Review: Central Park Tours

…the one in which we crawl through Central Park and discover a gem in the concrete jungle…


Our first tour this morning was a walking tour of Central Park…we were to meet our guide at 58th and Broadway, which was a “mere” 1.5 miles away from the hotel. We decided to have a quick breakfast at the hotel (it was FREE!), and then walk to our meeting place (a decision we would later regret).

It was a beautiful day…and before we knew it, we were at Columbus Circle, which was very near our meeting place.



However, we were certainly not alone at Columbus Circle – there were dozens of emergency vehicles conglomerated at this spot, with lights flashing and sirens blazing:





We’re talking several hook-and-ladder trucks, command cars, police cars, and ambulances…it was a bit startling, as we weren’t sure what we had exactly walked into. We later found out that there had been an apartment fire – on the 14th floor – that had started in an apartment of a “hoarder.” In fact, five people were injured – including three firemen – due to hoarded debris stacks falling over on them as they tried to put out the fire. A scary situation for all involved, and because we don’t really have too many high rises at the lake, where I live, it was interesting to see how the emergency responders responded.

Columbus Circle is an EXTREMELY busy intersection located at the southwest corner of Central Park. Being a huge movie buff, I pointed out to Daughter that Columbus Circle is where the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man – in Ghostbusters – begins his famous march on the city…however, since I’ve been an awful mother and have obviously neglected in my motherly duties by never letting her SEE this classic movie, she had no idea what I was talking about. Gah! Where did I go amiss? How can my kid NOT know about the greatest movie monster of all time, the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man??!!


Such a classic....


I should also point out that Columbus Circle is pretty much dominated by at LEAST 2,673,252 guys (or gals) all trying to sell you something….You will be bombarded with offers of buying a bike tour, rickshaw tour, pedicab, horse ride, bus ride, etc…and fending these guys off is worse than fending off a swarm of mosquitoes in an Amazon jungle. When they see a tourist, they swarm like sharks around fresh meat – so be prepared to firmly say “No!” and keep walking. Once you engage with one of them – you’re doomed.

Our tour was with a company called Central Park Tours – whose information can be found HERE. As of this posting, they are ranked #40 out of 413 activities in NYC on TripAdvisor, and had received predominantly very positive reviews, as well as a Certificate of Excellence in 2013. Based on this, I had made reservations for a private walking tour, for a total of $143.10 for the three of us.


Theodore, our guide, met us promptly at 9:00 am. He is from Bulgaria, and it was interesting to hear a bit about his culture and homeland during the tour.



He initially tried to talk us into switching from a walking tour to a biking tour, promising that we would be able to cover more ground in Central Park.

Bwahahahahahaha.

Biking tour? As if.

Obviously, he has never seen me ride a bike. Actually, even my Hubby and kids have never seen me ride a bike…because…I can’t. Ride a bike. Don’t laugh. I’m being totally serious here.

Oh, when I was a kid, riding a bike was my absolute favorite thing to do – when I wasn’t singing along to David Cassidy records, that is. I rode my bike EVERYWHERE. However, once I…um…matured…into a snotty, teenaged girl with attitude – I decided that riding a bike wasn’t cool anymore, so I climbed off my bike and never got back on. Until about four years ago – when I made a valiant effort to ride a bike through the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

I failed miserably.

So…that old adage, “It’s like riding a bicycle! You never forget!” ???

So untrue. Take it from me. You CAN forget.

So, when Theodore tried to convince me to climb back on a bike, I laughed. And laughed again. (It didn’t help that it was a Saturday morning – so Central Park, which is crowded on a NORMAL day, was absolutely packed THIS morning with bikers, joggers, dog walkers, and tourists. They would all be potential targets for me to crash into, and seeing liability lawsuits flashing in front of my eyes, I politely declined the bike tour.)

So…off we went on our walking tour…we predominantly did the Lower Loop of Central Park, in a counter-clockwise direction.



