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Published: March 3rd 2008
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If I ever again doubt mankind's generosity, I will only have to think of this New York trip to restore it. I still find it mind-blowing that within a few short days we were lucky enough to receive passes on our favorite airline, free room nights in our favorite hotel and a weekend off of work (thanks to my fabulous co-workers who scrambled to make it happen).
Since Michael and I are both City People, we had no trouble jumping on the subway from the airport. We did this despite the suggestions of my co-workers to simply grab a $50 cab ride or (even more horrifying) pamper ourselves with a private car service. But the subway was easy and quick and left us a mere few blocks from the hotel. We strolled along the city streets admiring the sights and were possibly the only Four Seasons guests that day that rolled their own luggage down the sidewalk.
Our friendly doorman took care of the bags while we went to announce our arrival. Since we were early for check-in, the front desk agent offered to call us when our room was ready. Free from luggage, we wandered mid-town
Skyscrapers - and everything
The fabulous view from our hotel Manhattan searching for the best cappuccino in New York. Found it!
There's something very cozy about a big city where most of the population walks everywhere. Even when it's a frigid 45 degrees outside, you're never far from a warm, welcoming department store, a comfortable diner or a little neighborhood pub. And we hardly passed up any of these. The most memorable was the Subway Inn, a dark and dingy little joint oddly situated just two blocks from the Four Seasons. It's been there since the 1930's and no one's bothered to re-think the decor since then. The pounding hip-hop music welcomed us in and we noticed a big hand-scrawled sign on the back bar announcing that Carlton owes $45! We ordered a beer, a whiskey and a glass of wine for a grand total of $13.50. I didn't really want to know what brand of wine they managed to come up with.
As if to sneer at the reality of the Subway Inn, the Four Seasons bar offered waiters in suits and ties and $300 shots of cognac. But it was the bar staff, Jeff and Jane, that made our time there memorable. Each hotel
Next door neighbors
Prada, Gucci, Rolex. The street view from the 11th floor of the hotel has at least one live wire and Jane was it.
And speaking of characters, the reason we wanted to come here in the first place was to see the incomparable Ernestine Anderson perform at the Iridium Jazz Club in Times Square. She didn't disappoint. The first song of the first set was plagued by some technical issues and she didn't hesitate to tongue-lash her sound man with all the authority due a 79-year old diva. The very essence of grace, she apologized to the crowd, laughing and explaining "It just "be"s like that sometimes."
After our evening with Ernestine, we continued our warm and fuzzy feeling by catching up with my old friend Jonah. He elevated himself to Hero level when he managed to arrange tickets to the Iridium for us. There's something very special about a good friend who hasn't changed at all after many years. When you get together, you're instantly transported back 25 years. You might talk about all the great things you've both done since then but what you really remember is the giddy, whimsical feeling of being 17 years old again. That's what seeing Jonah did for me. Also, it made
Arrangement in beige
Our spacious and comfortable room! me very hungry since we had had a long day of walking the sights when we met up.
So since we were in his neighborhood, he recommended Elmo's - a funky, hip little spot with good food and great service. And after a few other stops, we took Jonah to OUR neighborhood where we couldn't wait to show off our Rock Star Room at the Four Seasons. Little did we know, we were about to be ambushed by a beautiful spread of cheese, grapes and (what's this??) more wine! It had all been arranged by Raj, my manager and hero. Raj was responsible for arranging our stay at the hotel when it looked like the whole trip was going to be only a fantasy. Amazing.
The next day, slightly fuzzy-headed and a little melancholy, we had one last breakfast at the Palace Diner and made our way to the airport. It was a battle to get through the security line but we made it to our flight just in time and thanks to Jet Blue we were pampered with cable tv and satellite radio on our direct flight back to Austin. Now that's generous.
Bath with a view
The soaking tub fills in 60 seconds. You can get caught up on your sports news as you soak. Genius! On a follow-up note, we anticipated with great delight the visit from our friend Hal who graciously provided the Jet Blue passes. He was scheduled to arrive in Austin just days after we got back. What could be better? Since a few of us were off work, why not meet at the Continental Club for a great bluegrass show? We'll buy Hal a bunch of drinks and treat him to stories of our adventures in NYC! It sounded so great that about 10 of us all decided to go. Unfortunately Hal was sidelined by a nasty flu and couldn't make it after all. But that didn't stop the rest of us going and having a good time. After all, it's the polite thing to do.
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Kiryl
non-member comment
Hi
Very enjoyable read. I live right near the city, but I have never been to the Subway Inn... I think I want to try that "Adios Motha*****a!"