadway to fulfill Tracey’s final NYC-specific food wish:  a bagel.  The place I picked out from the online reviews (and location) was Absolute Bagels.  Not a fancy name or a fancy place, but there was a steady stream of customers coming in for their morning bagel en route to work.  I’m not much of a bagel eater, myself, so I just sat at a table by the window while Tracey ordered hers.  She came back with an original bagel filled with cream cheese, and it looked pretty amazing.  She said it tasted great, too, and I should try it, so I did.  And then I ended up eating half of her bagel.  Luckily, it was quite big enough for two.  Here she is with her side.

Here is a little something for you Seinfeld fans.  I knew we’d be passing by here, and even though I only saw a few bits and pieces of episodes over the years, I still recognized this iconic restaurant front from the show.  I figured I’d take a picture, knowing that show no doubt has some fans among those reading this.

We proceeded up through Riverside Park in Morningside Heights, and came out at Riverside Church.  I’ve been there several times, but I never mind going back.

From there, we crossed the street to the General Grant National Memorial.

 

After our walking-intensive day on Monday, we opted to take the bus whenever possible.  So, we hopped aboard a bus that would take us into Harlem, and we got off at the corner of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevards.

Here I am in front of the Lenox Lounge.  Unfortunately, it’s only open in the evenings, so we couldn’t go inside, but I hope to make a return trip someday.  White Collar filmed an episode using the Lenox Lounge, which is enough for me to be interested, but they chose it because they like to highlight the greatness of New York, and the Lenox Lounge has a rich history that gave me chills just standing outside of it.  They still have live jazz there on a regular basis, but once upon a time, greats like Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, and Billie Holiday played here.  Langston Hughes read poetry here.  Malcolm X was interviewed for his biography here.  (If more modern accolades are your thing, then consider folks such as Justin Timberlake and Denzel Washington, who are two of many who’ve done productions here.)

 

From Harlem, we had a fairly lengthy subway ride to take us up to our final borough, The Bronx.  I can’t even remember how many times I’ve been to New York in the last ten years, but this was a first for me.  We went up to visit the New York Botanical Garden, where they were having their annual Holiday Train Show.  The grounds are lovely, so I’ll have to make a return trip sometime when the gardens are in bloom.

The Holiday Train Show takes place inside the Haupt Conservatory and includes over 140 scaled reconstructions of iconic NYC buildings, but built from natural materials such as bark, twigs, fruits, seeds, and pine cones.  Model trains run along tracks around these buildings, on replica bridges and by vegetation and waterfalls.  It’s pretty spectacular to see.  I think I took a picture of every single building, but that’s excessive, so here are a few highlights.

 

And these aren’t in New York, but they’re from the artist studio, showing some of his other work.

When we left the Botanical Garden, our plan was to walk through Fordham University to admire some of their buildings, but as we strolled onto the grounds, we were shooed away by a security guard who said the campus was private and we weren’t allowed.  He was grouchy, to say the least, but I guess it probably gave him a little bit of joy to growl at would-be passers-by, so Happy Holidays, I guess?

 

So, since we had some extra time, we made a stop back through Bryant Park again, where we had some lunch before walking back through Times Square to grab some Junior’s cheesecake for the road.

It was lucky we had cheesecake, because though we got back to our hotel on time, and then to the airport and through security in record time, our flight ended up delayed by about 2 hours by the time we actually got off the ground.  There are worse things that can happen, though, to be sure, and we still made it back to my house at about midnight.  All in all, I’d say we had a successful trip.  Tracey may even like to go back to New York with me again sometime!

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Nov
29
2012

I’m Lookin’ Out at Blue Skies; I’m Lookin’ Out at a Home

The hardest part about posting trip blogs about New York City is that it makes me miss it, and wonder when I’ll get back.  In this case, though, I know when I’m going back, since it’s in less than two days from now.  So, before I start packing (hello, procrastination), I thought I’d recap my last trip to the Big Apple, November 3-5, 2012.

I’m going to employ a conversational tactic passed down through the generations of my family and say, “wait, wait, let me back up.”

The year was 1998.  I was a junior in high school, and Joie Lenz got a two-week gig on Guiding Light.  She made a good impression on more than just me, because a year later, she got a contract role… playing a different character, taking over the role of longtime Springfield resident Michelle Bauer from another actress, which is always dicey in daytime television.  It’s been quite a few years, and I’m getting old, but as best I can remember, one day the previous Michelle was killing a dude in self-defense, and the next day, Michelle looked a lot different and she needed to keep the mob from finding out she was the one who offed their guy.  Naturally, she was found out, but the mobster sent to kill her married her instead, and they eventually fell in love.  Man oh man, daytime television.  It was awesome.  I’m sorry you missed it.  But, for old time’s sake – feast your eyes on Danny and Michelle Santos:

Joie Lenz left Guiding Light in 2000, and Danny (Paul Anthony Stewart) got yet another new Michelle.  I had the opportunity to meet and talk to Paul on a few different occasions after that, but I never got to meet Joie.  In 2003, I read in a magazine that Joie Lenz had landed a starring role in a new show, and I knew I’d have to see it.  She had gone back to her real name, Bethany Joy Lenz, and adopted a new character named Haley on The WB’s “One Tree Hill.”  And I think we all know how I felt about THAT show.

As it would happen, in all the times I visited Wilmington and watched filming and met most of the One Tree Hill cast members, I never met Joy.  I passed her once on Front Street.  She was among friends for a girls’ night (I’m guessing), and in addition to not wanting to intrude, I was too stunned to have said anything, anyway.

In addition to being an actor, writer, and director, Joy is also a musician, so after One Tree Hill finished, I just hoped that she’d release an album and tour, and I might get a chance to see her that way.  Therefore, after 15 years, I hope you can understand why, when I read that she was scheduled to headline a benefit concert for Rock the Schools in New York, I immediately bought a VIP ticket, without even being sure that I could attend.

While I was trying to figure out how I could afford to make the trip on my own, my BFF Jessica mentioned to me how much she and her daughter, Thai, wanted to return to NYC.  I mentioned the weekend, Jessica jumped on it, Thai was excited, and we were off and running.

Then, a week before we were supposed to go, Hurricane Sandy hit the northeastern coast, and parts of New York City were devastated.  After making sure my loved ones were safe and sound, I started waiting and watching, wondering if our trip would go on, or if we’d have to chalk it up as a loss, with a lot of non-refundable expenses paid.  The news media is, of course, no help on such matters, and we had a chorus of well-meaning naysayers, but Jessica and I were in agreement:  “Even if we have to walk there, we’re going.”

The key concerns specifically pertaining to our trip (and most New Yorkers) were the power outages, including all of lower Manhattan thanks to a blown transformer, and that the flooding had knocked out the subway system and vehicle tunnels, which would be akin to all of the highways closing down in a mid-size town.

New York, though, has a will of iron and they know how to get back on their feet.  Jessica and I were planning our walking-intensive (walking-exclusive!) itinerary when I saw the announcement that partial service had been restored on the subway.  Mere days after the greatest devastation the subway system had ever seen, and almost half of the lines were back up and running.  New lines were added every day, and by the time our plane landed on Saturday morning, every subway line we needed was operational again.  Also, Saturday morning, power was restored to most of downtown, including to the Gramercy Theatre, where I was going to the show that night.  In the words of Fiona Apple, “I can’t help it; the road just rolls out behind me.”

We stayed in Queens at the same hotel where I stayed in May.  And, feeling relieved that we no longer had to walk across the 59th Street Bridge (aka the Queensboro Bridge) to and from Manhattan every day, we took a walk to the river to have a look at it before hopping on the subway.

The subway took us to Roosevelt Island, and Thai and I had railroaded Jessica into taking the tram from there to Manhattan if we at least let her get there in one direction without testing her fear of heights.  Before hopping on the tram, though, we took a walk around the southern end of the island, which afforded a nice view of Manhattan.

And we could look across the East River back toward Queens, from whence we came.

Tram time!

Thai was a big fan of the tram.  She may have even loved it more than I do.  Jessica didn’t freak out even once.  I think she rather enjoyed herself, even.

Once we were back on the ground on the Upper East Side, we repaid Jessica’s tram generosity with two of her requested stops:  a deli and a Sephora.  As we walked, I got reacquainted with the city in my usual way – camera in the air:

We made our way to Central Park and found a pedicab driver to ride us around.  I teased that I was going to post this photo and say I took it while I was running by, but I knew you’d be on to me, because the Marathon was cancelled in the aftermath of Sandy.

Pedicab is such a nice way to see Central Park.  Someone else does all the hard work, and lets you off at key points for photo ops.

I worked it out with our driver to change the route a bit and drop us off at mid park on Central Park West, so we could continue on foot and see a place I’d never been to before:  Belvedere Castle!  On the way, Thai terrified us by climbing atop a huge rock.  And then made us come up, too.

Doggies in New York actually pose for the camera!  (At least, this one did.)

Leaving the park, we parted company for the night.  Jessica and Thai were going to tour the Times Square area and see a few stores before going to see Wicked on Broadway, and I was headed downtown for my show!

VIP ticketholders (including myself) were attending a pre-show party and gaining early admittance to the concert, but when I arrived at the theatre, I found folks were already lined up for general admission!  I was pretty happy to get to head inside ahead of the crowd.  Before going in, I saw one of the acts, Matthew Perryman Jones, headed into the building.  I don’t think anyone else recognized him (though they learned later that they did recognize his music), so I could go over and talk to him without starting some kind of frenzy.  Then, it was time to head inside for the party.

The party was held in a cute space in the basement of the theater, and there were mini cupcakes waiting on all the tables.  I probably would have appreciated this more, but I had one thing on my mind.  Luckily, I ran into some folks I was acquainted with through my trips to Wilmington, so I had some solidarity as we waited for a chance to talk to the woman of the hour.

All things considered, I think I kept it together pretty well.  I’m grateful that it’s my chest that usually flushes when I’m experiencing any kind of extreme emotion, so my face doesn’t betray me so much.  One of my cohorts, Tray, knew that it was a particularly momentous occasion for me, so he sent me up first and broke the ice a bit – thank you, Tray!  I pretty much rapid-fired all the things I had wanted to say, because I usually forget things, so I told her that I was a fan of hers since Guiding Light, and having given her my name, I said that I was one of the three writers she chose to feature on her blog last year, and named the piece I had written.  The only thing that could have beaten the day that I logged on to her blog and saw my own words there was the moment that I related that to her and saw recognition cross her face.  She had posted my entry on her blog, yes, and she remembered it still, and pulled me into a hug, saying that it was great to finally meet me.  She signed the back of my lanyard, Tray took our picture, and I walked away with a big smile and a wonderful memory.  I’ve met a lot of celebrities (famous by varying degrees), but the ones that I really admire, and careers I’ve followed for years on end – those are the hardest ones to meet.  There is always that fear of a bad encounter; the fear that, in person, they’re haughty or mean or they’re neither, but they’re just having a bad day.  I’m happy to say that Joy was warm and kind and as delightful as I could have ever wanted her to be.  It meant a lot to me.

Shortly thereafter, they opened the doors upstairs for the VIPs to go ahead and claim a spot in front of the stage.  I was the first person to walk in, and being very early, I took a seat in front of the middle of the stage and waited for the show to begin.

There was a long list of performers for the evening, and I didn’t know most of them.  Amongst those unknown to me was Thomas Ian Nicholas, of American Pie fame.  I never saw that movie franchise, but I’m sure some of you have, so I included a photo of him.

I was excited to hear Matthew Perryman Jones again, as he’s put out a new album since the last time I saw him, so I had some new songs to sing along to.  He also played my favorite, “Feels Like Letting Go,” which I had requested when I saw him outside.  He was even kind enough to call out to me from the stage, and say he was playing it for me.

Since both Joy and Mike Grubbs (of Wakey!Wakey!) were performing, other One Tree Hill cast-members who were in town turned out for the show, including James Lafferty and Robert Buckley.  When the hosts called Grubbs to the stage, out walked James Lafferty instead.  Dressed in Grubbs’ signature cardigan, James sat down at the keyboard as if he was ready to put on a show.  In a cute skit that the audience loved, Grubbs came out and told James that was his piano and his sweater and this was his moment, and James couldn’t have it.  He then called Robert Buckley out to remove James from the stage.  I must say, I enjoyed it.

I have seen Wakey!Wakey! a few times before, but this was my first time seeing him with a 99% One Tree Hill crowd.  Such screaming!  He was overwhelmed by the reception.  He played a fantastic set which got me pretty excited about the next album.

Joy even came out at one point to sing a song with him, which certainly got the audience psyched.  I would have flipped over to video for that, but I was too busy, well, getting psyched!

Finally, the only performer remaining was Joy.  My feet were not thrilled about how much time I’d spent standing, but finally getting to see Joy perform was enough to take my mind off of that.  She brought down the house!  AND… she brought CDs!!!

Joy said she had just written a new song, but it was a duet, and Grubbs reappeared to sing it with her.  I flipped over to the video setting for that!  And… since trying to get my blog to embed a YouTube video makes me want to jump off of a cliff, just click here if you want to see it, ok?  (It will open in a new tab.)

Here is a photo of Joy, taking a photo of the crowd, which she immediately posted to Twitter.  I’m visible in her shot, so I’ll post that below as well!

I was exhausted and happy as I made my way back to the hotel Saturday night.  Jessica and Thai had beaten me there by 30 minutes or so and had already had our bags brought up, and had a Caffeine Free Diet Coke waiting for me, so I could unwind before getting some rest.

Sunday morning, we decided to go to Ripley’s Believe it or Not museum in Times Square.  On our way, Thai stopped for a photo op with Mickey and Minnie.

Also, it is just me, or is there something wrong with this picture?

But then, here’s the cure, because there is nothing wrong with THIS picture!

I usually doze off at the mere mention of a museum, but Ripley’s was actually pretty fun, and Thai loved it.

I did not fare very well in this “black hole,” but Thai thought it was awesome.

The best part was this room that recognized our movements and projected them in a colorful way via a screen that covered one entire wall.  We stayed for way too long in here, and I inevitably got dizzy from all the dancing and twirling, but it was worth the price of admission, right there.

Our next stop was another museum of sorts… THE MOST AWESOME MUSEUM IN THE HISTORY OF MANKIND… The Harry Potter Exhibition!!!  I had just missed it when it was in NYC last year, and I was so bummed about it.  When we saw a sign advertising it as we walked around the day before, I was afraid that it was an old sign, just teasing me.  It turns out, the exhibition had just reopened on the day of our arrival.  All three of us looked like kids in a candy shop when we walked in.  The employees manning the photo camera actually chuckled a little when they saw the three of us, wide-eyed and pointing and gasping around the room.  And we hadn’t even entered the actual exhibit yet.

