Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[aussielozzie18]

This was the view from Top of the Rock back in 2015.  I think the number of buildings in front has increased quite a lot since then.

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

We quite liked catching the cable car across to Roosevelt Island.  Back when we visited the cost was included in the 7 day pass.  Nice views from the island.

 

 

 

 

 

[xpcdoojk]

4 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

If you stay in NJ you can ride the NJTransit trains in and out of the city but it would be much more convenient to stay in Manhattan.

That is what we did the last time, during the never ending rain.  We saved a couple of hundred at night.  Stayed at the hotel across from the Penn Station in NJ.  Hotel was fine.  Train ride about 25 minutes each way.  Lots of homeless and addicted people there.  Blew out my On Cloud shoes walking for 3 days in the rain, had to buy another pair (Gortex) on our last day in the city after taking the ferry and doing the crown stairs at the Statute of Liberty.  Went to see Six (six wives of Henry VII) because it was one of the few shows we haven’t seen.  (It was good, silly songs done with a lot of style).  Ate at 5:30 at the Palm with some Jersey people who are obviously regulars at the Palm who wanted to be our best friends.  They were not the kind of people who vote for the winner of the local elections, so I kind of liked them despite their oddness.  Had breakfast after waiting in the rain outside sort of covered for an hour at some place related to dogs near Madison Garden one morning.  Good trip. 

 

On previous last trip, (not counting arriving at Cape Liberty and flying home from there) on Labor Day weekend in 2016, the ladies wanted to be in the audience of a show, preferably SNL.  They weren’t back yet and I wasn’t going to waste time standing in line, so I got us in to the nerd that used to write for SNL, Seth Meyers.  So, apparently, getting in means you get to compete for seating.  My DW, is a completely awesomely competitive person, and once inside it became the goal of becoming a super fan of Seth.  Because the best seat went to the super fan.  We have in our lifetime watched one episode of the Seth Meyers show.  The one we attended that Labor Day weekend.  When I realized what the producer was doing, I told her, my wife would be the super fan.  Sure enough 30 minutes later of insane silly stuff and a bit of obvious trivia.  We were escorted to the seats of the super fan.  

 

I like visiting NYC, but it is a really crappy and horrible place with a bunch of off the charts amazing stuff.

 

JMHO and YMMV

 

 

[HBE4]

4 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

Since NYC is currently the conversation this isn't too far off topic.  I am scheduled to board Liberty 11 months from now for a Canada/NE cruise.  I've never been to NYC before so I'm planning on going in three days early. I've just started looking into planning for this and I've got a couple of questions.  First question is should I fly into Newark or JFK?  Originally I thought I'd fly into Newark since that would be the easiest on embarkation morning but after thinking about it I'm reconsidering the idea.  Since I'm going to spend three days in NYC flying into Newark and staying in Newark might be a dumb idea.  Should I fly into NYC and stay closer to where I'll be visiting or should I stay in Newark near the cruise port.  If I stay in Newark what should I do about transport each day getting into NYC.  Or conversely, if staying in NYC what is my best option for transport to Cape Liberty on cruise day?  Is staying near JFK to far from the city and will I find it inconvenient travesing back and forth each day.

 

My plan for the time in NYC is the usual tourist favorites; The 911 memorial and museum, Time Square, Empire State Building, Central Park, Broadway show (which is TBD) and whatever else I can squeeze in after that.  any other suggestions are welcome.  

 

 

 

Definitely don't stay near JFK, it can take up to an hour to get to Manhattan.  It's on the very out edge of NYC & the neighborhood is....well, I don't know as I usually just get the heck in and out of the airport as quickly as possible.

 

Newark is better and depending where you stay you Newark, NJ Transit, Amtrak and PATH can get you safely in and out the city.  PATH is a glorified subway that run 24/7 that will take you to either midtown Manhattan for theater and downtown for 9/11 Memorial.  All 3 modes of transportation are mostly used by commuters & visitors so the most dangerous aspect will be bumping into a surly office worker having a bad day.

 

I think @Jimbo and maybe JC @xpcdoojk can give more info as I believe they've stayed in Newark & travel into the city.

 

[xpcdoojk]

4 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

How safe is that at night?

