New York City baby!!!

We began the day nice and early thanks to the boys.  This enabled us to be out of the apartment and walking to the station by 8.30am.  We decided to conquer our fear of public transport with the boys, as the owner of the apartment advised parking and traffic would be a nightmare.  Plus he gave us a great map to use to get around the 'hood'.

                                 

We got our metro tickets, easy, and the kids rode free.  The buggy was a pain but needed.  We had already decided to head to the Empire State Building first.  We purchased some tickets en route, which gave us access to the 108th floor and the Skyride.

                                 

The queues weren't too bad at 10 am in the morning.  The kids really enjoyed the Skyride, a simulator narrated by Kevin Bacon, of a ride around New York in a helicopter  Pretty cool.

From there we got in 2 different lifts to take is to the 86th floor.  It was busy up there, but the views were amazing.  All the skylines you see on tv and in movies look so much better in the flesh.

                            

You get given a really good map which enables you to pick out buildings in the skyline 

                           

The money shot

                          

The Empire State Building was amazing, and took up most of the morning.  After debating whether to have fast food, just for convenience sake, we stumbled across The Heartland Brewery  On the same block.  This was a restaurant/brewery combined.  It was quiet as it had just opened.  We were seated quickly and able to watch the world by through the windows.  

I had a Indiana Pale Ale, and Paul indulged in a snakebite.  The boys were more than happy with their sodas.  

                                

Oliver ordered cheeseburger, Isaac and Seb had grilled cheese sandwiches.  Paul and I went with the New York strip steak. We had to really....  The service was pretty prompt, and it wasn't long before we were digging in.  The food was really tasty, and clear plates all round.  The restrooms in this place were on the basement, which had another huge seating area, plus the brewery, which was very cool to see.  A good restaurant, not overly expensive for its location.

With full bellies, we walked up to Times Square.  Given it was Saturday, the place was heaving, but so cool to see.  One of those places you see on tv all the time (especially living here), but you don't really get a sense of it till you get there.

                               

We walked through Times Square to Central Park.  Well, the corner where the zoo is anyway.  Again, typical Saturday crowds.

                                

Really not the best zoo.  I understand they have limited space, but the picture below is the sea lion enclosure, in full sun.  It was really hot, and I felt for the animals a bit.  Funnily enough the desert enclosure is really good!

                               

And you just had to look up to be reminded that you are in the middle of a huge city.  

I got my way, and we went on a carriage ride through Central Park. This was really cool, and nice and relaxing after the zoo

The boys loved it, even if it was a bit crazy with the traffic!

                                   

They even got to feed the horse afterwards.

                                    

My neighbor had advised a trip to FAO Schwarz, one of the best toy shops in NYC.  Isaac will never forgive me for this photo when he is older

                                   

The only thing out boys really wanted were hot wheels cars!!!

By now we were all starting to wilt, but I managed to persuade everyone that they wanted to go on the Staten Island ferry to see the Statue of Liberty.  Unfortunately there was a lot of work on the subway, so it took a bit of time to get to the ferry terminal.  Most of the people on the ferry seemed to have the same idea as us.

Despite being stuck on Staten Island for 30 minutes, as the ferries were starting to  minimize their service for the evening, it was totally worth dragging everyone there to see Lady Liberty (Paul will disagree with me on this). I would like to go back and dothe islands more thoroughly next time. We ran into more subway issues on the way home, which made it a very long day.  We got back to the apartment about 8.30, very weary, but having had a very good day.

New York is so vast, we barely scratched the surface, but I am pleased with the amount we managed to do in a day.  The boys were absolute stars, so proud of them for their behavior and ability to listen (for once!!!)

We all slept well that night, and I don't think a anyone was up before 8 the next morning.  Except Paul and I.  A big thanks to the gentleman who was checking the bins down the street for empty bottles at 6.30am.  Cheers!

                                

This was such an unusual apartment.  2nd floor of an old brownstone with proper rickety stairs and creaky doors/ floorboards.  But full of character with a very nice refurbished bathroom.

                                 

On our drive out of Brooklyn we saw some sights!  I hope the area manages to rejuvenate itself a little, but not too much.  It should not lose its character....

                                 

Onwards to Douglas, Massachusetts! 

Lincoln Memorial and drive to New York City

Again, the boys had us up early for a nice breakfast. We packed up the room, and headed towards the Lincoln Memorial.  After driving past it yesterday, I really wanted to see it up close.  We found somewhere to park (for free) a short walk away.  The boys were actually able to run across some sports fields before crossing the road to get to the memorials.

First stop was the Korean War Memorial.  This features 19 statues that depicts solids on patrol facing an American Flag.  It is dedicated to 1.5 million men and women who served in the Korean War.  Thats a lot of people.  This was a pretty moving memorial.  

Next we walked to the front of the Reflecting Pool.  I had to hold Seb's hand very tight, as I was afraid he would make a run for the water.

                               

It was a blazing hot morning, and was only about 9.30am.  There were quite a few people around, but not super busy.  My timings in avoiding crowds had been ace so far...

                                

The Lincoln Memorial is something else.  It is so grand, and beautiful.  The memorial was dedicated in 1922, and has been the site of many famous speeches.  It is a tribute to Abraham Lincoln, and the 36 columns that surround the structure represent the 36 states in the Union at the time of Lincoln's death.  Around the top of the structure are the names of the states.  

Inside sits a 19ft statue of Lincoln.  Pretty grand.  The decor inside is amazing too, with the Gettysburg address and Lincoln's second inaugural address both carved into the marble.  

                               

As I stated earlier, the Lincoln Memorial has been the site of many famous speeches and addresses.  Not many are more famous that Martin Luther King Jr's 'I have a dream' speech.  We had to wait for some tourists to move off the spot on the floor before we could get the photo below.

The Lincoln Memorial is amazing.  A kinda wish we had time to do more of the monuments/memorials, but the kids wouldn't have stood for it, no matter how much ice cream we promised them.  Washington D.C is definitely a place I want to go back to, but when we are older, and don't have the kids in tow.  

Now onwards and upwards to NYC.  It took about 4 hours to get there, driving through Baltimore

                              

and around Philadelphia.  Those first few glimpses of the city were amazing.

The traffic, however was not.  We had to travel through Manhattan Island and out the other side to get to Brooklyn, where we were staying.  This is one of the times I was grateful we had an E-Z pass.  This is basically a prepaid transponder that fits in your car, and enables you to go through tolls at slow speed, and the cost of the toll gets taken off your account.  

Brooklyn is an interesting place.  Again reminded of parts of London, where one street looks dodgy as hell, the next is once as pie.  The urban density is immense.  We got to our apartment at dinner time and were greeted by the owner.  It was 2nd floor of an old brownstone, with one bedroom with 2 double beds.  The living area had a sleeper sofa, but there were no doors between the 2.  The owner is an artist, and his work was on the walls.  Very good.  We also had access to a balcony. We walked to the local store, and this was your old style corner store, like the one you used to get in England before supermarkets ran them out of business.

The view from our apartment

                              

The boys had a toast dinner, while we indulged in beer.  As Seb was in a bed here, he was a nightmare, and it took Paul laying with him, then me laying with Isaac to get them to go to sleep.  But they went eventually.

They would need it for the mammoth day the next day touring the city