One of our first stops was at the ice-skating rink. It was obviously closed, but in its place, there is a little amusement park, which afforded a great view of the skyline behind us:



Dodging zooming bikers, as well as joggers, we eventually found ourselves strolling down “The Mall”, a promenade that runs down the middle of the Park from 66th to 72nd Streets. It’s one of the widest areas in the Park, built initially to accommodate carriages and buggies...and it's also been in so many movies, I couldn't even begin to list them all here.



Considering that Hurricane Sandy did extensive damage to Central Park – most notably, it’s trees – the park looked amazing. Along the ground in the southern end of the Mall, you’ll find these unique plaques:


One of my favorite actresses...just watched her in "Maid in Manhattan" the other day...


Theodore explained the “Endow A Tree” program – where a monetary donation helps ensure that the trees in the park are well-maintained. We spent a few moments finding some notable plaques:


Ironic that we found this plaque...as we later had an encounter with the REAL Donald Trump - but that story later!


You will also find the Literary Walk at the southern end of the Mall, containing statues of some famous writers…maybe my statue will be up there one day…??!!



Strolling down the mall, we eventually came to Bethesda Terrace – one of the very first structures to ever be built at the Park, completed in 1863.



This is a VERY popular place with the barbarians – I mean, tourists – so trying to get a photo in front of the famous Bethesda Fountain is a technological marvel:



If you’d tried to visit this fountain in the 1970’s, you would have found the place swarming with drug dealers…but NYC has considerably cleaned up its image and public areas since then, and we felt quite safe in ALL areas of the park.

At this point, we were at the beautiful lake…an 18-acre body of water that began its existence in the 1800’s as a swamp:











By now, we were up to 73rd Street…and here, we discovered a hidden oasis that not too many barbarians – oops, I mean “tourists” – know about…the Ramble. It’s off the main path, and is more woodsy – and hence, wild – than the rest of Central Park. We soon discovered that we were the only people to be strolling along it’s narrow paths – and when you find that you are the ONLY PEOPLE ON A PATH IN NEW YORK CITY – that is a bit of heaven on Earth.





If you ever visit Central Park – you MUST visit The Ramble. Absolutely beautiful.

We eventually stumbled out of The Ramble, and back into civilization, where we encountered some beautiful flowers…which we learned are part of Shakespeare Gardens:









The Gardens will lead you up to Belvedere Castle:



Named for the Italian meaning “beautiful view”, there are some awesome panoramic views here that can be found if you’re willing to climb the castle steps:





We were now heading back south (to where we had originally started from), and when we saw the crowds getting larger, we knew we had come upon Strawberry Fields, a site that pays tribute to John Lennon:




The Dakota Building...where John Lennon lived, and was murdered....


Even with the crowds, there’s a peaceful feeling here…it’s been designated a “quiet zone” - and again, when you can find quiet in the heart of New York City – it’s a beautiful thing.

Upon leaving the Strawberry Fields area, we encountered a guy with a sign: “$1 for a Joke”. Hubby couldn’t resist, so here he is, getting his joke for a buck:



Eventually, we were back at Columbus Circle...two hours – and thousands of steps – later. My feet were already beginning to grumble at this point, but we still had two more tours to knock out…no rest for the weary!

Theodore was a GREAT tour guide…he kept us informed of the history and trivia of the park, pointing out things that we would have never found on our own. He also prevented us from getting lost in the Park, which is what the original designers actually INTENDED for park-goers to do…get lost. Actually, there’s no excuse for getting lost now…if you pay attention to the lamp posts in the park, you’ll find them embossed with numbered plaques…which will indicate what cross street you are near in the city.


This tells you that you're at 72nd Street....


We enjoyed this tour…my suggestions would be to have bottled water, and good walking shoes.

Or opt for the bike tour...which, in hindsight, was sounding better and better....!

We had about an hour to meet up with our next tour - and for some ridiculous reason - we decided to walk - WALK - to midtown to our meeting place. Remember - this was our first day in the city, and I guess we were apprehensive at this point to use the Subway.