Unfortunately, photography was not allowed (Warner Brothers and all their copyright business), but when we walked in, they took volunteers to be sorted (Thai got Gryffindor and I got Slytherin and Jessica got to witness us geeking out), and then we proceeded to walk through rooms filled with props and costumes from the Harry Potter films.  We got to pretend to pot Mandrakes and play Quidditch, and I found great difficulty in moving away once we came upon the replica of Snape’s Potions Closet.  We all took turns sitting in the enormous chair in Hagrid’s Hut, and the tour culminated in the Great Hall, which was magnificent.  We had a blast!

Back out in Times Square, we saw some more strange sights.  What do you suppose they’d be discussing?

And is this some sort of convention?

Thai wanted to go into Toys R Us, and she really wanted to ride the ferris wheel.  We’ve already covered Jessica and her heights, so, what can I say?  I stepped up and took one for the team.  Which is to say, the only person who enjoyed the ferris wheel more than Thai… was me.

In case anybody ever wonders what bonds Jessica and I together, here she is, holding her Harry Potter bag, grinning like a fool in front of a Disney Princess display.  Yep.  I’d say that clears things up.

Next, we made our way uptown so we could be at the Top of the Rock by sunset.

As always, the view was spectacular, and as always, it is so stinkin’ cold on top of that building!

I caught Jessica and Thai warming up in the light room.  Ooooh, pretty!

Once the sun went down and we were all pretty frigid, we walked back to the Theater District to see Mary Poppins!  The show was great, and Mary Poppins even flew right over our heads!

Broadway Cares was raising funds for Hurricane Sandy victims, and Jessica made a donation, which resulted in us being invited backstage for a tour and to meet the cast.

These are fishing reels, used for the kite-flying scene.

After the show, we were all hungry, so we went down the street to Dallas BBQ.  Thai was amazed at the size of her drink.  The caffeine had no effect, though, because she fell asleep on the table as soon as she finished eating.  Clearly, it had been a long day.

Monday was our last day, and we started it off right with a big breakfast at Court Square Diner in our little neighborhood in Queens.

Jessica thought, since it was vacation and all, it would be appropriate to order an appetizer before breakfast.  She settled on this lemon meringue pie.  Even with three of us, we didn’t quite get to the bottom of it.

From there, we made our way downtown, visiting Old St. Patrick’s cathedral and then walking downtown, catching sight of the Williamsburg Bridge and the buildings that scrape the sky down in the financial district.

I wanted to see the South Street Seaport, which I knew had been badly damaged by Sandy.  I love that area, and it was sad to see so many small businesses boarded up.  I hope they’ll be back on their feet soon.

We continued to walk along the river by the seaport down to catch the ferry over to Brooklyn.

When we reached Brooklyn, we walked along the parks which had been completely submerged only a week earlier.  For instance, here is a photo of the carousel that sits at the edge of the water on the Brooklyn side.  It’s one of the higher points along the parks.

And here is a photo of that carousel on the night of the storm.

But, the water had all receded and if we didn’t know it, we wouldn’t have been able to tell Hurricane Sandy had even come through the Brooklyn Bridge Parks.

We made our final stop at Front Street Pizza to get some lunch.  The food was amazing and cheap, and I uttered the phrase, “Excuse me, but y’all are hot and I’m a tourist, so smile for the camera.”  Good sports, these ones.

Once we left Brooklyn, it was back to Queens and then on to the airport for the trip back home.  I’d say we had a fantastic time!

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Nov
27
2012

We Are Laughing, Breaking Up Just Like the Waves

Somehow, I’ve fallen behind on blogging my adventures. I used to write a blog a day, and the photo recaps of my trips came here and there in a sea of other material. Now, I seem to only post when I’m recapping a recent trip, and here I am six months behind on that. So, I’m going to catch up with an abbreviated recap of my summer adventures.

Holden Beach, NC – June 20-23, 2012

I don’t go on beach vacations, much to the chagrin of my friends who make week-long visits to the sand and surf an annual tradition. I usually decline invitations for these trips for a few reasons. For one, I rarely take off work five days in a row, because that just creates more stress in the long run and burns a lot of vacation time at once, and I like to stretch my days into as many little adventures as possible. Additionally, I can sit on the beach for one day, but after that, I’m bored and ready to move on to something else. I guess, for some people, everyday life is a frenzy of over-scheduling and endless obligations, and the one week per year spent sitting under a beach umbrella is the only escape, whereas I make room for relaxation at home, and go on vacation for adventure.

Even so, I surprised even myself and said yes to a beach trip this year. I drove down just for the end of the week to join Jessica and her family at Holden Beach. To mitigate my itch to “do something,” after spending one day lounging on the beach, reading, we took a day trip to Wilmington to shake things up before returning to the beach the following day. I also seized the opportunity to meet my Myrtle Beach-dwelling friend Terri for dinner, so we met in the middle for some Calabash seafood.

I didn’t take very many pictures, but Holden Beach was nice:

There was also a lovely sunset view from the back porch of the beach house:

In Wilmington, we beat the heat by ducking into Blue Post Billiards in the middle of the afternoon and lit up the jukebox and the pool table:

We headed out as the sun came up Saturday morning, so there was a lovely view on the way out of town:

Since I was driving on my own and had the whole day, I stopped in Wilmington again for breakfast and the farmer’s market downtown.

I broke up the drive and made the most of my time by also stopping in Durham to have lunch with my friend Christy at The Cheesecake Factory, and then in Graham to visit Purple Penguin and see my friends Jeremy and Tiffany. The drive home was six hours, but by making it a twelve-hour trip, it felt like I’d hardly driven at all!

Boston – August 3 – 6, 2012

I had a great trip to Boston in July 2007, and had been thinking of returning ever since. My friend Karen lives there, and while technology keeps us connected day-to-day, five years is a long time to go without seeing someone’s face! I’d said a few times that I needed to come visit, and that kind of thing can get pretty easily stalled at “someday,” so it was great when the stars aligned so nicely this year. One of my favorite artists, Josh Ritter, released some tour dates that included a weekend date in Boston, so I asked Karen if she’d like to go. She said yes, and within a matter of hours, I had tickets purchased and a flight booked.

Josh Ritter ended up adding a show to his schedule for the night before my flight to Boston. I decided it was worth only getting 3 hours of sleep to get a double dose of Josh Ritter, so I saw him in Charlottesville on my way to Richmond to stay with family before my early, early, early morning flight.

Karen picked me up at the airport Friday morning, and we were soon joined by our mutual friend, Ruff (yes, a nickname), for a day of lively chatter and historical touring:

Karen and I continued our touring in another area of Boston the next day, marveling at the architecture, which for me, always includes at least one church!

We kept strolling along through the park (with swan boats!), by the Capitol, and on to Quincy Market and the shorefront:

Saturday night was our concert, and the venue was beautifully situated right on the water, so we had great tunes with a lovely view and a nice breeze.

Josh Ritter was co-headlining with Brandi Carlile for that show, so we got two full, fantastic sets. I was familiar with Brandi Carlile before, and had even seen her perform on a previous occasion, but she was so brilliant at this show that she won me over completely and found a new fan in Karen, too.

One of the most famous places in Boston (and in baseball) is Fenway Park, and I’ve always wanted to see it, if only for the history. Karen did me one better than that, though, and got us tickets to a game on Sunday afternoon (tip of the hat to her hubby, Charlie, who secured great seats for us)!

I don’t follow pro baseball closely by any means, but sit me in front of any kind of sporting event and I get invested quickly. It was so cool to be sitting in the stands at Fenway Park on a game day, so I was plenty excited by the experience.

The Red Sox played the Minnesota Twins, and though they hadn’t had the best season, they extended me the courtesy of winning since I’d come so far to see them.

I also ate a Fenway Frank (best hot dog of my entire life), drank lemonade from a souvenir cup, and sang Sweet Caroline with the Boston faithful.

Right down to hopping back on the T amidst mobs of Red Sox fans, it was a gloriously authentic Boston experience and I loved every second of it.

Alas, I had to go home on Monday, but I was booked on a late flight, so we still had time to enjoy the day. So, we got our beach gear together and rode up to Crane Beach for the day. The weather was absolutely perfect. I had never been to a beach in the northeast before, so I enjoyed wiggling my toes in the sand and dipping my feet into the waters in a new territory.

Karen had warned me that we’d have to move our chairs to another spot as the tide came in, and said it would sneak up behind us. She moved her chair in advance and went to pick up some lunch, and by the time she came back, there I was, sitting in a chair on a little island in the middle of the water. I picked up my things and waded through the water behind me to dry land.

I got a kick out of watching these two kids who stayed on “the island” until the last bit of sand was covered, at which point they screamed and laughed and ran through the water back to the beach.

It was a wonderful trip. I certainly won’t let five years pass by before I go again. And since one of the most important “attractions” I wanted to visit in Boston was Karen, the trip had a perfect balance of adventure and relaxing as we chattered away.

Wilmington – September 21 – 23rd

Florence and the Machine had been at the top of my “shows I need to see” list since I heard the album, Lungs. I never got a chance to go to a show on that tour, and had all but given up on the Ceremonials tour, too. The closest show was in Raleigh, and by the time I knew I could go, all but the crappy seats were sold out, so I was disappointed, but I figured it wasn’t meant to be. About the time I had given up entirely, my friend Jessa called to ask me if I was interested in going, because she wanted to go, too, and we could make a weekend of it. I said that if we did, we’d have to resort to Stubhub for tickets. She was game for that, and she’d told me a few times that she wanted to go with me to Wilmington sometime. It seemed like a pretty good two-for-one special to me, so we bought concert tickets and booked hotel rooms.

She met me at work that Friday and I left a little early so we could get down to Raleigh in time for the show. Kelli was also at the show, so I got to visit with her briefly, and I found out on the day of the show that Ryan and Julie were driving down as well, so I got to see them in Raleigh when I hardly ever get to see them at home. The outdoor venue was lovely.

The concert was great. Jessa and I had a great time singing and dancing along. I also had a concert-long romance with the adorable (and presumably gay) man who sat in the seat next to me. Sadly, we lost each other in the rush to the stage at the end of the show, and I forgot to check “Missed Connections” on Craigslist for his declaration of love.

Jessa and I had booked a room just outside of Raleigh for the night, so we didn’t have too far to drive before we could get some sleep. Then, we just got up and headed for Wilmington early Saturday morning.

Our hotel had a continental breakfast, so we’d had a little something to tide us over until we made it to Wilmington (and therefore, The Dixie Grill), but we made it to Wilmington before our appetites did, so we detoured and made Airlie Gardens our first stop.

We were able to check in as soon as we got to the hotel, so we left our bags and went to a late breakfast at Dixie Grill (where else?) before spending the afternoon walking around downtown Wilmington.

Dogs are plentiful in Wilmington, and I couldn’t resist stopping to find out about these two Bernese Mountain Dog cousins:

We ducked into Blue Post Billiards and racked up high scores on the skee ball (aka “Beer Ball”) game inside. I emerged victorious at that, but Jessa showed this game who was boss:

We (of course) had dinner at Front Street Brewery, which was amazing as always, and then took in the sunset from the Riverwalk.

We had booked an evening cruise down the river, and when we arrived to find the neon lights shining, we nicknamed it “the party boat.”

After we docked back into downtown, Jessa was ready for bed, so she went back to the hotel, and I went up the The Calico Room to see my friend Ali, who recently moved to Wilmington. I hung out there for a while, and got the musician who was playing there that night to sing a Ryan Adams cover for me, and then I made my way back to the hotel as well.

Sunday morning, we got up at dark-thirty to drive out to Fort Fisher for sunrise. I hate getting up early, but I’ve done it quite a few times to watch the sunrise from my favorite beach. Once again, it did not disappoint. It was the most beautiful sunrise I’ve ever seen, and the water was still warm enough to play in.

We returned to Dixie Grill for breakfast before going back to pack up the room and check out. We made our last stop at the USS North Carolina battleship and did some touring around before hitting the road for home.

Will I ever get tired of Wilmington? It doesn’t seem likely.

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Jun
04
2012

Protected: Livin’ Just Enough for the City

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Apr
27
2012

Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone

I’ve got a lot of places on my travel wish list.  Many are overseas, but within the U.S., Seattle has been at the top of my uncharted territory list for many years, just waiting for the perfect reason to start planning the trip.  Last year, when my friend (and favorite musician) Levi Weaver did a tour of almost-only house shows, he raved to me about his experience there.  So, I told him (and myself) that the next time he played Seattle, I’d be there.

 

Back in December, I met a guy named Chris at my friends Jimmy and Emily Graham’s Christmas party, and remembered that he had moved from Lynchburg to Seattle within the last few years.  I got in touch with him via Facebook to get some information on the best areas to stay, what to see, and how to get around.

 

He was incredibly helpful, and in talking to Jimmy and Emily about my plans, a better plan was born:  we’d all go to Seattle together to see Levi play and visit Chris.  Chris arranged for us to stay in his building and also made plans to fly his girlfriend, Holly, out to join in the fun as well.

 

With everything planned and just a few days to go, we got the sad news that Jimmy’s ailing grandfather had passed away.  After weighing the options carefully, Jimmy decided to go home to be with his family for the funeral, but that Emily should go on to Seattle as originally planned.  (The fact that Emily would have stayed with him gladly, and I would have understood completely, and yet he made the choice that was best for everyone ELSE speaks volumes about his character.  We’re lucky to have him.)

 

So, Jimmy drove Emily and I to the airport bright and early (so, so early) Wednesday morning to begin our long trek to the northwest.  The time difference is generous when traveling west, so even with nearly 8 hours of travel, we still landed in Seattle just after 10:00am.  Chris picked us up and got us settled in, and then he went back to work for the day, and Emily and I hopped a bus for downtown.

 

 

First, we went in search of Bill Speidel’s Underground Tour.  We’d heard the tours often booked up, so we needed to go buy our tickets first to see what hour we could get a spot on the tour.  We walked up to the ticket counter at 12:58pm.  We got two slots on the 1:00pm tour.

 

The tour guides participants through the underground passages that once were the old downtown Seattle, telling stories that the pioneers glossed over in the pages of Seattle history.

 

 

Before taking the tour, Emily and I had admired these skylights from the other side:

 

 

Next up was Smith Tower, and our armbands from the Underground Tour got us a discount to go up to the top.  But first, we stopped to eat the best chocolate chip cookies in the history of the world (or at least of my world, so far).

 

 

Smith Tower is to the Space Needle what Rockefeller Center is to the Empire State Building – a cheaper, less crowded place to go see a nice view of the city.  I find great joy in going as high up as possible and admiring what’s below, so it was a must-see for me.

 

Here’s Smith Tower from the ground:

 

 

And the ceiling of the “Chinese Room” at Observation Deck Level:

 

 

And the view:

 

 

You can see the Space Needle behind Emily here:

 

 

After leaving Smith Tower, we crossed to the other end of Pioneer Square in search of Waterfall Garden Park.  We passed some neat graffiti on our way…

 

 

…and could still see Smith Tower behind us.

