Final Fun day in FABULOUS NYC...

The last full day in NYC began a bit late...BUT... Saturday night had also ended well into Sunday morning...SO...we slept in a little, got up and got dressed in time to grab a cab to Tavern on the Green for our noon brunch reservation...

The reports I’d gotten about Tavern on the Green weren’t all positive, but I am so happy we decided to go there. First, because rumor has it that Tavern on the Green may be on its way out of business due to some lease issues with the city of New York and bankruptcy of the parent company. AND Secondly, It was FABULOUS!!! Not only is the restaurant absolutely beautiful with incredible crystal chandeliers, mirrored hallways leading to the Crystal Room and Buffet area and Tiffany lighting fixtures, but the great ambience was also combined with a huge and delicious buffet. The buffet included made-to-order omelets, a carving station, French toast, Eggs Benedict, breakfast potatoes, shrimp, roasted salmon, bacon, sausage, seafood salad, green salad, cheese tray, fruit tray, couscous salad, grilled vegetables, potato salad, bagels and lox, assorted pastries including delicious croissants, plus a separate dessert buffet that included pecan sandies, several types of brownies, and incredibly delicious bread pudding. And, yes sadly, I ate at least a bite of almost all of this along with enjoying a really yummy Mimosa. Jessie, Jeremy, Chris Ann and I all paced ourselves and all had several plates of the tasty treats.

The food was so yummy, I ate so much, and needless to say, the rest of the day, I felt so sick...BUT...A little tummy trouble couldn’t stand in the way of enjoying the beautiful surroundings of Tavern on the Green OR the rest of the day in NYC.

After we left the restaurant, we strolled past the Central Park Sheep Meadow and headed toward Strawberry Fields. It was a lovely walk. Central Park is truly a beautiful refuge of natural beauty amidst all the pavement and buildings of NYC. We paused for a brief time at the Imagine mosaic in the park that is a tribute to John Lennon and then headed to the Bethesda Terrace to see The Angel of The Waters Fountain. The fountain and the surrounding stairways and such are very beautiful.

After we decided to forego the hansom cab ride around Central Park because there was still so much to see of NYC, we headed out into the Upper West Side to do some shopping.

The entire vacation was made more wonderful by staying with and having locals to show us around, especially Saturday night (good times in Brooklyn) and a day of wandering around to just see and experience a Sunday in the city. I realized from our time doing this wandering and shopping that left to my own devices in NYC I could literally probably just wander about for days on end. There is so much to see -- coffee shops, bakeries, a vast variety of stores, and amazingly beautiful architectural details on unique building after building. Thankfully, I wasn’t left to my own devices and we did a lot of looking around and a little shopping. We went to the North Face store, Urban Outfitter, the Croc store, among others. About half way through the afternoon we stopped for cokes, cocoa and for Jeremy a huge root beer float.

After wandering through the Upper West Side -- and my almost getting hit by a car ((Ooops...Apparently actual New Yorkers can cross against the light and get away with it, but when you are busy looking at architectural details and store windows and just the variety of people and places on the streets of the city, it is not a good idea to follow even a knowledgeable New Yorker into the street against the light...especially when that particular resident walks in what can best be described as an incredibly brisk manner and I walk slightly slower than a tourist-y turtle ;)) We caught the bus to Midtown Manhattan and headed to Madison Avenue. A surprisingly large number of stores were closed on Sunday, but we did shop at Jimmy Choo -- and although these shoes are no doubt beautiful, I certainly can’t imagine paying what a pair cost for heels that are at least 4 inches and would no doubt put me in severe need of a trip to the podiatrist -- I found one pair made of black lace that I really loved, but 1) I’ve already mentioned the trip to the podiatrist that would be necessary and 2) I just don’t think I could ever pay $1,450 for a single pair of shoes. After we left Jimmy Choo we headed in to Barney’s. The store of course had lots of amazing and expensive items and I enjoyed looking at the handbags, the watches, and, of course, the neckties.

