A Real Vacation! Part 1

As much as we've enjoyed this year's stay-cations...it was really, really great to get away to New York City for 4 nights/5 days. I worked away from home almost every week for the first 6 months of the year, and in return for all those nights at the Holiday Inn in Norwich, I earned 4 nights free hotel to use anywhere in the world. So I chose The Barclay Hotel in New York City. And it really was FREE. Not one cent--no taxes, no nothing...

Unbeknownst to us, the timing of our trip coincided with the 64th UN General Assembly. We figured it out when we arrived at the hotel and had to put our luggage through the X-ray machine and ourselves through a metal detector to even get into the hotel. The lobby was heaving with meaty men in suits with little earpieces looking for shifty eyed guests laden with suicide bombs. I am happy to report that no one managed to blow anything up while we were there.

We do suspect that the President of Iran was staying at our hotel--given the nightly protests outside. We never caught a glimpse of him, or any other political operatives.

But in true New York style, we did spot a few celebs. Brunch on Saturday at one of the recommended restaurants had us sitting two tables away from Ugly Betty's Amanda and Marc. And Kyle MacLachlan was on our flight home! Those were definitely fun celeb spots. Before you ask...no, I did not make a fool of myself by asking for a
photo with any of them.

Part of the fun of any of our trips is eating great food. Before we left, we tapped the fountain of all NYC local knowledge--Budman's brother, M. He's just moved from the Big Apple to London and was quite the source of great restaurant recommendations. In addition to the Cookshop, we also sampled the delights of Sevilla--fantastic Spanish paella! Yum. If only we'd had more time and clothes a size larger!

For me, the highlight was seeing the Statue of Liberty in person. Unfortunately, we did not get to climb up to the crown, but wow, just the sheer size of her sandals--made me feel OK about the size of my feet! ;)


But really, here are a few shots of Lady Liberty.


This time with people in it for scale.




And a shot of Paul as we toured Ellis Island's Registry Room.


Looking from the Registry Room on Ellis Island out to Liberty Island.




Actually, we "kinda" saw a political operative...while on Liberty Island, Airforce One flew overhead. So, we're going to say that President Obama was in there flying out of New York from the UN business.


There were some amazing stories of the number of new arrivals to the American shores and the conditions that they endured trying to enter the country. Quite fascinating.

No trip to New York City is complete without a visit to Times Square.




And here's the ball--not yet hoisted into position.


And one of the best things we found in Times Square was M&M World! Wow, what a feast for the eyes.
I asked this fellow if he was still toxic--which is why I have the goofy grin on my face! OK...it's actually just delirium at the thought of an M&M that large!

P.S. Paulster says to make sure you know that I'm the one on the right.







OK--more on the trip later!