A quick stop in the Big Apple with Matt and Khanh.
And we’re off! This multifamily trip consists of many different legs over the course of a month. In 2018, June’s dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and her mom re-diagnosed with cancer, so the extended family has tried to take a trip together every year since then. Covid postponed this one for two years so it kept getting longer and longer with her mom adding on legs as this will likely be their last trip. First off on our way to Europe is an overnighter in NYC where we’ll crash for the night at Hudson’s favorite uncle’s super spacious 1905 built NYC apartment on West 80th.
We hit the ground that Tuesday morning after an overnight flight on Hawaiian Air. A $52 (hopefully) flat fee yellow taxi ride took us into town to Matt’s place, where we’ll set up and head out for the day. Turns out after tolls and an hour fifteen minute ride the actually fare was $63 and change. The ride back to the airport is more like $80-90.
There is a lot less honking than I remember.
Hah! They still got the same sign up that I saw in 2000. Seeing this reminds me of when we lived in Long Island for a summer, and I was looking for work. A guy I knew suggested I should consider police work as a career. If this is your PSA, heck no.
Magnolia birthday cupcakes for June…Matt is so thoughtful.
…after catching up with Matt and Khanh, we got our act together and headed out south to do a couple of things.
The Museum of Illusion. The girl at the front desk said we might spend an hour there. Visual illusions of all sorts, maybe 30-40 big and small in not too large of a space. It was mildly interesting but not mind blowing. Not sure why, but the name museum to me is a bit misleading.
They had instructions on where to stand and how to take perspective pictures, which was this place’s strong point.
Adult tickets were twenty something bucks a head and the kids ones are twenty. We were able to get the family package for $68.
We grabbed some overpriced street gyro and chicken kebab in a bun and a pretzel for $23 bucks and headed to the recently developed exterior hangout space called Little Island. Can’t trust a place with no prices listed.
Little Island is an outdoor gathering space built out onto the water on cement posts.
There’s an outdoor amphitheater, trails, and paths to walk/hike around. Pretty modern and well balanced with greenery and pathways. It’s neat that the city dedicates resources to projects like this.
On the way back we stopped at Strand bookstore-3 stories of new and used books.
Although I’m not much of a reader, our boys are thanks to June. When we walked in, Pax asked the info desk about locating a copy of “The Odyssey.”
This gal brought down 3 different translations, including her favorite by Emily Wilson. Pax found a bench to peruse through them and pick out his favorite version.
I asked Hudson what he thought of Strand. “Although they didn’t have Demon Slayer #19, this place is like heaven”, he said. Lol. Good readers, these guys.
We Metroed back to Matt’s place and got ready to go see the Broadway production of “Aladdin.” Birthday girl’s choice. On the way out, I stopped for a sandwich outside of Matt’s place at a deli called Zabars, a Jewish deli known for their salmon.
Slim pickings. I grabbed one of the two remaining ready made sandwiches left on the mostly empty shelf. End of the day I guess.
It was about 7 bucks and surprisingly good for being the second to last sandwich on the shelf. Would definitely want to go back another time. Lastly I do not advise taking food pics while crossing the intersection.
It was a pretty full show. Sorry no during pics for the usual reasons.
Good thing I was too tired to drink.
After the show it was raining and under the guidance of uncle Matt we walked like New Yorkers to this basement ramen joint.
Too hungry to remember to take food pics but here’s the aftermath.
Time for bed. Today was one of those days where I thought the things we did earlier that day were from the day before!
We woke up to breakfast bagels from Matt-future bed and breakfast owner.
We started our already late morning with a required pre-cruise Covid test conveniently located downstairs and then walked two long blocks to Central Park.
Hudson wanted to go row a boat in the lake, which was located next to the Bramble. Pax piloted us around skillfully while I stayed in the back wishing I brought my fishing rod and June stayed in the front complaining about rocking the boat.
Keep at it young man, you may propose to your future wife like this one day.
We walked southward through the park while stopping leisurely for caricatures and to look at places we recognized from our favorite Covid lockdown show on Apple TV, Central Park….
Eventually we popped out of the southeast side of the park, and we made our way down to Joe’s House of Shanghai Soup Dumplings.
My cost to value ratio may have changed a bit but I thought that $10.50 for 6 quality xiaolongbao was not a bad deal especially after trying a few mediocre ones in Hawaii. They had chicken, pork or seafood to choose from. The waiter talked us into getting a huge plate of kongxintsai, and we also ordered fried potstickers. It was a simple and fulfilling meal
After reevaluating our time we decided not to go shopping at Trader Joe’s or Uniqlo but instead head home, pack it up and hail a cab. Our Moroccan driver did his best to take every shortcut, cut in and out of lanes lanes and cut off cars to get us to the airport just a little quicker than the GPS said. At the airport, we met up with a few of our traveling party-June’s mom, dad, aunty Lina, and Uncle Ben. The rest of the gang (June’s brother Joel, sister Joette and her daughter Larissa) would meet us in the next city.
It was kind of like the Power Rangers combining, but instead we’re just tourists heading off to——>
Barcelona, Spain
I did have a memorable conversation that I reflected on for a few days. When we were cabbing out of the city, I was talking to our Moroccan cab driver. We talked about crime and city issues in NYC and Hawaii. I said something to the effect of, “You might as well be homeless back home in Morocco! Sounds nice there.” In decent but broken English, he said that it might be difficult to do so. When I asked why, and he said that Morocco is predominantly Muslim, and that in the Muslim culture, if a person is needy, they can go to any home and ask for help-food, water, a place to stay, and the homeowner will likely extend the necessary offerings no question. That blew my mind.
The WOO family page 