 

 

We stood looking around, trying to figure out where a waterfall might be in this very unlikely terrain.  Then I spotted this lettering on a building ahead and heard the sound of rushing water.

 

 

We rounded the corner and walked into a serene landscape, hidden right in the midst of the everyday hustle and bustle.

 

 

We stopped in at a “dry soda” tasting while we waited for the next bus to take us back to Chris’ place.  Emily tasted all of the flavors, which included lavender, rhubarb, cucumber and vanilla among more expected flavors like lime and orange.  Kinda weird to me, but I’m a Diet Coke girl.

 

We were happy to once again make use of the free 99 bus across town.  It dropped off right across the street from Chris’ apartment, where I took this picture.

 

 

And this one is from Chris’ balcony:

 

 

For dinner, we drove out to Alki Beach for some seafood before sunset.  We parked along the strip and walked to Duke’s Chowder House, where we all chose variations on their fresh Alaskan halibut.  Good food, and right on the water.

 

 

I even saw a familiar face as we made our way down the beach.

 

 

The sun started to drop:

 

 

And then I pulled a Beverly Stanley and said, “So, you know when we were driving here, and there was that spot where we could see the skyline?  Can you take me back there?”  Chris is a good sport, so he did, and we hung out there until the sky went dark.  We even saw some otters playing.  (I did not get any good pictures of them, because I was too busy saying, “Oh, otters!”)

 

 

When we got back, Chris was video-chatting with Holly, and Emily was face-timing with Jimmy, and so this happened as the next logical step:  a video-facetime-chat with Holly and Jimmy:

 

 

The roof was calling my name, so I went out a took a few more pictures of the city lights.

 

 

Despite traveling to Seattle at the end of the rainy season with a forecast of rain for all 5 days, we only had one rainy day, and that was Thursday, when we drove down to Portland, Oregon to visit Emily’s childhood best friend, Nancy.

 

Chris very kindly let me drive his sports car for the day, so Emily took this picture for me.  If you can’t tell from the rain, the sign says “Entering Oregon.”

 

 

Due to the dreary weather, we had to find some indoor activities in Portland.  We started with lunch at a cute café that served a fabulous veggie burger.  I got really excited about ordering a slice of cheesecake there, too, until I found out it was actually tofu-cake.  That’s just not right, y’all.  The waiter said it was a “healthy alternative.”  I said, “where I come from, dessert is not supposed to be healthy.”  Portland is the place to be if you have a dietary restriction.  I’m not a fan of the word “diet” or “restriction,” so I just ate the regular stuff.

 

After lunch, we went to Powell’s City of Books – it fills an entire city block and is the largest new and used bookstore in the world.  I had to bear in mind that anything I bought had to go home with me in a carry-on, but I did go ahead and purchase book 17 of the Stephanie Plum series at a great price.  Emily decided to hop on that train, so she got book one!

 

 

We also stopped at another famous Portland location – VooDoo Donuts.  I’m not a big fan of donuts, so I got dessert at a cute little cupcake shop.  They had minis, so I tried two flavors – both were delicious.

 

 

As we drove around, I snapped some more pictures from the backseat, including this old Portland sign:

 

 

I only asked for a pull-over one time, and Nancy found us a great spot to look out over the rainy city.

 

 

And here we are, with awesome been-in-the-rain-all-day hair!

 

 

Emily and I had planned to have dinner at Galeotti’s Restaurant in Battle Ground, WA on our way back to Seattle that evening.  It was only about 20 minutes from Portland, and we knew we needed to time our drive to get back either before Chris left for the airport to pick up Holly, or after he’d be back, so we could get into the garage.  Time was really tight for us to get back before, so it seemed best to put dinner off for a little bit and spend that extra time visiting with Nancy and her husband, Jason.

 

It was approaching 8:30 when I thought I should call the restaurant and make a reservation if one was needed.  But surprise!  What I found out was that they were closing at 9 instead of at 10 as we had thought.  They told us to come on in, so we rushed out the door and headed across the state line.  It seemed like the drive was taking forever, and I was in a panic thinking of being those awful customers that come in at 10 minutes before closing.  But, this was our one chance to go, so on we went.

 

When we arrived at Galeotti’s, there were a few parties still there, but they were clearly finishing up.  Even so, we got a warm greeting from the hostess who seemed absolutely overjoyed that we were there.  She seated us and took our drink order and told us that Michael was tending the bar if we wanted a cocktail.  I said that Emily was pregnant and I was driving, so we wouldn’t be drinking, but joked that Michael (former member of Enation) could come over and sing for us.  She then volunteered that Luke was working in the kitchen and she’d let them both know to come over and say  hello.  Moments later, they were at our table, all smiles and with an Enation CD for each of us.  They signed the CDs and Michael said he could make any cocktail on that list sans alcohol if we wanted.  I asked him for a recommendation, and he made us his favorite.  It was delicious!

 

 

It was already well past 9pm, but no one was rushing us.  Our waitress came over and gave us the specials, and then left us time to decide.  It’s a family restaurant, and they were making us feel like we were guests in their home.

 

 

I ordered the pork chop, which had the most amazing BBQ sauce I’ve ever tasted, and it was the biggest pork chop I’d ever seen.  Everything was perfect.

 

 

We were both full before we finished our meals, so we took dessert to go and got the check.  They had comp’d our drinks, and even though it was past 10:00, they seemed sorry to see us go.  It was a great experience and I’m so glad we got to go.

 

We had gorgeous views driving into Seattle at 1am, but Emily was asleep and I was driving, so there are no pictures of that, except for the ones in my head.  When we got back, Holly had already fallen asleep from her long day of traveling, so we all made our way to bed pretty quickly.

 

Friday morning, I went back up to the roof and took (what I didn’t know then would be) the last dreary photograph of our trip.

 

 

We set out for The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival near Mount Vernon, WA.  This was Chris’ idea, as he thought Holly would like it, and he asked if we had time in the itinerary to go.  (Gotta love the respect for the itinerary.)  We did indeed have time, and it sounded like fun, so off we went to tulip town.  It was quite impressive.

 

 

I could not even believe these existed:

 

 

And look!  Hyacinth!  At the tulip festival!  My favorite!

 

 

Yes, in the background of this picture, those are fields filled with tulips:

 

 

See?

 

 

Our next destination was Snoqualmie Falls, which was wonderful!

 

 

Chris braved the bottom-most overlook with me to take this picture.  The force of the waterfall meant we were both getting VERY wet.  I was delighted, though.

 

 

Back in Seattle, we had a little time before Levi’s show, so we spent it looking around the famous Pike Place Market, watching the fish-throwing, smelling the flowers, tasting the fruit…

 

 

 

…listening to old men play street music on a very inappropriate street instrument…

 

 

…realizing that there’s really such a thing as a “Gum Wall”  (gross)…

 

 

…observing Seattle’s unhealthy coffee obsession…

 

 

…taking pictures off the dock…

 

 

…and sampling cheese curds at Beecher’s Handmade Cheese before picking up dinner.

 

 

We headed off to Levi’s show with an address and looking for a yellow door.  When we found the place, we had our names checked against the list at the door, and then we walked up three flights of stairs in a building that looked in essence like any downtown office building might.  When we reached the top, we found ourselves standing on what appeared to be the back patio of a cute cottage-looking structure atop the building, which was the destination for our show.

 

Kristen and Carrie Watt, who run Seattle Living Room Shows, greeted us on the patio like old friends reuniting after an absence that had gone far too long.  And that theme carried inside, where Levi was greeting guests and entertaining us with travel stories that could only ever happen to him.

 

An hour before the show, the room was already filling up.  Of course, I had no idea at the time of how full it would be at showtime!  The space was gorgeous – exactly the kind of place I’d love to live in.

 

 

Chris, Holly, and Emily snagged the couch for the four of us while I slipped back outside to talk to the Watt sisters some more, and watch a few more happy arrivals.

 

 

I didn’t take very many pictures in the course of the evening, opting instead to just sit back and take it all in.  There was a great energy in the room, created by a group of people who shared a mutual love of great music and were really excited to have found it.

 

I did snap a photo of Carson Henley, opening up the evening with a very svelte voice:

 

 

And of course, one of Levi wow-ing the crowd:

 

 

I couldn’t begin to capture the magic of that room with simple words, but I’ll opt instead to name my two favorite parts of Levi’s set.  One:  he played Good Medicine, which will always hold a special place in my heart, as it’s the first of his songs I ever heard, and when those first notes begin, I still feel a little bit of that great awakening that took place in my soul when I heard them for the very first time.  Additionally, the audience was so entranced, hanging on his every word, that their reactions to understanding the weight of the lyrics was actually audible – involuntary vocalizations of awe.  Two:  He played a brand new song!  (I really love it when he does that.)  He’d just finished writing it that day, and once again, he proved that he just keeps getting better.  I used the video feature on my camera to record the song (though the picture is of the ceiling), and I have listened to it about 100 times since.  I even transcribed it, so I could read through it.  Yep.  It’s that good.  I cried when he played it, and then I looked at Emily, and she was weeping, too.  Listening to the playback so many times, I definitely heard sniffles that didn’t belong to either of us.  Beautiful song.

 

Bonus:  I got my vinyl copy of “The Letters of Dr. Kurt Gödel,” and a physical copy of “I Am Only a Tiny Noise.”  Once I get a record player, his album will be the first one I spin.

 

Saturday morning, we woke up to a gorgeous day – perfect for our plan to drive way up the mountain to Hurricane Ridge.

 

Here is a picture of Emily and Baby Graham sporting their Levi Weaver attire before we set out for the day’s adventure:

 

 

And of the Space Needle, which had gotten a face lift since our arrival – painted “gold” (the locals were grumbling because it was orange) for the 50th anniversary.

 

 

We had to take the ferry to the other side of Puget Sound to get where we needed to go, so after driving the car on board, we were free to go up to the top deck and look around.  The views were lovely and the wind was strong.  One of the most impressive sights is of Mount Rainier, which is over 50 miles outside of Seattle, but is so massive that it looks like part of the Seattle Skyline.  I love how ghostly it looks.

 

 

The open water:

 

 

The Olympic Mountains, where we were headed:

 

 

The drive up the mountain was a big part of the experience.  I was grateful Chris was driving, so I could look around the whole time, and take pictures out of the sunroof.  We also stopped at the first overlook on the way up, just as a preview:

 

 

Those orange sticks you see are there so that the road crews know where the edge of the road is when they’re pushing snow.  We estimated them to be about 15 feet tall.

 

 

We made it to the top!  This looks like one of those “king of the world” type photos:

 

 

And then he fell through the soft snow:

 

 

People were skiing!

 

 

Avalanche?  Where?  Oh.  OK.  I’ll stay back.

 

 

The group obliged my need for more pictures by letting me stop at some more of the overlooks as we drove back down the mountain.

 

 

I thought it was cool to see the layers of snow built up along the road:

 

 

And then we were back on ferry, Seattle-bound.  Mount Rainier was more visible in the afternoon light.

 

 

Also, our ferry wasn’t as full as it had been in the morning.

 

 

We ventured out on foot for dinner at Serious Pie.  While we waited, Emily made our mark on the pig outside the door.  She inscribed “_____ was here” for all four of us, using the nicknames we’d given each other that day:  Preggers, Grandma Dori, Outlook, and Hiccup.  I’ll let you figure out who is who.  Hint:  Emily is pregnant.

 

Sunday was our last day there, but since our flight didn’t leave until 10:00pm, it was as if we had another full day.  We started it with breakfast at Voula’s Offshore Café, where the portions were so big that I think I had food for three left on my plate when I was positively stuffed – and I don’t go lightly on the breakfast food!

 

With our bellies full, we set out toward Gas Works Park, as it was less than 2 miles from the café.  The park was in Chris’ original list of suggestions of places to see, but with so many choices, it didn’t rank high on my list.  I’m extremely grateful that with the enticement of a tasty diner breakfast, Chris said that would pair well with a trip to this park.  It was beautiful – a perfect place to spend a sunny Sunday in Seattle.

 

 

We walked around for quite a while, marveling at kids flying kites, and adults sun-tanning, biking, and skateboarding around the park.  We watched several sea planes taking off from downtown Seattle and then flying overhead, to the chorus of excited toddlers bellowing “AIRPLAAAANE!”

 

When we left the park, we had to do a bit of searching to find The Fremont Troll.  Once we found the right place, he was easy to spot, clutching a VW Beetle in one hand and guarding the bridge with one hubcap eye.  There was a steady stream of people coming to climb on him and take funny pictures.  It took a while to get a clear shot of him.

 

 

Some of the other folks checking out the troll were delighted by Emily’s shirt.  So, this is to commemorate the moment.

 

 

Unfortunately, the troll put a hex on Chris’ car, because when we got back in, it wouldn’t start.  We could rule a few problems out, but that wasn’t getting us very far.  We got Chris on the phone for troubleshooting and ruled out a few more, and then it finally started, but was shaky and running hot.  We were going to try to get it back, but even with the heat on, the temperature was rising, and after sputtering up a hill, I saw a spot to pull it over and seized the opportunity.  Chris came to rescue us in his Jeep, and Emily’s AAA came to rescue the G.  I go from zero to meltdown pretty fast when car trouble is involved, so it was extremely helpful that Chris was so cool-headed.  He found the problem (the fans had stopped running) and said he had long ago resolved that whenever you have a car, you’re going to have a problem at some point.  I’d have liked that to not be when I was driving it, but all things considered, it worked out pretty well.  It didn’t break down on top of the mountain the day before, Chris was able to come get us in his secondary vehicle, no one got stranded alone, Emily’s AAA covered all but maybe $3 of the towing bill, and Chris has an extended warranty.

 

After the car was on its way to the shop, Chris dropped Emily and I off at the Space Needle so we could keep on track with our tourist-ing.  We didn’t have to wait long to get to the top, and of course, the views were great:

 

 

The area around the Space Needle (Seattle Center) was pretty neat as well.  We walked around and took some photos before utilizing the monorail to get to Westlake Park.

 

 

Westlake Park was interesting to Emily and I for different reasons.  For Emily, there was Sephora.  For me, there was a fountain and painted blue trees.

 

 

And a very large game of chess:

 

 

Walking to catch the bus for dinner, we passed by some snake handlers.  Well, I passed by the snake handlers.  Emily said, “Ooooh, snakes!  Can I hold one?”  That was a somewhat disturbing development in our friendship, but I stood back and snapped some pictures at a safe distance.

 

 

No snakes in the other direction:

 

 

We re-joined Chris and Holly for dinner at Local 360, which as the name implies, serves dishes created with ingredients that could be found fresh within 360 miles of Seattle.  Their menu was a little on the weird side for me, but I appreciated the idea of it, and the attractive waiter who kept bringing me ice and answering all my questions.

