Jess and Maggi in Rockefeller Center, Thanksgiving Weekend 2005

I love taking my 16 year old niece away for weekend hops. She is a talented performer and New York City is the perfect place to take her for inspiration. Our last stay was at the Essex House and I wanted this trip to be totally different, so I booked a room at the Chambers Hotel.

Each floor is "done" by a different artist. We did had fun stoppping the elevator at each of the 15 floors to check them out. It was a fun place in a funky, college dormroom sort of way. The desk was a large piece of glass on wooden sawhorses with a roll of drawing paper you could pull out and doodle on. Jessica was all over that immediately. The coffee table was a varnished log. There was a huge mirror resting on the floor next to the bed. The best feature was the awesome shower (it felt like you were standing under a waterfall) and the soap. It was just called "Sea" and made your skin feel so silky. I inquired at the desk and it is not available commercially, but can be obtained through the hotel. The location was convenient for many of the attractions we wanted to visit, i.e. Rockefeller Center, MOMA and Fifth Avenue.

Our first day we started at our favorite breakfast place: Le Pain Quotidien on 7th at 58th Street. Jessica wanted to check out purses on Canal Street, and we didn't want to waste time so we grabbed a cab. The rest of the time we mostly took the subway (fares were only $1 a ride last weekend.) We are getting the hang of the subway system, mostly due to the "kindness of strangers".

On Canal Street Jessica was thrilled to get her favorite Angel cologne at what she thought was a steal. I picked up a Kate Spade knock-off for $14 for a young friend back home. There are rows upon rows of shops many of which look like they have the same products. Later, her other favorite shops were H&M, Element and Quicksilver. As for me, I was in heaven at ABC Carpet and Home in the Union Square area. We stopped at the Michel Cluizel chocolate shop in the back of the store for the most decadent demitasse of hot chocolate ever!

It was Black Friday and I had never seen such crowds in my life. I recklessly braved the Times Square ToysRUs for a gift for my baby grandson. After that experience we needed sustenance and we collapsed in the serenity of the Takashimaya store on 5th Avenue for afternoon tea and refreshments.

Our evening entertainment was The Woman in White, the latest offering by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The acting was good, and kudos go to Maria Friedman, who has been performing despite surgery for breast cancer recently. The most fun was watching Count Fosco do his trick with the live white rat.

After the theater we felt peckish and stopped at Ellen's Stardust Diner for good old American food. I'd never been, and was a little worried it might be too gimicky, but we had a blast watching the truly talented waitstaff sing, dance and wait on tables at the same time. They really seemed to be having a great time and I left a huge, well-deserved tip.


We had been up since 4:00am Detroit time and crashed into bed at 1:00 in the morning. We woke up in time to get to MOMA by opening time at 10:30. We first had cappuchino and a light breakfast in their cafe, after which we meandered through the galleries.

Lunch that day was at the restaurant Fleur de Sel at 20th and 5th. We had a fabulous three course prix fixe lunch for $25. It was a nice respite to our busy schedule. Afterward, in a desperate attempt to walk off some calories, we stopped at some boutiques on our way back uptown. Our ultimate destination was Rockefeller Center, as we had tickets to the Top of the Rock for sunset. I had read that due to the timed tickets there was a much shorter wait time than at the Empire State Building. That did not prove to be true on the day of our visit, but the wait was not too much longer than 45 minutes.

The elevator up to the top is a kick, you can see through the glass ceiling to the top and there is a movie playing on it. The Swarovski crystal chandelier is beyond description! It was donated by Swarovski to the Rockefeller foundation. A multi-media show on the history of the observatory helps kill the time while you are waiting to go up. At the top, the view is marred somewhat by the protective glass panels. You don't quite get the effect that the ESB has, in my opinion. If you take the stairwell another floor up, it feels a little more real.

I wanted to expose Jessica to the ice rink at Rockefeller Plaza, so we went to the Rockefeller Cafe for dinner. We were blessed to be be seated directly at the window so we could watch the skaters. We lingered over dinner and couldn't resist getting out onto the ice. I hadn't skated in 20 years and gingerly edged my way along the railing, while Jess flew across the ice like a bird. The tree was up but wasn't lit yet: no matter, the music and colored spotlights made for a really fun night. We even saw a couple get engaged - he got on one knee right on the ice - and everyone applauded. Jessica proclaimed the ice skating her favorite part of our weekend.

