Summer Fridays/Weekends 2010 - Part Two

Some of my Summer Friday activities have actually turned into Summer Weekend Excursions -- with visits and explorations of the City spilling over onto Saturday or Sunday. There was the Sunday in the Park with Tammy and the Kids (post to come), brunch with Poopeh, and then the lunch with the old Library Crew at Jackson Hole and the biggest Western Burger that I have ever eaten (sadly, I didn't have my camera with me). And then there was Saturday in the City with Jess.

Jess is the wife of a pal of my brother's. We've been friendly over the years, most recently when I've popped back into Church services in the old home congregation. I've kept in touch with her family's activities through her slightly inactive blog and through my mom. Grandmary mentioned that Jess was coming to the City with a bunch of "girls" one weekend, and that they were going to be running a road race. I offered to hang with Jess during the race, as it would be a good chance to catch up while not in Church. (You aren't supposed to gossip during congregation meetings for some reason.)

Friday afternoon came and went with both of us having other plans, so we met on Saturday morning at her hotel. After a scrumptious brunch at a very quiet Carnegie Deli (so nice not to be crowded out and rushed for a change), we wander to Times Square to see what was on the TKTS boards and to explore a little. We didn't have
any set plans for the day, and so as we walked East, the decision was to explore the Park or do something else, like "Hey, have you been to the Empire State Building?"

One right turn, a meander through Bryant Park, a look at the Library and some bizarre white boy Hari Krishna/Buddhists, and many blocks later, we finally found the building. Auntie is not so good with directions to mid-town attractions as you might think. I'm an Upper Westsider, avoid mid-town/Times Square by staying underground, and anything south of 42nd on the East side can be a mystery. Plus, it's hard to see the tops of skyscrapers when you are underneath them. Just saying. Plus, the last time I was at the Empire State Building was when I was in high school and that was MANY, MANY years ago.

We elected to do the whole tourist experience and got tickets for the Skyride, that combined tickets to an aerial/amusement park ride ticket with tickets to the 86th Story Observation deck. I don't know if it was the lines we were in, or the whole thing has gotten that much more commercial since I was in high school, but we were directed in and out of lines to elevators that routed us through greenscreen pictures (no thank you, I skipped that option) and two or three gift shops. Plus, a June Saturday in NYC? Can you say, busy and crowded?

On the plus side, those ESB staffers have the drill DOWN, but still have enough of a sense of humor to mock me, to Jess's amusement and the befuddlement of the German guy behind us. I think we heard about every language that there are delegates to the U.N. It wasn't too hot, and the breeze and the haze made seeing things from the deck not too hard. After all of this time I'm able to point out landmarks, give my own anecdotes, and then step back to let others soak up the experience.

Jess was due to meet up with the girls to go off and do one thing or another. At one point it was a show, at another point it was running all over creation and packing as much into 36 hours as possible. We walked back up through Bryant Park and took a breather while she checked in on THE PLAN, and then we were back to Times Square so they could rendezvous. As for me, I was headed back to The Attic and out of the City.

OMIHECK. I just realized ... I WAS MY MOTHER! I was being JUST LIKE TOURGUIDE MARYc.1980s/1990s!

Carnegie Deli? Check!
Times Square? Check!
Major landmark with security, a wait, long lines, and an observation deck? Check!
Walking, walking, and more walking vs. taxis aka "Oh, it's not that far!"? Check!
Running visitors ragged? CHECK!

So, so, so sorry Jess. You know Grandmary. Just tell us to SLOW DOWN! We forget. We have CityLegs and are like Energizer Bunnies. Thanks for putting up with me regardless.

Anyway, I didn't take a lot of photos, as it was Jess's trip, but I did take a few of the ESB and the Park!

l-r: The Bronze at the Main Desk; View to the South, The Statue of Liberty is faint, but the skyline where the Towers used to be isn't; Busy Deck; looking up and up and up; Jess in the Park checking in on The Plan; The Carousel;

A good day!