After leaving Barney’s we walked down Park Avenue and continued to take in the many incredibly interesting and wonderful views the city has to offer. The time for our spa appointments was drawing near so we parted company with Jeremy and Chris Ann (they went to watch a football game at a local pub) and we headed down Lexington to the Homme Spa.

Jessie and I went our separate ways as she headed of to have a Swedish massage and I took a load off my exhausted and slightly swollen feet and slipped into a comfy chair to have my mani/pedi and a reflexology foot and leg massage. The manicurist was a friendly Chinese girl who commented on the jewels I had on my toes and told me about some of the interesting artistic things she’d seen manicurist doing on their clients toenails when she recently visited China. She talked to me a bit about China and suggested that I should definitely visit there some day (hmmmm...another place to add to my list of places I want to see some day) and after a few minutes she settled in to working on my pedicure while I enjoyed some bottled water and fresh strawberries. The mani/pedi itself wasn’t much different or much better frankly than the one I have done every couple of weeks in Lubbock...BUT...the 30 minute reflexology foot and leg massage was phenomenal!!! Jessie finished her massage before I was done and she told me on her way out that she’d head out to get some coffee while she waited for me. (Unfortunately, as it turns out, her massage wasn’t enjoyable and I felt really bad about the fact that I’d had such a great experience at the spa when hers was mostly painful.)

By the time I finished my mani/pedi and massage it was a bit after 8. Chris Ann, Jeremy and Jessie were all waiting for me next door to the spa and we grabbed a cab and headed for Brooklyn to cross one last thing off our things to do list. On our way back to Brooklyn, Chris Ann called Brooklyn Pizza and ordered two pies. The drive across the Brooklyn Bridge at night was truly beautiful. And while we had packing to do, we didn’t want to leave NYC without having New York pizza. I was really still stuffed from eating brunch, but did have one piece of Brooklyn style pizza, which I folded in half and ate from the point end toward the crust -- which is apparently the way New Yorkers do it...

By the time dinner was over, it was getting really late and I still had all my packing to do. Getting the souvenirs, the new coat, and all my clothes back in my bag was a bit challenging, but we got it all done and just relaxed a little, said our goodbyes to our wonderful, wonderful hosts ((and no, I can’t say enough about how absolutely wonderful it was to stay in Brooklyn with Chris Ann and Jeremy and how fun and funny and friendly and just fantastic they were -- and, believe it or not, they said I’m welcome to come back and stay any time -- boy, they may not realize what they’ve gotten themselves in to ;)) We said our goodbyes Sunday night because we would be leaving very, very early Monday morning.

As we headed to bed, I thought about just how incredible my time in NYC had been. It’s completely impossible to say what my favorite thing about NYC was because everything about it was wonderful. Yes, it was incredible to shop at Tiffany’s, but it was also equally important to me that we had an experience with helping a homeless man. It was amazing to experience a Saturday night out with Brooklyn-ites and absolutely incredible to enjoy what might be seen as a tourist-y trip to Tavern on the Green and every other tourist-y things we did. The city lights, the architectural details of the buildings as well as the gleaming glass of the skyscrapers were equally as appealing as the beautiful moss-splattered trees and fountains, grassy areas and changing leaves of Central Park. And although I feel like I saw a million magnificent things I’ll never forget, I still feel like I want to go back to NYC to shop in SoHo and really visit Harlem and Chinatown and Little Italy, do the Ellis Island tour, and see another Broadway play or 10, and shop in some of the other incredible upscale places and just wander and wander and wander through the endless attractions and experiences this city has to offer.

It’s hard to judge and especially hard to explain how I know it’s been a successful vacation to a splendid destination, but I’ve given the following criteria before (which I really do believe also apply to books and possibly to relationships as well) 1) it should have a positive emotional impact on you... 2) you should be enlightened and educated by the experience and 3) it should leave you wanting more...And a 4th new criteria....the experience should change you, or maybe change isn’t the right word, it should enhance, expand, extend your view of the world around you and more importantly of the world within you...NYC was definitely that kind of experience for me...

Thanks again for traveling with me...and thanks again and a million times more to Jeremy, Chris Ann and to Jessie...This trip would not have been the incredible experience it was without you!!!