New York City

We just got back from an unexpected trip to New York. Actually, Mike knew he was going, he was attending a conference. But the people he planned to go with canceled at the last minute, so Claire and I went along instead. It was a great opportunity and really it couldn't have worked out better. We ended up having a fantastic time. We stayed at the Sofitel right off 5th Avenue. It was about 1.5 blocks from Times Square, where Claire and I spent most of our time while Mike was at his conference.















The one night we had there, we used very well. After Mike was finished for the day, we walked to Central Park and FAO Schwartz. Along the way we saw Rockefeller Center, Saint Patricks Cathedral, Trump Tower and the NBA store.


































Then we walked to the Empire State Building. We obviously went during a non-peak time, because we didn't have to wait. But it was obvious from the large areas with the mazes of ropes that we were lucky. We bought the audio tour, and it was well worth it. It was fun to be there and look out at all the buildings, but knowing what you were looking at really turned it from 'pretty neat' to 'favorite part of the trip'. On the way back to the hotel we picked up some Subway sandwiches and ate them in Bryant Park while the Yankees game was shown on a huge screen (Mike quickly removed his Sox hat and hid it in a bag). It was just like a drive in movie. Then we went to Times Square to see the lights at night, went back to our room, and crashed.















































The next day Claire and I spent most of our time in Bryant Park waiting for Mike, and then we started driving home. I've only driven through Connecticut four times, but three of those times the entire state was one big traffic jam. The only time we went through without a problem was on the way to New York this trip, and that was because it was the middle of the night. It took us 10 hours to get home last night. Twice what it took us to get there because we spent five hours in traffic in Connecticut. Its a pretty state from what I've seen, and we sure did get to spend some time looking at it while we were parked on the freeway.

Its good to be home. Mike left today for a camping trip at Baxter State Park. I'm sure he will have a great time hiking. Hopefully the weather holds out for him. Its suppose to be rainy. And hopefully, Claire and I can get some stuff done thats been on our To Do List for far too long.