Boy, were we dumb.

The Plan: Saturday, June 22nd

*

…the one in which I pretty much die. Really.


I’m not sure what delusional crack I was smoking the day I planned our activities for this Saturday…it must have been some good stuff, because looking back, I can’t BELIEVE how ambitious I was in our schedule. It was insane. INSANE. Here is what The Plan looked like for the day:


9:00 am Central Park Walking Tour (2 hours)

12:00 pm Food Truck & Cart Walking Tour (3 hours)

3:00 pm Graffiti & Street Art Walking Tour (3 hours)

6:30 pm Dinner at Tony Di Napoli’s Italian Restaurant

8:30 pm Experience “The Ride” Bus Tour (90 minutes)

10:00 pm Cupcakes at Cake Boss Café


HOLY CANNOLI, BATMAN...that's a lotta' stuff on The Plan!!!


So…did we accomplish all of this???

Did all go according to plan???

Would I need a straitjacket before the end of the day - because, obviously, I am certifiable - for even ATTEMPTING this plan???

Or - worse - would Hubby be serving me divorce papers before the day was out - for planning all of this??!!

Or - would I be praying for someone to shoot me, putting me out of my misery, by the end of the day??!!

Actually, one of these last three statements is true...but which one??

Stay tuned….!

*Image from HERE

Walk This Way

…the one in which I come to terms with the fact that I am getting older….




In my defense, I’m only two months out of surgery. Yeah, I know – it was sinus surgery – not hip surgery, or knee surgery, or any sort of surgery that would normally affect my walking ability – but still. Surgery is surgery, right? It leaves you a bit weakened…a bit…out of shape….right?

Anyway. That’s my excuse. That’s why walking the streets of New York City – for ten days – left me near dead. At least breathless. The good news, though, is that I powered through it, and have declared that my legs are now in the best shape they’ve been in for well nigh five years. Seriously. Walking an average of 15,000 steps a day will do that, you know.

So, yes. This post is obviously about the walking that’s required in New York City. Unless you opt to cheat and take a cab. Hey – it’s Hubby that decided to label taking a cab “cheating” – and it was Hubby who declared we would either walk – or take a subway – to fully immerse ourselves in the NYC experience. This from the man who HADN’T had surgery just weeks ago. Gah.

The good news is that Manhattan is very easy to navigate…developed with an easy, grid-system, it’s a no-brainer on how to locate an address (with the exception of Greenwich Village and the Financial District, but we won’t talk about that now). It’s not the particular address that matters – it’s the cross streets that you need to know. For instance, our hotel was technically located at 150 E 50th Street – which means nothing. However, knowing that it was located at the cross streets of 50th Street and 3rd Avenue – well, that meant we could place it exactly on a map – and knew how to get there.



The numbered streets (i.e., 42nd Street, 50th Street, etc) run east to west – and you would have to walk twenty of them to equate to a mile. The avenues (i.e., 5th Avenue, Park Avenue, Madison Ave, etc) run north-south; they’re a bit spread further apart. Every intersection has a stoplight – with a “walk/don’t walk” signal. Most New Yorkers consider the walk/don’t walk signal suggestions only – so don’t be surprised if you see people disregarding the “hand.”


"Don't Walk?? Fuggedaboutit! I'm goin'!!!!"


A hidden NYC gem that I found are these Haiku poems – posted on signs – at various intersections in Manhattan:





I did some research when I got home and found that these signs (of which there are about twelve different designs) were posted in 2011 by the New York Department of Transportation, and is called, appropriately enough, "Curbside Haiku." It makes for a fun Scavenger Hunt - tracking down the various signs.