The hotel across the street, I would say 99.9% safe

[xpcdoojk]

3 minutes ago, xpcdoojk said:

The hotel across the street, I would say 99.9% safe

I am 99% certain it was a Doubletree, but I would have to look at my notes to verify.  We had a room that looked at the station.  Ambulances, police they all were there regularly.  So, pretty safe since it is like under the constant watch of the local cops.  Literally across the street. 

[lenquixote66]

21 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

It's fun, the wait staff are real actors & singers and their performances are Broadway worthy

 

. As diner food goes, let's just say its more about the atmosphere than the food. 😉  It's not bad but it's diner food with upscale prices. Definitely worth a visit if you have the time.

Same opinion from me

[Tree_skier]

1 hour ago, xpcdoojk said:

I am 99% certain it was a Doubletree, but I would have to look at my notes to verify.  We had a room that looked at the station.  Ambulances, police they all were there regularly.  So, pretty safe since it is like under the constant watch of the local cops.  Literally across the street. 

That'd be perfect. That Double tree was already on my radar since I prefer Hilton properties and stay in them whenever possible.  

[Tree_skier]

Just check in for my Harmony of the Seas cruise Dec. 10. 🙂 

 

45 days to go

[brillohead]

Found on FB and had to share here for @Ocean Boy and the rest of the Swifties!  🤣

 

[sgmn]

7 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

Found it, I think. From Father Day.  Since it was one of those "perfect 10"  summer days in NYC, it was mostly outdoor adventures, including The High Line.

 

------- 

 

While I did check in from time to time, it was hard to keep up with a very busy Dani thread this weekend as it was a busy family weekend for me as well.  Saturday was the baptism for my niece’s daughter (grand-niece? Niece once removed?) followed by a catered after party at a local volunteer firehouse, followed by an after-after party at my brother’s house.  It was great catching up with family that traveled up from Atlanta, GA and down from Canada. A very long day of over-indulging on food and drink but isn’t that the purpose of such events? 😁

 

After clearing the cobwebs out of my head Sunday morning, it was off to NYC where Little Miss HBE4 treated me for Father’s Day (part one).  Last minute decision so we decided to just wing it. Grabbed a couple of road sodas (beer for me, spiked seltzers for her) for the train ride in. Since it’s was a perfect June day weather-wise – plenty of sun, comfortable temps and no humidity – we headed over to The High Line Park. The High Line was an old, abandoned, elevated freight train line thru the lower west side Manhattan back when it was an industrial area. It has been converted into a park, complete with gardens, flowers, trees, art exhibits, food and drink vendors, plenty of benches & scenic overlooks with stairs down to street level every few blocks.  For those that are really interested, you can learn more about the High Line here.

 

https://www.thehighline.org/park-features/

 

https://www.thehighline.org/photos/at-a-glance/best-of/

 

Had a late lunch/early dinner (Linner? Dunch?)  at Death Ave Bar & Restaurant (https://www.deathave.com/).  The name refers to the nickname of 10^th Ave when freight trains ran down the middle of the street with no barriers between the trains and cars & pedestrians. Something like 450 people were killed in a span of 50+ year before the train was elevated. This was despite the WestSide Cowboys riding ahead of the train to warn people. You can read why it’s called Death Avenue here.

https://www.thehighline.org/blog/2021/10/28/the-history-of-death-avenue-2/

 

Then walked the 1.5 miles of the High Line from Hudson Yards to Greenwich Village. From there, we just kind of bounced around a few different places. Went to a jazz club but the band was a last minute no-show so they piped on 80’s pop music. Curious choice and while I love 80’s music, it wasn’t what we were looking for so we moved onto a Karaoke bar.  LOL. Last stop was a place called “Off the Wagon”, a local neighborhood type of place where we struck up conversations with a few others we met and stayed out waaayyyy tooo long before Lyft back to Grand Central Station and napping on the train ride back home.

 

A great way to end a great weekend. The one thing is that I did not take very many pictures, hence the web links. Since my step daughter very uncharacteristically stayed off her phone all day, I likewise kept my phone in my pocket to “stay in the moment” as they say. Wouldn’t want it any other way. So here are all 4 pictures I took. LOL

 

The High Line with some cool looking buildings.

 

 

 

One of the many pieces of Art along the walk.

