Monday, June 24, 2013

NYC 2013-Day Four

I think our pattern on this vacation is that every other day will be great. At least start off great. We started off early to catch an 8:30 double decker tour bus. Yes. We were one of THOSE tourist people. There is too much walking to be done in that city and what better way to see the city than on top of a double decker?

After we got to the bus terminal it was almost comical. The driver was arguing with the tour guide on the whole process of when payment takes place and who takes the payment. It was pretty unprofessional if you ask me. There was a time when I asked Hubby if we should just go get on another bus line. There are plenty of tour companies up there. It rained on us a little, but not enough to get the umbrellas out. Unbelievably, Child One fell asleep during the tour. Oh well. Hubby and I enjoyed it. I didn't worry about taking pictures during the bus tour. I just wanted to sit back and take in everything.

After a couple of hours on the tour bus we got off at Battery Park. We planned on going on a boat to see the Statue of Liberty*. If you could have seen the way the pier was bobbing up and down in the water, you would have run the other way like I did in my head. Small boat on a big body of water = me throwing up off the side of the boat.

We decided to walk to the Staten Island Ferry since that goes by the statue and best of all, it's free. And a big boat with a flat bottom means no rocking. And the bigger the boat the smaller the body of water.  We rode the ferry to Staten Island then back to Manhattan. Then hopped back on the bus to see the rest of the tour of the city. The second part wasn't as good as the first. We didn't have the same tour guide as before. I don't think we had ANY tour guide on the second part. But at least we weren't having to walk.

We got off the bus at Central Park. Hubby wanted to rent some bikes and go through the park. I was torn on this. I wanted to take a horse drawn carriage. But the carriages only take you through a small part of it. So two tandem bikes it was. Good gosh, those things are harder than people think. First Child Two got on with me and Child One was with Hubby. The weather had warmed up quite a bit, so we were shedding our jackets.

Going uphill on a tandem is not fun. Especially with a kid who can't reach the pedals. Hubby had to wait to the side for me a couple of times, so we ended up switching partners. By the time the third hill came up, I'm sure Hubby just thought I was whining about the bike ride, but I swear, my bike chain was slipping. And I had Child One as a witness. So Hubby finally checked it and sure enough it was coming off, which is NOT conducive to a bike ride! 

Did I mention that before he checked the bike chain, he said that I was out of shape and that I needed to get to the gym? Oh. No. He. Didn't. Yes. He went there. It was on. There were so many four letter words going through my brain, but I kept my mouth shut. I think my anger kept the tears from streaming. Did I mention that we were going uphill? With a bike chain that kept slipping.

Then comes a time when Child Two has to go to the bathroom**. We pulled over at a part of the park where she could discreetly go to the bathroom. Right there in nature. I was thankful I had some napkins with me from earlier in the day.

Apparently I have no clue how to get off a tandem bike. Due to the warm weather I have glistened quite a bit and my jeans are a little clingier than normal. I go to swing my leg over the bike to get off. Then I lose my balance and thank goodness for the hard ground that broke my fall. And my hip. Ever fallen on your hip? If only we had been on a horse drawn carriage....

Views from the lake inside Central Park


Obviously, I don't hold my ego in that high of a regard or I wouldn't be sharing some of these things. On we go. Child Two has done her business and we bike and bike. We make it to the lake inside the park. Time for another break.

We finally decided it was time to drop the bikes off, back to their rightful shopkeeper***. I thought Hubby had stopped to wait for me to catch up to him. Nope. He stopped because we were at the street we needed to exit the park. Did he let me know? Nope. Child Two and I kept on biking. My cell phone was buried in the basket under everybody's crap. I kept biking for TWELVE more blocks before stopping to realize Hubby was nowhere to be found.

YEAH! I get to walk the bike back TWELVE blocks to meet up Hubby at the right corner where the bike shop is.

Once we get rid of the bikes we try and find a place for dinner. We stopped at the Brooklyn Diner****. It had wonderful food but no "diner" prices. Child Two got a "15 bite hot dog". It was as long as she was wide. It was one of those places that actually had mouthwash in the restroom. I thought it was soap when I was washing my hands. At least my hands were minty fresh. We enjoyed watching the rain as we ate dinner and thankfully it stopped when we were finishing up.

After dinner it was time to head back to Brooklyn to the hotel. Off we go...

*The Statue of Liberty is closed until 4th of July, due to repairs. Not sure if it's just general maintenance or because of Superstorm Sandy.
**God bless this child on this trip. Whenever she had to go to the bathroom there wasn't one around. Or if there was, they wouldn't let her use it.
***Praise God.
****If I ever see a tandem bike again, it will be too soon!

No comments:

Post a Comment