Blog Challenge Day 7: A Picture That Makes Me Smile

Greetings Humble Readers!  I hope you are all well!

Today's assignment is to share a picture that makes me smile. 

I have a lot of pictures on my computer that are happy pictures, but the one I am sharing today is actually the picture I have decided to use as my focal point during labour.

View from Top of the Rock

I know it doesn't seem like much, but this picture is one of my favourites from our trip to NYC last year. 

It was our first morning in the city, and we had started the day in Times Square.  I was dealing with a lot of sensory overload, with all the billboards, people, cars, etc.  We made our way to Rockefeller Center, just gaping like typical tourists at everything around us.  I wasn't really keen on it, but my Beloved really wanted to see the Top of the Rock, so up up up we went. 

When we finally reached the observation deck, I was blown away.  I remember just standing there, staring out at the city.  It was so quiet.  There were hardly any people up there at that time of day, and it was incredible to just look out over the city and take it all in.  It seems strange to say it, but it was so amazingly peaceful.  It was the first moment that it really struck me that we were in New York.

Photo Challenge Friday: The Colours of Life

Hey Humble Readers!  I sure hope that you are having a great Friday. 

Because it's Friday, that means that it's time for Lindsay's Photo Challenge.  Make sure to swing by her place so that you check out how others interpretted this week's theme and join in on the fun!  Come on, you know you have a ton of pics on your computer... show them off!!

Ok, so... the colours of life.  Hmmmm...

The only pics I have taken lately are of a meal I made earlier this week, which I want to use for a Show & Tell, so that means that it's time to delve into the archives. 

When we stepped out of the Port Authority bus terminal on our first day in NYC last fall, I remember feeling like I was on stimulation overload.  I was overwhelmed by the number of people, the colours, the images.  I didn't know where to look, there was always something else to see.  Everything felt bright, like it was moving faster than I could take it all in.  Dizzying.

And of course I can't show just one pic!

This one just really amused me.  If you haven't been there, there is a groovy Hershey's store in Times Square.  I just had to take a picture of it, especially for one of my co-workers who's addicted to peanut butter cups.

******
A completely different topic:  If you haven't watched it, you need to check out the new show "Who Do You Think You Are?"!!  It follows  a few celebs as they trace their family trees.  I sort of watched it earlier while I was making dinner, and I was so intrigued that I'm watching it again.  Tonight's episode is about Sarah Jessica Parker... she learns some incredible things about her family history.  I am soooo envious of her doing this!

Show & Tell: NYC in Pictures

Greetings Humble Readers!

This post is very long in coming, and for that I apologize. I PROMISE, there will be a post about Terwilliger Turtle's Traveling adventures. He saw and did some fun stuff. But for tonight, you all get just a random sampling of some of my favourite pictures from our trip.

The Empire State Building. I loved this veiw.

Central Park... the most amazing urban greenspace ever!

The Chrysler Building... one of my better nightime shots.

Some navy boys in Times Square...

I don't know what his deal was... but we saw him all the time in the Park.

Some street performers... very cool to watch!

Lady Liberty... but why did she turn out white in this pic? Enquiring minds want to know!

From the top of the Empire State Building, at around 9pm.

An Italian cheese shop... I drooled buckets over those huge wheels of parm!

Us... waiting in line at the Letterman Show! Very Cool!

Now, make sure you head over to Mel's place to see what the rest of the class is showing!

A Little Slice of Heaven (aka NYC Food)

Good Morning Humble Readers!

(cycle update: I'm 10dpo, dealing with phantom symptoms, and in an effort to keep distracted, I'm going to try to post all of our NYC stuff this week)

When we left for New York, my Beloved and I made a pact that we weren't going to eat anywhere that we could eat at home. No fast food chains, no Sta.rb.ucks, no restaurants we could frequent at home. Not even going into a Tim Ho.rto.ns to celebrate the fact that the Timbit nation has infiltrated the U.S.