 

 

 

Love the cobblestone streets that are still around in lower Manhattan

 

 

 

Back when we were having a pizza discussion on this thread, someone had mention John of Bleeker Street having the best pizza in the city.  I was still stuffed from Linner and besides, I don't wait on any line that goes out the door, much less one that goes down the block and around the corner and disappears over the horizon. No matter how good the food is.  Maybe some other time.

 

 

 

EDIT: Forgot to mention that Fathers Day Part 2 comes this August as my step daughter also got me tickets for "The Book of Mormon".

Thanks for this, I've forwarded details to my son and his partner . They are going on a much anticipated three day trip to Manhattan in mid Dec  

[Ocean Boy]

8 hours ago, Arzeena said:

I missed everything about Bonnie's card player. and someone not being nice to NHProud because of ethnicity. I am so sorry that this happened. Posts are removed (I think?). Anyways, hugs to Bonnie and NH.

I missed what happened to @NHProudtoo.

[Ocean Boy]

7 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge during a transit strike to get to work and many times for pleasure.

Walking across the bridge is a very fun experience.

[Husky1987]

9 hours ago, HBE4 said:

Back when we were having a pizza discussion on this thread, someone had mention John of Bleeker Street having the best pizza in the city.  I was still stuffed from Linner and besides, I don't wait on any line that goes out the door, much less one that goes down the block and around the corner and disappears over the horizon. No matter how good the food is.  Maybe some other time.

That may have been me.  John’s is my NYC fave and we go every time we’re in the city.  I’ve never waited in a line there for more than a few people/5 minutes or so…probably luck of the draw.  Goes pretty quick but I’m with you, as much as I love John’s I wouldn’t wait in that line either.

[Arzeena]

12 hours ago, Luckynana said:

I think you and Susan should be fine, Mark.  I think the heavy traffic is closer to New Years, when those that are renters want to be in Florida for the 1st of the Year.  Last year we left home on the 29th, since our daughter, SIL and grandchildren were staying at our Condo until New Years Eve.   They flew home that morning, and we arrived that afternoon.  We were in the midst of snowbird traffic, along with traffic accidents, etc.  

So  we should be OK using 26 in mid September to get to 77. And then back 77 and 26  to 95 S .I think?

No birdies going up or down then.🥰
Midway stop Charlotte NC or Columbia SC (Driving from Orlando to Columbus OH)?
I think I have caught the Greg and Crystal bug of micro planning.🥰

When I ask RJ, he says "We have Waze!" , "For God's sake its almost a year from now! ." and all those phrases!!!!! 😁😁But I have friends in all the right places (aka Cruise Critic) that can help me and talk to me! I am excited but I am also a bit apprehensive.....ya know family-in-law event and the family is a mini United Nations.

[h20skibum]

7 minutes ago, Arzeena said:

So  we should be OK using 26 in mid September to get to 77. And then back 77 and 26  to 95 S .I think?

No birdies going up or down then.🥰
Midway stop Charlotte NC or Columbia SC (Driving from Orlando to Columbus OH)?
I think I have caught the Greg and Crystal bug of micro planning.🥰

When I ask RJ, he says "We have Waze!" , "For God's sake its almost a year from now! ." and all those phrases!!!!! 😁😁But I have friends in all the right places (aka Cruise Critic) that can help me and talk to me! I am excited but I am also a bit apprehensive.....ya know family-in-law event and the family is a mini United Nations.

Kids are all back in school by then, and family vacation travel should be over also.  
 

Nothing wrong with planning.  I have a spreadsheet with our stops along our drive.   I don’t mean just where we are stopping for the night.   I mean number of miles and travel time to each rest stop, fuel stop, and lunch stop.   Plus I usually research the gas prices where we will stop and factor that in.  You know, some of those states have higher gas prices than others.  Just like this morning, our gas stop in WV is currently at $3.50/gal, and in NC it is $3.00/gal. 
 

I do leave room to be flexible though.  I must admit that Susan and I make a good driving team.  I do plan it so she doesn’t have to drive in any of the major cities along the route..

[Arzeena]

10 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

Definitely don't stay near JFK, it can take up to an hour to get to Manhattan.  It's on the very out edge of NYC & the neighborhood is....well, I don't know as I usually just get the heck in and out of the airport as quickly as possible.

