Rochester – Day 6

Sunday in New York.  We found a church a few miles away, and at a decent time so we could sleep in a little and then enjoy a sacrament meeting.  Sunday afternoon we went to the Sodus Point Lighthouse where they were having a concert in the park.  It was fun laying on the grass listening to the music and enjoying the nice weather.

  

I got Dan to finally take off the sunglasses.  Maybe next time I can get the hat off too. 

We drove around the Finger Lakes area and stopped off at the Peter Whitmer Farm.  We had a small group for the tour, so we enjoyed being able to take our time and look around.

I was grateful to have anyone take a picture of the 2 of us together.

Dan, outside the home.  Can’t believe they fit that many people in that room.  The chapel was beautiful.  Most of the building was like a normal church house, but the chapel seemed like the old time chapels.  It was beautiful. 

Rochester – Day 5

On Saturday, we did a combination of Rochester sites, and then out to Palmyra again for the pageant.  It was beautiful weather this day, so we loved just wandering around. 

First we headed up to Lake Ontario to check out the Charlotte-Genessee lighthouse.  I have always wanted to see the Great Lakes, and who can pass up a lighthouse?

 

Dan with Lake Ontario in the background.  We got to hike to the top of it and take a look around.  Kind of a freaky climb, but beautiful views.

While we were at the top we found a beach park a couple of miles away, so we drove over to check it out.

There was a cool boardwalk running along the beach.  We had a nice stroll.  They had a beach volleyball tournament going on one end of the beach and a wrestling tournament at the other end. 

The water looked amazing, unfortunately there was a gross smell at one end that kind of ruined the mood.

After leaving the beach we went to the Martin Harris home and the Palmyra temple.

 

 

The stained glass windows were amazing.  I remember seeing them when the temple was dedicated, but cool to see them up close.

 

Pretty cool front doors.  After walking around, we headed back to the Sacred Grove to experience it is nice weather.

The nice thing is that you can wander the paths around the grove to your heart’s content.  It was beautiful.  Oh, and surprisingly not very crowded.  Granted we got there late in the day, so that may be why.  It was Beautiful.

The pageant was much better the 2nd time around.  Dan had fun trying to take pictures throughout the pageant.  Some actually turned out okay.

 

Best thing about this night was stopping off at Wal-Mart to pick up some food for Sunday, and finding Joseph Smith Log Home T-shirts for 1/2 the price they were in Palmyra.

Palmyra – Day 4

Okay, back after a “short” break.  We flew upstate from NYC to stay in Rochester for a few days.  First things first, head to Palmyra.  We were lucky enough to schedule our trip during the Hill Cumorah Pageant, so we wanted to take in some sites, before we staked out our seat.  No worries though, it was a monsoon that day so there were plenty of seats to choose from.  I think we sat through Utah’s annual rain fall in just a couple of hours.  I have to say I enjoyed the cooling off though.

First stop was the Hill Cumorah, to check out the venue.  After Eva lead us to a different Hill Cumorah, we found the monument.  Way cool.  The normal path to the top was blocked off for pageant stuff, so we actually got to hike through a wooded area.  Pretty cool to think that we were in the same place as Joseph Smith.

The stage was amazing at the base of the hill.  Nothing like the Manti Pageant.

We got to see the performers run some last minute dress rehearsals, and then took off to get lunch and visit the Sacred Grove.  Unfortunately this is when the rain started.  Man, the thunder and lightening were amazing.

Alicia in the Old Smith home. 

  Dan in the Sacred Grove, sporting the sexy garbage bags they gave us to help stay dry.  Did not help at all.  We didn’t take too many pictures since it was so wet.  Alicia is still not comfortable enough with the new camera to risk it.  Not to mention we had 3 more days to get pictures.

After visiting the Sacred Grove we stopped by the printing shop where the B of M was first published.  Really neat experience.  Probably because of this:

We caught Sister Christensen (my sorta cousin…our dads are “brothers from different mothers”) during the tour.  We grew up next door to each other.  Can you believe I used to babysit her??  I can’t believe how grown up she has become. 

Jordin is a history major, and totally in her element.  It was neat hearing her testimony.  Not to mention, neat totally surprising her.  We’ll miss her for the next year or so.

So that’s a good view of what we did the 1st day up north.  We didn’t take pictures of the pageant, because, well, it looked like this for most of it:

Soaking wet.  Luckily we were able to pick up an umbrella and rain slickers, so we weren’t completely miserable.  Oh, and the show was pretty good.  Yeah, shoot me.  I wasn’t that impressed the first night.  I will blame it on the fact that it was the 1st performance of the year, and it was raining cats and dogs.  It was much better the 2nd night.

Night Life in NYC

So last thing with the city.  We planned a “big” activity for the 3 nights we were in NYC.  Mostly unique things that we had never done before.  It was a great way to enjoy the “night life” and still feel safe (okay, Alicia was really nervous when it came to nighttime in NYC. We survived it all though, with flying colors).