 

We got a candle on our table between dinner and dessert.  Don’t Chris and Holly look romantic?

 

 

Walking back to the apartment, I saw this sign and had to stop and take a picture.  Seattle folks get really excited about the sun shining.  I hardly saw it do anything BUT shine, but I hear it’s rare.

 

 

Alas, we’d reached the end of our visit, and we had to finish packing up so we could get to the airport.  I was pretty much packed, so I had time for one last trip up to the roof to catch the sun going down.

 

 

Right about the time the sun disappeared, my camera declared, “Memory Card Full,” and I knew it was time to go home.

Posted in Music, Travel | 1 Comment »

Dec
20
2011

The Clouds Inside Me Parted; All That Light Came Shining Through

I try not to set myself up for disappointment by getting too excited about things.  The idealist in me tends toward great expectations, and the realist in me likes to say “I told you so” when something goes wrong.  Even so, I consider it some measure of personal triumph that my pendulum still swings faithfully back to the hopeful side of life.  So, I filled my carry-on bag with years of hopeful expectations and hauled them all up to New York City to soak up the Big Apple’s much ballyhooed holiday cheer.  And true to form, my city did not let me down.

A lot of my friends seem to be lacking in the Christmas spirit this year, but I’m prepared to share.  It’s not the same as being there, but it’s still better than a cheap souvenir, right?

I saw at least five Christmas trees before I even got out of the airport.  They provided the encouragement I needed for my long trip into the city.  I was trying to be as frugal as possible, so instead of grabbing a $50 cab into Manhattan, I took the AirTrain from the airport to the subway station ($5), and rode the subway from the far reaches of Queens, transferred trains in downtown Manhattan, on to the Upper East Side ($2.25).  By the time I reached my friends’ place, I was feeling both triumphant and exhausted.  I was blessed with the most gracious hosts, so I was promptly furnished with a glass of ice water and pointed to the couch to relax and look out at the view, which included Ralph Lauren’s apartment, the Guggenheim, and the Empire State Building.

After the photo at the airport, I put my camera away and forgot to take it back out again for the rest of the day.  So, there are no other photos for Saturday, but basically, I went down to the theater district, lingered for a solid 15 minutes outside the stage door at Alan Rickman’s show, just on the off chance that he would appear (he did not – I would have remembered to take a picture of that!), and then I walked down the block to another stage door to wait for my friend Michael to emerge after his matinee performance.  We simply walked and talked until he had to return to the theater, but made a stop by Playwrights’ Horizons to see our mutual friend Trent, who was also between performances.  I returned to Playwrights’ Horizons Saturday night to see Trent take the stage in a fascinating quasi-period piece called Maple & Vine.

Sunday morning brought another reunion as I trekked out to Brooklyn to have breakfast with another friend.  We dined at an Israeli diner in Park Slope and the food was wonderful – outshined only by the company.  I also had the fun of being stopped by a tourist on the street, desperate for directions, and I obliged him.  It was fun to be presumed a New Yorker and to have the knowledge to pull it off.

I finally remembered to use my camera again when I arrived at the beautiful Lincoln Center, where I saw the New York Ballet perform The Nutcracker.  The outside of the theater was decorated for the occasion…

…and the inside of the theater was beautiful.  I managed to snap a few pictures before I heard the ushers telling other people that there were to be no pictures:

I had never seen The Nutcracker before, though I was (of course) familiar with the music that brings it to life.  I had also never attended a ballet before, and while I have a far-reaching appreciation for the arts in many forms, I thought ballet may push the envelope a bit.  Still, I was going for the whole Christmas experience in New York, so there seemed no better time to give it a try.  Plus, it is hard to go wrong with Tchaikovsky.

I did enjoy the show, and though I will probably not rush back to the ballet anytime soon, I was happy to have had this experience.  I loved it when the tree “grew” out of the stage and the visuals by and large were fantastic.  One of my favorite moments is when it began to snow and the dancers twirled about, making patterns on the stage floor.  I couldn’t photograph it, of course, but Google came through with this photo for your viewing pleasure:

After the show, I walked out on the second-floor balcony to enjoy the view around Lincoln Center.  I could see that there was something going on down below, but wasn’t sure exactly what.

When I walked down to street level, I discovered what the fuss was about.  The red carpet had been prepared and the world premiere of War Horse was about to begin.  Perhaps I should have stuck around to get a glimpse of Steven Spielberg, but I wasn’t interested enough to delay my day.

The weather was perfect, so I walked up to the American Museum of Natural History, taking in some uncharted territory in the Upper West Side as I moved along.  I had read that the Origami Christmas Tree at AMNH was not to be missed, and since I was trying to see all of NYC’s most celebrated trees, I decided to stop in for a look.

As the name implies, all the decorations on the tree were origami, and they were all shaped like animals (such as you see throughout the halls of the museum), except for some glittering stars that stuck out from the tree (perhaps as an ode to the Planetarium which is also on site).  I thought the tree was fantastic:

When I left the museum, I hopped a bus that was crossing the park (the subway doesn’t run under Central Park, of course), and made my way back to my friends’ place.  I wanted to make the trip back out to Brooklyn to see the audacious Christmas lights in the Dyker Heights neighborhood.  My friend Lana had never seen those, either, so she agreed to join me for the journey and added a stop at a wonderful Mediterranean restaurant she had heard of in Bay Ridge.  We ordered up 5 different dishes to try:  Falafel, Stuffed Grape Leaves, Brussel Sprouts in Yogurt Pomegranate Sauce, Succotash, and of course I can’t remember the name of the dish that was my favorite, but it was a pita with incredibly seasoned jerk chicken and slivers of almonds on top.  Oh wow.  Behold the spread of food:

After dinner, we had a bit of a hike over to Dyker Heights, but I was amused along the way as we passed some houses where the inhabitants of Bay Ridge were clearly trying to spur their neighborhood into action.  I appreciated their spirit:

Once we reached Dyker Heights, it was a feast of tacky and overbearing Christmas lights and I loved every bit of it.  A few houses tried to class things up, but my favorites were the ones that assaulted our eyes with colored lights covering EVERYTHING.  Clearly, this decorating extravaganza was a labor of love for many of the folks in the neighborhood, whereas others, not wanting to be outdone, had hired professional decorators to handle their lawns, as evidenced by company signs staked in the yards.  A few houses had even hired folks to dress up and hang around outside the houses, taking photos with children.  We encountered one Elmo and one Rudolph.  I sensed that they were part entertainment, part security, and part fundraisers for the charity of that house’s choosing.  Spectators had poured onto the sidewalks or were driving along the streets at a snail’s pace.  No one seemed to be in any hurry, though.  The fun of it all was infectious!

A Christmas display that features Eeyore?  YES, PLEASE!

This is the proper way to hang lights on a tree, y’all:

After all of that walking, and the long subway ride back, Lana and I were both exhausted.  However, I knew that Monday I had planned to walk down 5th Avenue, peering in shop windows, and that my route would take me past Rockefeller Center.  I was determined that my first viewing of the Rockefeller Christmas Tree should be at night, so I bid Lana adieu and detoured to another train and got off at Rockefeller Center.  I even walked a few blocks out of the way so that I could circle back around and get my first glance of the tree from the 5th Avenue side, which affords the most majestic view.

I stayed there, staring at the tree from all angles for nearly an hour.  I didn’t want to part with it, but I finally convinced myself to meander to the bus stop and come back to visit the tree the next day.

Monday morning, I set out for David Letterman’s studio, hoping to get tickets to that day’s taping.  I filled out the paperwork, spoke to the producer, and met some fellow Ryan Adams fans, but I didn’t rate a seat in the studio audience.  I knew the odds were not particularly in my favor, so I was content with having tried and went on my way.

I had mapped out the must-see shop windows along 5th Avenue, which included Bloomingdale’s, Barneys, Bergdorf-Goodman, Saks, Lord & Taylor, and Macy’s (which is actually at Broadway & 34th, in case you’re looking).  But first, I stopped by FAO Schwarz to gander at all the toys and see the big piano:

And then I dropped by The Plaza Hotel…

…to see their very pink Eloise-inspired Christmas tree:

Each of the major stores had multiple windows for viewing, and portions of the sidewalk along 5th Avenue were adorned with velvet ropes to separate the window-gazers from the passers-by.  Of course, taking pictures of windows as people and cars pass by doesn’t create ideal photography conditions, but if you’ll forgive the glare, I’ll share some of my favorite windows with you.

Bergdorf Goodman’s windows were decorated in a “Carnival of the Animals” theme, done in taxidermy style.  You can see professional photos of some of the windows on the Bergdorf Goodman blog here, but these are a few of the pictures I took:

And whaddaya know?  I just happened to be walking past Rockefeller Center again…

I took a guess that the beautiful New York Public Library would have a nice Christmas tree inside, and they did…

After which, I rounded the building to walk through Bryant Park.  I’m sure their tree was a prettier sight at night, but it was neat to see the ice skaters on the rink and the vendors throughout the park selling their wares to Christmas shoppers looking for unique gifts.

Then I got distracted with photos of the skyline as I made my way over to Grand Central Station…

I had read that Grand Central Station was bringing back their kaleidoscope light show this year, but when I arrived and asked around, I learned that it had been canceled (probably budget cuts).  Luckily, Grand Central Station is pretty all on its own, so all was not lost.

Back to window-gazing, I had to take a picture of the Brooks Brothers display – mostly because I was entertaining the notion of going inside to look for my very own Peter Burke.  (I decided that walking around the store asking suit-shopping men whether they worked for the FBI was probably ill-advised, so I just kept moving.)

I don’t even remember what store this was, but I thought the porthole windows were snazzy:

En route to Macy’s, I walked down 34th past the Empire State Building.  I took this from across the street.  If you look carefully at the top of the building, you can see the very tip top peeking out above the larger portion of the building.

Macy’s had some fairly impressive steampunk-inspired windows with tie-in from the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  You can see some great shots of the windows here, or you can just be satisfied with this one of mine:

I actually decided to peek inside Macy’s, making it the first and only store I entered as I walked around.  And when I say “entered,” I mean that I walked through the revolving door, stepped out long enough to snap a photo, and then revolved my way right back out onto the street.  That is the extent of my shopping prowess.

The Macy’s entrance on the 34th Street side was decorated as well, and probably would have been better to view at night when you could see “Believe” lit up more prominently across the building.

While Saks gets bonus points for their Christmas projection show (more on that later), I have to declare Lord & Taylor the winner of best Christmas window displays.  They took drawings and stories from the imagination of children and brought them to life in their shop windows.  You can watch a video from the unveiling here.

Monday night, I decided to venture downtown to the financial district, as I’d read about the Chorus Tree at South Street Seaport.  I hadn’t had time to go downtown over the weekend when there is an actual choir singing at intervals in front of the tree, but I understood that the tree put on its own singing light show every hour throughout the evening.

The Seaport was also decked out with vendors in a row of Santa’s Workshop-inspired kiosks, and there are shops, restaurants, and museums all around the Seaport area.  But first, the tree!

I bought myself a bag of kettle corn because it smelled AMAZING, and took a seat and looked around waiting for whatever was going to happen at the stroke of 6:00.  When the music started and the lights started flickering, I alternated between staring in delight and trying to snap pictures of the different light formations.  They were moving too quickly for me, but you can get the idea:

Or, you can take a gander at the quick video I eventually thought to capture of a few seconds of the show…Oh, the gloriously tacky wonder of it all!

Having been delighted by the Chorus Tree, I crept toward the water to check out Pier 17, which was basically a multi-layer mall with a deck on each level that afforded lovely views of the Brooklyn Bridge (and at the end of that… Brooklyn).

I really enjoyed walking around while there were not a lot of people around and the air had a slight nip in it, but I’m sure this area is bustling in the summer months.  I’ve already made a mental note to return there on a future visit.

Before walking back to the subway, I decided I could use a snack, so I settled on a very healthy choice at Johnny Rockets:

On my way back uptown, I stopped off near NYU to go check out the tree in Washington Square Park.  When I arrived, however, it seemed that they hadn’t quite finished preparing it yet, since it was just a bare tree.  I imagine they had a lighting ceremony scheduled for later.  I was mildly disappointed, but I still took a seat on a nearby park bench and admired the beautiful Washington arch.

This was another area of NYC I had never explored before, so I decided to go back a different way via Union Square, so I could walk the streets a little bit.  It’s funny how the “college” part of town can have the same feel in most any city, but I enjoyed the people-watching along my way.

When I got to Union Square, I found a Winter Market in full force all around the subway entrance.  In fact, if I had gotten off at Union Square, I would have mistaken it for the North Pole.  The vendors there had some really cool-looking things for sale.  I may have even looked a bit closer at some of them, but the thought of trying to transport anything home kept me at bay.

I did really want that art display of the Brooklyn Bridge, though.  On sale, even!  Only $290!

I had stayed pretty busy thus far on my trip, and covered a lot of ground, so I was happy to retire back to the apartment at an early hour Monday night.  When I arrived, Colin made me the best turkey burger I have ever had.  It went very well with the fries I had eaten earlier.  In fact, my mouth is watering just thinking about it now.

Tuesday morning, I let myself take it very easy.  I was still awake before 8:00, but I continued to lay in bed with my feet propped up, listening to my iPod and eating the remnants of my kettle corn from the night before.  I didn’t have anywhere specific to be until 2:00pm, so I had time to dilly-dally.

The forecast called for light rain, so I borrowed an umbrella before I set out on my way, though the weather was perfect outside.  I wore a short-sleeved sweater over a tank top and didn’t even bother with a jacket.  I had taken note of a spa in the neighborhood, so that was my first stop for a chair massage to relax some of my muscles.  I was in and out in 15 minutes, but that woman worked wonders on my neck and shoulders.  She was unconvinced, though.  She handed me my things and said, “You come back again later.  You tight.”  I actually felt marvelous, so I continued on my way.

Another famed New York City Christmas Tree is located at The Met, so that was my next stop.  The photo Nazis were buzzing around that tree, but I took a photo as I entered the room and then I managed to get in one more of the bottom of the tree.

My 2:00 show was at Radio City Music Hall, and I still had plenty of time until then, but I went ahead and made my way down to that neighborhood.  Do you know what is just down the block from Radio City?  No?  You can’t guess?  Wellll….

I didn’t linger so long this time, opting instead to head below Rockefeller Center and find some lunch.  When I walked back up to street level and headed toward Radio City, I just happened to pass by Magnolia Bakery, so it seemed only right that I should stop in for dessert.  I splurged and got a few different treats to taste, and when I started to cross the street, some very light rain began to sprinkle down.  So, I pulled out my camera and took a picture of some fantastic decorations on the street, and then sat down on the edge of the fountain, opened my umbrella, and sat happily underneath it, eating the best cupcake I have ever had in my life.  Rarely have I felt so pleased with myself.

As 2:00 approached, I finished my cupcake and went inside to see the Radio City Rockettes’ Christmas Spectacular, a holiday tradition in New York since 1933.