 

Newark is better and depending where you stay you Newark, NJ Transit, Amtrak and PATH can get you safely in and out the city.  PATH is a glorified subway that run 24/7 that will take you to either midtown Manhattan for theater and downtown for 9/11 Memorial.  All 3 modes of transportation are mostly used by commuters & visitors so the most dangerous aspect will be bumping into a surly office worker having a bad day.

 

I think @Jimbo and maybe JC @xpcdoojk can give more info as I believe they've stayed in Newark & travel into the city.

 

I agree about staying in Newark. JKF area is a NO NO (in my humble opinion).

The Westin in Newark is very nice. I think it is called the Newport area. Not like Newark downtown at all. There are other hotels in that area too.

Train/path to the city right across the road.

Restaurants and shopping galore outside.

We really enjoyed the stay.

This was some years back (maybe 2018 ish?) before a cruise. They upgraded us to a suite that had a view of the ship coming in (the hotel is not on the riverfront but has rooms where you can see the river front).

 

[grapau27]

Good afternoon.

It is a cool 8°C and the rain is pouring down.

I hope everyone is safe and well.

Prayers 🙏 lifted for Dani @dani negreanu and her family and condolences to all those affected by events in Maine this morning.

 

[Arzeena]

12 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

Kids are all back in school by then, and family vacation travel should be over also.  
 

Nothing wrong with planning.  I have a spreadsheet with our stops along our drive.   I don’t mean just where we are stopping for the night.   I mean number of miles and travel time to each rest stop, fuel stop, and lunch stop.   Plus I usually research the gas prices where we will stop and factor that in.  You know, some of those states have higher gas prices than others.  Just like this morning, our gas stop in WV is currently at $3.50/gal, and in NC it is $3.00/gal. 
 

I do leave room to be flexible though.  I must admit that Susan and I make a good driving team.  I do plan it so she doesn’t have to drive in any of the major cities along the route..

Sounds great! I will try and do a spreadsheet or at least some notes. Thank you for all the great suggestions.

[bobmacliberty]

16 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

I love the Intrepid Museum and South Street Seaport. Central Park is very nice, too. I always have to make a visit to St. Patrick's Cathedral. 

 

The Intrepid is definitely on my list and will be weather dependent, since I believe that part of the experience is seeing everything outdoors on the deck.

 

15 hours ago, NHProud said:

If you’re going to Grand Central station look at the Oyster bar menu . There are other things on the menu besides oysters.  I used to visit annually in Feb and never had a problem with the weather.  

 

Is that the "hidden" bar that's upstairs?  We'll be looking for that bar.

 

14 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

My two favorite midtown Manhattan restaurants are :

Carmines -200 W.44 St.Italian cuisine.Toby and I have dined there more than 50 times and the food and service has always been great.

Le Rivage 340 W.46 St.French cuisine We have dined there many times and the food and service is always great.Reservations are a must.

Le Rivage is on Restaurant Row,wall to wall restaurants ,many cuisines.

 

14 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

I am not a steak eater .I have shrimp at Gallagher’s.

 

Good suggestions Lenny.  Le Rivage looks like a possibility.

 

12 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

@bobmacliberty Since  you'll be in Grant Central Station, check out the Whispering Gallery.

 

 

 

Bryant Park is a short walk from Grant Central & Summit OV. and while the Christmas Tree will be taken down by then, the rest of the Winter Village will be in full swing.

 

https://bryantpark.org/activities/category/winter-village

 

And since you mentioned Summit, check out The Edge at Hudson Yards, where you can also pick up the HighLine

 

https://www.edgenyc.com/en 

 

Hudson Yards itself was a massive construction project, a city within a city built over a very active 30 track train yard. The video is a bit long and dry but it might appeal to the engineer in you.

 

 

Finally, if  you still want more outdoor viewing venues on top of skyscrapers in the dead of winter, may I suggest as drink at  the rooftop bar 230-5th Ave.  Heated Igloo's are first come basis. They used to provide parka & gloves (much like the various Ice Bars around the country) but did'nt see it mentioned of their website. 

 

https://www.230-fifth.com/

 

 

 

I like the whispering gallery idea.  From what I've read, Grand Central has several interesting/historical things to look at while visiting including the clock and the ceiling.  Most people just use it as a key transportation hub.

 

Good to hear that Bryant Park will still have the Winter Village set up.  I thought we'd be too late to see any Christmas decorations.