1st Night: Mets vs. Red’s

Can you believe Alicia has never been to a major league baseball game….I know big surprise. :)

Look at that stadium!

  

Only bummer about Dan and Alicia alone on a trip.  Not many pictures of the two of us together, and the ones we try to do by ourselves….okay not pretty.  Neither of us really have long enough arms to get a decent angle.  Oh well. 

The game was really entertaining.  We were sitting right in front of an avid fan who had the cutest New York accent.  I just had to giggle every time she started yelling.  Bonus – the Mets won, which made the fans even more excited. 

2nd Night: “Wicked” on Broadway (note: these were taken with Dan’s phone, so you get what you get)

FAN-FREAKIN’-TASTIC!!!!   We absolutely LOVED the show.  Dan was a little leery about the whole musical thing, but being a good sport, did what Alicia wanted.  He loved it.  Totally crying at the end (sorry to spill the beans Dan).  The staging and costumes were great and we loved the story.  Dan wants to see it again when it comes to town.  (We’ll see if Alicia wants to put up with the hassle of getting tickets).  Now we just need to get the soundtrack.  LOVED IT!!!

 

After the show we decided to walk up and down Times Square to take in the lights.  It was an experience.  Like a huge block party with everyone just wandering around.  It was fun to see though.  Forever 21 had the coolest billboard that was simply a massive TV screen that would take pictures of the crowd and “use” them in their ad.  Everyone just stood around and tried to find themselves in the pictures.

After Time Square we took the subway home.  That was an experience.  We had no problems with the subway throughout the trip, except this night.  We got there a little late for the normal train we would take.  Bummer that it took us about 20 minutes to figure it out.  So we ran to catch another one that would drop us off about 5 blocks about from our hotel.  Unfortunately something was going on (we think it was construction) and they skipped the 2 stops around our hotel and we ended up about almost 15 blocks and 2 avenues away from our hotel.  So we were totally booking it to our hotel at 1am (with Alicia in her high heels) just hoping we wouldn’t meet up with anyone.  It wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be.  Our hotel was in a great area, so that was a good thing.  Okay, there we go, a true New York experience.

3rd Night: Twilight Cruise

We took a cruise around the island to close our trip.  It was a great way to see the skyline of the city.

This is probably the most unflattering photo of me, but it helps explain what happened.  We were to be at the dock 30 min before the cruise started.  Dan figured it would take 8 min to take the subway to the bus stop and then about 10 minutes from there to the dock.  Of course we missed the train, which made us miss the bus.  So we decided we would walk to the next bus stop.  Unfortunately, we didn’t know when the next bus would be coming.  So at 20 minutes before the cruise STARTED we were standing on the street corner hoping that a bus would come.  We tried to grab a cab. Yeah, that went well.  So then we just take off running down the street.  So we ran about 4 blocks and Alicia gave up (wrong shoes for running).  Luckily the bus showed up and let us bum a ride.  We got to the dock with about 2 minutes to spare.  Thus, I LOOK LIKE CRAP!

Aside from that adventure, the cruise was great!!  We started at sunset and had a great tour guide.

Empire State Building as we were leaving the dock.

A golf driving range on the south side of the island.  Utilizing every inch of space right?

   

After the sun set we sailed around the Statue of Liberty.  Unfortunately the sun was setting behind the statue, so it looked awesome, but did not photograph well.  Well, it did not photograph well for us amateurs.  A little photoshop helped, at least to my satisfaction.

The Empire State as we were coming back in to dock.  It was beautiful lit up.

Goodbye NYC, I loved you while I was here.  Yes, I do plan on going back.

And They Did Eat

So I actually have to do a post on what we ate in NYC.  We did really well, and did NOT eat at any chain restaurant. (Okay, I caved in Rochester and we stopped off at a Dunkin’ Donuts but that doesn’t count because I don’t believe there is one in our state!)

Anyway, while in NYC we tried to have the quintessential dining experience.  We did the hot dog vendor on the street, the neighborhood cafe, etc.  Unfortunately we were running around so much we had to force ourselves to take time to eat.  I loved what I ate so here I just have to share the highlights:

Thin New York style pizza at John’s Pizzeria of Bleecker Street. It was in Greenwich Village near NYU.  Amazing pizza.  Dan actually loved the thin crust.  Actually reasonably priced.  Only downside…cash only.  (Which I discovered was contrary to popular opinion in travel books)

Roast Beef Sandwich from the famous Carnegie Deli.  This was my half of the sandwich.  Would you like a little bread to go with your meat??  I couldn’t believe this.  In fact, I think I’m going to be disowned by my family.  I couldn’t finish it.  Too much meat.  And that’s a lot coming from me where the mantra in my home growing up was “meat is a snack”.