In the lobby, they had a different kind of Christmas tree, suspended from the ceiling:

Photography was OK during the show, so I snapped a few shots along the way.  It was definitely a fun-filled, high-energy Christmas program.

They did a miniature version of The Nutcracker:

And here are the toy soldiers, falling down in a domino effect, which was quite impressive to watch:

They had a great segment about Christmas in New York, which, given the focus of my trip, delighted me greatly.

The next portion of the show was about a mother who was out searching for the big ticket item she thought her daughter wanted for Christmas.  Santa knew better, though (cue a cute number about how Santa can be everywhere at once), and took both the mother and daughter on a trip to the North Pole to teach them that the best gift of Christmas was the time they spent together.

The final segment of the show was the living nativity, which has also been part of the show since the very beginning.  The narrator read Luke 2 and took us on a journey with the wise men to the manger in Bethlehem, where the whole cast bowed down to sing “Glory to God in the Highest.”  It was beautifully done.  (I missed getting a good photo of the camels walking across the stage, because I didn’t realize at first that they were real!)

When I left Radio City, I had a few hours before I was supposed to meet Lana for dinner near Carnegie Hall, and the rain had picked up a bit since I had gone into the show.  The mist had upgraded to a drizzle, but it was fairly steady.  I contemplated heading back to the apartment, but then I decided that the rainy conditions would mean a less populated Times Square, and I thought it would be cool to get some pictures of the neon lights rising up against a dreary sky.

I think that is the most I have enjoyed being in Times Square for a long time.  I still had another hour to kill, so I decided to head back over to Rockefeller Center to catch the projection show on the Saks building (and of course, to stare at that tree some more).  Along my way, I took advantage of the weather for some more photos.

I saw down on a bench in Rockefeller Center and people-watched while the countdown clock ticked down.  The following pictures will give you an idea of what the projection show looked like (and you can just imagine that Christmas music is blaring):

Here are a few pictures of a replica of the Swarovski Star atop the Rockefeller Tree.  They sell smaller versions for normal people trees, and I hope to get one eventually.  First, the star to go on my tree, and then the angels with trumpets to stand in front of it in two lines.

Then, it was time for me to walk over to dinner, and I stopped a few times along the way for more pictures, of course.

At the restaurant, I saw a man wearing the signature Cardinals rose design on his t-shirt, so I looked at him and said, “Heyyy, Ryan Adams!” which made him stop and verify that I was going to the show.  While we were talking, another guy walked past and heard our conversation, and chimed in, “You guys going to the show, too?  I just saw Ryan Adams at the hotel and told him I was looking forward to the show, and he said, ‘Not as much as I am!’”  I was both amazed and jealous of his encounter, but mostly really excited that it was almost time for the show… at CARNEGIE HALL.

Here was the view in front of me:

And the view behind me:

Shortly, the view in front of me improved significantly, and the perfect acoustics of Carnegie Hall were put to great use:

Ryan moved between sitting with his guitar at center stage, sitting at his piano at stage left, and standing with his guitar at stage right.  The latter was closest to me, and conveniently where he spent the majority of the show.  Now for the part where I tell you everything that he played…

He started with an old/new rotation, playing Oh My Sweet Carolina, followed by Ashes & Fire, then back to If I Am a Stranger, and then Dirty Rain.  He played a good amount of the new album throughout the show, but indulged the fans with a wide range of songs from his earlier catalogue, too.  He played My Winding Wheel, then sat at the piano for My Blue Manhattan.  He returned to his guitar for Invisible Riverside, Everybody Knows, Firecracker, and then a ballad version of Let It Ride.  One of my favorite performances during the show came when he did Dear Chicago.  He continued through Chains of Love, Please Do Not Let Me Go, Lucky Now, Two, and Crossed Out Name.

Then, he blew my mind when he returned to the piano, and I considered what he might play, but he sat down and played New York, New York of all things, turning a fast-paced rock song into a quiet piano ballad.  I love that song anyway, and it was obviously very apropos.

When he stood up to cross back to the other side of the stage, someone high up in the balcony yelled, “THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL!”  So, Ryan, probably in part because I don’t think he enjoys being hollered at, pretended to misunderstand her as having said, “Howard is Beautiful.”  He said he didn’t know any Howards, but then he started to strum his guitar and made up an entire song – multiple verses, bridge, the whole nine yards – about Howard and his beauty.  It was hysterical, and the kind of moment that you can’t just get from any artist.

He got back on point with Do I Wait, and then delighted the audience by digging back in time to the Whiskeytown era, playing Jacksonville Skyline, Round and Round (Ratt cover), and 16 Days.

He did another improv incorporating many of the jokes and happenings from the evening into a song called Thank You for Coming to the Show.

He did the encore bit (a process he had joked about earlier in the show), but could only play one more song due to time constraints and contract issues with the theater.  I’d have sat listening to him all night, of course, but he had already played a lengthy and fantastic set, so I had no complaints.  Then, he began his last song, which to my sheer delight happened to be Blue Hotel.

I caught a bit of Blue Hotel on video, so you can appreciate the ambience of the moment, and get a vague idea of how beautifully his voice carried inside Carnegie Hall.

Wednesday morning, I hopped a bus to the subway to the AirTrain to the airport for a delayed flight, which left me little leeway time to drive home from Raleigh in a torrential downpour.  I got to my apartment at 6:10, ran in, unpacked my suitcase, went to the restroom, and at 6:15 I was back in the car headed to Charlottesville with Jessica and Melissa for The Civil Wars concert.  I had debated about going after an illness caused the date change, but I figured that since I was going to be exhausted the next day regardless, that I should not miss the concert.

As I waited for The Civil Wars to take the stage, I flipped through the photos on my camera and figured it was worth noting that The Jefferson Theater in Charlottesville is pretty snazzy, too, after taking pictures of the likes of Carnegie, Lincoln Center, and Radio City.

And, of course, The Civil Wars were great!

Merry Christmas, everyone!  I hope New York helped get you in the spirit!

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Oct
17
2011

Suddenly There is Music in the Sound of Your Name

I rarely go anywhere without an express purpose.  I’m not the type to book a week’s vacation at the beach just to go lay in the sand and read.  If I’m at the beach, it’s because a band is playing or a show is filming, and not just because I want to “relax.”

So, in the 15 or so times I’ve been to New York City since the first time in the Spring of 2003, I’ve had a reason for going.  After my last trip, there wasn’t another reason in sight, so a year and a half slipped by with no trip up north.  And I felt it acutely.  Seeing New York on television, I felt wistful.  Hearing a song about it, I felt longing.  And when a total stranger brought it up to me in the office one day, I caught my eyes watering.  Thus, when I bought a plane ticket to the Big Apple this time, it wasn’t because I already had a ticket to some event there.  It became a necessity, and I simply had to be there.

I made plans to share a hotel room with a group of girls – all but one of whom were complete strangers to me.  I also realized that since they all had their own agendas, I was going to be on my own for the majority of the trip.  I consider myself an independent person, but in the back of my mind, I wondered if I would get bored or lonely being on my own.  As it turned out, I had plenty of company, and even when I didn’t, the city itself feels like an old friend and is a delightful companion.

In addition to the other irregularities, I also went into this trip without a full itinerary, detailing my every move.  I had a list of places I wanted to go and things I wanted to do, but nothing was set in stone and I was on my own schedule.

Janice, the one roommate I did know prior to this trip, flew into New York early Thursday morning like me, and she had a free day.  She had told me she wanted to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge and eat pizza, so I proposed a trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, followed by a walk on the Promenade, lunch at Grimaldi’s, and a walk back over to Manhattan via the Brooklyn Bridge.


I loved this graffiti art we found along the way.

When we got back into Manhattan, we walked around City Hall and up to Federal Plaza, so I could be a nerd and sneak a peek at the FBI building.

We filled most of our day in Brooklyn, and before I knew it, it was time for me to get ready to go to my Broadway show.  Conveniently, I was seeing “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, and it was less than a block from our hotel.  In fact, we could see the marquee from our hotel window:

This Broadway revival is starring Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette…. AND the one and only Michael Park, who is extremely dear to me.  I met him through his work on As the World Turns, so while I had heard his voice on several Broadway soundtracks, it was impossible for him to do TV and theater at the same time, so this was my first time seeing him on Broadway.  When I found my seats – fourth row, center! – I felt like a kid at Christmas.  I excitedly perused the Playbill and smiled at each mention of Michael’s name.  I was so focused on seeing him that I hadn’t really taken the time to think about how I’d feel about seeing Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter, if you live under a rock) until he came shooting up a mere ten feet in front of me at the start of the show.  I was equal parts astonished, overwhelmed, and delighted.

The show itself was magnificent.  I highly recommend seeing it if you can – and preferably before year’s end, when the cast begins to change.  It’s a musical with high energy and lots of laughs.  I was completely smitten with it, and I could not clap and cheer enough at its conclusion.

The night I attended was special in that it was part of a charity night benefitting The Trevor Project, a suicide prevention group focused on the needs of the GLBT community, who are unfortunately at a higher risk of suicide due to bullying, rejection, and the other travails of youth.  The cast did a Q&A after the show and several items were auctioned off to benefit the project.  Daniel Radcliffe slipped back into his native British accent for this portion of the evening, which I found charming.

As the crowd stood for another round of applause, Michael spotted me from the stage and motioned for me to meet him at the stage door.  A kindly security guard helped me navigate around the raucous crowd at the barricades, and before I knew it, I was whisked away backstage.  Here is the view from the stage:

Michael continued the tour and showed me around the whole outfit.  So many moving parts and so much happening at once, and it has to go right the first time, because there is no “Take Two!”

I got back to the hotel still grinning from ear to ear.  Janice was already half asleep, and I was exhausted from very little sleep the night before, but I couldn’t manage to settle down for quite a while after such a fun night.

Friday morning, I got to sleep in a bit and had the morning to myself, so I went and had breakfast in the Renaissance Hotel.  I discovered it one year at breakfast with Bradley Cole, and while it’s a little more pricey, we’re talking about $5 difference for $10 better food.  Plus, the restaurant has windows on three sides, looking out into Times Square, and I find I can enjoy the Times Square experience a lot better while I’m looking at it from across the table that is holding my bacon and eggs.

While I was eating, I met some first-time NYC visitors who were from Australia.  They had come to New York as part of a larger tourist group, but one of the couples had already been travelling for six weeks time at that point.  They had wonderful accents and were equally delighted by mine, and I took turns leaning left and leaning right to give them travel tips for their time in the Big Apple.  After all, first-timers have a tendency to get stuck in Times Square (like bugs in a bug-zapper, I read once), and I didn’t want that to happen to them.

Once they were “sorted,” and I’d finished my “hot breakfast,” I caught the subway and rode up, up, up, uptown, headed for Riverside Church.  The train I was on (headed for 116th St.) had been running local (as opposed to express), but when we got to 103rd St, the intercom voice said, “Next stop, 125th St.”  Luckily, I had the presence of mind to hop up and jump off, remembering there was something I wanted to see at 108th and Riverside.  My fellow “Collars” (as we White Collar fans have come to be known), should recognize this house as the abode of one Mr. Neal Caffrey.

Of course, it’s June’s house, so Neal lives upstairs…

(A little trivia for you:  When Neal’s tracking data shows him “at home,” his tracking dot is on the Upper East Side, maybe around 70th and 2nd, which is actually nowhere near the practical location of the house.)

From there, I walked over to Riverside Park and took that route up to 120th and snapped this photo of the first glimpse of Riverside Church as the trees break cover from the park:

As I approached the church, the bells were ringing, and when I walked inside, someone was playing the pipe organ, which added greatly to the experience.  The church is so beautiful that pictures can’t do justice to it – in fact, looking back, the pictures almost look fake to me:

I had spent a little more time than I intended strolling through the park, so when Janice texted to say she was on her way to the Museum of Natural History (where we had agreed to meet), I started booking it back to the subway.  On my way, there was a cabbie standing outside of his car on the curb.  He looked at me, hopefully.  “Taxi?”  I initially declined, but then considered that I was sure to be late, and given that the subway skipped 116th on the uptown route, it occurred to me that it may be closed for construction, and I had already done a good bit of walking.  So, I turned back to the driver and agreed to the ride.  He seemed to like me, and drove part of the way before he ever turned the meter on, all the while quizzing me on whether I had a boyfriend in New York, or a boyfriend back home.  He suggested I attain both, and jokingly yelled out the window (at the empty street), “Beautiful Amanda needs a boyfriend!”  My mother would have liked him.

With my cab ride and Janice’s missed subway stop, I actually made it to the museum first.  When we went inside, we watched the “Journey to the Stars” show in the Hayden Planetarium, which was quite fascinating but made me realize my desire for a nap as I looked up at the night sky.  The space center itself was a pretty fantastic sight to behold:

Roaming into the Natural History side of the Museum, we strolled through some of the animal exhibits on our way upstairs to the main attraction…..

…DINOSAURS!

Leaving the museum, Janice surveyed the vendors on the street below and declared her immediate need for a hot dog and a Diet Coke.  She purchased hers and we crossed the street to the Central Park side to find a park bench to sit on.  There was a vendor on that side of the street, too, and the scent got to me (along with the sound of Janice’s Diet Coke bottle opening), and I decided to partake in this grand New York tradition myself:

Janice had a ticket for the City Sights cruise Friday afternoon, and I decided to get a ticket and join her.  The problem:  there were 40 minutes until the boat set sail, but in order to buy a ticket at the pier, you had to be there 30 minutes prior.  You could buy a ticket at a satellite location, but again, it had to be 30 minutes prior.  So, I called the cruise line and said, “I need to buy a ticket for your next cruise, but I cannot get to the pier in time, so can you tell me where else I can go to buy one?”  In response, the girl tells me that I can buy a ticket at the pier up until 30 minutes before the cruise begins.  [Wow.  Helpful.  Did I not just say that?]  So, again:  “Yes, I understand, but I cannot get there in the next 5 minutes.  I am in midtown.  Can you tell me the other ticket location?”  “Oh, you can buy a ticket at Madame Tussaud’s, but you have to get it 30 minutes prior.”  “OK, what are the cross streets?”  She then replies with an address.  [Honey!  Are you new to this town?]  “Can you tell me the cross streets, please?”  “Well, it’s on 42nd Street.”  “OK, 42nd street.  And which Avenue?”  [Clock is ticking, ticking, ticking…]  “8th.”  “OK, thank you.”  [For annoying me to death and leaving me 2 minutes to run 4 crowded blocks and buy a ticket.]