In the past, when my Beloved has traveled, food hasn't been a big part of the experience. When he was in China he ate at an A & W, and when he was in London he never once had a pub lunch. He just looked at food as something he needed between tours and historic sites.

While I didn't take pictures of every meal we ate, I did take quite a few. I can honestly say that there was only a couple of meals I regretted, mostly because they were too common. Yes, we did eat at a Red Lobster and at a TGI Fridays (but we don't have those here, so...), but other than that I really wanted to focus on trying new things.

So without further ado, here is our 10 days of good eats:

• La Reggia - the restaurant in our hotel. We ate there the first night and the last. The first night we both had Veal Canneloni with tomato and beschamel sauces. So good! The last night we had some basic pasta (linguini w/ sausage, rigatoni bolognese) but we had antipasto as a starter... I have discovered that I'm not a big fan of anchovies, and I still don't like olives or strong cheeses.
  
• Southwest NY - where my Beloved took me for my birthday dinner. Located down in the World Financial Center, right across from Ground Zero. My Beloved had the cedar planked salmon with green beans and corn pudding (which he swears was incredible) and I had the mojo marinated skirt steak with chimichurri, crispy onions and ancho mashed potoatoes. Amazing! We shared a brownie sundae for dessert... and Terwilliger wanted to get in on it too. (You'll hear more about Terwilliger's adventures soon!)
• Shelley's - a self-described wine and oyster bar, we had neither wine nor oysters. I had an incredible hamburger with gruyere (who knew I liked that) and spicy mustard (a new favourite). My Beloved had a traditional reuben sandwich. The fries were great too!
  
• Grotta Azzurra Ristorante - A great teeny place in Little Italy. We were just walking down Mulberry Street recovering from the smells of having just wandered past a seafood market in China Town, when we stopped to check out the menu. We ended up being seated at a great table practically outside, and had some of the best garlic bread I have ever eaten. My beloved had penne pomodoro with chicken marsala and I had rigatoni alla vodka and pork scallopini. The vodka sauce was like nothing I have ever had before. It was a mountain of food! We finished by sharing a ginormous bowl of spumoni. Yumm!


• Angelo's Pizzaria - right next door to the Ed Sullivan Theater, we had lunch there before we went to the Late Show. My first taste of New York pizza did not disappoint. Thin and crispy crust, italian sausage, fabulous tomatoe sauce, fresh basil... mmmmmmm!


• Ellen's Stardust Diner - the food was mediocre but the atmosphere was fabulous! I had the sliders and my Beloved had the Dean Martin (spaghetti with meatballs). All the wait-staff were in 1950's style costumes and sang! One guy actually walked across the back of our booth while he was playing his harmonica.


• Otto Enoteca - Mario's fabulous pizzaria and tapas restaurant. I was so excited just to be there. My beloved had the Rigatoni con Sausage & Escarolle and I had the Vongole pizza. I have never had a pizza with whole clams on it before, but it looked amazing and tasted just as good. I also snuck a bit of my Beloveds pasta and have decided that I have to figure out how to make it because I MUST eat that again someday! For dessert we each ordered a three flavour tasting of gelato. My Beloved kept it kind of tame with two types of chocolate and creme fraise gelatos. I had pistachio, dark chocolate and the aforementioned olive oil gelato. I don't know if I will ever have anything that compares with again in my lifetime. Sooooo good!


• Stage Deli - Ok, so it's kitchy (it's the place where all the sandwiches are named after celebrities), but it was fun and the food was pretty good, albeit old school. I had a Ben Stiller (hot roast beef sandwich and mashed potatoes) and my Beloved had a chicken cutlet with mashed potatoes. It was fun.


• Mesa Grill - Bobby Flay's restaurant in the Flatiron district. We ended up meeting some fellow foodies who were taking pictures of their food too. We got a few laughs out of sharing our food adventures so far. We got to sit right by the window, which was fun right up until I started wearing my lunch. My Beloved had the Cuban burger (I can't remember what made it cuban... I think there was ham on it...) and I had the Pressed Roast Pork sandwich. Both were fabulous, and we each got different kinds of fries. We walked out of there full, mouths on fire from the spices, and me covered in the sauce from my sandwich.


