Daytripping to the tip and top of the Manhattan

Debbie treated Jill and I to a bus tour of Manhattan today. It was a complete touristy thing to do, but I absolutely loved it. I learned so much! The guides are really knowledgeable so it is a complete history lesson. I will pass along a few of my favorite pieces of info: 1 in 10 New Yorkers is a Chinese immigrant; Manhattan is 13.5 miles long and 2.5 miles wide; 14th street was the first street in the USA to be lit by street lights; the Declaration of Independence was first read to the public in Washington Square Park; Soho and Tribeca are acronyms for South of Houston (a main East-West artery) and Trains below Canal.

Some of the tour guides are movie buffs so they point out what movies that were filmed in certain locations while others are obviously architecture experts and are not afraid to tell you how much they hate the Madison Square Square structure.

The tour included a boat ride around the Hudson Harbor and up the East River. We then went out past Ellis Island and received an up-close and personal view of Lady Liberty. Also included was a trip to the observation deck of the Statue of Liberty. I have never been up there at night; so, that was a treat. It was stunning.

There was a lot of patience needed today as we had to wait in a lot of lines to board buses, boat and buildings. Unfortunately, by the time we were to leave the Empire State Building we were all tired and hungry. The exit line was more tedious that the ones to go up. They want you purchase everything from your group pic to art noveau kitsch. I had had enough. I walked over to some of the "kids" who were herding us and told them that I was having trouble breathing from claustrophobia and felt as if I was going to vomit. Jill, Debbie and I were down the last 86 flights and strolling down 5th Ave in about 7 minutes flat....please do not try this at home.

We walked up to Grand Central which is still one of my personal favorite pieces of architecture. It is ironically graceful and serene considering it is such a place of chaotic coming and going.
We hopped on an express train to Union Square from where we walked home to eat our left over Mexican food. Currently, Debbie is already in bed as they are getting up early to get standby tickets for The View and then go to the taping of The Today Show in Rockefeller Center. I am going to sleep in a bit before I try to figure out how to get to my Viewpointing class at SITI Company and rehearsal at the Women's Project at the same time...yikes.