Lower East Side Walk

We had a really hard time getting up this morning. There was a big commotion out on the sidewalk in front of our apartment about 2:00 or so. Conrad thought it was someone rapping real loud but I thought it was an argument. I did hear a woman yelling "That's enough" several times. Plus, we have a couple guys upstairs who leave about 9:00 or so every night with a guitar and a saxophone and come back about 2:30 or 3:00 and slam the doors when they come in and are real heavy footed. The apartment next to us has an iron gate in front of the stoop and someone over there stays out late and bangs that gate and then we can hear him going up to the second floor. I guess the steps are right on the other side our bedroom wall. But, we love it here and just try to "Keep Calm and Carry On"!!

Our first stop this morning was the Staten Island Ferry for a FREE ride to Staten Island and back. It was still a little hazy when we went but we had great views of the Manhattan, Brooklyn and New Jersey skylines on the way over but were on a different ferry coming back and it didn't have the outside decks and open on top that the first ferry did so I was a little disappointed.

Manhattan on the left, Brooklyn on the right and Brooklyn Bridge between

Then it was on to the Lower East Side for a self-guided walking tour. We followed a suggested walk from one of our books. It was pretty quiet in the areas were in today. We saw where some of the best traditional Jewish cuisine can be found in NYC. It was about lunch time and Katz's Deli was our destination. It opened in 1888, when the neighborhood was dominated by Jewish immigrants. I'm sure all of you remember it was the deli used in "THE" scene of When Harry Met Sally! Well, that scene must have been filmed in the middle of the night because there were hardly any people in there in the movie. The place was jam-packed but we were able to walk on in. I stood in line while Conrad found us a place to sit. As you walk in, each person is given a ticket. That ticket has to be turned in when you leave whether you eat or not. When they give you your order, they write the price on it. If you don't have a ticket when you leave, you will be charged a minimum of $50! We saw that the sandwiches were huge so we decided we would split one. We had a corned beef sandwich and it came with 2 huge pickles. That sandwich was $15.25!! We didn't see the line where you could get a drink so we just decided we'd get a drink somewhere down the street. When we left there, the line was all the way down the block to get in! A guy at the door counted how many went in and how many went out to keep it even! Oh, they only take cash too. I guess you paid for the experience and it was well worth it. Conrad thinks the corned beef sandwiches are better at Oaklawn!!!

This is the outside and just a few of the people waiting to get in!

This is what $15.25 will buy you!

This is how crowded it was! Notice the round sign at the top of the picture.

Then it was on with business. We saw several really old synagogues. Stores down in that area were really pushing leather jackets. The old buildings though were what held our interest. Brent had told us that it is cheaper to live in this area and now we can see why. I think a lot of the buildings were old tenements that have been changed in to apartments and refurbished more to today's standards. Most looked to be 6 story walkups and so many had clothes hanging out on hangers on the fire escape to dry. Unless they had a washing machine, and I'm sure they didn't, they either had to hand wash that stuff or haul it downstairs to a laundromat and then haul the wet clothes back up 6 flights! It makes you really appreciate what you have.

If you look real close, you can see laundry on the top floor on the first fire escape.

Our last area was the old part of Chinatown - where everyone seems to live in the area and very few tourists. It was really interesting. We stopped by one bakery where a lady had a table out front with a sign that said "Rolls - 2 for $1.00" so we decided to get a couple. I asked her what was in them and she said "$1.00". I asked again and got the same response so decided that was all the English she knew! So, we bought 2 and shared each one. They were really good. To get back to the subway, we had to wander through the commercialized area of Chinatown and fought our way through the throngs of people.