I blazed quite a trail through the crowds on 8th Avenue, leaving Janice behind, only to get to 42nd and discover that Madame Tussaud’s was actually on 42nd and 7th, so I had another (long) block to run.  Out of breath, I got in line and reached the ticket counter just at the cutoff time.  Janice had caught up by then, and when I told the guy that I wanted a ticket for the next cruise, he hemmed and hawed [I feel like I’m back down south, for goodness’ sake] and told me that I *could* make it, but I was really going to have to hurry.  [Thank you, Captain Obvious.  This may be why I ran to your counter and am out of breath, because I have already gotten the ‘hurry’ memo, and I wish you would take my cue.]

Finally, he handed me my ticket and we ran back across the street, hailed a cab, and said, “Pier 78, and drive like a maniac!”  Our cabbie seemed to enjoy the challenge and he lived up to it nicely, getting us to our destination with 5 minutes to spare.  We all got in on the fun of yelling at trucks that tried to cut us off and pedestrians who walked out into the street wherever and whenever they pleased (aka speed bumps).

Once our boat set sail, we moved out onto the bow of the ship for the best views (and the surfing sensation whenever we passed through the wake of a larger vessel).  I enjoy the cruises for the tour guide’s facts about the city, the views on both sides of the river, riding under the beautiful bridges around Manhattan, and the up-close views of the Statue of Liberty.

Plus, there are always gems to see that don’t coincide with the skyscrapers of the financial district, like this old Domino Sugar plant in Brooklyn:

When we arrived back at the hotel, windblown from our boating adventure, I had just enough time to shower and change to head down to the Village for dinner.  That is, of course, before I missed my train like a bozo, putting me five minutes behind, and then got turned around in the notoriously confusing West Village.  I walked to the intersection of three different streets (not part of the grid system), and stood bewildered in a triangular median trying to figure out which way to walk.  A local came by, so I solicited his help to point me in the right direction.  He said he was on his way to work and I could walk with him.  I took me half a block to realize that he actually had less idea where he was than I did, and another block and a half of me trying to convince him his way was illogical, before I just thanked him for his “help,” waved goodbye, and turned back to walk the right way.

Luckily, it was all worth the confusion, as I finally got to meet my friend Lana, who I correspond with regularly for work purposes.  Since we all deal with exasperating people at work, we can also agree on what a treasure it is to meet someone you are actually happy to hear from in the course of the day.  Lana is one of those delightful individuals, so it was great to put a face to a voice and a name, and we had no shortage of things to discuss over our delicious dinner at Tremont.

After dinner, we took a walk around the Village to our mutual chorus of “oohs and ahhs” at the perfectly situated brownstones that line the streets.  Lana even pointed out Carrie Bradshaw’s front stoop for my friends who loved Sex and the City.

We got back on the subway together, but my stop came up first, and far too quickly, so we bid adieu before the train doors could close again.  I’m really thankful that I have another NYC trip planned wherein I’ll get to spend more time with her!  I’m glad I remembered to snap a quick photo from our first meeting:

Saturday morning, I rounded the block to stand in line with other hopefuls to score rush tickets to “How to Succeed,” as my friend Chris was coming in from Staten Island and wanted to see it, and this was a great opportunity for me to go see it again, pretending I was doing it for her sake, but knowing all the while that I wanted to go again, regardless.  The guy behind me in the ticket line thought he had an AMAZING voice, and he wanted to display that to his captive audience by singing Jesse McCartney’s “Beautiful Soul” over and over and over again.  I thought that was surely the depth of all despair until he took a few moments to segue into some John Mayer song that I don’t remember, but sounds an awful lot like “Oooh, baby, I love your way” (like most John Mayer songs).  Moments like that, my friends, are the reason we own iPods.  I cranked up some Florence + the Machine, but then discovered that the quiet parts of the songs still allowed his singing to seep through, so I switched to Lucero.  Take THAT, terrible-singing-girly-man.

I was about ten people from the front of the line when the ticket girl came out to announce that the evening performance was all sold out, except for standing room tickets.  I figured the matinee would follow suit before I could reach the front, but was delighted to get to the window and be able to walk away with two matinee tickets for $30 each.  I practically skipped away from the box office and texted Chris with the news.

She was taking the bus into the city, so I still had a few hours to kill.  I decided to head downtown and walk around some areas I hadn’t been before.  I first headed to Madison Square Park and walked around it before roaming over to Park Avenue and heading downtown a bit further.

I walked through Gramercy and discovered that their park was by key-access only, so instead I just enjoyed the architecture in the area and seeing people out walking tiny dogs on a Saturday in three-piece suits.  I also love getting pictures of old buildings with new buildings reflected in the windows (and vice-versa), like this one:

Having enjoyed my stroll thus far, I decided my legs could carry me a bit further, so I walked for Union Square, where I found a Farmer’s Market in full force.

The Farmer’s Market reminded me that I hadn’t had anything to eat since dinner the night before, but I didn’t leave myself quite enough time for a meal.  I had resolved to eat cheesecake for lunch, but as I was picking up a slice to take back to the hotel, I thought I should eat something at least slightly more practical, and had a croissant instead.

As I was inhaling that, Chris was arriving from the bus station, and shortly we headed over to our show.

I love the performance photos that are always along the outside of the theater for each show.  Here’s one of Michael from a fun sequence in “How to Succeed.”

Unlike Thursday night, I hadn’t told Michael I was coming to the show, so afterwards, we went over near the stage door and stood in the masses until I could get the guard’s attention.  I said, “Could you let Michael know that Amanda is here?”  “Michael Park?”  “Yes, please.”  “And he is going to know you by your first name?”  “Yes.”  He was looking at me in sheer disbelief with that “Suuuure, lady, whatever you say” expression on his face, and I was rather doubtful that he was going to pass the word along.  Apparently he did, because soon I heard Michael’s voice from inside say, “Where’s Amanda?” and we were handed VIP badges and ushered to the stage.  Michael had some family visiting as well, so Chris and I seized the opportunity to act like fools and take photos in front of the elevator used in several portions of the show, including where the actors come out to take the final bow.

Of course, we spent some time chatting with Michael and snapped a few more photos:

As it turns out, we did well to get matinee tickets, because Michael had an injury and was sending his understudy on for the Saturday night performance while he got checked out.

Chris and I were both ravenous by that time, so we opted for a leisurely evening and prix fixe dinner at CharleyO’s, near the hotel.  Since we only get to see each other on rare occasions, it was a great chance to catch up without feeling pressed for time.

After Chris left to head home, and after a considerable inner debate with myself, I decided to take my chances at heading back over to the theater in an effort to have my Playbill signed by Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette.  I am not a fan of crowds, but weighed against the notion of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I bit the bullet and joined the ranks of crazy fans at the barricades.

Space was cramped and I was plenty uncomfortable even as we heard the show ending inside.  Once John Larroquette stepped out the stage door, the crowd smashed together beyond what I even thought possible, and I would have run away if it were an option.  The truth of the matter, though, is that I couldn’t even move my right arm, and it took considerable effort to wriggle my left arm free enough to lift my Playbill up and hand it to John Larroquette.

I had hoped that the crowd would ease back a bit once he was safely whisked away in a waiting SUV.  No such luck.  They knew that eventually Daniel Radcliffe would step outside, and they were not going to give an inch until then.  As we waited, though, Rob Bartlett, who played Twimble and Wally Womper in the show, came out and signed our Playbills as well.

When Daniel Radcliffe came out, the crowd erupted in cheers and personal space became a pipe dream.  I had arms on all sides of me – on top of my head, even – and I probably could not have been under more physical pressure if a semi-truck had rolled over on top of me.  Luckily, I was well positioned in the swarm of Playbills and programs, and when Daniel Radcliffe was directly in front of me, I simply held my Playbill up and he signed it as I held it.

When he finished signing for our side, he moved quickly to the other and was met with the same frenzy there.  Time is hard to gauge in a situation like that, but I can’t imagine it was more than 5 minutes between the time he stepped out of the stage door to the time that his SUV was driving away.  As he escaped the scene, so did I, pushing my way through the finally-loosened crowd to fresh air and freedom.  I could only look at my signatures with a sense of euphoria and proud accomplishment, given what I had endured to get them.

The crowd at the stage door helped prepare me for the crowd in the hotel room on Saturday night.  With hotel prices, you just keep cramming people in to lower the cost.  We had five in the room Saturday night, so I had someone sleeping next to me and someone sleeping at my feet.  All part of the adventure…

Sunday morning sent us our separate ways.  Janice, Breda (a Saturday night room addition), and I went to breakfast and then walked along the street fair that had set up on 8th Avenue.  Along the way, we stopped so I could pose for this picture with my boyfriend, Alan Rickman.

We walked along the street fair, Janice and Breda stopping to look at wares, and me stopping to take pictures, and when I realized we’d reached 50th Street, I bid them farewell and walked toward Rockefeller Center, stopping for more photos along the way.

Janice had given me her ticket to the Top of the Rock, because she wasn’t going to have time to go.  I’d been up a few times (and I love it), but I had not been up during the day.  So, that was my first stop.

With no pressing engagements, I spent a fair bit of time just sitting in Rockefeller Center, tourist-watching next to a fountain.  (I’ve never met a fountain I didn’t like.)  Then, I proceeded up 5th Avenue, taking more pictures along my way.  I can’t afford to do any shopping on 5th Avenue (seriously, who can?), but I did splurge with a stop into Lindt Chocolatier for some truffles to savor along my walk.

Note the reflection in this slanted building:

And this is Grand Army Plaza, at the southeast corner of Central Park.  I love how shiny that building is across the street.

While I was in the neighborhood, I did something I’ve never done and went inside the Grand Plaza Hotel.  Wow.  I’m not sure I could fake belonging there on my best day, but I was certainly out of my element in my “I’m-going-to-the-park” attire.

With all the walking I had done on the earlier days of my trip, I was tired, with aching feet and a shin splint that left me hobbling slightly.  Thus, I had intended to hire a pedicab at the base of the park and pay him an exorbitant amount of money to drive me around while I took pictures.  (I really love riding in those things.)  Still, I knew the pedicabs couldn’t go everywhere I wanted to go, so I decided that before I hired one, I’d walk into the park a little ways and look at some of the bridges around the pond.  That turned into a walk past where the ice rink would have been, and then a walk to see the carousel, and then I realized roundabout the Sheep Meadow that I was too deep into the park to even find a pedicab.  I was exhausted and dehydrated, but I didn’t have much of a choice other than to keep walking.  Luckily, I found a beverage cart and got myself a huge bottle of water and sat down on a park bench and listened to a violinist playing through some beautiful tunes for passersby.

After getting some water in me and a few moments of rest, I felt inspired enough to keep going, having resolved that I couldn’t be too far from Bethesda Fountain, the Bow Bridge, and Cherry Hill.  So, I walked on, and as I went, I stumbled upon group after group playing live music in different areas of the park.  I walked from a jazz band to an ambient orchestra in a matter of minutes.  The charm, spontaneity, and community of it all kept me motivated along my way.

My sense of direction had served me pretty well up until that point, but after walking through unfamiliar woods in The Ramble for a while, and not having the stamina to wander aimlessly, I did pull out my phone to check the compass and make sure I was walking northwest.  I was, and I ended up exiting the park at the Museum of Natural History, at 80th and 8th.  At that point, I was very tempted to just faint on the hood of a taxi and let it take me back to the hotel, but somewhere in me was a dogged determination to keep going, so I hoofed it on over to the 79th Street station and got back to the hotel like a New Yorker should.

I was grateful for a shower, a rest, and a few bites of the cheesecake I’d picked up the day before.  I only headed out again to enter the lottery for tickets to The Book of Mormon.  It is clearly the “must-see” show on Broadway right now, and while it wouldn’t normally interest me, I was persuaded that the social and religious implications were reason enough for me to attempt to see it.  Admittedly, I had no idea what I was getting into.  Unlike with “How to Succeed,” where the early bird gets the rush tickets, the lottery system only requires that you show up, write your name on a slip of paper, and hope your name is called.  There is only a 30 minute window to enter, so I arrived 10 minutes before names were to be drawn and got my name in the running.  As the announcer was about to start the drawing, I heard people around me discussing how it was their 10th or 11th try at tickets.  That gave me a pretty good idea of my chances.  I didn’t win, of course, but since I didn’t have my heart set on it, it was no great loss.  We were told, however, that if our names weren’t drawn for the $32 tickets, we could get in the cancellation line and hope to get tickets at retail, starting at $180, and going on up to $475.  No thanks, buddy!

My walk over to the theater was not in vain, however, as I found another church to duck into along the way:  St. Malachy’s.

Janice had set up a dinner at Daniela’s, right across from our hotel, with some of her friends who I had not met.  They agreed to let me join in the fun, and we did have a fantastic time sharing laughs over pasta.  I had the prix fixe again (usually the best deal), so I got to have my choice of desserts.  I selected the chocolate mousse cake without hesitation, and allow me to tell you that it was AMAZING.

After dinner, I was quite content to go back to the room and relax.  I’m pretty sure that I was fast asleep before 11pm, which usually doesn’t even happen when I’m at home.

Monday was going-home day, but we were up early enough to get packed and head out to breakfast and still do some walking around before we had to come back to the hotel to check out and head to the airport.

I proposed walking back to St. Patrick’s Cathedral on 5th and actually going inside this time.  They were having a service (presumably for Columbus Day), so we were able to stand in the back and listen to the congregation singing before slipping back out again.

Oh, 5th Avenue.  Where stores can afford to decorate the sidewalk and even Forever 21 looks classy.

Also, LOVE!

And another fountain!

And finally… back to the bright lights of Times Square.

Janice’s flight was an hour earlier than mine, so we rode back to the airport together and I had extra time to kill.  I would like to take this moment to thank whatever entrepreneurial genius conceived of the notion to put a spa in the airport.  I rolled my suitcase right on over there for a foot and leg massage, then face, head, and shoulders massage, and then they just let me lay there in this awesome massaging chair for another half hour.  I happily gave them the money that I had planned to give the pedicab driver the day before, and used the last $20 to finally buy The Hunger Games in the airport bookstore, which was a good way to not face going back to reality.

Even so, as my flight took off from LGA, I couldn’t help put press my nose against the glass and look down at the beautiful city below.  I watched without blinking until the city I love was gone from my sight, and then did the only logical thing left, and cried.

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Dec
16
2010

I Thought That I Could Make It a Day Without My Heavy Heart

I am semi-stranded in a hotel in Bristol, TN, off on another adventure.  I must admit that I felt a bit defeated when I had to stop and get a room – defeated enough that I was in tears when I went to the front desk to inquire about the rate.  The lady gave me the lowest possible rate, encouraged me about the rising temperatures in the morning, and assured me I had done the right thing by stopping.

You see, I was supposed to be at home right now, finishing up my packing and preparing for a good night’s sleep before the 8-hour drive from home to Nashville.  This morning, however, the weather report told me that if I waited until morning to leave, I would be driving in ice and snow.  So, I had to leave today, but I didn’t have time to make it to Nashville before the storm arrived there.  My only option was to drive halfway tonight, stop before running into the storm, and then resume my trip tomorrow when the roads cleared.