Entering The Gates

Maggi and Jessica at the Gates 

Last weekend my niece Jessica and I travelled to New York City for our first (but hopefully not last) girl's weekend together. I got the inspiration awhile ago to take her somewhere to celebrate the fact that she will be turning 16 in April. The impetus came when I read that the artist Christo would be doing an installation in Central Park for only two weeks this February. Georg and I were blessed with two sons, but I never had the pleasure of having a daughter. When my sister Caroline was born during my teen years I was able to enjoy playing with a little girl. Then Caroline had a girl of her own, and Jessica has always been very special to me.

We had to have a parkview room, which I fortunately booked early in September. Had I waited longer there would have been none available. Our check-in at the Essex House was seamless. They even let us check-in at 10am. The view from our room took your breath away.
Jessica at the window of our room 
The Gates from our room at the Essex House 
The Gates  I will always want room 1008 from now on. Jessica was impressed that our hotel room even had a doorbell.

Our first day was 23 hours long. The best way to describe it is in a timeline:

Friday, February 18, 2005

4:10 am Left Detroit airport hotel

6:30am Plane departed for New York

10:00am Arrived and checked in at Essex House

11:00am Walked a bit in Central Park across the street. Jessica rode the 100 year old carousel.

12:00pm Lunched at Cafe Botanica at the Essex House

1:30pm Strolled down 5th Avenue. Jessica shopped at H & M and found two great pairs of jeans and two tops at a bargain. Peeked in St. Patrick's Cathedral across the street. Walked to Times Square and saw MTV Studios and the naked cowboy smack in the middle of Broadway. (Well, he did have on underwear, cowboy boots and a guitar in the zero degree windchill.)

4:30pm Had a reuben sandwich at the Stage Deli and headed back to the hotel to change for the theater.

6:30pm Took a cab to the Virginia Theater to see "Little Women". We had hoped to see Danny Gurwin, an acquaintance I had accompanied on the piano many years ago. He had the lead role of Laurie in the play. By chance he had just arrived at the same time. He had a rehearsal, but told us he would put on names in at the stage door and to come back after the show.

6:45pm The play didn't start until 8:00 and there was a warm inviting cafe across the street named The Russian Samovar. It was wall-to-wall people, but they were just able to squeeze us in at the bar. Our waitress/bartender was Irina with a heavy Russian accent. In fact, nearly everyone but us had a Russian accent.

8:00pm Jessica and I both agreed that Maureen McGovern was the best part of Little Women. I hope we get to see her in concert some day. The show was very enjoyable and we were impressed with Danny's singing and dancing. He played a very loveable character.

10:30pm We immediately headed out the front and through the barricade into the stage door. The attendant sent us up to Danny's third floor dressing room. I'm so glad Jessica was able to see the behind the scenes working of a broadway show. Sutton Foster (the Tony award-winning lead) sailing down the stairs past us. Danny was so warm and friendly, hugging both of us hello and goodbye. He is really a gentleman. When we exited the stage door, crowds of people waiting for autographs saw us and applauded :-)

11:00pm We had 11:30 dinner reservations at Chez Josephine. It was at 52nd Street, so we had 10 blocks to walk, but it was freezing cold and I regretted that we didn't get a cab. The walk was much farther than I expected. The restaurant was all done in reds, crystal, chandeliers and murals of Josephine Baker and friends. A fabulous pianist/singer was at the piano and the tone was hip and lively. The couple at the next table fawned over us, telling Jessica how stunning she was and telling us both that we had "good genes". She was a striking young black woman from the Congo and he was a nondescript businessman type. Jessica enjoyed her southern-style fried chicken and sweet potato fries, while I had crab cakes.

1:30am We took a cab back to the hotel and collapsed into our "heavenly" Westin bed.

