My Dad has been working on a temporary assignment in New York City for some time and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see him, as well as one of my favorite cities, before his assignment was over. To top it all off, my Mom was game too, so we decided to all meet up in the city and do a bit of exploring.
The great thing is that my parents have both been there long enough that they were not as interested in the touristy side of things, so we did what I love, which is to wander around the neighborhoods exploring, eating and people watching. Also, they have both been doing a fair bit of walking and so they had built up a good stamina. In addition, they have figured out the subway system and enjoy utilizing the public transportation options. As you may know, my parents live in a very rural, mountainous area where there are only about 12 neighbors in a 50 mile radius, so it was fun and interesting to see them in a city setting. My Mom has discovered a new-found love for blogging, and was snapping photos of everything along the way.
I arrived very late on Friday, after taking an after work flight from San Francisco. I thought this (and the three hour time difference) would cause me to sleep in a bit, but we were up the next day around 6 and were ready for some action! We started by meeting in Central Park. Dad and I ran there and Mom walked. After meeting up, I went for an additional few miles while they headed down toward the breakfast place. Later, I met them in Hell's Kitchen at the Galaxy Diner, which was okay, but was nothing special.
Who you gonna call?
Afterward, we headed down to the Staten Island ferry, them via subway and me via the East river. We took the ferry over to Staten Island, which is free, and affords a really nice view of the Statue of Liberty and the city skyline. After we got back to Manhattan, we wandered up toward SoHo. We wanted to get a nice pastrami sandwich at Katz' deli, which is where one of the scenes in When Harry Met Sally was filmed. However, it was overcrowded and overpriced, so we walked over to Chinatown and had a really great pho at Pho Grand.
Mural along High Line
On Sunday, we got up and headed toward the High Line. Once again, I ran and my parents took the subway. The funny thing is that I beat them every time! We walked along the High Line to Chelsea and stopped for a bagel and coffee, before heading down through the meat packing district to Tribeca, where we were going to see the Ghostbusters firehouse. It looked just like it did in the movie! Next, we headed over to Brooklyn and took a really nice walk along the promenade and over to Dumbo, where we rode the merry go round and ate yummy pizza.
Brooklyn Promenade
After a shower and a small break for me, I headed back out to meet Mom and Dad in the upper East side, where we were planning on having dinner. However, it was pouring rain and it took me a long time to make my way up to see them. I even had to buy a $5 umbrella from the guy on the street! I finally got up to meet them, and we wandered around the upper East side to the Heidelberg, where we ate pig knuckles and sauerkraut and drank liters of beer. I think with this, I sufficiently tired the parents out, because as soon as we got home, everyone pretty much passed right out!
Manhattan Bridge
Monday was Labor Day, and we got up, went for a run, and then met up with a coworker of Dads (and a former coworker of mine) for breakfast at The Comfort Diner, where I had the most delicious lemon ricotta pancakes! To walk off the pancakes, we headed back over to the East River and then just sat in the shade and watched the boats on the river for a while.
Run / Walk Schedule
That night I took a bus to the Newark airport where I flew to Germany, but that is a story for another day!
What is your favorite thing to do in a big city? What is your favorite city to visit? Do you ever split up your runs into smaller pieces?
August 8, 2013 -- The trip began in Washington, D.C. where I boarded the BoltBus intercity bus service for the four hour plus ride to midtown Manhattan. I stayed with family in Battery Park City for the night and early the next morning took the subway to Penn Station to get ready for the 11-hour, 381 mile (613 km) train ride through New York State and Quebec Province to Montreal.
Penn Station is always a chaotic scene with lines criss-crossing each other, confused passengers navigating the dank, dark corridors and riders scrambling to rush to their gate minutes before their train arrives once the gate is announced on the big board before they have to cram single file into one small escalator. The scene was no different as we waited in line to show our passports for the Canadian check-in to board Amtrak Adirondack train number 69.
The other observation I noticed was how militarized Penn Station still is a full 12 years after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. National Guard troops with weapons and K-9 dogs patrolled the station looking for suspicious packages or behavior. There had been a recent terrorist threat abroad that forced the closure of many U.S. embassies so it could have been related to that.
Thankfully a new 21st century high-speed rail hub is being planned to replace the old Penn Station.
Once on the train I sat next to a gentleman from Perth, Australia who was traveling around the States and Canada. We chatted for much of the trip which made the 11 hours go by faster. We also took lots of pictures on one of the most scenic train rides in the entire world. The route travels through the Hudson Valley and Adirondack Mountains and provides spectacular views of the mighty Hudson River and Lake Champlain where the train winds its way high above the massive body of water separating New York from Vermont.
I walked to the dining car where I talked to a professional photographer returning to Montreal from a photo shoot assignment in New York. She took a ton of pictures of the passing scenery.
In the state capital of Albany the train switches engines, which offers a chance for passengers to walk around the platform to stretch the legs and watch the engine change up close.
Amtrak does not own the right of way on most of the track along its Adirondack route so the service suffers from a high rate of delays and poor on time arrival. I experienced this first hand after a 20-minute delay just south of Plattsburgh, New York to allow a southbound Canadian Pacific Railway freight train to pass because CPR operates that section of track. The conductor explained the predicament in a resigned voice to the passengers. He must be used to these daily inconveniences.
We were also held up at the U.S.-Canadian border by a surprise security check at Rouses Point, New York. In addition to the routine check of our passports, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Field Operations Officers conducted a full baggage search with bomb-sniffing K-9 dogs as all passengers from each car were made to move back to the dining car while the extensive search was going on. After the long delay, the conductor apologized for the unusual outgoing U.S. inspection.
