The Big Apple

I couldn’t live on the East Coast for a year without doing New York City. My friends Chip, Claire, Claire’s friends, and I took a few days of Spring break to blitz “The Big Apple”. Boy, did we blitz. Fortunately or unfortunately, I have inherited the planning gene from my parents so I packed in the absolute amount of activities within the time allotted:

The Chinatown bus, recommended by a good friend, turned out to be a great deal--$30 from Richmond to Manhattan Chinatown. No parking to worry about and the best part was it traveled overnight from about midnight to 6 a.m. so you could sleep on the way. Well, theoretically sleep along the way. I had this very-energetic night owl right behind me talking on the phone in Mandarin until about 3 a.m. J The funny story more than makes up for the lack of sleep though, right?

The cool, fish-filled air greeted us as we stepped off the bus in the middle of sleepy Chinatown. This didn’t seem like New York City at all, but like Asia (so says Chip). It was very interesting. Groggy but eager to have a blast on this new adventure, we trekked southward toward the Financial District. New York really is a melting pot, even in the case of its architecture. As we headed toward Wall Street, I quickly felt a transition from Asia to what reminded me of Berlin with the tall brick structures and well-coiffed trees. Then yet again in a couple of blocks I thought I was in Chicago with the high winds wailing between two giant walls of glass-covered skyscrapers. Then, I finally felt like I was in New York City; it just seemed like the city I had always dreamed up.

We took the Stanton Ferry across the water and waved at the Statue of Liberty. What a special thing! I could just imagine the feeling of the early immigrants (including some of my ancestors) seeing that pillar of hope after a long journey across the Atlantic. Though the ills of an immature market system would befall many of them, their posterity would be much better off in this “sweet land of liberty”.

Wall Street was…just another street to me but seeing the Trump Tower, Standard & Poors building and NYSE was a real treat. The greatest part of the street, however, was seeing Federal Hall National Memorial, which is on the spot where Washington was first sworn into office. I absolutely love visiting stuff like that.

In fact, another major highlight of mine was walking into Fraunces Tavern, the location where Washington bid his beloved troops adieu following the Revolutionary War. Having just read McCullough’s 1776, I was eager to get a better sense of all historical events that occurred in Manhattan.

Wall Street ends at the intersection with Broadway, marking the historic Trinity Church. I didn’t understand why so many people had ash marks on their foreheads until walking into the giant church. Apparently, it was Ash Wednesday.

From the Financial district, we headed to Ground Zero. Though the sight of the twin towers was blocked off and under construction, I couldn’t help but feel the solemn spirit of the area while walking around the sight. Seeing the majestic Freedom Tower about half way erected was very cool. It is going to be a gorgeous building and a powerful statement to the world.

Next, we headed to Little Italy almost on accident. We were hungry and Chip went to Rome on his mission so we had to go, right. Well, among all the bistros and pizzerias we asked a couple of local New Yorkers where we should do lunch. They told us in their priceless New York accent that we needed to try Lumbardi’s. If we could find those guys again, we would pay them for that advice. This restaurant was honestly a major highlight of the trip! Chip and I talked about if almost every hour for the rest of the trip. In fact, we still talk about it. The first pizzeria in America, this place has had time to perfect their product. We both ordered calzones. Man, it was so good I almost cried. The moist yet chewy dough wrapped around perfect mozzarella and ricotta along with spinach and (I think) prosciutto… WOW! It was a slam dunk, a Fourth of July, a Grand Slam, it was magic. J I would honestly go back just for one more dose of that fine eating (see below--post celestial meal).

From there, we walk all the way up to Time Square, taking an hour longer than we anticipated, and met up with Claire. I was overwhelmed with the visual cacophony of flashing lights, colors, and motion. It was amazing though. There’s no where quite like it. Vegas is over the top too but they don’t have TV screens that cover three story buildings.

After weighing our options for a Broadway musical, we decided on Mary Poppins. We figured that was a safe bet. It was happy, innocent and full of the enchanting Disney magic. At the end of the musical when Mary Poppins flies up through the ceiling, we all got a little misty-eyed. A great production! The sets are the best I’ve ever seen. The acting and singing was unreal. I felt so blessed to be able to be there!

From Time Square we visited the New York City Library and just took in the ambiance and architecture of the noble structure. To get the full experience I even skimmed a couple pages of my book I was reading (Man’s Search for Meaning). Claire and her friends suggested we try out a jazz club called Fat Cats so we checked that place out. Underground, dim-lit, pool tables, and jazz music. It was a very memorable evening.

Thursday began with the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Incredible! I cannot believe how big that place is. We took an hour guided tour and skimmed through maybe a tenth of the material. You could spend a week there and I’m not joking. Van Goghs, Monets, Rembrandts, and de Goyas surprisingly friendly and flattering portraits were just a small part of the collection. I especially loved the stained glass windows. It amazing what humans have created. The hauntingly beautiful creations of man really are testaments of God. After a stole in Central Park, FAO Schwarz was in order. We of course played the giant piano and stood baffled, jaw to the floor, while looking at the price tag of the $1,000 stuffed giraffes. The trip wouldn’t be complete without a trip to Tiffany’s, the Rockefeller Center or St. Patrick’s Cathedral, so we did all of those in order.

To get out of the torrential rain and Chicago-style winds, we ran to the Time Warner Center and had dinner at the Whole Foods in the lower level. On the way over we walked by the LDS temple almost by accident. What a wonderful peace enveloped Chip and I as we looked up at that beacon. Though much shorter than the surrounding buildings, its light so clearly dwarfs any structure in the city. Ironically, the rough setting of West Side Story is the very location of the temple and the Lincoln Center. In fact, I took a picture of the Met while in "The West Side".

To cap off the day, we got the special treat of watching Romeo & Juliet at The Metropolitan Opera House. Wow, that was amazing, though tragic J I’ve never seen anything quite like it. Below is a picture I took from my seat. The chandeliers simultaneousness ascend and dim to usher in the performance; it's a spectacular venue and a must check box on your NYC bucket list. You can get $20 tickets almost every night if you pick them up a couple hours before the performance! The piece when Romeo and Juliet first connect was phenomenal. Their voices were unbelievable. The only thing we would have changed about the event was our dress. Not anticipating the option of going to a world-famous opera house, we had only packed jeans for the trip.

Our last day was intense. We woke up and did the High Line, Chelsea Market and Washington Square Park by 10 a.m. Chip even played a game of chess with a local at the park. Needless to say, Chip lost J We then stopped by the White Horse Tavern, the inspiration spot for people like Edgar Allen Poe and Bob Dylan. Next was the Corner Bistro where we had some of the biggest burgers of our lives. Great place and not ridiculously priced. The Empire State Building was the last major event of the trip. We had oysters at the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station and then headed up to the Bronx, the location of Claire’s car.

What a trip! I think the key takeaways from the trip were these: (1) a clearer perspective of urban life, its benefits and challenges, (2) a deeper appreciation for the eclectic richness of this country (3) man (and woman) can create phenomenal things because they are children of God, and (4) Lombardi’s calzones better be in heaven because they sure remind me of it J