 

11 hours ago, mets07 said:

NYC things that have not been mentioned:

 

Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge back and forth from Manhattan to Brooklyn. 

 

Take the Staten Island Ferry from lower Manhattan (it is free) back and forth .... nice views of the Statue of Liberty.  Don't be scammed by anyone selling tickets.

 

If you need a good burger etc. restaurant on the West side on 42nd Street... Kings of Kobe.

650 W.42 St.

 

Another restaurant we like is The Smith (we go to Lincoln Square location - near Lincoln Center, but there are other locations).  Typically a very lively, busy place.

 

Enjoy.

 

Adding Kings of Kobe to the list of possibilities.  A good burger is sometimes the exact right meal.

 

11 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

Found it, I think. From Father Day.  Since it was one of those "perfect 10"  summer days in NYC, it was mostly outdoor adventures, including The High Line.

 

------- 

 

While I did check in from time to time, it was hard to keep up with a very busy Dani thread this weekend as it was a busy family weekend for me as well.  Saturday was the baptism for my niece’s daughter (grand-niece? Niece once removed?) followed by a catered after party at a local volunteer firehouse, followed by an after-after party at my brother’s house.  It was great catching up with family that traveled up from Atlanta, GA and down from Canada. A very long day of over-indulging on food and drink but isn’t that the purpose of such events? 😁

 

After clearing the cobwebs out of my head Sunday morning, it was off to NYC where Little Miss HBE4 treated me for Father’s Day (part one).  Last minute decision so we decided to just wing it. Grabbed a couple of road sodas (beer for me, spiked seltzers for her) for the train ride in. Since it’s was a perfect June day weather-wise – plenty of sun, comfortable temps and no humidity – we headed over to The High Line Park. The High Line was an old, abandoned, elevated freight train line thru the lower west side Manhattan back when it was an industrial area. It has been converted into a park, complete with gardens, flowers, trees, art exhibits, food and drink vendors, plenty of benches & scenic overlooks with stairs down to street level every few blocks.  For those that are really interested, you can learn more about the High Line here.

 

https://www.thehighline.org/park-features/

 

https://www.thehighline.org/photos/at-a-glance/best-of/

 

Had a late lunch/early dinner (Linner? Dunch?)  at Death Ave Bar & Restaurant (https://www.deathave.com/).  The name refers to the nickname of 10^th Ave when freight trains ran down the middle of the street with no barriers between the trains and cars & pedestrians. Something like 450 people were killed in a span of 50+ year before the train was elevated. This was despite the WestSide Cowboys riding ahead of the train to warn people. You can read why it’s called Death Avenue here.

https://www.thehighline.org/blog/2021/10/28/the-history-of-death-avenue-2/

 

Then walked the 1.5 miles of the High Line from Hudson Yards to Greenwich Village. From there, we just kind of bounced around a few different places. Went to a jazz club but the band was a last minute no-show so they piped on 80’s pop music. Curious choice and while I love 80’s music, it wasn’t what we were looking for so we moved onto a Karaoke bar.  LOL. Last stop was a place called “Off the Wagon”, a local neighborhood type of place where we struck up conversations with a few others we met and stayed out waaayyyy tooo long before Lyft back to Grand Central Station and napping on the train ride back home.

 

A great way to end a great weekend. The one thing is that I did not take very many pictures, hence the web links. Since my step daughter very uncharacteristically stayed off her phone all day, I likewise kept my phone in my pocket to “stay in the moment” as they say. Wouldn’t want it any other way. So here are all 4 pictures I took. LOL

 

The High Line with some cool looking buildings.

 

 

 

One of the many pieces of Art along the walk.

 

 

 

Love the cobblestone streets that are still around in lower Manhattan

 

 

 

Back when we were having a pizza discussion on this thread, someone had mention John of Bleeker Street having the best pizza in the city.  I was still stuffed from Linner and besides, I don't wait on any line that goes out the door, much less one that goes down the block and around the corner and disappears over the horizon. No matter how good the food is.  Maybe some other time.

 

 

 

EDIT: Forgot to mention that Fathers Day Part 2 comes this August as my step daughter also got me tickets for "The Book of Mormon".

 

The High Line will be highly weather dependent but will probably be a no.  Lots of people recommend it but it just seems like a walk through a park.  That might be novel to some New Yorkers but we get plenty of that here at home.

