NYC - Soho, China Town, Little Italy, Financial District

Friday was our last day in the big city. After a quick lunch, we took the subway to Soho. We walked down Spring Street, but didn't take much time to stop at any of the fun boutiques we passed. There were 7 high school girls who had one thing on their mind....finding the DASH store. (DASH is the Kardashian's store and is featured on their latest reality show).

There was a line to get into the store (it's really small), so the girls hopped in line. I ended up going into the store with them just to check it out. The girls were really hoping one of the Kardashian's would be in the store, but no luck.

In the meantime, Chris made friends with the security guy outside the store.

We took some time to browse a few more boutiques and then walked three blocks to ChinaTown. I loved the area between Soho and Chinatown - such neat buildings, a brick paved street, and of course fun fire escapes!

This building was my favorite! I loved all the columns!

A new favorite picture....just not sure if I like it better in color or b&w!

LOVE - brick street, fire escpes, cute street lamps, and fun architecture!

Hmmm....doesn't everyone knit a sweater for their bike???

Chinatown! I was excited to visit ChinaTown again....not just for the knock-off purses, but also to see the culture since I've been tutoring Chinese -English speaking students for the past year and a half.

The purse bartering was totally different this time. Apparently the police cracked down, so we didn't get to visit any hidden rooms or basement hide aways this time. We had to walk a couple blocks off Canal Street and then we found women who had photos of the purses to show us. They would send someone to get the purse while we waited. Unfortunately, most of my waiting was spent right in front of this fresh seafood market. Yuck! The fish was still flopping around on the ice!

Later we waited in front of this market....whole, featherless chickens. Yum!

After all the bartering and bargaining was done, we walked to Little Italy for dinner. I loved this little cannoli stand.

We ate Sofia's and it was amazing! Delicious italian food!!

Our group (minus Chris)..... The view down Mulberry St (Little Italy) with the Empire State Building in the background...

After dinner we walked "about 6 blocks" (as the police man told us....actually it was more like 26 blocks!) to Ground Zero .

The Woolworth Building....

Ground Zero changes so much each time we visit NYC. On my first visit (2002), it was still pretty much a disaster site and they were still clearing away debris piece by piece. Several of the buildings near by still had broken windows and extensive damage. There were still numerous memorials and people paying their respects. Each time it looks less and less like a disaster site and more and more like new construction. For me, it's hard to believe it has almost been 10 years since 9/11. The students with us were only in 1st or 2nd grade when 9/11 happened!

They have started construction on the first tower, which will be the tallest building in the US when it is completed. The 9/11 memorial is set to open in September 2011. Four more towers are also being built. You can see more here.

The new WTC tower 1....

This building was right across the street - I love that they had the huge flag displayed and still pay respects to 9/11....

Tired, but happy shoppers waiting for the subway back to the hotel....

Had to shoot this photo....Chris looked like a homeless man carrying my black bag of ChinaTown purchases and waiting for the subway....

Walking back to the hotel we noticed how big and bright the moon was. One of the chaperones reminded us of the song "When you get caught between the moon and New York City....."

NYC - Nate Berkus Show & a Friday Morning Walk

Before we went to NYC, I got online and requested tickets to a taping of the Nate Berkus Show. I have always been a fan of his from his Oprah appearances and thought it would be fun to go see a live show taping. The other 2 chaperones and I headed to the CBS studio on Wednesday morning for the show. We started off in a tiny room where they had us sign a release form so we could appear on TV and eventually were lead downstairs to the set. It was much smaller than I thought it would be. We ended up getting seated in the middle section. For the first 30 minutes or so they explained how everything would work and then had us tape various audience "reactions" - a quiet golf clap, a loud enthusiastic clap, our surprised look, our "oh...what a great idea" look, our "I see where you're coming from" look, and lastly an extra excited, tons of clapping, standing ovation. So fun! Nate was a cutie-patootie and seemed so down to earth. We watched approximately 8 segments of the show being taped. We saw a family room makeover, a cheesecake bake off , a cooking segment, a segment with tips from Nate, and a segment of him interviewing the editor of Architectural Digest. During the cheesecake bake off Buddy Valastro - the "Cake Boss" came out as a surprise guest and judged the cheesecakes. He then stayed for a second segment and made his grandmother's lasagna. So fun to see him in person...and we got a Cake Boss DVD and book!! The whole experience was too fun and it was so neat to see a taping of a TV show. Unfortunately, the Nate Berkus show isn't on Ft Wayne or Lima TV stations. My parents get the show on a Cleveland station, so my Mom is going to try to DVR it for us. Our episode isn't set to air for another week or so....I'll be sure to post a message when it's going to air. In the meantime, if you want to check and see where you can watch the Nate Berkus Show check here.

