It's a bigger word than "Consanguinity!" I guess this is the word I will use to describe the time we had in NY City.
We arrived on Sunday evening late, taking a cab in from Liberty Airport in New Jersey. Our hotel was in Soho. It was a nice, 4-star hotel close to the "Spring Street" subway entrance. It also turned out to be close (about 3 blocks) from where the actor Heath Ledger was discovered dead in his apartment on Tuesday. We actually walked down there that evening to watch the news coverage.
On Monday Rebecca and I visited the Museum of Modern Art (referred to as MoMA by everyone in NY). That place is very interesting. They have some really nice art pieces such as Starry Night by Van Gogh. Our favorite in this museum (Rebecca and I actually had the same favorite piece - believe it or not) was one by George Seurat where he even painted the frame! They had some other "art" that was so weird it was entertaining. One display was a fabric igloo on a 20 ' X 20" bed of grapevines with neon numbers in a Fibonacci series running in a path through the igloo. Other interesting displays were a pink fluorescent bulb in a corner (named "pink in corner") and a piece of rope hanging from the ceiling called "piece of rope."
Also on Monday, we also had lunch at Rockefeller Center and went to Sak's 5th Avenue where Rebecca tried on an evening gown that was on sale for $1000. It was amazing to see the prices on some of the designer clothes. Rebecca really doesn't like to spend money - even at Old Navy - so she couldn't really enjoy the shopping. But we had to duck into some of the stores just to keep warm. We also came to the conclusion that it's not much fun to try on clothes when you are wearing long underwear and lots of layers. It's just too much trouble!
On Tuesday, we went to the Metropolitan Museum. It is the biggest museum in the Western Hemisphere and was overwhelming. In contrast to some of the questionable talent on display at MoMA, the art here was fabulous and SO BIG! Some were the size of an entire wall. We saw whole rooms of Monet, Degas, Renoir, etc. Our favorites were the Impressionists but we also loved the European Portraits and American Landscapes. There's also some modern art at this museum, and it provides some contrast. We really could have seen lots more, but after looking at art for 4-5 hours, we were a bit overwhelmed.
So we trekked to the Southside Seaport to try and buy half-price Broadway tickets for a matinee on Wed. We got lost on the subway a few times and hiked about 20 blocks to our destination only to find out that the only half-price tickets were the very expensive ones (in other words, $150 tickets on sale half price). So we stayed at the hotel that night and watched the UT - Kentucky game with Terry.
On Wednesday we had lunch with some missionaries that we support with Jews for Jesus. They live very close to the United Nations. We wish we could have spent more time there, but by that time Rebecca and I had figured out how to get our Broadway tickets and had to rush off to see a matinee of Mary Poppins. Turns out the best way to get cheap Broadway tickets is to walk right up to the box office - go figure. Anyway, Mary Poppins was spectacular! It had some new songs that aren't in the movie, and the set was so impressive. That evening we saw "Spamalot" on Broadway as well. It's a musical based on Monte Python and the Search for the Holy Grail. I thought Terry would like that, and he did. It was very funny.
The next day we only had half a day, but we decided to try to shop at Century 21 near the World Trade Center (our Jewish friends said the best buys were there). It was a real experience. In contrast to the huge dressing rooms at Sak's, the dressing rooms here were sort of a huge shower curtain covering 20 stalls on each side. You could basically see all the other women trying on their clothes. It was a bit much for Rebecca, who is very modest, but she managed and bought a pair of slacks. Our friends were right, it's obviously where all the good deals are. And they have 4 floors of clothing!
So we had a great time seeing art and theatre and many adventures riding the subway and navigating on ground level, too. The main way it could have been better is if it could have been warmer, but we won't complain.