Saturday, February 19th

11:00am Jessica actually got up first this morning. We both showered and headed over to a French cafe we spotting coming home last night. It was called Le Pain Quotidien. It was obviously a good spot, as there was a crush of people waiting to be seated and to carryout. We sat at a long rustic communal table with 25 other people. I'm finding out that in a large city people are able to find small pockets of privacy, no matter how many people are around. The food was all organic and phenominal-tasting. Jessica got a soft boiled egg and fresh tomato soup, which she declared to be delicious. The bread was the best I've tasted since Paris. My latte was served french-style in a large bowl without a handle. The tuscan platter had fresh ricotta cheese, thinly sliced radishes, basil pesto, kalamata olive tapenade, prosciutto and melon and that fantastic bread. We both oohed and aahed until the plate was empty. The place was bustling with the very efficient waiters rushing to and fro and the crush of people waiting patiently in line. It reminded me of a huge beehive. At home I would not be able to relax in such an environment. In New York, it just made me feel more alive.

Jessica on the subway 
2:00pm It was time to brave the New York subway system. We intended to take the Staten Island Ferry so we could view the Statue of Liberty. After intensive study of the subway map we concluded we needed to exit at Whitehall to board the ferry. We got on the R train towards downtown. The car was jammed and Jessica and I had to stand. The first jolt nearly put Jessica in the lap of a young man sitting next to her. We had a giggle attack over that one. We were able to sit after a little while and I kept watching for the Whitehall station (which never came). When we emerged above ground and we were crossing the water, I got my first inkling that we were not on the right track. We sped deeper and deeper into Brooklyn. Luckily we were able to just get back on in the opposite direction and through some miracle found Whitehall.

Jessica on the Staten Island Ferry 
Staten Island Ferry 
New York Skyline from the ferry 

3:30pm The ferry ride was fairly uneventful, although it was great to see the New York skyline from a distance. We didn't get as close to the Statue of Liberty as I had hoped. When we arrived back in Manhattan we walked a few miles to Ground Zero. I had read that there was nothing much to see there anymore, but we were very moved just to be on the site. The area is surrounded by a high wire fence. The only thing left of the rubble were two steel beams that had broken off in the exact shape of a cross. There was a piece of fabric shred hanging from the cross. There were spotlights aimed at the cross for when it was dark outside. A single eloquent bouquet of roses, tied with a ribbon, had been inserted in the chain link in front of the cross. All the names of the deceased had been engraved on black marble plaques. Jessica and I talked about what it must have been like on that day. I hadn't wanted to visit the site on my last visit to New York, but I am extremely happy to have been there.

4:00pm Directly across from the WTC site was the much acclaimed Century 21 discount store. I wouldn't have gone out of my way to come there, but since it was right there we stopped in. It was very crowded and merchandise was strewn everywhere on it's three floors, with no organization. We couldn't get out of there fast enough.

4:40pm We were getting hungry and decided to walk up 5th Avenue to Serendipity. It had a reputation of being exceedingly crowded with long waiting lines, but we decided to give it a go. It took us at least 45 minutes to walk there and we were rejoicing because there was no line out in front! We rejoiced too soon, however, because inside we were told to put our names on the list and come back in three hours...

What to do for three hours? We looked around for somewhere to go and decided to try a restaurant called Cabana Nuevo Latino. It was, as everywhere else we had been thus far, jammed with people, talking, laughing, drinking and eating. We carved out a spot for ourselves and waited for a table. I had a mojito, Jessica had a virgin mojito. The food was really worth the wait. Jessica's ropa viejo (shredded beef) was served with black bean puree and rice. My paella was devine. We took our time, enjoying the food and ambiance and ambled back over to Serendipity. By now, our wait time had dwindled to about half an hour and we were seated upstairs. Sadly, we couldn't finish much of our dessert, but what we had was delectible. They are famous for their Frrrozen Hot Chocolate (kind of like an icy chocolate milk shake with whipping cream and chocolate shavings, served in a huge dessert bowl with a spoon and a straw.) It was very tasty, but I think I can duplicate it at home. Jessica loved the eclectic decor. Everywhere one looked there were funky chandeliers, mirrors, antique lighting fixtures, moldings. It was a great place and I could understand it's popularity. We rolled back to the hotel and watched a little of Saturday Night Live before we passed out.

Sunday, February 20th

8:00am I decided to let Jess sleep and took my camera over to Central Park. The sun shone through the saffron fabric of the Gates and contrasted beautifully with the blue sky. The atmosphere was festive and friendly strangers smiled and made polite conversation. On the way back I picked up croissants, coffee and green tea for Jess at LePain. Oh, I love that place. Wish we had one here at home. I'd be there once a week at least.