  Dan insisted on getting authentic NY Cheesecake.  I’m glad he did.  It was great!  A fun way to end the evening after the play.  I’m not sure how to rate this.  The sandwich was too much, but the cheesecake was great.  A little pricey ($16 for the sandwich and we went simple)  Granted I couldn’t finish it.  Oh, and we got the famous NYC deli counter attitude which made me giggle.

Fresh made crab dumplings from Joe’s Shanghai in Chinatown.  Great food.  We actually got placed at a table with another family from Texas and it was fun talking to them.  Adorable little boy.  Probably about as expensive at PF Chang’s, but we got more food.  Unfortunately we couldn’t take the leftovers.  Another cash only place, but worth it.

 

Our last dinner we did Gray’s Papya (You’ve Got Mail) Hotdog Stand. 

The first time Alicia did sauerkraut…Awesome hotdog.  The drink was really good too.  Way cheap.  A great way to end the trip.

I have to say the food was one of the neatest things of NYC.  I really want to go back and try some of the more international flavors.  I was just proud of us for branching out a little more than normal. 

New York City – Day 3

Our last day in NYC we started on the Upper West side where our hotel was.  We mostly just did the bus tour, and not much walking.  It was actually raining, so it was nice to just sit and enjoy the cool air.

The one place we did get off was at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.  One of the largest Cathedral’s in the America’s.  Having rarely been to a church outside of my own religion I found it fascinating.  What a beautiful building.  It made me wish I had more knowledge of how they actually used it with all their adjacent chapels and such, but it was enjoyable just walking around and exploring on our own.

 

If you couldn’t tell, I think there was a smudge on my camera lens.  Can I tell you how mad I am at myself?

I believe this was the pulpit, or at least one of them.

Looking down the main area…see my ignorance, I don’t even know what you would call this. 

 

We couldn’t decide if this was an actual tomb, or just a monument to someone.

After going up through Harlem we stopped off at the Conservancy Garden on the East side of Central Park.

I enjoyed this garden much more than Central Park.  In fact I recognized some areas from famous photographs.

Now I wish I made Dan take off his hat and glasses more.  What a great way to remember him?

Now it was time to head south to Chinatown to get some food and shopping done.

 

I loved Chinatown at first.  Then, after walking street after street, I just felt like I was back in Tijuana.  Not my favorite place.  The fish market street threw me over the edge.  I hate the smell!  Dan just sat back and enjoyed the memories of the Philippines.  Urine and fish…what a combination.

One of the few buildings I actually wanted to go inside.  Grand Central Station.  Amazing!  It was beautiful.

One more pic from our day.

This was the view from our hotel room.  It is Columbus Park which is on the north side of the American Natural History Museum (Night at the Museum).  I loved the view.  Only problem with the room…when our A/C froze up the 2nd day and we had no air coming in that night.  Awful!  We had complained about it, but they didn’t have anyone come until the next morning.  Luckily we were rarely there, so we weren’t too uncomfortable.

Can’t believe the 1st leg of our trip is over.  On to Rochester. 

New York City – Day 2

The 2nd and 3rd days in NYC we took a hop on/off bus tour to get a general look at everything.  Yes, I know.  Total tourist thing to do, but we found it quite nice.  The tour guides were good and we learned a lot of things without having to do the research.  Not to mention it was nice to be able and sit and look and not walk it all.  Not to say we didn’t do any walking.

Alicia got her picture with one of the lions at the NYC Public Library.  Unfortunately, it seemed like all the fun buildings I wanted to photograph were in the midst of reconstruction…blah!

Rockefeller Plaza of course.  I hate to admit it, but I am a Today Show junkie.  It is the news program I have on in the morning when I’m getting dressed.  (No offence to GMA…I just can’t take someone named Juju seriously:), although now that I think about it, I can’t take someone named Hoda seriously…good thing I don’t watch that much.)

After doing the tour once around we started with the Empire State building and then worked our way down to the lower end. 

Okay explanation…We had fun on the tour trying to find the bronze statues at the top of random buildings.  One guide said it was a temporary art display, we just thought it was funny finding the naked guy looking like he was about to jump.  Yeah, so not the thing found around home.

Dan looking out towards the Chrysler Building.

 

The arch at Washington Square Park….”I Am Legend” anyone?  There was an awesome fountain that we were really tempted to jump in.  Yep another day of 100+ temperatures.

Looking up Wall Street to Trinity Church. 

Alexander Hamilton’s tombstone.  I took this only to show one of Alicia's new fascinations…old cemeteries.  I was completely enthralled.  I could have spent hours wandering around these graves.  Boy I sound morbid!  It was so interesting looking at the different styles of stones, and wondering about the back story of the people.  It is much different looking at a grave from the 1700’s.  Not much of that around here.

Dan wanted to get a picture with the Wall Street Bull. 

I loved the facades on these old buildings.  They were amazing!!

Our last stop before going to change for our show.  Dan had to get a picture for his family. 

There we go.  Day 2 down, at least the touristy part of it.  Total steps: 26,000.