We stopped at a real grocery store that is across the street from one of the stops on our train and bought the stuff to make a pot of chili. Well, there isn't a pot big enough to make a pot of chili so I made it in 2 batches - one in a large saucepan and one in the skillet! It was good and we were excited to have some real food I cooked! We've been having salads if we eat here or cheese and crackers. We have enough for a couple more meals. (We don't have an oven - only a microwave and a gas stove top.) We still had to stop by the little deli on the corner near us for some milk, beer and diet coke. Conrad went in while I stood out on the sidewalk with the groceries. The man who works there asked Conrad where his wife was and he told him I was waiting outside. He asked where we were from (it's very obvious we don't live in this neighborhood) and he told him Arkansas. He asked where that was and Conrad told him in the middle of the country. The guy said "the Middle East?" and so Conrad told him no, it was near Texas! The guy understood that. We think he is Mexican. He's a really nice guy. He first called me Mama when I'd go in there but lately he's been calling me Baby! We seem to stop there almost every day. His prices are about the same as the grocery store.

Well, it's bedtime here so until tomorrow....

Conrad and Linda

East Village and SoHo

It was a bright, sunny, sort of cool day here today and a perfect one to be out walking. We took our time getting around this morning and had our route all figured out and, of course, due to subway problems/construction, we had to alter it at the last minute. The one car we were in smelled so bad. A guy was passed out in his seat and had wet his pants at least once. Don't know how long he had been on there. It was good when we had to change trains. But, we ended up where we wanted to start our day - in East Village at Astor Square. The area has a lot of fashion, art and design stores. It's much quieter in this area and Conrad and I could actually talk about what we were seeing. I guess you could say we "strolled" slowly through the area, taking in all the buildings. There were some really old ones there. We walked past the Cooper Union Foundation Building that opened in 1859. This is where Abraham Lincoln gave the popular speech that is said to have launched his presidential campaign.

We visited a couple churches, one being Grace Church. It was built in 1846 with white marble that was mined by convicts from Sing Sing prison in upstate New York. It was beautiful inside but had a lot of water damage and peeling paint.

Grace Church

We also went to the Strand Bookstore. The store has about 2 million volumes and their slogan is "18 Miles of Books". I believe it! It was 4 or 5 floors and books everywhere, even out on the sidewalk. There is a rare-book room there also. They had new and used books. We didn't hang around there too long, afraid we'd find something and have to haul it around the rest of the day!

We went in to McSorley's Old Ale House that claims to be the oldest bar in the city. It opened in 1854 and didn't admit women until 1970. There was a mahogany bar, gas lamps, potbelly stove and yellowing newspaper clippings posted all over the walls. There was even sawdust on the floor. We had hoped to sit down and have a little refreshment but it was so crowded and no seats available. Lots of people were just standing wherever there was a place to stand. So, we headed back over to Astor Place where there was a market set up on the street. We decided we'd eat lunch there. After looking it all over, I got a grilled cheese sandwich which was fresh mozzarella between 2 rounds of cornbread that was so good. Conrad got a sweet sausage on a roll with a FREE soft drink for $10! (For that price I would hope they'd throw in more than a drink!) It was topped with grilled onions and peppers. He said it was good though.

We wanted to go in St Mark's Church in-the-Bowery, but they closed it about the time we got there because of a memorial service going on in there. It is Manhattan's oldest continually used Christian site.

We walked down Mercer Street, an old cobblestone street with granite sidewalks. It had a lot of old loft buildings with high-end stores and what looked like the original old wood floors.

Mercer Street and some of the cast-iron buildings

One of 3 Singer Buildings - another cast-iron building

We love all these old, cast-iron buildings. Some had pretty fancy trim too. Stuyvesant Street had some beautiful 19th-century redbrick row houses that were Federal-style. We went to the old St Patrick's Cathedral but couldn't go in the sanctuary because a wedding was going on. Apparently, the newlyweds were leaving the church in an old yellow Checker cab because one was parked out front and had "Just Married - Marisa and Fabio" on it.

Pretty cool, huh?

We ended our evening in Chinatown. It was packed there tonight. LOTS of folks selling purses off sheets spread out on the sidewalk, "designer sunglasses", and Rolex watches! Yes, we just walked on by!