The Gates - Central Park 2005 

9:30am Jess was showered and ready when I got back to the room. I relaxed and read the New York Times with my coffee, while she finished getting ready.

11:30am We had decided to pack and check out, leaving our bags at the hotel until later. We had theater tickets for Slava's Snowshow at 2:00 in Union Square. But first, we were able to get a table for a quick lunch at Le Artisanal, a fondue restaurant in the area of the Union Square Theater. We had a simple cheese fondue, with crudites, fingerling potatos and that wonderful crusty country bread we had at Le Pain.

1:30pm As we entered the theater, Jessica began to get an idea of what this show was about. I hadn't told her anything. The seats, ceiling, and floor were covered in little pieces of white paper. We had front row seats. Slava was a Russian clown who combined humor and pathos in mime. He had a troop of clowns assisting him. I found out later from Jessica that she was afraid of clowns. But I think she was able to enjoy it anyway. It was unlike anything I have ever seen. At the end, there was a huge (paper) blizzard that came directly at us. We were pulling bits of paper off of each other for the next 24 hours. When the lights came up the clown brought enormous balls out and bounced them into the audience. They must have been at least six feet in diameter. There were a lot of smaller balls as well. The next half an hour the audience played with the bouncing balls. Even the adults became like children again. It was wonderful.

4:00pm We hailed a taxi to take us back to the Essex House for our bags and then to LaGuardia. We always got into conversations with our cab drivers. The first one we had coming into New York from the airport was from Bangladesh and had a master's degree in economics. This guy, Sandor Tecsy, was a Hungarian actor, approximately 58 years old; a huge guy with a head of white hair. He talked nonstop about his acting gigs and where we could see him: on Law and Order, the movie Fever, etc. He actually was a very interesting guy and the drive to the airport went by very quickly.

5:30pm Our flight was supposed to leave at 7:30pm. Georg called me on my cellphone and told me there was a bad snowstorm in Detroit. As the evening progressed, our flight, as well as everyone elses, kept getting delayed. Finally at 11:30pm all flights to Detroit were off. One group of people had been waiting in the plane on the tarmac for four hours and had to deplane after all. People were irate, shouting at ticket agents, talking into their cell phones trying to make other arrangements. We were told by Northwest that there were no available seats the following day, Monday. There were, however, seats on flights leaving Newark - a one hour cab ride from La Guardia. A nice couple befriended us and helped us secure a flight out of Newark at 7:30 in the morning. We split a cab with them and headed for New Jersey. By this time the blizzard had hit us and we saw four bad accidents on the way to that airport.

Monday, February 21st

1:30am There was no place to lay down, so Jessica and spent the night sitting at the only thing open in the airport: McDonalds. There was a nice young man, 17 years old, waiting there as well and he and Jessica hit it off like gangbusters. Before long, they were laughing and talking like old friends. His name was Chris. He was from Grand Rapids and was a paintball expert, traveling around the country giving instruction. But his goal was to be a firefighter. Before we parted ways they had exchanged e-mail addresses.

5:30am I went to check-in and get our boarding passes for the 7:30am flight. To my dismay, the flight schedule showed that flight was being delayed, due to mechanical difficulties.

1:30pm We were so happy to get home after our ordeal. Nothing can change the great time we had and the memories we were able to make together. We thank the Lord for all His wonderful blessings. IT WAS WORTH IT!

Even Better the Second Time - Our Trip to Hawaii with Mike and Mary

Ever since our first trip to Hawaii two years ago, I have been dreaming, plotting and planning a way to return. We were somehow able to miraculously amass enough FF miles to add up to first class tickets from Detroit to Honolulu. We were further blessed by the company of our best friends of 24 years. She was attending the APA conference in Honolulu, thus our first week was on Oahu.

We had made arrangements for a rental house on Sunset Beach, called Sunset Hale. We had a near disaster with the Kahana Kai Estate in the Kahana Bay area which had held our deposit since last August. In February a Fodors reader informed me that the estate seemed to be no longer available; phone numbers and website were inoperative. A day’s worth of long distance telephone sleuthing paid off and I was able to track down the owner. Her husband had died and she was living with her daughter. Eventually, we were able to get our deposit back from her. (She claimed she had tried to mail it, but it “came back”.) At such a late date, I was lucky to obtain the above-mentioned rental, Sunset Hale.

