New York City for the New Year 2015

---

Enjoyed a pizza last night at the local pizzeria Tarantino's which was close to the hotel.

After having a quiet afternoon in the hotel we packed up reday for tomorrow's early morning flight to NYC. flying Air Alaska we fly to Seattle from Bozeman then havr s short layover before boarding anothe plane to nyc. The domestic flight cost $490 PP.

Wake up call at 3am - tempersture in Bozeman at 4am -13 heading for a low of -26c. No fuss at the airport - Bozeman is a small airport with no pressure. Before take off the plane was hosed down to remove all the ice that was covering the body of the aircraft. It was a bit of an eerie feeling sitting on the Tarmac in the pitch dark while this was happening. The tarmac was also covered in snow and ice. Despite this the flight was smooth and landed in Seattle on time.

We transferred at Seattle airport for our 4.5 hour flight to Newark NYC. This flight was 4.5 hours and the plane was full. Arrived in Newark on time at 4.30pm and caught a taxi to our B&B - Harlem Rennaisance at 139st. Taxi $94 plus tips. Our B&B accommodation is a brownstone building that was built in 1891 in Harlem Central.

The inn keeper Rick is friendly. Our room is on the 4th floor - a rather large room overlooking the street. We have a bathroom in our room as well as a TV. We really enjoy staying in accomodation of this style and being able to live like a local for a few days. The only downside is having to haul all our luggage us 4 flights of stairs.

Our accomodation has cost us $1200 for 5 nights - which we think is a good price for NYC.

This evening we went down to the closest subway and purchased our metro cards $30 for a seven day unlimited ride card then we went downtown to Herald Square we we purchased our first street food for the visit - a Lamb Gyro and Chicken Kebabs. Great tucker for a cold night.

Day 1 in NYC - up nice and early to make the most of our first day here. First up was the 9/11 Memorial museum. On the train and arrived at the world trade centre around 8.30am. We had tickets($20) for a 9am entry to the museum. After gong through security our first impressions of the museum was "wow". We really didn't expect it to be so big - an amazing tribute to the 9/11 victims and their families.

The historical exhibition has three parts: the Day of 9/11, Before 9/11 and After 9/11. It tells the story of what happened on 9/11, including the events at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and the story of Flight 93. The exhibition explores the background leading up to the events and examines their aftermath and continuing implications.

The memorial exhibition, which is named "In Memoriam", commemorates the lives of those who perished on September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993 and provides visitors with the opportunity to learn about the men, women and children who died.

Then there is Foundation Hall - a room of massive scale, which houses both the last column and the slurry wall.

It took a good 3 hours to see look through each section. After the museum we visited the memorial pools - we have seen them before in 2011 when they first opened. It was good to see that they are now open to the public without the need for security screening.

Decided to have a quick look in the Century 21 department store before leaving the area. This place is always, and I mean always packed with shoppers. You can certainly pick up some fantastic brand nand bargains but you better be prepared to push and shove your way through the crowds. As usual we picked up a few good bargains in the form of a handbag, back pack, perfumes and underwear. Had to really restrain ourselves as it's very easy to spend up super big here.

Next we were on the train again heading out to Grenwich Village to find a pizzeriahighly - Bleeker Street Pizza. After a few wrong turns and some tired feet we arrived at our destination. A tiny shop on the corner of Bleeker Street and 7th Avenue.

Touted in 2011 by the New York Times as one of the “five must-eat” places in New York City, by Food Network as the best New York pizza three years in a row, and by Jimmy Kimmel on his TV show, Bleecker Street Pizza makes their pies “the old fashioned way.”

Like a lot of hidden gems in this City the shop is nothing to look at but their pizza was amazing. Sold by the slice at $3.50 per piece (or you can buy the pie) we shared three different slices - sausage and pepperoni, mushroom and then a mozzarella, marina sauce and basil pizza. Certainly lived up to its reputation.

Walked off some of the pizza calories - checking out the Grenwich Village area before catching the train back to our accommodation to drop off our shopping parcels, put on a few more warm clothes and then headed off for a tour of the "xmas lights".