• Zocalos - a mexican restaurant in Grand Central Terminal. Great salsa! My Beloved had Enchiladas con Pollo and I had Pescadoro alla Plancha (tilapia with a vegetable ragout on top made of mushrooms, carrots, and zuchini). Both very yummy and not as spicy as expected. My only complaint about this restaurant was that they charged for soda refills. It was fun to watch the people running to catch their trains tho.


• (I can't remember the name) - This was where we ate during the On Location tour. It was the pizza place featured in the MIB movies. The pizza was great even though I burned my tongue. I wish I would have had one of their calzones tho... they looked great!


• Yankee Stadium - Ok, so it was beyond totally overpriced, but the fries and the sausages with peppers and onions were to die for. The fries... they were crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, perfectly seasoned... man oh man. (maybe it was just the fact that they were hot and I was freezing?)


• Bagel Bar - My first and only 'real' New York bagel. It wasn't until after I had ordered my salami and cheddar on an everything bagel that I saw that they had lox. Gah! I never did get my bagel with lox, but the sandwich was great! I have to say, that of all the sandwich-y places we went to, this place had the nicest staff!


• L'Allegria - Ok, I thought that place in Little Italy was teeny, but this place was miniscule! Maybe 15 tables. For as small as it was, they sure were busy! The servers were run off their feet. My Beloved had the pasta fagioli soup, osso buco (with some sort of a balsamic reduction and portobello mushrooms) and I had the lobster ravioli in a creamy lobster tomatoe sauce. Both were absolutely incredibly! I tried some of his osso buco and it totally just melted in my mouth!

There were other meals in there too... our hotel had a great free hot breakfast that we had most mornings, hot dogs from vendors, pretzels from vendors, and coffee from a donut place that we don't have here on the flatland.

With all that we ate, I'm surprised that I didn't come home a blimp!

Show & Tell: My Best Day in NYC

Good Afternoon Humble Readers! I hope you are all well.

I spent a ton of time trying to figure out where to start telling the story of our time in NYC, and ultimately it came down to beginning with the day that stands out the most in my memory.

Yes Humble Readers, that's right... I met Mario Batali!

I wish I could say that I was cool about it and was able to chat with him, but no... your friendly neighbourhood hobbit was star struck! Let me tell you the story...

It was Friday, the day we had decided was going to be my Beloved's very merry Un-Birthday, seeing as we had missed celebrating his actual birthday (it was right in the middle of his dad passing away and the memorial and all). On the itinerary for the day was an "On Location" New York TV & Movie tour and the Yankees game in the evening. We got on the bus right by the Ed Sullivan Theater (where we had seen the David Letterman show a few days earlier), and were treated to a ton of information about the area around Times Square and movies that had been filmed there. We slowly made our way south, heading toward Washington Square Park to check out some "When Harry Met Sally" and "I Am Legend" sites.

When the bus stopped and we all got off, we discovered that we were right outside Otto, where my Beloved and I had eaten lunch a few days before. (The food was fabulous... but I'm planning an NYC food post for later in the week... stay tuned!) We walked around the corner and spent a few minutes taking pics of the Washington Arch where Sally dropped off Harry, and the doorway that Will Smith came and went out of over and over.

At that point our guide mentioned that she had noticed that Mario had been sitting at the bar in his restaurant and if any of us wanted to meet him, he is usually very open to meeting fans. My Beloved and I, together with one other lady from the tour practically ran back to Otto.

We walked in, and at first I couldn't see him because he was sitting at the far end of the bar near the door to the kitchen. Immediately my shy-ness took over and I very hesitantly led the way (btw, when was I voted fearless leader?) over to him.