If I could give anyone a tip about visiting NYC, it would be to have good walking shoes. You’ll need them not only for traversing the streets, but you also need them for navigating the subways. Yes. You read that right. You need good walking shoes for the subways…as we discovered, when we would have to climb up – or go down – numerous flights of stairs to navigate the subway system. I learned – the hard way, no less – that the NYC subway system is not a perfect “one-flight down” below street level…no, there’s various levels below the ground, and you will go up – or go down – lots and lots and lots of stairs to catch the next train.


I took not one, but TWO pedometers with me to NYC, and wore them both the entire trip. On my waist, I had my favorite – my Fitbit – which almost died from overdosing on step counts…I swear I heard it say, “Are you SERIOUS??!! You’re not CHEATING, are you??” as my step count climbed higher and higher each day. Sadly, my Fitbit did not survive the trip – but that’s another story for another day. I also wore an Up by Jawbone bracelet each day, which wasn’t exactly stylish – but it gave good feedback.


Another tip for first-time visitors would be to have DIFFERENT shoes – so that you can switch out each day. This helped prevent the formation of blisters – although I did end up with one good blister, but some good blister band-aids helped alleviate the pain of it.


New Yorkers walk fast. Fortunately, so do we, so we blended right in with the locals while walking down the street. You can always tell the tourists; they’re the ones who stop dead in their tracks while walking down the street, usually to snap a photo of something or to check their map. That can pretty much get you killed in NYC; it’s the equivalent of stopping your car in its tracks while barreling down a highway at 70 mph. DON’T DO THAT!!!! The few times we had to stop on a public street, we would try to get over to a doorway and “pull in” for a quick stop – it’s like pulling over onto the shoulder, so to speak.



Let’s talk about subways….

We loved them. Absolutely loved them. Both Hubby and I had subway maps that we’d use to map out our route, and the maps were easy to figure out – stops, transfers, etc. It’s not all that complicated, once you get the hang of it.


The Green Line went right by our hotel...so, we'd use it to start - and then transfer to another line, when needed....


The most important thing to note is which direction you're going: uptown or downtown. If you're going uptown, make sure you descend the steps that say "Uptown." And vice versa, if you're going downtown.


DON'T go down these stairs if you wanted to go "downtown"!



We used some apps on our iPhones which also helped us. Hop Stop was a great app that we used to navigate the Subway system. You can quickly type in where you want to go, and using GPS, it quickly comes back with the best subway route for you. Exit Strategy is for more experienced subway riders – it can tell you where to best exit a particular station so that you’re that much closer to your next connection.

As far as costs, it would normally cost $2.50 for each ride, per person. However, we ended up purchasing a 7-Day Unlimited Pass for $30 per person…and to say we got our money’s worth out of this is an understatement. We would ride the subway several times each day, so our Passes were a great investment.


Keep this card - you can re-load it at any time at one of the subway stations....


We found the subways easy, safe, convenient and most important, FAST. We could zip downtown in a matter of a few minutes, avoiding traffic and stoplights and pedestrians. Some subway lines were more crowded than others, but we could normally find a seat to sit down and relax….We usually never had to wait for a train, either; I think the longest we ever waited was five minutes – which seemed like forever, since normally a subway train would show up in 90 seconds after we’d arrive at a station.

We DID see two rats one day, playing along the subway tracks...they were chasing each other in a game of Tag, which was almost comical. I just told myself they were squirrels - with skinnier tails. Ugh.

They say that Americans are an obese nation, but honestly, we didn’t see any overweight people in Manhattan. Whether you’re walking, or riding the subway, the transportation system pretty much forces you to stay in shape…which is probably a good thing, since it also helped us work off all of the darned cupcakes we ate while we were there!

Review: Magnolia Bakery

...the one in which we visit the birthplace of the cupcake...


Last year, while visiting Europe, it was the Quest for the Perfect Gelato. So, it was only fitting that while visiting New York City, our quest this year would be for the Perfect Cupcake. Why, you ask? Because the ‘cupcake craze’ that began in the 1990’s and is still continuing across the country was born in the heart of the Big Apple.