Flying first class was a dream. It was so great to be greeted at your seat with a Mai Tai! Being able to recline the seat all the way and put your feet up made the 8 ½ hour ride so much more bearable. The food was better than coach, although still not gourmet quality, by any means. But the service was excellent. I may use my FF miles exclusively to upgrade in the future.

The house exceeded all our expectations. The furnishings, location, and view were all better than depicted on the website. There was a 35” TV, VCR, CD player and state of the art kitchen appliances, matching dishes and silverware, good knives and quality linens. They had even had a billards table in the great room. The large sheltered front porch with wicker furniture and a brand new gas grill directly overlooked the ocean and we spent many a happy hour there. There were two bikes for our use. (There is a bike/walking path right behind the house that goes on for miles along the beaches.)

Sunset Beach was calmer than in the winter and it was possible to swim there. Sunsets were spectacular! We spent quite a bit of time at Sharks Cove for snorkeling. It had been my wish to see a turtle, but I am a wuss when it comes to water, so I floated around in the shallow part while everybody else blithely swam around in the deep end. Imagine my surprise when a huge turtle swam right by me three times in the shallows. Laniakia Beach was also a great spot to see turtles sunning themselves in the sand. My delight was tinged with sadness because despite the Do not touch the turtles sign kids and people were crowding around them, touching them and poking them with sticks. I felt like the turtle police, telling them to back off.

We didn’t eat out much, preferring to grill on our porch. Foodland, a few miles away, carried everything we needed to make romantic candlelit dinners. We had to try the original Giovanni’s Shrimp everyone is always raving about. I don’t think I’ve every had so much garlic in my life. The shrimp are swimming in butter and garlic. They are greasy, salty and yes, they are really good. I got a kick out of all the graffiti on the truck. There’s not an inch of spare space to write your name on. We had a very good pizza from the joint across the street from our rental. And we went early to snag a chocolate haupia pie from Ted’s Bakery.

Our beach house was so nice, it was hard to drag ourselves away, but I had purchased tickets to the Polynesian Cultural Center, luau and evening show. We spent another blissful day wandering around Waimea Falls Park and swimming in the refreshing pool by the waterfall. Waimea Bay is so picturesque, my heart leapt each time we rounded the curve and caught sight of it. Haleiwa was fun too, but really crowded and congested with cars, especially around Matsumotos shave ice. I got a kick out of the stretch limos that were always parked out front. A circle tour of the island convinced us that we had dodged a bullet when our first rental didn’t work out. The Kahana Bay house looked rundown and the water on that part of the windward side was very choppy and not as inviting as our beach on the north shore.

While our friends spent a few nights in Honolulu for the conference my husband and I amused ourselves by visiting some of the resorts for comparison purposes. At Ko Olina we valet parked (by a very snooty valet who reminded us that if we were using the beach, we needed to have our ticket validated at the restaurant and we had to be back in two hours.) We got our expensive, watered down Mai Tais and headed down to the lagoon to swim. The water was not inviting, warmish and murky. We didn’t stay long enough to violate the two hour rule. Later I checked out the Turtle Bay resort as well. At least there they provide accessible public parking close to the beach, but again I found the water less appealing than in front of our own house. Back in the Honolulu area, we enjoyed several drinks at the La Mariana Sailing Club and I chatted with the owner, a charming elderly woman with a fascinating story.

Our last night at Sunset Hale we were treated to a specially nice sunset as we polished off the last of the red wine we didn’t want to transport to Kauai the next day.






My husband and I fell in love with Kauai the first time around, two years ago. My friend Mary felt it the moment we began our drive from Lihue to the north shore. A feeling just washes over you that is tangible. The lushness and fragrance of the terrain holds promise that does not disappoint later. Anini Beach House was about a hour’s drive on the secluded part of Anini Beach that is past the public park and polo field almost to the end of the road. In his youth, Marlon Brando honeymooned at the house two doors down. Once again, we were astonished that the house exceeded all the photos on the website. The upscale furnishings, artwork and thoughtful touches were wonderful, but the kicker was the huge wrap-around deck with floor to ceiling windows that made you feel as if you were living outside.