We met our tour guide at the Lincoln Centre of the performing Arts at 7.30pm. The tour company "free tours by foot" offers numerous tours in cities throughout the USA and they are a " tip what you want" price. We have used them on our 2 previous visits to NYC and always been very happy with their services.

Tonight we travelled around Manhatten by foot and subway and saw the wonderful xmas displays...wow this city knows how to celebrate the festive season! So many beautiful displays and neverending lights. Even though the night was extremely cold it was sheer joy to see the city's xmas lights.

The Lighting and window displays we visited on the New York Holiday Lights Tour included - Lincoln Center, Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree, St. Patrick’s Cathedral,Saks Fifth Ave, Macy’s HeraldSquare, Bryan Park, NY public Library and Lord and Taylor.

The night ended up late due to us misreading the subway map...it's easy to do when your not a local so we ended up getting home after 1am. Still no concerns walking home at this time of night - a very quiet neighbourhood.

Day 2 - We planned on having any early morning but that didn't happen - we were tired from our late night. Rick,our innkeeper had a wonderful breakfast ready for us at 9am - fresh fruit, cinnamon bun and fresh brewed coffee.

Rick suggested we try the bus for a change today. The bus stop is just around the corner and is included on the metro card. We only waited 5 minutes for the bus - the journey took us down 5th Avenue, Central Park was on one side of the road. Was great to see the park from the warmth of the bus. Temperatures today -3c this morning - a bit chilly but the sun was out - a beautiful way to start New Years eve.

We got off the bus at 57th Street - a short walk to Lexington Avenue where we found the New York Harley Davidson Merchandise Store. A small store with prices higher than others we have visited in the USA but we managed to score a few good super bargains!

Next we were off to the Radio City Music Hall to see the famous Rockettes perform in the Xmas spectacular at 2.30pm. The music hall is magnificent inside - it was very busy - today was the last day of performances.

We were seated on the first floor mezzanine row A - with fabulous views of the stage. I don't actually think there is any bad seats in the place though. Tickets were ordered on-line months ago and cost $109 each - worth every cent. The whole stage show is breathtaking from the beginning to the end.

Radio City Musical Hall has been one of the premier entertainment destinations in the world since opening in 1932 in New York City in the Rockefeller Center. The Radio City name was derived from the first tenants the Radio Corporation of America.

Radio City Music Hall has hosted the Radio City Christmas Spectacular as an annual holiday musical production since 1933 featuring the dance team known as The Rockettes. The seating capacity is 5,933 for most shows.

The Rockettes are a precision dance company founded in 1925 in St. Louis Missouri. During the Christmas season, the Rockettes present five shows a day, seven days a week. Perhaps their best-known routine is an eye-high leg kick in perfect unison in a chorus line, which they include at the end of every performance.

Their style of dance is a mixture of modern dance and classic ballet. Auditions to become a Rockette are always in April in New York City. Women who audition must show proficiency in several genres of dancing, mainly ballet, tap, modern, and jazz. Normally, four hundred to five hundred women will audition yearly.

The show finished around 4pm - leaving the music hall we encountered huge crowds and plenty of NYPD. The surrounding areas near 42nd street - Times Square - had been cordoned off in preparation for the annual New Yeare Eve celebrations. The place was jammed packed with people - pushing and shoving.

The subway stations around the area were also closed off so we headed on up to 5th Avenue where we had a look at some of the high end retailers namely Tiffany's and Bergdorf Goodman. This area was also crazy busy. We walked from 5th to 8th Avenue through Central Park which was in contrast very quiet.

Closest open subway was at Columbus Circle so that's where we headed for the next train up to Harlem.

Rick had recommended at local restaurant just around the corner from home - Londels- a small restaurant and bar. Here we tried the local harlem brew "Sugar Hill". Geoff tried out the well known Southern Fried Chicken while I had the Grilled chicken. Dinner and drinks/tips $60 - not bad for a New Years eve feed!

We were back at the B&B by 8.30pm for any early night. Despite bring here in NYC we decided agail at doing all the hustle and bustle of the crowds. We can watch it on the TV!

---

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

2015 NYC
Sounds like you stayed in a great place and Rick has provided excellent suggestions. We will be using your blog as a guide the next time we go to NYC.