A friend I have not seen or talked to in years kindly (and without hesitation) agreed to give me a place to stay for the night when I reached Knoxville.  I left home as soon as I possibly could today, and seemed to be on track to beat the storm.  But, I was still two hours away from Knoxville when my friend called to tell me the ice had begun.  Not willing to risk it, I stopped in Bristol for the night.  Even so, it is not lost on me that I had someone so willing to welcome me into her home for the night.

Now, relaxing in my pajamas, I feel much better about everything.  I even got a call about an hour ago from the girl who has offered me her guest room in Nashville for the weekend.  We’ve never met, and never spoken until this day.  But, my friend Kelli knew her in college, asked her if she would let me stay, and she agreed.  Then, she actually called me to make sure everything was OK and give me an update on the weather and say she was looking forward to my arrival.

Today, I have seen the kindness of old friends and of strangers.

Right now, I am extremely thankful that I grabbed my laptop on my way out the door today, and that I decided to go to the grocery store instead of an ATM to get cash, which means I bought a 2 liter of Caffeine Free Diet Coke and got cash back with my debit card.  So, I am having a solo slumber party.  On my way to the hotel, I spotted a Fazoli’s, so I got to fulfill a craving I’ve had since the one in Lynchburg closed down about five years ago.  Now, I have all my luggage strewn about the room as much as possible, since there’s no one here to be affronted, and I have eight pillows to myself.  This hotel room has a TV, but since I am the only one here, it will sit there, unused and unloved, and could be broken for all I care.  Meanwhile, Diet Coke at my side, I have already watched two episodes of Friday Night Lights on Netflix streaming, caught up on my RSS feed, and laughed uproariously at a few YouTube videos.  I have also had occasion to stop and consider the circumstance in which I find myself…

I am determined to reach Nashville because my friend and favorite musician, Levi Weaver, is playing his new album from start to finish with a full band tomorrow night at The Darkroom.  This will serve as a CD release party of sorts.  I have been a fan of his since before he released his first (solo) EP, wiped tears from my eyes as I watched him play a stellar opening set for Imogen Heap, and gone back to his songs over and over again to marvel at his talent, his heart, and his uncanny ability to speak the truth in song.  Now, he’s about to release his 2nd full-length album, and I am going to be there for that.  I also will finally get to meet his wonderful wife and probably get a little teary-eyed at the sight of his sweet baby boy.

The mere ability to be part of any of that is enough reason to feel incredibly blessed.  Add to that the fact that I will also be meeting two more new faces at tomorrow’s show – other Levi fans who are making treks even further than mine to be in Nashville for this event.  We already share a bond through Levi, but tomorrow we get to look each other in the eye and be inspired by art and friendship.

I should be arriving in Nashville by about 5:00 tomorrow.  I have about four and a half or five hours ahead of me on the drive, and the temperatures here should be well above freezing by noon.  And since the warm temperatures (like the ice storm) are coming in from the West, the closer I get to Nashville tomorrow, the warmer it will be.

So, I have ahead of me a good night’s sleep and a continental breakfast, and then I’ll be back in the car again.  The car, by the way, isn’t even mine.  Topping the list of the many blessings in my life, my best friend insisted I take her car on my trip.  It’s newer, was just fully checked over, gets great gas mileage, tells me the temperature outside…aaaand it has heated seats.  So, not only was she willing to relinquish her car for five days, she was willing to let me drive it to another state in the midst of winter weather warnings.  If you say you have a better friend than that, I will demand concrete evidence.

So, I may have arrived here in tears, but when I get back on the road tomorrow and resume my trip playlist, it will be with a thankful heart.  I guess that lends some merit to the age-old cliché about the blessings of the journey and not just of the destination.

Posted in General, Music, Personal, Travel | 2 Comments »

Oct
22
2010

This is Home: the Stage, the States, All I Own in One Suitcase

I haven’t done the empirical research to make it official, but I feel like I’ve been on more trips so far this calendar year than in any year past.  The year’s not even over yet, and I have another getaway planned this week with another possible trip looming on the horizon for early December.

Most of the time, I plan my getaways well in advance, with a down-to-the-minute itinerary to squeeze every possible moment out of the trip.  Last month, however, I called upon my inner whimsy and bought a plane ticket to fly to the other side of the country on about a week’s notice.

Usually my trips hinge around one big event, and that’s usually music-related.  This time, the catalyst was that my friend and favorite musician, Levi Weaver, was doing a mini-tour that took him through Denver, Colorado on Friday night.

Aside from the fact that I am always up for any opportunity to see him play, I also happen to have not one, but TWO Denver-dwelling friends.  I messaged my friend Mel, who I met through Levi and had never seen in person, to see if she’d be up for some company.  I had checked flights to visit her on many occasions prior, but always found them to be far out of my price range.  With a cheap flight available and Mel signed on, the trip was a go.  The cherry on top came when I called another internet-based friend, Libby (who I had seen in person on one previous occasion), to tell her of my trip.  I had expected her to be unavailable, because she travels a great deal for work, but to my delight, she was free to spend a whole day with me!

I flew out of Lynchburg at 6am on Thursday morning, having woken up at 4:30am after about three hours of sleep the night before.  (I can never sleep well right before a trip.)  I was equal parts exhaustion and excitement, and I balanced the two by pulling out my iPod and listening to an album of John Prine covers on the plane, while watching out the window as the sun began to light up the clouds.

My layover was in Atlanta, where I had this lovely view of the early morning sky:


Just a few more hours in the air got me to Denver before 11am (MST), and I was happy to end up with two extra hours in my day.

Mel picked me up at the airport and we found ourselves almost immediately engaged in some rather heavy conversation before trading it in for more lighthearted chatter.  We spent the majority of the afternoon that way, playing board games and talking about some of the good things in life (like music and boys), and walking around her neighborhood.

Mel had a class Thursday night and I was worn out, so I stayed in, took a shower, and started getting relaxed for the evening while catching up on my RSS feed.  I tend to have trouble sleeping when I’m not at home, so I took some Tylenol PM and I was totally into the sleepy zone.

About that time, Mel came home and said that she’d heard from Levi, and he was going on stage in Colorado Springs in about an hour, and if we left right then, we could probably make it just in time to see his set.  We made a quick decision to go, so I traded in my PJs for something only mildly less casual and staggered to the car.

My eyelids were extremely heavy on the drive out, but I managed to stay awake and we made it to the show as Levi was playing “Good Medicine” to give his touring partner, Kenny Paul Harris, time to change a broken guitar string.  After that, we heard the last several songs of Kenny’s set, and then Levi took the stage.  The show was more than worth fighting sleep to see, and the art gallery owners agreed, as they invited Levi and Kenny back to play their big exhibit opening the following night.

I am amused by how this picture looks like the dinosaur is about to bite off Levi’s face:

After the show, Levi and Kenny followed Mel and I back to Denver.  I’d like to say I was a very good passenger and stayed awake to keep Mel company, but I kept drifting off and I think I ultimately gave up that fight.  I never sleep in the car, but I was just THAT tired, apparently.  In fact, by the time we got back to Mel’s and got ready to fall asleep, I realized I had officially been awake for a full 24 hours.

As luck would have it, jet lag still had me awake the next morning before anyone else.  Mel was not far behind, though, so we got up and slid out the door for breakfast, leaving the slumbering musicians behind.  Mel introduced me to the Denver Biscuit Company, which had Diet Coke, for one (WOOHOO!), and served up a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit roughly the size of my head.  My early morning appetite is usually pretty stout, but I couldn’t eat even half of it.  (Luckily, Kenny was happy to eat my leftovers, and Levi was grateful for the biscuits and gravy we brought back, too.)

We passed much of the morning (and into the afternoon) playing games, watching funny YouTube videos, and enjoying one another’s company.  I typically cram so many activities into my travels that there is little time remaining to “waste” in such a way.  But, the primary object of this trip was not the beautiful Colorado scenery, but the opportunity to spend precious time with friends.  I am grateful that we had that in spades!

I did have an itch to get outside in the fresh air and sunshine, and it was a beautiful day for it.  Mel lives an easy walking distance from the City Park, so that’s where we went.  It was a great chance for me to test out my new camera (a birthday gift from my parents) by taking pictures of everything…and everyone!

Ever the kid at heart, it didn’t take long for Levi to go missing.  We found him by looking up:

I wasn’t a big fan of him being in the tree (as I said I did not wish to be the one to explain it to his wife if he fell and broke his leg), but I am a fan of this fun picture I got of him on his way down.  (He made it in one piece and everything.)

We walked on through the park and I found this quaint tree:

And this adorable dog who was too excited by my attention to stay back far enough for a proper picture:

After the park, we stopped for lunch and made our way back to Mel’s, where she cooked us an amazing dinner while we all sat around being lazy.  (Thanks, Mel!)  The guys did a little playing while I was content to watch.  Kenny also played a cover of “Amanda,” the Don Williams song for which I was named.  He has a sister named Amanda, and the moment we were introduced, he started singing the song.  I don’t meet very many people who know it!

After dinner, Mel’s apartment became a music venue for Levi and Kenny to perform a House Show for several of Mel’s friends.  It was an acoustic event, of course, but somehow we still managed to be interrupted by a neighbor who didn’t appreciate the boot-stomping and drum-beating emanating through the floor.

After the House Show, we piled into Kenny’s car to head back to Colorado Springs to play for the art gallery opening that night.  Several of the people who had been to the show the night before came back out again – this time armed with favorite song requests.  Still, the singer-songwriters on the corner stage were not the main event to many people who had turned out solely for the art that was hanging on the gallery walls.  I thoroughly enjoyed watching the initially indifferent crowd slowly gravitate toward the stage, fall silent, and be swept up in song.

In fact, that is generally one of my favorite things about watching Levi play over the years.  If I drop $40 on a concert ticket to go see a band I really like, I can generally expect to end up in the midst of people with the same appreciation that I have for the music.  They have the albums, they know the songs, they sing along.  There is definitely camaraderie in the concert-going experience that I value – in the words of Peyton Sawyer, “Nobody’s saying it, but we’re all feeling it:  We have something to believe in again.”  At Levi’s shows, though, it’s usually either that the crowd has come to see the headliner and he’s opening, or he’s playing a coffee shop or smaller venue where people are wandering in out of curiosity.  Then, I am standing there in the middle of the room, one of the very few who already love the music and know all the words, and I get to witness the tide turn as the crowd slowly realizes this is an experience they don’t want to miss, and give over their entire focus to the stage.

Levi had some technical difficulties toward the end of his set, so he went unplugged to finish up from atop a chair.  This is another signature Weaver move that I always enjoy.

After the show finished, everyone was still in the party mood, so we relocated to a bar down the alley, where Kenny and Levi indulged the room with a Riverdance-off.  I’m not really sure who won, except for possibly the crowd who got to witness the spectacle.

The bar closed on us, so we were headed home, but had to stop back by the gallery to pack up the equipment that we left behind.  We went to do that, and I’m not really sure how or why, but then, this happened:

I was all but asleep at this point, but Levi insisted I rejoin the dance floor (probably so I would not be able to continue documenting the event in pictures).  The impromptu party was obviously a hit, as we even had some straight-from-the-frat-house-party-crashers who were promptly kicked out.  Other than that, the highlight of the evening was when a dancing collision in my general vicinity soaked my leg and flip-flops in beer.  Sticky situation, indeed.

Sometime around 4am, we finally called it a night and I was elected to drive us home.  I told Levi to find me some music I could sing along to (which keeps me awake when driving), and he picked Derek Webb’s Mockingbird – an excellent choice.  I stayed awake and sang along with Derek on the drive home while everyone else slept.

By the time we got back, I grabbed a shower and was ready to go to sleep by around 5, which gave me three precious hours to sleep before Saturday’s adventure.  Miraculously, I woke up with my alarm and managed to get dressed and ready without waking up everyone else.  I even styled my hair and put on makeup for the first time since arriving in Colorado.  I must say, I enjoyed how well my low-maintenance sense of (or lack of) style fit in out there!

My dear friend Libby picked me up outside Mel’s place and laid out the plan for a full day of sight-seeing as we drove up into the mountains.

We first stopped on some land owned and operated by nuns, with a quaint chapel and a statue of Jesus up on the mountainside.  This would be a good time to tell you the name of the place, but I cannot remember and Google is failing me.  At any rate, the statue of Jesus was wayyyy up the mountain – you can see it faintly in the picture below.

We then proceeded to walk up an inordinate number of stairs to get to the top.  Libby cautioned me to pay attention to my breathing as I would not be used to the thin air, particularly at such an elevation.  I told her I was going to see Jesus one way or another!  And I did!

Here we are atop the mountain (myself, Libby, her daughter Brianna, and the doggies too, of course)!

On our way back down, we walked past a group that was stopping at each landing to pray at the stations of the cross.  It was a beautiful place and well worth the walk.  I felt quite accomplished having hiked to a high elevation – and on three hours of sleep!

As we continued on our way up the mountain, we went through this tunnel.  I got excited and remarked that I love tunnels, which was all the encouragement Libby needed to roll down the windows, honk the horn, and cheer.  So juvenile, and when I say juvenile, I mean OH MY GOODNESS IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!

Libby was a great tour guide and pointed out all the sights along our way.  For more “fun,” she drove me up something the locals call the “Oh My God Road.”  You can see why in the picture below.

Yes, that is the side of a mountain.  And a gravel road.  And what you can’t see in the picture is how much we were sliding back and forth in the loose gravel (in an SUV, I might add).  Can you imagine driving that in the winter?  In the snow and ice?  That would certainly give credence to the name.

Still, we made it up to Libby’s house in the high elevations.  She showed me the view from her backyard:

From there, we traveled the Peak to Peak highway (which struck me as their version of the Blue Ridge Parkway here at home), and I savored every moment of the beautiful scenery and the chit-chatting with my friend.  We rode the full length of the Peak to Peak as shown in the sign below – from Black Hawk to Estes Park.

Here are just a few of the pictures I took along the way.

Now for another place I cannot immediately name – this beautiful church we visited along our way.  It was perfectly situated and the land around it was beautiful as well.

Shortly after, we stopped to have lunch at Libby’s favorite place, the Bald Pate Inn.  (Look, I remember the important place names, and they had good food, man!)  As the name suggests, it is an inn where you could stay for a lovely getaway.  The inn and the attached restaurant are only open during certain times of the year.  I imagine it could be quite difficult to get to during the winter.

The food was buffet style, but in an elegant sense – this was no Golden Corral.  All the items served were fresh and local.  They offered up an extensive salad bar, which was delicious, along with fresh baked breads, a cheese tray, fresh fruit, and two different homemade soups.  I chose the potato soup, which was stellar.  Everything I ate was perfect.  We also ordered dessert, and I had the tastiest key lime pie I have ever had.  Libby ordered the pecan pie, and it, too, was magnificent.  I love pecans but don’t usually care for pecan pie, as it is too sweet and syrupy.  Their pecan pie was heavy on the pecans (as it should be) and had the perfect balance of sweetness.  Yum, yum, yum.