The turquoise water of Anini Beach was calm as glass, the calmest beach I had seen on our entire trip. It was great for snorkeling or just for floating on an air mattress with a Mai Tai and a good book. On the last day, the beach offered up a gift to my friend Mary: a huge, unbroken, perfect shell sitting in the shallow water right in front of our house. We found the best snorkeling to be at Ke’e Beach. Our husbands stayed on the beach while we hiked the first part of the Kalalau Trail. Two hours later, our appetites were only whetted to come back and do more. What an unforgettable experience! The cool and clear water at Ke’e was so inviting after the hot and dusty hike. Once again I found myself angry with the cluelessness of scores of people blithely walking all over the reef! There were so many doing that, it would have been futile to try to prevent it. We made a short visit to Tunnels Beach which was choppy and both my husband, my friend and her husband were injured when the waves pushed them up onto the coral. Lumihai Beach was so beautiful, but certainly not for going in the water. Not too long ago a couple were washed off the rocks to their deaths, while their 11 year old son was left on shore. As we left the beach area, we noticed a memorial in the sand made of rocks, sticks and shells, that read “Mom” and “Dad”. We made the hike to Hideaways Beach and were awed by the fearsome power of the water.

Later that week the four of us were celebrating important wedding anniversaries and we had reservations at Bali Hai Restaurant at Hanalei Bay Resort. Our front table faced the famous view and we were treated to the most spectacular sunset of our lives. Waiting for it was a little difficult, because it was hot and the sun shone directly in our eyes for over an hour beforehand. But the end result was worth every drop of sweat. Due to a tropical storm, Kauai, and all the islands in general, had experienced an unusual amount of sporadic rain, but the weather for our special evening was picture perfect. The food was very good and beautifully presently and we were very satisfied with our choice for the evening.

The husbands took the Movie Tour van and had a lot of fun, while my friend did some horseback riding at CJM Stables. I played chauffeur and found myself with a couple hours on my hands. As I drove, I happened upon my favorite Kauai radio station, KKCR and just happened to catch Auntie Maria’s show Loved her mix of authentic Hawaiian music. Following my nose, I ended up on a nearly secluded beach with a small knot of people looking at something through binoculars. There was a mother monk seal with her four day old pup just a few hundred feet away. Reveling in the unexpected pleasure I wiled away much of the time observing the antics of the active pup as it circled around it’s mum.

We lunched at Brennecke’s Beach Broiler, enjoying the warm breeze through the open deck view of the water. Another place we can highly recommend was Coconuts. Loved the décor, the food (took Kal’s suggestion of lobster ravioli pupus) and the dessert (coconut flan) was to die for. The artwork by Kim McDonald is colorful and whimsical. I had seen her stuff in Hanalei earlier in the week. (I especially love her depiction of queen-sized nude women dancing with abandon on the beach. Ah, the magic of Kauai. It makes everyone feel beautiful.) Speaking of queen-sized, Lappert’s Ice Cream in Princeville has great ice cream (my favorite is Kauai Pie). Coconut/Guava sherbet is great too. Lappert’s is probably the most expensive ice cream you will ever eat, but IMO, oh so worth it.

One of our most memorable evenings was at Tahiti Nui on a rainy Friday evening. Like everywhere else in Hawaii, the shutters were wide open and the balmy rainy made it feel cozy to be inside. The small bar/restaurant was filled with a welcoming local crowd and the musical entertainment was remarkable. It was sort of a Hawaiian Cheers …where everybody knows your name…kind of place. We met an interesting older couple who had moved to Hanalei 30 years ago and were active in the polo club and the Hanalei historical society. We heard all sorts of stories from them about Tahiti Nui and the people of Hanalei and Kauai. With reluctance, we tore ourselves away. If we lived there we would surely be there at least one night a week.

Our last day was spent lounging around our house and beach, trying to cram all our purchases into already full suitcases. We bought lots of coconut syrup, kukui nut lotions and chocolate covered macadamias, so we could share some of the aloha with our loved ones back home. Alas, real life has returned with a vengeance, but the gift of our two weeks in Hawaii will be with us always.