 

We'll check the line at Joe's and get our slice there if the line isn't too bad.  Just about everywhere I've looked lists Joe's as one of the best places for a slice (along with Bleeker Street Pizza).  I'm guessing that most people in line for Joe's are tourists due to the publicity that it has received.

 

11 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

It's fun, the wait staff are real actors & singers and their performances are Broadway worthy

 

. As diner food goes, let's just say its more about the atmosphere than the food. 😉  It's not bad but it's diner food with upscale prices. Definitely worth a visit if you have the time.

 

That's exactly what I thought it would be.  Thanks for the confirmation.

 

10 hours ago, xpcdoojk said:

I like visiting NYC, but it is a really crappy and horrible place with a bunch of off the charts amazing stuff.

 

This might be the perfect description. 😁

[bobmacliberty]

16 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

Since NYC is currently the conversation this isn't too far off topic.  I am scheduled to board Liberty 11 months from now for a Canada/NE cruise.  I've never been to NYC before so I'm planning on going in three days early. I've just started looking into planning for this and I've got a couple of questions.  First question is should I fly into Newark or JFK?  Originally I thought I'd fly into Newark since that would be the easiest on embarkation morning but after thinking about it I'm reconsidering the idea.  Since I'm going to spend three days in NYC flying into Newark and staying in Newark might be a dumb idea.  Should I fly into NYC and stay closer to where I'll be visiting or should I stay in Newark near the cruise port.  If I stay in Newark what should I do about transport each day getting into NYC.  Or conversely, if staying in NYC what is my best option for transport to Cape Liberty on cruise day?  Is staying near JFK to far from the city and will I find it inconvenient travesing back and forth each day.

 

My plan for the time in NYC is the usual tourist favorites; The 911 memorial and museum, Time Square, Empire State Building, Central Park, Broadway show (which is TBD) and whatever else I can squeeze in after that.  any other suggestions are welcome.  

 

 

 

I'm far from an expert but have gone off the deep end recently with NYC research.  The general advice I've received is to fly to whatever airport gives you the best fares/timing since you'll have a somewhat lengthy commute from any of the 3 into Manhattan (although LGA is shorter).  You can then either take relatively cheap public transportation into Manhattan, or spend a lot more on a taxi/Uber.  Note that Uber/Lyft often have surcharges during busy times and may be more expensive than a taxi.  Revel is another option that's fairly new.  It's like Uber/Lyft but only uses Tesla cars.

 

General advice again is to stay in Midtown Manhattan if it's your first visit and/or don't mind paying more for a hotel.  It's convenient because you're right in the middle of everything.  If you want to save on hotels and only add about a 10 minute commute into Manhattan via subway, check out staying in Brooklyn or Queens, specifically Long Island City.  This supposedly gives you a better feel for a NYC neighborhood. Again, I have no personal experience with this...just repeating what I've seen others say.

 

This all assumes that you don't mind commuting back to the Cape Liberty Cruise Port the morning of your cruise, which will probably be expensive.  You're trading off short/no commutes for your 3 days in Manhattan for a longer commute to the cruise ship.  I haven't seen anyone mention staying in Newark as an option when visiting the city, but that may only be because it's in New Jersey. 😁 

 

I got a lot of info from a couple of Youtubers:

Sarah Funk - YouTube

Here Be Barr - YouTube

[akcruz]

For anyone with an upcoming Celebrity cruise it looks like they have dropped the price of their drinks package upgrade and have some good sales.  It was $20 a day, saw some getting theirs for 6.99.  Ours was 9.99.

[BonTexasNY]

12 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

Found it, I think. From Father Day.  Since it was one of those "perfect 10"  summer days in NYC, it was mostly outdoor adventures, including The High Line.