By the time we got back to the apartment, we had only walked 8.37 miles but it seemed like a lot more. That brings our total to 163.32 miles! Are you tired yet? By the way, here is how a lot of the dogs who aren't walked on a leash or carried in a purse get around!

Hmmm, wonder if I could ride in one of those!

We've also seen a lot of dogs in strollers!

Jason and Jenny closed on their new house Thursday and today was the big moving day. We were sorry to have missed this big event in their lives and our house will seem so empty when we get home. But, it will just be empty a few days because Brent and Jackie will be here November 3 through the 11th! We're excited about seeing them. It's been too long since December.

Well, I'm off to bed now to rest up for another big day tomorrow. We have one more week and one day and plan to make the most of it. So, until tomorrow.......goodnight!

Conrad and Linda

Ellis Island

This will probably be a short post tonight since we only did one thing today but took us all day! We got to Castle Clinton in Battery Park to buy our tickets to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Actually, both of those are free but you have to buy a ticket for the ferry to get there! So, like happy campers, we head to the line to go through security and............the line snakes through the park all the way back to the street! Well, let me tell you, in case you don't know, I'm not a very patient person! I've been in that same line TWICE in the SUMMER and the line wasn't that long! Anyway, there was nothing to do but wait in line and people watch. An hour and a half later we are on the boat. First stop is the Statue of Liberty. We stayed on the ferry since I've been there twice and Conrad wasn't interested in seeing it any closer than the ferry. Then it was on to Ellis Island - one of my very favorite places here. We got there at 11:00 and didn't leave until 3:30. I think I read every sign in the building and took a ton of pictures!

I think I got a lot more out of it this time after taking the Tenement Museum tour yesterday. It was sort of like last November when we drove the Natchez Trace Parkway. There is so much to think about and imagine the people of that time. They say it took the ships two or three weeks to make the crossing from Europe to Ellis Island. Many only had enough money to get some space in steerage, the very bottom of the boat. Some of those people left their families to make a better life in America. They brought all they could carry with them - some of their possessions were wrapped in bedding and tied together with rope. Some of the workers at Ellis Island could tell where someone was from by the way they tied their knots or by the kind of luggage they carried. Immigrants were told to put their belongings in a huge pile but some chose to carry it because it was all they had. They were required to have $25 with them so the state of New York would not have to support them. They couldn't have a job already lined up because they could work for less than Americans and take the jobs away from Americans. They had to have a plan of where they were going and a ticket or someone had to come pick them up. Single women could not leave with a man so many were married at Ellis Island and then left. The immigrants had to go through so many different "stations" to be checked. There were interpreters but sometimes it would take 2 or 3 different ones to find a common language. They had to be healthy. If they had some sort of disease that could not be cured, they were sent back to their own country. Some families were separated this way. They had to take an intelligence test. They had to complete puzzles. They had to convert their money to U.S. money and how did they know they weren't being cheated?

I thought a lot about children who came over. Did they travel alone? Sometimes a child was sent back. Who would pick them up? It was such a depressing time but these people thought this really was the land of opportunity. One of the quotes was "I thought the streets were paved with gold. In fact, the streets weren't paved at all. I was the one who had to pave them."

Anyway, you might want to do some reading about this on your own. I was happy that Conrad found it so interesting. I guess one reason that I'm so interested in it is that my mother's dad first came through Ellis Island from Norway. After 2 or 3 years, he sent for my grandma and their 3 children. Three were born in Norway and six were born in Iowa. (My mom was born in Iowa. She was number 8 of 9 children. I can just imagine my little grandma coming with 3 small children and not speaking English. How did you keep up with 3 small ones like that with just 2 hands plus your worldly possessions. I wish now that I had known about all that earlier and had been able to talk to her about it. She died when I was 15 so I'm sure I wouldn't have been interested in that type of thing at that age.

