Exploring

Today was a hodge-podge of activity. We started at Chelsea Market, hoping to run into a Food Network star--actually, Tim was not necessarily hoping that, just me. I thought Chelsea Market was much larger than it is. The first floor is shops, cafes, and bakeries. The bakeries have one glass wall that allows people walking around to watch the bakers. The bakeries are huge and must put out high volumes of hand-crafted breads. We ate a late breakfast at Amy's bakery--very good sticky buns, good blueberry scones. We also picked up a brownie at The Fat Witch. Mom, you would like the brownies. Actually, yours are just as good--very chocolately. The rest of the floors are private offices. I actually didn't care enough to investigate what it might take to go up to the Food Network.

Next we headed down to Ground Zero. Thinking about it still angers me. I was in New York over twenty years ago; I remember thinking, wow, those are so much taller than all the other buildings. I tried to imagine what it would have been like to be in the city and see those planes fly into the towers. Construction crews are already working on the new building--a testament to the American spirit. I will visit again just to see the new tower.

We walked up Wall Street to the New Stock Exchange and the Federal Building, from where George Washington gave the first presidential inaugural speech--that was kind of cool! The New York Stock Exchange in under tight security--it surprised me a bit.

We made an unexpected pit-stop at Trinity Church--beautiful. Karen, we checked out the cemetery and found William Bradford's grave. Tim explored and looked for Alexander Hamilton's grave but did not find it. I roamed around and wondered what it would have been like to be some of the people buried there. We walked in just as a service was finishing up, then looked around the cavernous church. It was beautiful.

Just for grins, we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge...it's longer than it looks. Once we got to the other side, we searched for a subway station to take us back to the Manhattan side. We ate in Chinatown at the Peking Duck House. I did not order the Peking Duck but the crispy duck--It was excellent. Tim had the lemon chicken which was also good. I wanted to try the Peking Duck, but did not want to pay $40.00 to do it. Several people in the restaurant ordered it. It came out head, neck and all, then the chef carved it out in the dining area...I think I prefer my duck without the head. Walking down Canal St., the main drag of Chinatown, did not feel a whole lot different than many other parts of New York--just a few more Chinese people, but when you turn down a side street it has a completely different vibe--very Chinese. From Chinatown, we took the subway up to the Guggenheim, knowing we would not have time to explore, but wanting to see the outside of the building and a new part of the city. We took a couple of pictures of the outside, then strolled down Central Park East, taking in all the cool buildings. On the way, we passed the Metropolitan Museum of Art, one of the two museums we'll see tomorrow. Okay, I had NO IDEA how big the Metropolitan Museum of Art is! You really could spend two days in it, we're just not going to have time. We ended the evening a little early with a carriage ride in Central Park, resting our tired feet just long enough to then walk home from there. After resting and letting the our lunch settle, we went back out for pizza...again. I'll be in bed by midnight tonight for a change.

Internet access is expensive at the hotel, so I will not post again until we've left the city. Until next time...