vacation

The Cawthon quad recently took on the Big Apple for our family vacation….

Upon arrival, we caught a cab to Brooklyn. “I driving one week only,” he says. #fab

Yikes!

To his credit, he found our brownstone in Stuyvesant Heights on the first try.

We rented a flat in a residential area of Brooklyn and loved it! It was less expensive and gave us a commuter’s experience for the week. The subway was four blocks away and had us in Manhattan in twelve minutes.

After reading Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire, attending a Sunday service at the Brooklyn Tabernacle was my number one must-do.

Holding hands across the aisles singing “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior.” Stop it.

On Day One, I also lost my driver’s license. Because I have a knack for losing really important things. It’s a gift. We had a friend overnight my passport, so I could board a plane at the end of our adventures. #lovely

On our first full day in the city we visited the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

With delish cannoli and tiramisu to follow in Little Italy.

Afterwards we landed a pretty dreamy ride on the…

Which is free and the best way to see the Statue of Liberty.

Much to my chagrin, the eldest Woman-Child thought the Statue of Liberty was in Central Park. Glad we settled that. #OhMy

After a monstrous day of it, we hoofed it back to Brooklyn across the Brooklyn Bridge (also free) with quite the view of the city.

Next up was the American Museum of Natural History

where we most enjoyed finding the exhibits featured in the Night at the Museum trilogy.

We then spent the evening on Broadway.

The girls snagged autographs and pics with the cast at the stage door after the show (free). Here Sharpie is twinning with Caroline Bowman, aka Elphaba in Wicked. We all geeked out pretty hard that Matt Shingledecker, cast in the role of Fiyero, hails from the great state of South Carolina…a Charlestonian.

The next day we noshed on dogs at Yankee stadium, rooted for another local fella

(Brett Gardner #11),

made a super brief appearance on the Jumbotron, and belted “New York, New York” after the Yankees stomped the Phillies.

Eldest continued her education as she made peace with the fact that the Yankees game featured neither an intermission nor a half-time. #Bless

We took the subway to Grand Central Station and hit Fifth Avenue on the way to…

Times Square.

On the next day, we fed our brains a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It’s important to know that you could never ever “do” the whole museum. Even if you lived there. To call it vast grossly minimizes it. Folks who live in NYC have access to so much knowledge and so many experiences.

Being the simpletons we are, I reserved us four kids audio tours, and it was perfect. While I loved seeing real pieces of work by Degas, Van Gogh, and Picasso; the Junior Fry could not have cared less. During the week, if she caught an unpleasant attitude, I threatened to take her back to a museum. #QualityParenting

We then took in a little sunset view of the Empire State Building from the Top of the Rock. I would possibly not recommend trying to catch sunset because so many people go up and just wait, allowing them to catch day shots, dusk shots, and night shots within an hour’s time. It was super crowded.

On our final day, we hung out on the High Line (free), which is an old elevated railway track turned into a park. Highly, highly (pun intended) recommend!

We then happened upon a pop-up gallery in Chelsea where we met famed street artist, Mr. Brainwash.

As it turns out, he’s really great at taking group selfies too.  The title image is a piece of his work, and it wasn’t until we were home and did some research that we learned he’s a pretty interesting cat.

In parting, here are a few other nuggets for you…

• There’s a lot of beautiful in NYC.
• So apparently lichee is a fruit. Who knew?
• New Yorkers are super nice. We did not have one rude encounter during our visit. In fact, a young fella offered me a seat on the subway. I was pleased until I read the posted etiquette that suggested seats be offered to the elderly, pregnant, or disabled. Of course, I was no longer flattered. :-/
• I cared not for the communal tables in some tiny restaurants.
• NYC is a city in order. To boast a population of 8 million people, it runs like a well-oiled machine.
• One of my mama goals for the week was to teach my offspring not to walk four deep on the sidewalk. We small towners are accustomed to space, so we’ll spread the whole fam across the path. Not sure I succeeded.
• Take the subway; it’s the fastest and cheapest way to travel in a super congested city. Carson used the Embark app which told us which trains to take and which stops to exit. We did not hop one wrong train during our visit. We traveled it as late as 11:30 pm and walked the four blocks to our apartment in complete safety. And, to be honest, I was tickled that our subway experience was complete when we witnessed a  fat rat scavenging along the track. 😉
• NYC is a city of performers. On our late night walk from the subway station we fell in behind a student drum-line who was headed home in our direction. Despite the time, they played all the way, and we felt like members of a midnight parade. There are just few things I love more than the collaboration of a drum-line. And on the way to Yankee stadium, we experienced this subway show (if you watched the video I posted on Instagram and Facebook, this is a different one)…

LOVE.

But after a week in The City that Never Sleeps, this introvert who naps as a hobby is way spent on interaction and still short on slumber. I’m tapping out…