We came back to the apartment about 5:30 and are now trying to decide what to do tomorrow. We've made a list of things we haven't done yet that we still want to do. We have 10 more days to finish our list. The time has gone so fast. I'll leave you with a few pictures from today but most of what I took were of the exhibits and the sign that explained them. We only walked 6.32 miles today. All that standing made my feet and legs hurt though!

The Statue of Liberty

Signs like these offered jobs to the immigrants.

The Great Hall at Ellis Island

Each person had to show they were literate by reading about 40 words in their native language.

It was a great day but the coldest one we've had. The high was 55 and it was windy and overcast all day. I'm sure we'll sleep good though!

Later,

Conrad and Linda

Another Beautiful Day in NYC

Right after I posted last night, we watched the weather channel and changed our plans. Remember, I said that could happen! It was to be real windy today so riding the ferry to Staten Island and then another ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island didn't seem like such a great idea. So, today was more of a walking day. We started out by going to Rockefeller Center. They were working on the ice rink the other day when we went by there on the tour bus but today it was open. There were a few people ice skating. We walked through part of the lobby of 30 Rock and the lower level. We went by the NBC building and looked in the window. We could see the set for the Today Show and I saw Matt Lauer walk by and a couple of the camera people waved at us! It was late morning when we were there.

Yup - it's a long way up to the top!

From there we headed over toward the United Nations Building. Of course, it wasn't without a few more stops. The first order of business was the Diamond District. Boy, is Conrad lucky that I'm not a jewelry person! There is one block of nothing but jewelry stores, gold and diamond buyers and loan places! We were looking in one window and the lady inside flashed a sign at us that said 60% off.

Can you imagine window after window of this?

We went to the old Daily News Building. The building is the fictional Daily Planet in the Superman movies. The lobby has a huge revolving globe and the floor is laid out as a giant compass indicating most of the big cities of the U.S. and the world and their distance from NYC. There is also a clock with 17 time zones but it wasn't working!

Next was the Ford Foundation Building. What makes it different is that the plaza is built inside the building and is full of fountains, trees and plants. The offices in the center of the building look out over the plaza.

We finally made it to the United Nations Buildings. Boy, talk about security! There were more police there than we've seen the whole trip! Getting in to the building was worse than the airport! I had to check the backpack so had to get in another line after going through security. It was more interesting than we thought it would be but didn't take the tour. The exhibits they had on the main floor though were really interesting. There is also a huge Chagall stained-glass window in the lobby. When I went to get my backpack I walked up to a window and had to ring a buzzer. The guard opened the window (you couldn't see in the window though) and said "Welcome to McDonald's! What can I get you?" Conrad told him he had more of a sense of humor than anyone else we had seen!

The flags were really flapping in the wind today!

Our next stop was the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. When I put the address in my phone to get walking directions, it was 2.5 miles away so to save time, we hopped on the subway. We had an hour and a half to kill before our tour time so we checked out the gift shop and then walked around the neighborhood. This tour was really interesting but since we couldn't take pictures inside I can just tell you that it was old,dark, and the apartments were very small. It was a 6-story brownstone built in 1863 by a German immigrant. Living conditions were appalling - tiny, windowless rooms, without electricity or plumbing. Some 10,000 people are estimated to have lived in the building until it was condemned in 1935. Originally there were about 4 privies out in the courtyard in the back and they were shared with all the tenants plus the patrons of the bar that was on the lower level.

The building is in the middle with the black sign hanging in front.

It was almost 6:00 by the time we got out of there so we took the subway to Little Italy and found a place to have a beer and pizza. It was a good day and a great evening for a walk.

Rush hour traffic near the Williamsburg Bridge

Conrad had trouble getting the turnstile to work at the subway after swiping his card and couldn't try again for 20 minutes since we have unlimited use cards. (That's to keep more than 1 person from using the card.) So, since it was such a nice night, we just walked about 8 or 10 blocks to the next station and got on there.