It was a relief when we finally crossed over into Canadian territory. We were welcomed by the much friendlier and less armed Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers. The border agent asked me a bunch of questions including where I was from, my profession and my reason for visiting the Great White North. He obviously liked my answers because he didn't even bother to stamp my passport.
The first thing I noticed as we rolled ahead into the Quebec countryside was how neat and orderly everything was compared to the New York State side of the border. The farmland was spectacular with picture postcard silos, barns and country houses framed against the setting summer sun. The scenery reminded me a lot of my train travels through the French countryside, except in France the scenery passed much faster since I was on a TGV high-speed train traveling at speeds up to 200 mph (322 km/h), whereas in Quebec I was riding the slow train at speeds of 60 to 70 mph (97 to 113 km/h).
After passing the Montreal Canadiens practice facility in Brossard and making a stop in St. Lambert, we crossed the mighty St. Lawrence River at dusk with the shimmering Montreal skyline guiding us to our final destination -- La Belle Ville, The Beautiful City.
Time to grab a beer!! This one is a new one for me. I live close to Chico, where the Sierra Nevada Brewery is, but have never tried this Autumn Brown Ale (photo credit). I think I would like it, as it looks dark enough for my tastes. Hmmm..
You know the drill. This is the point where we grab a beverage, make yourself comfortable and enjoy a recap of the week (a la Kim's Look What I Did Last Week).
This week was a busy one. I had the day off on Monday, so the (short) work week was more hectic than normal. Plus we are trying to finish up work in the area we are in and will be moving to a new area on Monday. So of course this week has consisted of tying up a bunch of loose ends and finding out at the last minute what the issues with certain projects are. Monday will be the last meeting and then we are out of here!
On top of that, I have been training for the marathon and so have spent most of my evenings running, running, showering, driving to running and....washing running clothes. But...in between all that, here is what else I did this week.
We met a friend at Zabars for some cheese shopping. I love cheese.
Almost as much as I love New York.
We went to see the Freedom Tower. Expected to be done in...2021.
And of course, no trip to NYC is complete without a trip to Central Park.
Goodbye New York. I will miss you.
Or should I say...Until Next Time.
You can read about some of my other trips to NYC HERE.
What is your favorite place to visit in the Fall? Do you have a place you keep going back to over and over? Do YOU heart NY? What did you do this week?
50 cent ain't got nothin' on me! So you may have heard the song that he sings? I Run New York? I think he's talking about how long his gun is and how important he is in the City, but I, I actually RUN New York. Yeah. MOVE OVER, 50 (fitty); I will do the running of New York, thank you very much.
Last weekend I spent a marvelous weekend, if you can't guess where, in New York. Knowing I had to do a long run of 15 miles, I got prepared before I went. First I found the local running store and found out that, yippy, they had a group long run on the weekends. I emailed them. I did not get a response. Next, I contacted this runner, who lives in the city, and asked her if she could give me some advice. Hurray for the running community. Not only did she give me advice, she gave me a play by play of where I should run. So I google mapped it to figure out which specific streets I would need to go on to get in enough miles (and not accidentally do too many!)
So, as you can see from above map, I started in Midtown, ran East to the East River and then south along the East River to Battery Park. Here are a few examples of the views I had while running on the East River. These photos were taken with my phone, which I carried.
I also carried a pack of Black Cherry clif shot bloks and a bottle of water. I still have not purchased a fuel belt, since the only one I have been able to physically try on is the Nathan Speed 2 and the Nathan Trail Mix. I like the feel of both of them, but want to have something to compare them to before making my decision.
FYI, in case you were wondering how my Fuel Experiment was going...the Bloks taste okay. They are a little sweet, but pretty easy to eat. I drank lots of water and only took two bloks over the entire 15 miles (one at mile 6 and one around mile 10). The only thing I did not like is that the aftertaste is a bit like cough syrup; it's a little medicinal.
After running to Battery Park, I headed north along the Hudson, which was a nicer path but in my opinion, the views from the East River were better. By the time I got to this side, I was pretty tired and did not take any photos. Also by this time (around 9 a.m.) there were TONS of other people out jogging and riding bikes and walking dogs. I may suggest getting an earlier start than I did (7:45).
From there I cut across to Central Park at 72nd St and then around the park and back down to my starting point. All in all, although my legs were screaming, the rest of my body, lungs and stomach felt great. To celebrate my longest run ever, we went to Zabars to fight the crowds for the last piece of lox meet up with some friends and have a huge (and I mean HUGE) turkey and pastrami sandwich on rye. Yummy.
Where did you run this weekend? Have you ever been to New York City? What's your favorite place to run and/or eat there? What fuel belt (or bottle) do you use?
Don't forget to link up with Jill for Fitness Friday! And if you have not already done so, go and Enter My Giveaway for Fun Scrapbooking and Photo Software! Ends October 16th!
Since September 11, 2001 I've had the opportunity to visit New York City numerous times and have always made it a point to walk around Ground Zero to check on the progress in rebuilding the site of so much suffering and pain, but also so much hope and optimism that America can rebuild from the ashes. I've also visited other 9/11 Memorial sites, particularly in the Los Angeles area. Most recently, I was in Israel where I took photos of memorials to victims of terrorism there. Here is one person's photographic perspective on 9/11 and tribute to victims of terrorism around the world.
GROUND ZERO, 2004
GROUND ZERO, 2008
GROUND ZERO, 2010
NEWSEUM, WASHINGTON DC, 2008
9/11 MEMORIAL FOUNTAIN, FIRE STATION 88, SHERMAN OAKS, CALIFORNIA, 2005