The Big Apple 2004

April 26, 2004

My friend Jan and I were fortunate to be able to spend a long weekend in the Big Apple last weekend. We had gotten a great Northwest airfare of $122 (RT) from Detroit and were booked into the Lucerne on the Upper West Side at $169 a night for a room with two beds, booked directly through the hotel.

Upon arrival at LaGuardia our luggage beat us to the carousel and within minutes we were outside in the cab line. Our first (and only) mistake: we should have waited for one of those cabs instead of accepting an offer from an independent. He quoted $40, (which is too much - I know now) but since we were splitting the cost, it didn't seem too bad. He said it would be more than I thought because our destination was the Upper West Side. He then lead us to the parking lot and into an unmarked car - not even a regular yellow cab. When I questioned this, he did point out the NY Transportation registration sticker on his windshield. By this time, we just thought "whatever" and got in. A young woman was standing nearby looking for a cab and we invited her to join us, thinking we could split the cost. At the hotel, he added the cost of the bridge toll, and told me he needed $44. In the meantime, he unloaded our luggage and the hotel porter loaded it onto a cart and took it inside. Later in the room we were shocked to realize he had unloaded the other passenger's suitcase, instead of Jan's! The stranger's suitcase did not have a name tag on it and we had no receipt or identification for the car which had just dropped us off. This comedy of errors made us feel like The Country Bumpkins Meet the Big City! (Remember the movie with Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis?) It did end OK though, since my friend had her name and phone number on her luggage. One nervous hour later they called her cell phone and came back to our hotel for the switch.

We were so pleased with the Lucerne. I had done a lot of agonizing over this choice. We didn't want to spend a bundle but still have certain standards with regard to cleanliness, location, etc. The location was ideal because our main objective this trip was Central Park. (My friend was running a race on Sunday.) The service was impeccable as was the cleanliness. I had requested a corner room, which unfortunately was not available when we checked in, but we were on the 11th floor with a view uptown. The room also was a decent size with two queen beds and a bathroom with a tub/shower. The best part of the hotel was Nice Matin, the French restaurant accessed from the lobby, our first stop after unpacking. The cheery decor and outdoor seating area with its red awnings reminded me so much of Paris. Our affable waiter suggested a blood orange martini which became our signature drink for the weekend. A drink and a few appetisers later we were good to go on our first exploration of the area.

Our meanderings took us into the park at dusk. The spring weather was so nice there were many people there, walking, jogging, walking their dogs, fishing, smooching. That is just what we had hoped to experience - how the locals live. We were enchanted by Tavern on the Green at night. Although we did not dine here we boldly walked in an explored the whole restaurant. In the courtyard the trees were decorated with hundred of electrified Chinese lanterns. My friend who has five grown daughters fantasized about having weddings here. We were wowed by the spectacular Tifany windows and lights. Even the scent of the hand lotion in the restroom impressed us! We ended up having another cocktail in the upstairs bar.

We were back at the park early Saturday morning again for our early morning walk. The sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky. Our favorite spot was Bethesda fountain, watching everybody with their dogs. The dogs expressed what we were feeling: sheer jubilation. As the owners turned them loose from their leashes, they raced down the steps and sailed into the water. I'm a cat person, but I almost wanted to rent a dog for the occasion. There were so many different breeds and they all looked so happy to see each other again. We exited the park at the Strawberry Fields memorial, which had been beautifully decorated with rose petals. This memorial to John Lennon is a place where tributes are paid to people in the music industry when they pass on. I was shocked to find myself teary here. Of course, we had to walk past the Dakota where the horrific shooting took place.

After the park we meandered through an a street fair and ended up at Sarabeth's Kitchen for breakfast. This began the first of many times when we got seated without waiting and shortly afterward there would be a huge line of people. Timing is everything! It was a beautiful day to sit outside and our breakfast and the service was perfect.

Jan needed to pick up her race packet so after showering and changing we headed through the park over to the Upper East Side. I was born in Austria, so I was interested in the Neue Gallerie with it's Klimt paintings. The building itself is worth seeing, one of the most distinguished buildings on Fifth Avenue. There were only a handful of Klimt artworks, which were beautiful, but the rest of the art was not my favorite. I find German art in general to be so depressing. In short order we found ourselves seated in the museum's Cafe Sabarsky having very STRONG, but great, coffee served on a silver tray with whipped cream and we split a piece of authentic Viennese Sacher Torte. The wood paneled room was beautiful and comfortable with Austrian and German newspapers strewn on the Bosendorfer grand piano and a huge bouquet of apple blossoms lending a cheery atmosphere.