To get technical, it all started at a little shop called “Magnolia Bakery,” which opened in 1994 in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan. They’ve now expanded to several locations, and we decided to make a late night visit to the one located near Rockefeller Center, at 1240 6th Ave. This was conveniently right on the way from the theater to our hotel – and because it was open until midnight, this was the PERFECT place to pick up a late-night snack after “Wicked” ended.



We can blame the entire cupcake craze on extra cake batter. Apparently, one of the bakers had extra batter while making 6” cakes, and instead of letting that batter go to waste, she began making cupcakes…and soon, she had late-night customers coming in and begging for one of the deliciously-iced treats.

Magnolia Bakery has been featured on “Sex and the City” – and yes, in case you’re wondering, I was a HUGE fan of this show…I wanted to dress like Carrie and act like Samantha – but I was always actually a Charlotte-girl at heart….


Carrie with her cupcake...*


So…enough about the background and history of Magnolia Bakery…I was almost quivering in excitement as we approached the little shop. Being that it was going on 11:00 pm, I had reasoned that it would be relatively empty…I mean, what kind of crazy people go out for cupcakes at 11:00 pm???!! (Well – obviously, WE do, but who’s counting US??!!) Imagine my surprise when we arrived, and I found the place not quite packed, but definitely busy….

We jumped into the craziness - it was a bit like Walmart the day after Thanksgiving, and this was just a regular, boring Friday night - and I discovered a HUGE disadvantage to going an hour before closing…the cupcake window was sadly lacking and a bit empty, as most of the “popular” cupcakes have been sold out by now. Oh, the horror! However, there were still several delicious temptations to choose from, which, of course, sent Daughter into a tizzy….For some unknown reason, that girl treats food decisions like they’re life or death. Seriously – it can take her 45 minutes to choose a flavor of ice-cream at Baskin Robbins – gah! This type of indecisiveness in NYC will get you killed – so I had to repeatedly warn, “One more minute! One more minute! Make up your mind! It's JUST a cupcake!!!!” (God help us when she has to decide on a name for any future children....!)

While Daughter is anxiously trying to decide which little morsel of sweetness will be the Perfect Ten of Cupcakes, and I’m trying to jostle and elbow my way into the line so we can get served, Hubby is standing in the background, looking a bit helpless and perplexed…he has no clue as to why he is surrounded by a gaggle of women on a Friday night desperately trying to get their sugar rush. He DID look a bit out of his element, but after spending over $25 on a glass of wine at the restaurant earlier, he knew better than to say anything about his girls spending $3.50 on a cupcake.

Eventually, it was our turn to order…Daughter went with a Coconut Cream, which is one of the Magnolia’s classics…and I went with their famous Banana Pudding. As in real pudding. Not a cupcake.


A little cup of heaven....


PUDDING???? At a BAKERY???!! I know, right? I DIDN’T get a cupcake at the birthplace of cupcakes!!!! That’s because I had done my research ahead of time and knew that the Banana Pudding was FAMOUS – rich, creamy, and decadent. Not to worry, though…Hubby opted not to get a cupcake (he’s really not into sweets), so I graciously decided to get him a cupcake anyway – chocolate, no less – and if he decided he REALLY didn’t want it, well, I’m sure I could manage to eat that cupcake for him.


I'm sure, if Hubby would have chosen a flavor, he would have chosen this one.


Sigh. The sacrifices one makes for the sake of love.

The cupcake was good – but I didn’t consider it great. Of course, I had nothing to compare it to at this point, and so more research would be needed. Again - the sacrifices I make for the sake of research. The icing was sweet – very sweet – and that threw me off a bit. I will say that the banana pudding was to die for…I would walk out of my way in NYC just to get another taste of that little bit of heaven. So, if you're ever in NYC - and see a Magnolia Bakery - don't just get a cupcake. GET THE BANANA PUDDING!!!!!



Our visit to Magnolia Bakery now complete, we walked on back to the hotel…a successful ending to a wonderful first day in New York City. (I should add that there is NO place to sit inside the shop, so we got our cupcakes & pudding to go - and indulged when we got back to our room.)