So, today we walked 9.46 miles. That brings us up to a total of 148.63 miles in 19 days! Not bad!! We're still having an absolutely wonderful time. We have gotten really lucky with the weather. Yesterday has been the only really rainy day and we've had a couple others that it was a "heavy drizzle". The temperature has been great too.

It's past our bedtime so I'd better quit. Hope you're enjoying our trip.

Conrad and Linda

A Rainy Day at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Since today was going to be rainy all day we needed to find something to do inside. So we decided on the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Well, it's not exactly easy to get there from here - just take the G train to the A train to the Shuttle to the 4 train. We accomplished all that like real New Yorkers! We even were able to successfully do it backwards!!

Not thinking, I took the backpack and when we got to the museum they said I had to wear it on my front or at my side. So, I strapped it on the front and off we went. We visited the Egyptian exhibit first and I think it we both liked it the best. They had so much stuff and lots of coffins, mummies, and carvings. The hieroglyphics were amazing. I can't believe they've lasted all these years.

Amazing how clear these are!

The American Living stuff was great too. They had lots of furniture from years ago and it was so ornate. Of course, Conrad was interested in the carving of them. This was one of his favorites.

The carving on this was so intricate.

We also saw the guns, swords, armor, lots of marble busts (most seemed to have had their noses knocked off) and pottery of all types. I was disappointed with the photos and drawings they had on exhibit. We both like the Dutch masters. The faces in their paintings look so real. On the one we really liked, the gray eyes looked real!

This is the one we liked so well but a picture doesn't make it look the same.

Having two musical sons, the old musical instruments were interesting. Some things were really off the wall. It makes you wonder how they ever thought up all that stuff!

Some old saxophones

The old trumpets

In the Roman exhibits I really liked this stone (maybe marble) coffin but Conrad informed me that it's called a sarcophagus. The carving was amazing!

We spent the whole day here and we can say we've been there. I know my art teacher friends (sorry Janet and Becky) would be disappointed that we didn't think it was the coolest place ever! I think Conrad probably got more out of it than I did since he has read so much about so many of the things they had there. My reading isn't quite as informative as his!! But it was a great trip. It was just so crowded. When we got tired of walking the seats were all taken so we just had to keep going and the lines to the bathroom were like a Razorback game! Of all the places we've been, even on the sidewalks, we've never felt that crowded.

We only walked 6.44 miles today but we did it the hard way! Standing or moving slow is a lot harder than being on the go. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice so I think we're going to ride the Staten Island Ferry to Staten Island and back. It's one of the FREE things here. We're also planning to go to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I can't wait to go back to Ellis Island. I'm really interested in all those people who came to America to start a new life and their stories of coming through Ellis Island. My mom's parents and two of her older brothers and one of her sisters came through here. Anyway, that's what we're planning to do but by the time we head out in the morning, that could change too. We've made a list of the things we still want to do and are slowly checking them off our list.

Hope you enjoyed the museum. Tune in tomorrow....

Conrad and Linda

Beach and Flower Day!

Another beautiful day for us. We heard it was cold and rainy in Little Rock today. It was sunny and in the low 60s here. We had a sort of rough start to our day because we got on the wrong train and went a couple stops before realizing what we did. That's OK.....just backtrack. Finally got going in the right direction and then had to change trains 2 or 3 times because they were working on the tracks. Finally made it to Coney Island!

Our first stop was at Nathan's Famous Hotdogs. You really pay for the name because it cost us $17 for 2 hot dogs, 1 order fries and 2 drinks!

Nathan's Famous Hotdogs

It isn't a "dine-in" place so we took it with us to sit on the boardwalk and look at the ocean. Surprisingly, the hot dogs were really good!

This was probably the dirtiest beach we've ever seen. Lots of trash on the sand, broken glass, etc. The boardwalk was really nice though.

The picture above and left is along the boardwalk. The one below it is the ferris wheel at Coney Island. I've never seen one like this. Those cars on the outside edges stayed in one place but the rest of them followed along a track zig-zagging down. I even got it on video so I can watch it. It might have been fun to ride but we moved right along after watching it for quite awhile!