Our pre-theater dinner was at the Grand Central Terminal Oyster Bar. It has been a New York institution since 1913. The historic terminal itself is a great place to be and we enjoyed our meal of yellowfin tuna and scallops. We have found the service and friendliness everywhere to be exceptional. Certainly not what we expected, considering what we have read in other sources.

We had tickets to "Wicked" at the Gershwin Theater and had plenty of time to settle in and anticipate. It totally exceeded our expectations! What a lot of fun this was. The plot is so clever (a prequel to the Wizard of Oz) and there are a lot of funny inside jokes. Chenowith is astounding and Menzel keeps right up with her. Highly recommended!

We needed to get back to the hotel so my friend could rest up for the race in the morning. It's true - it's hard to get a cab after the theater. We finally did get one, but had to walk a bit. I don't know how to do that whistle and my polite Michigan wave doesn't always get their attention.

Sunday dawned cooler, but we were soon warmed by our jaunt over to the park (again) for the race. It was a fun atmosphere watching as the thousands of people of all shapes and sizes geared up for the four mile run. I was so proud of Jan for doing so well and she was elated at being able to run her best time yet. She has run in a lot of places, but she will always remember being able to run in Central Park.

On the way back to the hotel we had fun browsing the Greenflea Market until it started to sprinkle. Breakfast this morning was at Isabella's - another winner thanks to the folks here on this forum. The rest of the day was spent dodging raindrops. We wanted to walk the Brooklyn Bridge but by this time it was raining too hard and we scrapped the idea. We ended up moseying through Chinatown and Little Italy.

If you are looking for cheap NY t-shirts to bring back as souvenirs, Chinatown is the place. I got 8 NYPD shirts for $2 apiece. In Little Italy we had to stop in at Taormina's restaurant since this is Jan's maiden name. When we told the bartender, he promptly bought us a drink. Before long we were chatting with the two other couples at the bar. The guys were firefighters from Boston, with their wives. This unplanned stop became a cherished highlight of our trip.

We took a cab to the New Amsterdam theater for "The Lion King". The music is joyful and life-affirming and we were extremely impressed with the creativity of the costume design. We hadn't really eaten since breakfast, so it was time for some solid food. Nearby was Don't Tell Mama, a cabaret often frequented by Nathan Lane, et al, but not much was going on. We had planned on Firebird, but unfortunately by the time we got there they were not serving anymore. They did allow us to walk through and check it out. It is such a beautiful space and will definitely merit a visit the next chance we get. They recommended an Italian spot just a few doors down and we were able to get our dinner orders in just before the kitchen closed. A note to self: even New York shuts down early on Sunday night. It was raining hard by the time we came out. Miraculously, a cab appeared, but did not stop for me (even though by this time I was practicing a more forceful signal). A screeching whistle from a helpful guy who exited the restaurant with us stopped him and we gratefully caught a ride back to the hotel.

A side note: When we got out of the theater there were angry demonstrations going on in Times Square by black muslim groups and police were everywhere. Some people were shouting back and it looked like it could get violent. Quite a contrast to what we had just seen on stage!

Monday morning dawned rainy again and we used our 25% off coupon to have breakfast at Nice Matin adjoining the hotel. After breakfast we walked over to Broadway, stopped in at Filene's Basement, and spent a lot of time at Zabar's. I bought a lot of goodies to bring home and picked up a half dozen hot bagels at H&H to bring to hubby. Then it was back to the hotel to pack and take our (sadder but wiser) $18 cab ride back to LaGuardia.

In summation: We loved staying at the Lucerne and would happily do so each subsequent visit to New York. The location is peaceful, the service was great and the room and bed were comfortable. The shops and restaurants in this area are affordable and plentiful. Nothing too chi-chi here, but that is a plus in my book. I would never want to be at a hotel in Times Square!

I had many so many plans to see so many things, and as usual, most of them went out the window as we made time for unexpected discoveries. I am already looking forward to my next adventure in this great city.