Speaking of walking...I'm going to address that in the next post...because...well...just because. It needs to be addressed.

*Image from HERE

Review: "Wicked" on Broadway

...the one in which I am almost serenaded to death...or at least the death of my daughter if she doesn't shut up....


Before embarking on our NYC adventure, I had asked both Hubby and Daughter to name one thing – and ONLY one thing – that they wanted to accomplish during our vacation.

Daughter’s #1 choice was to see “Wicked” – on Broadway.



Ack.

Initially, I was reluctant. This is because for weeks...no wait, make that MONTHS...I've been hearing Daughter go around the house, singing at the top of her lungs, the very catchy and very annoying (at least to me) song from Wicked, "Popular."

"Popular...you're gonna be pop-uuuu-lar!"

Over. And over. And over again.

Gah.

It was enough to drive me CRAZY!!!!!!!!

I had made the mistake of purchasing the CD soundtrack months ago, and she had taken it upon herself to memorize this song - and serenade me with it over. And over. And over again. It's like an ear worm that I can't get out of my brain - and if I indulged her, by taking her to see the show, she would just drive me even crazier with this incessant song.

But...it was the ONLY thing she asked for. In over ten days of vacation.

So who was I to say no?

Sigh.

Thankfully, I had plenty of notice for this request, and I was able to score some tickets months ago. But they didn’t come cheap. Oh no, siree. For three tickets – in the Orchestra section (1st floor), Row Q – our tickets were a staggering $499.70. Yes. I’m choking and gasping for air even as I type that.

FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS for THREE Broadway tickets!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thankfully, having already seen “Wicked” on Broadway last February, I knew that it was worth it. And I knew Daughter, as well as Hubby, would be bowled over by it. Which they should be – for five hundred dollars.

So…we arrived at the beautiful Gershwin Theater at about 7:30 pm…it was literally right across the street from where we’d dined for dinner. The theater is located at 222 West 51st Street, but you can enter on either 51st Street OR 50th Street. The theater was built in 1972, and is one of the largest on Broadway with regards to seating…and they need every seat available for “Wicked” – there’s never an empty seat in the house, even though the show has been in production since 2003.

To date, “Wicked” has established itself as Broadway’s highest-grossing show, regularly pulling in more than $1.5 million per week. It’s the 12th longest-running show on Broadway, and is only the third musical in Broadway history to exceed $500 million in total gross. Of course, steep ticket prices may have something to contribute here, you think??!!

As I said, our seats were in Row Q, which was located very close to a side aisle. This made it quite convenient to get in and out of the theater, which helped tremendously when dealing with over 1,900 other ticket holders. My one complaint with the theater is that there are FAR too few restrooms…my advice would be to go BEFORE you enter this theater, as the lines will be long both before the show and during intermission.



As far as the show itself, what else can I say that hasn’t been said already about “Wicked”? It’s a delightful comedy/drama about the friendship between Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West), and Glinda, the “Good Witch.” It will make you laugh - it will make you cry. It gives you a whole new perspective on the classic "Wizard of Oz."



The set, costumes, music, staging, etc are all first-rate…if anything, you can see where your $500 is going. It totally looks and feels like a true Broadway production, and you will walk out of the theater humming to some of the music – guaranteed. Gah.


Daughter doing her best hair "Toss Toss" impression from the show...


We all enjoyed it - especially Daughter, who was thoroughly entranced. Not having seen the show before, she didn't know what to expect, and at one point, I could see tears running down her face. However, when the show ended, she had a HUGE smile, and even having to listen to her start in on "Popular" - for the umpteenth millionth time - it was all worth it.

We had one more stop to make that night...our first foray into Cupcake Wars! Yes...we were determined to try as many cupcake venues as we could find - and see who, ultimately, would come out on top with having the best cupcakes in NYC. So - off we headed to where it all started....