 

------- 

 

While I did check in from time to time, it was hard to keep up with a very busy Dani thread this weekend as it was a busy family weekend for me as well.  Saturday was the baptism for my niece’s daughter (grand-niece? Niece once removed?) followed by a catered after party at a local volunteer firehouse, followed by an after-after party at my brother’s house.  It was great catching up with family that traveled up from Atlanta, GA and down from Canada. A very long day of over-indulging on food and drink but isn’t that the purpose of such events? 😁

 

After clearing the cobwebs out of my head Sunday morning, it was off to NYC where Little Miss HBE4 treated me for Father’s Day (part one).  Last minute decision so we decided to just wing it. Grabbed a couple of road sodas (beer for me, spiked seltzers for her) for the train ride in. Since it’s was a perfect June day weather-wise – plenty of sun, comfortable temps and no humidity – we headed over to The High Line Park. The High Line was an old, abandoned, elevated freight train line thru the lower west side Manhattan back when it was an industrial area. It has been converted into a park, complete with gardens, flowers, trees, art exhibits, food and drink vendors, plenty of benches & scenic overlooks with stairs down to street level every few blocks.  For those that are really interested, you can learn more about the High Line here.

 

https://www.thehighline.org/park-features/

 

https://www.thehighline.org/photos/at-a-glance/best-of/

 

Had a late lunch/early dinner (Linner? Dunch?)  at Death Ave Bar & Restaurant (https://www.deathave.com/).  The name refers to the nickname of 10^th Ave when freight trains ran down the middle of the street with no barriers between the trains and cars & pedestrians. Something like 450 people were killed in a span of 50+ year before the train was elevated. This was despite the WestSide Cowboys riding ahead of the train to warn people. You can read why it’s called Death Avenue here.

https://www.thehighline.org/blog/2021/10/28/the-history-of-death-avenue-2/

 

Then walked the 1.5 miles of the High Line from Hudson Yards to Greenwich Village. From there, we just kind of bounced around a few different places. Went to a jazz club but the band was a last minute no-show so they piped on 80’s pop music. Curious choice and while I love 80’s music, it wasn’t what we were looking for so we moved onto a Karaoke bar.  LOL. Last stop was a place called “Off the Wagon”, a local neighborhood type of place where we struck up conversations with a few others we met and stayed out waaayyyy tooo long before Lyft back to Grand Central Station and napping on the train ride back home.

 

A great way to end a great weekend. The one thing is that I did not take very many pictures, hence the web links. Since my step daughter very uncharacteristically stayed off her phone all day, I likewise kept my phone in my pocket to “stay in the moment” as they say. Wouldn’t want it any other way. So here are all 4 pictures I took. LOL

 

The High Line with some cool looking buildings.

 

 

 

One of the many pieces of Art along the walk.

 

 

 

Love the cobblestone streets that are still around in lower Manhattan

 

 

 

Back when we were having a pizza discussion on this thread, someone had mention John of Bleeker Street having the best pizza in the city.  I was still stuffed from Linner and besides, I don't wait on any line that goes out the door, much less one that goes down the block and around the corner and disappears over the horizon. No matter how good the food is.  Maybe some other time.

 

 

 

EDIT: Forgot to mention that Fathers Day Part 2 comes this August as my step daughter also got me tickets for "The Book of Mormon".

Yes!!!!  Thanks for finding it.

 

The only restaurant I ever waited in line for was 1-1/2 hours for Durgin Park in Boston.  Best prime rib ever.  This was many, many years ago when we were in our late 20s.  Most we would wait now is 15 minutes.🙄

 

Some wonderful advice from other folks.

[Arzeena]

14 minutes ago, akcruz said:

For anyone with an upcoming Celebrity cruise it looks like they have dropped the price of their drinks package upgrade and have some good sales.  It was $20 a day, saw some getting theirs for 6.99.  Ours was 9.99.

Thank you!

I checked ours. No sales on our X sailings.
Probably because we booked "bare bones" so no drink package available to upgrade.
I like the zero proof, but it never goes below $26.

We have a Classic included on an upcoming, but no upgrade sales for hubby. I usually get mine downgraded to zero proof as I like the smoothies and juices at Spa Cafe and can make use of the zero proof more efficiently than the classic.

 

[BonTexasNY]

As far as micro planning a trip, the only spreadsheets I ever created were work related.  We've driven from TX to NJ, to Miami and back, and all we did was get in the car and drive.  No advance plans. When we needed a potty break or food, we stopped at the next available area.  We don't like driving at night so when the sun started to set, we stopped at the next available hotel, preferably our favorite, Hampton Inn of which there are many along the way.

 

We love the drive down Galveston.  We pass 3 Buc'ees!  It heightens our cruise anticipation slowly. 

 

We love passing the giant statue of Sam Houston on 45.  I think @TravelGirlinDallas Bethany and @firefly333 Jane can relate.