After our leisurely lunch, we explored the “Key Room” at the Bald Pate Inn.  People from all over send keys to them as sort of a tradition, with accompanying notes, and they are all displayed here:

We sat for a while on the porch swing at the inn, looking out at the beautiful mountains and sharing stories.  If we had done nothing else all day but that, we still would have had a wonderful time.

When we got to Estes Park, I learned that the state of Colorado had really gone all out when they learned I was making my trip.  They couldn’t have had much notice, but still, I was honored by their gesture:

We shopped for a bit through Estes Park before making our way back across the mountains.  The fire was still burning in Boulder while I was there (and I never saw the fire, but I did notice the haze on the horizon), so Libby took us back via an alternate route because some of the roads we had taken out to Estes Park had been closing down at night due to the hazard.

Ironically, our modified route would take us through a portion of Boulder on our way back to Denver.  On the way, we stopped at this reservoir as the sun was setting.

Then, we continued winding our way down into Boulder.

This was my attempt to take a picture of the skyline behind us.  This one turned out better than the one I took by sticking my arm out the window and trying to take a picture over the roof of the car.

It was completely dark by the time Libby delivered me back to Mel’s.  We marveled at how our day had flown by and bid farewell – but not before hearing Libby say she’d have to come visit me in Virginia sometime!  (I am holding you to that, my friend!)

Mel and I were both asleep well before midnight on Saturday, as we both had some Zs to catch up on.  We planned a very relaxing day for Sunday, as Mel had been invited to a breakfast pot-luck Sunday morning, to be followed by a Harry Potter marathon.

Mel’s friends put together a lovely breakfast and made me feel quite welcome.  Frankly, if you’re going to feed me breakfast and watch Harry Potter with me, I will already be feeling pretty comfortable, but I genuinely had a lot of fun spending the morning with them.

Mel and I bowed out after the first movie to go to the grocery store so Mel could get some ingredients for dinner.  She invited everyone over for pot roast after church.  Also, since Mel had to be at church early to set up, I seized the opportunity to walk around the Capitol area and snap some pictures.

This church was my favorite find:

And here is the Capitol building:

There was some kind of event happening on the downtown mall, so I walked over to explore that.  Plus, I saw something that looked like a fair, which made me think funnel cake, so it was definitely worth a look.  However, when I got over there, the lawn was jam-packed with people and my fear of crowds kicked in and sent me running for the nearest exit.  I got no funnel cake, and still had no idea what was going on.

From there, I walked back up towards the church where Mel’s church met.  (That sounds redundant, but what I am saying is that Mel’s church rents another church’s building, and that’s why they meet on Sunday nights only.)

I enjoyed the service and seeing the same group from the earlier Harry Potter marathon.  Some of the folks came back to Mel’s afterwards for dinner, which was as delicious as every other meal Mel prepared while I was there!

Monday morning came around so soon, and it was time for me to make my way back to the east coast.  First, Mel allowed me to treat her to breakfast at her favorite spot, a place called Snooze, which is known for their pineapple upside down pancakes.  They usually have a very long wait, but being a Monday morning after most people had gone to work, we were able to walk right in!

Mel ordered a pancake trio (pineapple upside down pancake, sweet potato pancake, and a chocolate chip pancake) while I ordered eggs, bacon, and potatoes.  We each ate about half of our plates and then switched.  Here’s Mel with her pancakes before we did too much damage.

Mel got me back to the airport with plenty of time to spare and my flights went as smoothly going home as they had on the way out.  I begrudgingly gave back the two hours I had borrowed on the way out to Denver on Thursday, and spent the next week living on Mountain time.  Actually, I think my body was still living on indie-musician time, because my sleeping schedule was off by way more than two hours.  Still, it was all worth it for a trip I will remember for a lifetime.  I am so grateful to have finally met Mel face-to-face.  She was a wonderful host in every way, and more than that, she has the kind of heart and spirit that makes me feel fortunate to know her.  Better still, I pretty much ate all of her Horchata ice cream, and she’s still nice to me.  I am hoping that the pint of peach ice cream I was supposed to eat, but left behind, helped fill the void.  Still, I wonder how much it would cost to get a gallon of that stuff shipped over here, packed in dry ice?

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Sep
22
2010

If It’s the Beaches’ Sands You Want, Then You Will Have Them

Before The Avett Brothers announced their full tour, they scheduled three consecutive nights at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach on the weekend after my birthday.  Kelli and I were intent on seeing them, so we bought tickets the second they went on sale and planned to make the trip.  My beach-loving friend Katie decided to tag along on the trip later, even though tickets to the show were sold out.

As we counted down the days to our trip, Kelli and I learned of another tour stopping through Richmond that we needed to see:  a co-headlining show with The Civil Wars and Madi Diaz.  They were scheduled to play The Canal Room in downtown Richmond on Thursday, the 19th – the night before we were leaving for Myrtle Beach.

Under the banners of “you only go ‘round once” and “I can sleep when I’m dead,” Kelli and I set off for the show in Richmond, two hours away.  We figured the show would probably go until about 11pm, putting us back home by 1am, and we were leaving for the beach Friday morning at 8.

Unfortunately for all of us, The Canal Club had booked four opening acts to play before the two headliners, so after suffering through two hours of mediocre (or even downright horrible) music, The Civil Wars (Joy Williams and John Paul White) finally took the stage at 10:30pm.

They were worth the extraordinarily long wait and put on a fantastic show.  And thanks to the lateness of the hour and the… sucktastic-ness of some of the other bands, the crowd had thinned out a great deal, making the show a much more intimate affair.

I did manage to snag a few decent pictures and a video clip during their set:

They were followed by Madi Diaz, who took the stage around 11:30 with a great performance and apologies for the lateness of the hour (though that was beyond her control, of course).

After the show, Joy, John Paul, and Madi were all hanging around to chat.  When they realized we’d driven from two hours away, they all apologized for how late it was and were concerned about our drive home.  We assured them that we didn’t hold them responsible for the club’s obvious disorganization, recommended some other more appropriate venues in neighboring cities, thanked them for the great show, and went on our way.  (In a hilarious/tragic twist of fate, Madi Diaz actually played Lynchburg this past weekend, at a show with six opening acts, so she didn’t get onstage until 12:30.  It made the nightmare at The Canal Club seem like a positively glorious experience.  I suppose that goes to show that it can always get worse!)

Kelli and I made it back to Lynchburg a little after 3am, so by the time I got home, showered, double checked my packing list, and crawled in bed, it was after 4am.  So, I slept about 3 hours that night and then got up and drove us down to Myrtle Beach on Friday!

With a quick stop for lunch and the infernal beach traffic, we got to our hotel in the mid-afternoon and went on a search for supplies (see also:  Caffeine Free Diet Coke).  None of the convenience stores on the strip had any of my beverage of choice, but Katie and Kelli secured some beach chairs to use in the surf on Saturday.  I also scoped out our 17th floor balcony:

And took the obligatory group photo:

Every time I came in from the balcony, I locked the door.  Katie had been burned a few times by assuming the door was unlocked, pulling on it, and then having to unlock it to go outside.  After a while, she said, “Amanda!  Why do you keep locking the door?  We’re on the 17th floor!”  Kelli, without missing a beat, replied, “They’re climbin’ in yo windows, snatchin’ yo people up.”  That was an on-going joke all weekend, and a song we were often jamming to as we drove around town.

I locked the door again and we headed out to a place called “Home Plate” (formerly “The Filling Station”) by Katie’s request.  It was a pizza buffet (which also had some pasta and a salad bar) and the food was pretty good.  One of their trademarks is apparently a busboy who makes weird football noises (and here I thought “Home Plate” was a baseball reference) while cleaning tables.  Sometimes, when he finishes cleaning a table, he’ll stand in the middle of the room and sing “Amazing Grace” or “Go Tell it on the Mountain” in an obtrusive and off-key fashion.  He passed around a laminated placemat which explained that he did all this for Jesus, who, as you know, always went around screaming at people and emulating a football linebacker all around Joseph’s carpentry shop.  (I don’t mean to be cynical, but… some people just do some odd things in God’s name, and I have a lot of trouble seeing what is being accomplished.  But that’s another blog for another day.)

After dinner, we stopped at Wal-Mart for my drinks and then went back to the hotel.  The sky had been threatening storms that never came, so the result was picturesque.  We strolled out onto the beach to take it all in.  The mid-day heat had drifted away, leaving us with a warm, salty ocean breeze as the sun slipped away.  Kelli and Katie had been teasing me all day about pointing out pretty clouds in the sky (“I’ve seen clouds before,” Kelli said), but I was undeterred and happily wrapped up in the beauty of the moon drifting in and out of view behind the ominous patches of clouds.

I love that you can see the light of the moon reflecting on the water in this one:

I was tinkering with the night settings on my camera to get a few shots of the hotels along the beach:

After we went back inside, I got a call from my good friend Terri who lives in Myrtle Beach, and much to my delight, she made the trek over to our hotel to hang out on the balcony with me for a while.  Kelli and Katie were settling in for the night, but Terri and I passed several hours listening to the ocean and yammering on about every topic imaginable.  In fact, I think the only time we stopped talking to take a breath was when Terri reached her hand out (as if to pause the conversation) and said, “Look at that cloud!”  She pointed to a cloud that was whizzing by overhead.  It seemed close enough that if we had stood on our tip-toes and really stretched up high, we may have been able to touch it, and yet it was moving across the sky even faster than a plane moving overhead.  The fact that I’d been teased all day long for pointing out clouds and Terri was pointing one out to me was equal parts hilarious and delightful.  Terri and I always have operated on a pretty similar wavelength!

We finally brought our chatter to a close just before midnight and bid farewell.  I cannot believe I did not remember to take a picture!

After having merely a nap the night before, I was thrilled to get a full night’s sleep at the beach.  We rolled out of the bed, threw on our bathing suits, and hit up the hotel café for breakfast.  Afterwards, Kelli and Katie headed directly to the beach.  I elected to go back up to the room for a little while, as I thought it best to exercise some moderation in the amount of time I left my very pale skin out in the hot sun.  I went out about an hour later and laid down on the beach blanket.  A while later, Katie wanted to come lay down, so I switched places with her and went down to the edge of the water and sat in her beach chair, where Kelli was parked for the duration.

It was the perfect place to sit.  The water was washing up just underneath the chairs to keep us cool in the heat, but we were also able to keep dry except for our feet.  (See also:  no sand in the bathing suit!)

Katie eventually came back for her chair, and I decided I should go inside again to let my skin cool off, making sure I wasn’t burning, and reapply the sunscreen.  (I really hate sunburns.)  It turns out I was holding up well in the sun and heat, so I went back out to the beach and kept watch over Katie’s chair again while she was getting some lunch.  The tide was coming in a little higher by that time, and I considered moving the chair back.  Kelli got up and went out into the water, and I decided I wanted to lean the chair back a little further.  As I was turned around looking at the back of the chair, adjusting it, a big wave came in and washed all the way up over my head!

Since the quest to keep sand out of my bathing suit seemed to be at its end, I threw caution to the wind and joined Kelli in the ocean.  What I did not consider was that I was wearing a loaner bathing suit that was too big for me.  And while a too-big bathing suit is no big deal when you’re sitting in a beach chair, it suddenly carries a great deal more consequence when ocean waves are washing into you.  It caught me off guard and I very nearly lost the bathing suit entirely in the ocean.  Luckily, I grabbed it and jerked it back into place in the nick of time – and held onto it very tightly from then on.  With proper precautions in place, we continued jumping over the waves and splashing around until Katie returned and was shocked to see me actually *in* the ocean.  She quickly joined the fun and we had a great time getting clocked by big ocean waves and hedging our bets on who would be the first “wardrobe malfunction.”

I think I won that prize, because as we were walking out of the ocean and back onto the beach, I had to do a quick dive into the waves to recapture my bathing suit and hope that I didn’t give anyone on-shore more than they bargained for in a day at the beach.

Once I was out of the water, I couldn’t stand the dirty feeling (ick!), so I decided to go inside and hit the shower to get ready for the concert Saturday night.

Kelli and I allowed ourselves plenty of time to get to the House of Blues and have dinner before the concert.  Doors were to open at 7:00 for the show, which started at 8:00.  When we arrived at the House of Blues just after 5:30, we started walking toward the restaurant and both wondered aloud what people were lined up for all the way on the other end of the parking lot.  Our question was answered when we walked up the hill and rounded the corner and realized that was actually part of the line for the show that had wound itself around the building and through the parking lot!

We walked past people and more people and more people as we approached the House of Blues.  They had clearly been lined up for most of the day.  Some had brought instruments and were having an Avett Brothers cover show on the sidewalk to pass the time.

Kelli and I went ahead inside the restaurant for dinner.  We had about a half hour wait before we were seated, and we were ravenous by the time our food finally came.  I realized while waiting that I had not actually eaten anything since our breakfast that morning!  Dinner was delicious, and by the time we finished up, it was about 7:30pm.  We figured that, since doors had been open for half an hour, we’d be able to just walk across from the restaurant to the venue and go on in.  Much to our surprise, there was still a line of people filing in.  We started walking to the back of the line, which we finally found all the way back to the place where we had parked the car.  On the upside, I used the opportunity to drop a bunch of my stuff off in the car, so I wouldn’t have a bag to hold onto inside the show.

When we made it inside the venue, we stopped and got our exclusive-for-Myrtle-beach airbrushed t-shirts and walked inside.  Despite the thousands of people who got in ahead of us, we actually managed to find a pretty nice place to stand atop the stairs near the bar.  We weren’t down on the floor, but we were closer to the stage than a lot of the people who’d stood in line all day to claim a spot.

The opening act was not that thrilling, and while I love concerts, I hate the endless standing in one spot, so I was getting restless.  My problem was solved when The Avett Brothers came onstage, providing the best possible distraction.  They played for two hours straight and were the epic performers everyone had promised me they would be.  The ticket said not to bring cameras in, though people did, but I figured having my camera would just distract me into wanting to take the perfect picture, and I’d rather enjoy the show in all its glory without any other concerns.  So, I don’t have any pictures for you, but I do have YouTube videos from the concert that other people posted!  So, you can at least get a feel for the high-energy and general awesome-ness of our show!

Here’s “Colorshow,” at the opening of the show:

And a combo video with “Kick Drum Heart” followed by “If It’s the Beaches,” which we were particularly thrilled to hear:

If you’re like me and cannot get enough, then here’s “Pretty Girl from Annapolis” (and they also break out into “Is This Love” at 3:30):

After our late night Saturday, we got in bed and didn’t get up on Sunday until check-out time.  Then it was back to the ‘Burg for us!

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