New York City- Day 4 - Pack and go!

Jun 26,

This morning we head home. But first, we went real quick to the nearby souvenir  shop because the girls wanted to get something from there (while there, by the way, I was once again asked if I was of Indian decent). That, a quick stop by the pastry shop, a quick good bye to Lionel's brother, and it was time to head to the airport.

New York City - Day 3 - Last dinner

Jun 25,

After our epic day of walking, we still went out for dinner. But this time around there was no more walking. We took an Uber to the restaurant, and then right back to the hotel. We met one of Lionel's college friends and his fiancée - otherwise I probably would have been happy staying at the hotel and eating whatever. It's a good thing that the girls hung in there after such a long day.

New York City- Day 3 - All around town

Jun 25,

Between this morning's run, and all the walking around, I basically logged 13 miles today. Tiring, but nor particularly surprising given that we have been on the go all day long. 

After I came back from my run, and we all took showers, we went back to Central Park to walk around with the girls. It was a nice sunny day but not too hot, especially in the shade. We then stopped for lunch at the Whole Foods Market in Columbus Circle before taking the subway towards the financial district. Sadly the subway was skipping a few stops - for some unfortunate and unknown reason - so we ended up walking a lot more than originally expected. That meant Bella was tired, and I had to seriously "coach her" through it - especially during the last mile. We eventually got to the statues of the bull and the little girl facing it defiantly, and took a couple of pictures. I would have loved to take a few more, and better ones, but I was sure the thick crowd wouldn't let me. And since Bella was tired, but still wanted to see the statue of liberty, it was time to keep moving. We walked to Battery Park and pointed to the statue, which was far enough to prevent a good picture. We had no intention of getting on a boat and making it all the way there, and luckily Bella was agreeable to just keep moving.  Perhaps it helped that to boost everyone's spirit we got some popsicles and made a restroom stop - a key element in keeping the peace when traveling with children.

After the Statue of Liberty we walked to the 9/11 memorial, but didn't have plans to go inside given how much walking we had done already. Except that both girls said they wanted to go, so we did. That gave us about 90 more minutes of walking and standing around, so by the time we got out of there the girls were definitely not taking another step. And my feet were with them. All taxis were full, so we ordered an Uber and had about 30 minutes of rest during the drive back to the hotel. By the time we came back, I couldn't wait to put my feet up and chill for a bit.

New York City - Day 3 - Running in Central Park

Jun 25,

I just can't come to NYC and not run in Central Park. So this morning I got up early and logged 6 sunny, difficult, but happy miles.

New York City - Day 2

Jun 24,

Today we got up late. Lionel and I woke up first, but we let the girls sleep in. Yesterday was a long day, and we walked a lot, so they needed to rest. We both wanted to go running in Central Park, but obviously couldn't leave the girls by themselves. So Lionel went ahead - tomorrow will be my turn. While Lionel was running we got ready and went out to buy a couple of dresses for the girls, because I only packed one dress each and the restaurants where we were going didn't allow people in shorts. Luckily there is a mall nearby so we had time to walk there, buy their stuff, walk to the restaurant, and be there right on time. Lunch was nice. Service was a bit slow - or maybe it just seemed that way because we had two impatient little girls with us - but the food was good.  Of course dessert was their favorite part. 

After lunch we went to the American Museum of Natural History, which we had never visited before. It didn't feel like we spent a ton of time there, but I guess we did. By the time we got back it was after 6:00 pm, so we only had time to rest for a little bit before it was time to head back out for dinner. We had dinner at Koi across from Bryant park and afterward took a short walk. It was a really nice night. Not hot, and not cold. Just perfect weather for me. But the walk was short lived. Bella's feet were hurting, so the girls and I ended up taking a taxi back to the hotel while Lionel and his brother walked all the way back.

New York City - Day 1

Jun 23,

This morning we had to get up at the crack of dawn (4:45 am to be exact) to take our flight to New York City. Our flight was at 7:00 am, and we barely got there. Although we got ready quickly, the security line was unusually busy - especially for that time of day. 

The flight was fairly short, which was good because I was freezing and couldn't fall asleep. After landing we took a taxi to the city and went straight to the hotel. Luckily our room was ready, and the very first thing we did was take a nap. After that we went out for lunch - we had no real breakfast so we were all starving - and walked around the rest of the afternoon. The weather was not the best, if was raining on and off, so to escape the rain - and please the girls - we went into the m&m store. We then walked to Times Square so the girls could check it out real quick, and ended up spending extra time there while they played in some red spinning chairs. Lionel's dad met us there, and walked with us for a little while. We walked to the Rockefeller center and the lego store, and then headed back to the hotel. We were all dirty and tired from the walk, and needed rest and showers before meeting Lionel's brother and parents for dinner. Dinner was nice, but the girls were definitely done for the day. In fact, I am pretty sure we are all going to sleep really, really well tonight.