Before the show we were able to snap a few pictures. Unfortunately, we weren't able to take any photos during the show - so no photos of Nate or Buddy. So bumed!! Here is a picture of the set before the show. The section to the left (where the 2 men are standing and talking) was changed for each segment - it was a mock up of a family room, a kitchen, and later a comfy seating area where he did an interview.

One more shot of the set - I loved how all the "off camera" spots were decorated.
On Friday morning I did something I have never done while in NYC....I took a couple hours and walked around the area near our hotel by myself. I did some shopping for the kids (a Jimmy Fallon t-shirt at the NBC store for Jacob and American Girl doll clothes for Jenna). Later I walked back to a restaurant (totally want one in VW!) where Chris and I had eaten a light supper the night before and got another one of their yummy cream sodas (seriously - the best cream soda I've ever had) and then walked around just taking my time and snapping photos.

The view as I stepped outside our hotel. Friday was a gorgeous day - sunny, blue skies, and 70 degrees!

Rockefeller Center....

Photos snapped as I walked down 52nd St.

After I got home and started looking through my pictures, I realized how many fire escape photos I took. In my fantasy life I want to live in NYC in a building with a fire escape.

Chris and I saw this sign the night before when it was all lit up, glowing red...very intimidating. LOL

One of the streets in Hell's Kitchen....tons of different ethnic restaurants. We even saw an Amish Market. When we went in it was all middle eastern people working and they sold alcohol- too funny!





53rd Street ....and more fire escapes!

Loved this random little church in the middle of 5 story buildings on 53rd St. It totally reminded me of a church you'd see in San Antonio, Tx.... View down 8th Ave. ....

I love all the water towers on top of buildings....Graffiti....

NYC - Top of the Rock, St Patricks Day, Statue of Liberty

On our second night in NYC we went to dinner at one of our favorite places and then took the group to Rockefeller Center so we could go to the Top of the Rock. Chris and 2 of the girls decided not to go up, but the rest of us ventured to the top. It was so clear out and the views were amazing!!


Radio City Music Hall...
View of the Empire State Building from the Top of the Rock....

The bright glowing lights at the bottom of the picture are the lights from Times Square...

The Chrysler Building (hidden by the Met Life building) is gorgeous when it is all lit up...

The view towards Central Park and the Upper East Side...

Another view of the Empire State Building...

Thursday was St. Patrick's Day and NYC celebrates St Patricks Day BIG!!! The other two chaperones and I decided to check out the St Patrick's Day parade on 5th Ave. before getting on the subway to meet everyone at Columbia.

No trip to NYC is complete without seeing a Statue of Liberty impersonator...

St Patrick's Cathedral....

We couldn't see much of the parade - the crowd was HUGE and everyone was in full-celebration mode. I did manage to snap a few quick pics of the parade as it went down 5th Ave. in front of St Patrick's Cathedral....

With the parade going on (it lasts from 11am-5pm) just a street away from our hotel, we decided to spend the day at the lower end of Manhattan. We ate lunch near Columbia and then headed to Battery Park to board the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. The tickets for pedestal and crown access were sold out (THANK goodness! I could never have climbed over 200 stairs on the narrow spiral staircase all the way to the crown. YIKES!), but we were still able to go to the island and walk around. It was a gorgeous day - perfect for taking photos!!

View of lower Manhattan from the island...