There was a lot of sand on the edge of the boardwalk and in some places it was even with the walkway. We assume that was from the big hurricane that went through here. We walked a couple miles on the boardwalk then caught a different train and headed for Little Italy.

While looking at our route on the train, we saw that it went right by the Brooklyn Botanical Garden and it was a nice day so, why not? Jumped off at the last minute and when we got to the gate, today was free admission! A little bonus for us!!

It wasn't the best garden we've visited but it was nice. So many flowers weren't blooming at this time of year but we did see some nice stuff there. It was such a pretty day to be out and about anyway. We spent the rest of the day here.

In the Japanese Garden

The Cactus Garden

Beautiful!

We got back about 5:00 today and ate leftover Chinese from last night. We plan to go to bed early tonight and maybe can catch up on our sleep and rest our legs and feet! Today we walked 7.92 miles for a grand total of 132.73 miles! It sure adds up fast.

Time to plan for tomorrow. It's supposed to start raining tonight and rain all day tomorrow so we'll have to find an inside something - maybe a museum.

Until later....

Conrad and Linda

Skyscraper Self-Guided Walk

It was awfully hard to wake up again this morning. We just feel like we get up, walk, walk, walk, come home, load pictures on computer, write blog, go to bed and start over the next day. Oh, that's what we ARE doing, but loving every minute of it!

Today we decided to follow one of the self-guided walking tours of skyscrapers. We started out at Columbus Circle. Since we were walking past the Plaza Hotel we had to go in and look around again. Took a few pictures then headed to FAO Schwartz.

Here I am, relaxing in the lobby of the Plaza Hotel

Between those two places is one of the Apple stores and people were lined up in several lines. I bet there were at least 150 people. I don't know if it's always like that or if something new came out. I don't keep up with that kind of stuff. Anyway, FAO Schwartz was better than I thought! Of course, I couldn't leave there without picking up something for Macey. (Boy, I miss her soooooo much!!)

Then we picked up the tour. I don't know which building is my favorite but have always liked the old GE Building.

It was hard to get a picture of the GE Building since we were so close and it is so tall!

We don't know what this building is but we both liked it and it made such a pretty picture. We also spotted the Fuller Building, IBM Building, Sony Building, Central Synagogue, Citicorp Center, St Patrick's Cathedral, Seagram Building, Waldorf-Astoria, the Helmsley Building and the MetLife Building. The MetLife Building is built above Grand Central Terminal so we stopped in there again and had a late lunch. We walked in to St Patrick's but a service was going on so we just stood in the back and looked. We've been in it several times before.

From there we headed uptown on the subway to 86th Street and walked several blocks over to Carl Schurz Park along the East River. Gracie Mansion, the mayor's house, is also there. We don't think he lives there though. We think it's mostly used for official occasions. It wasn't much but the park was the high point there. There is a big promenade with benches along the river and playgrounds, grassy areas and areas for small dogs and areas for big dogs. It wasn't so noisy here and not the crowd of people you see everywhere else.

Conrad on the Promenade - This is the East River

We decided to walk the whole thing but didn't get to go as far as we wanted because of construction. So we headed back to the subway which was several long blocks away. We spent more time in midtown just looking around and finally headed home about dark. We did get a great shot of the Empire State Building that I want to share.

The lighting was really good for this picture.

We were later than usual coming back today and hit the real rush hour! The trains were absolutely packed, worse than we've seen. I was lucky enough to get a seat after a couple stops but it took Conrad longer to get one. We're getting pretty good at holding on to that pole. We stopped at a little place near us and got some Chinese food and brought back home to eat. Now, it's bedtime so we can get up and do it all over again tomorrow! We think we're going to Coney Island tomorrow.

We walked exactly 10 miles today! It's unusually quiet in the neighborhood tonight so better take advantage of the quiet.

Linda and Conrad