I didn't want to interrupt the conversation he was having with the man next to him so I waited a moment before speaking (read: was too star-struck to open my mouth). He looked over at me and smiled and said, "Well, you can't just stand there and not say hello." I must have stammered something intelligible about taking a picture with him. He graciously let my Beloved capture the shot above, and allowed me to take a picture for the other lady who had come with us.

At some point I managed to regain my powers of speech, and mentioned that we had just eaten there the other day and that the food was amazing. Especially the olive oil gelato (OMG!!!! All other ice cream will pale in comparison for the rest of my life). He laughed and mentioned that the secret is the salt sprinkled on top.

We thanked him profusely for his time, and then dashed back out to the bus. I couldn't stop grinning! I felt like a complete goober, but it was great!

The day continued with the rest of the tour, a wander down 5th Avenue (and some time spent in FAO Schwartz), and ultimately the Yankees game in the evening.

The game was great! Our seats were waaaaaaaaaaay up in the nosebleed section (fourth deck up, right on the first base line), and the breeze was so cold we ended up spending a small fortune on Yankees sweatshirts. We also spent a ridiculous amount of money on food (but man those sausages and fries tasted sooo good!). The Yankees won, and my Beloved thoroughly enjoyed himself (which was the point of going to the game)! It was a long subway ride back to the hotel, but it was a fabulous day!

Now don't forget to head over to Mel's place and check out what the rest of the class is showing.

Calling All New Yorkers (or Anyone Who's Been There)!

Ok, Humble Readers... it's time to get our butts in gear! We have only 33 days until departure and I'm feeling very unprepared.

I'm even stressing about packing and it's a month away!

I have made list upon list, and I need some help. We have so many things on our to do list while we are in NYC, I don't know how to begin planning and prioritizing. Can you tell that I haven't been on a real vacation in forever? (and when I say forever, I mean forever!!!!)

We have been compiling a list of places we want to see, things we want to experience while we are there. There are some things that are tops on our list, but then there are other things that I am just not sure about... Are they really worth doing? Is there something else we should consider instead? I am looking for serious input here!

So, here's our current list. I want opinions and information!

• Hot dog from a hot dog vendor
• Baseball game (Yankees vs Red Sox... tickets purchased)
• Broadway show (Wicked... tickets to be purchased soon)
• Top of the rock
• Ellis Island/Liberty island
• Harbour tour
• Frozen Hot chocolate at Serendipity
• Bobby Flay restaurant (Mesa Grill)
• Mario Batali restaurant (Otto)
• Tavern on the Green
• Carriage ride through central park
• Bagel and lox at a deli
• Cab ride
• Tiffanys (window shopping)
• Macys (window shopping)
• FAO Schwartz (window shopping)
• Chelsea market
• Ground zero
• NY library
• Tv/movie tour
• Rachel Ray? (applied for tickets but haven't heard)
• David Letterman? (applied for tickets but haven't heard)
• Brooklyn bridge
• Central park/strawberry fields
• The Dakota
• Time Square
• 'Seinfeld' diner (a very specific request from my Beloved)
• The Cloisters/The Met
• MOMA
• Central Park Zoo
• The Guggenheim
• Battery Park
• American Natural History Museum

I know that there are a lot of food related things on the list... I'm a foodie, what do you expect?? We have 10 days actually in the city. (unfortunately our last day is basically a waste because our flight leaves at 5pm and it doesn't leave us much time to do anything before we have to head to the airport... international flight and all). Our first full day is my birthday, so my Beloved is planning everything, but other than that I'm kind of in charge of the itinerary.

What would you do? What would be number one on your list? Is there something we should skip? Something we should do instead?

HELP!

Beware Big Apple

Autumn leaves in Central Park... Seeing "Wicked" on Broadway... Visiting the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island...

These are just a few things on our list of to do's for our trip to New York City this fall. There are other things we want to do while we're there... so many in fact that we are now starting a list. We may have to prioritize, but some things are non-negotiable... like lunch from a hot dog vendor, and finding the perfect bagel with lox.

So here is my question... if you were going to New York in September, what would be tops on your list? Is there something or someplace that we really have to experience? Let me know!