Weekend in the Big City

Being that I work so close to New York City, from time to time I stay there on the weekend.   Part of my strategy is to stay during the colder months as this is not high tourism season and thus you can find several affordable hotels.   This particular trip, I had no tourist plans so I devoted my time to discovering new places.  

First of all, I discovered a neat hotel in a really good location – The Mansfield – located at 44^th and Lexington.   This hotel was a short walk to Times Square, 2 blocks to a Subway stop and very close to Grand Central Station.    I actually found this on Expedia at a rate about $70 less than what they were offering via their reservation line. 

My first new discovery was from venturing into the Meatpacking District.  I had been to a fantastic little restaurant there before called 5ninth and during that trip noticed what appeared to be quite a few nice looking places.   So I chose one called Vento – an Italian restaurant in a V-shaped building a major intersection where 3 roads merged.   The atmosphere at this place was nice and the food was good and it was definitely a popular spot.  Whilst there I learned of several other places to check out at later dates.  

Later that evening I met a colleague and friend of mine at a small NYC dive bar called Rudy’s.   This spot on 44^th and 9^th is easily found due to the 8 foot tall pink pig standing guard to the entrance.   Once inside I found that this place had lots to offer for a cool spot – $7 pitchers of beer, free hot dogs and surprisingly friendly patrons.   Definitely a fun place if you are just into inexpensively enjoying yourself and meeting some interesting and nice people.  

The next evening I found my way to a Swedish restaurant called Ulrika’s – located on 60^th between Park and Lexington.   On my flight back from Iceland in February, I sat next to a delightful bird who was originally from Sweden but now teaches voice in NYC.  Being that she was Swedish, I inquired with her about a good authentic place in NYC.  She did not let me down.  I am by no means a Swedish food connoisseur but this place was good from a purely food perspective.   First of all, it was very crowded which for a restaurant is always a good sign but not overly crowded so that it was unpleasant.   Also, my ears noticed a large amount of foreign language resonating which if I were to guess was definitely Scandinavian in nature and most likely Swedish – another good sign that this place was authentic.   My buddy and I dined on some nice gravalax (salmon) for an appetizer and we both tried the Swedish meatballs for a main course.  Fantastic.   I also ventured into the world of Aquavits (a flavor infused alcohol similar to vodka) trying a four flavor sampler.  

The last stop of this evening was to meet a friend at a Moroccan Tapas Bar/Lounge called Kemia.   This was located at 44^th and 9^th as well and was in a basement area beneath a restaurant with the entrance being off 44^th.   Immediately upon descending the stairs I found myself in the kind of space I thoroughly enjoy.  It was dimly lit with small candles providing some light and a very nice décor.   The main area was small stools and couches for lounging about.   Apparently my timing was good because not more than 15 minutes after I arrived, there was a belly dancing show.   The belly dancers first performance involved belly dancing but with a round tray with 8 lit candles resting on her head the entire time.  Now to me, belly dancing and the accompanying music is very beautiful due to the sheer grace.  Couple that with the dancer maintaining a tray of candles on her head the entire time and it was quite an extravagant performance.  The belly dancer continued for 3 or 4 more songs and even involved some of the onlookers into the performance.  Fortunately I evaded selection for this participation.   This place was definitely a gem of a find.

Destination Sacramento

As part of my continual travels, I attempt to make it to California for some weekends.   One important consideration to California trips is how long I can be there.  If it is a normal weekend and I fly from New York, I will arrive late on Friday night and have to return on a mid-morning Sunday flight unless of course I take the Sunday evening redeye.  This presents a dilemma – be in California for little over 36 hours or get that extra full day on Sunday but pay the price with very little sleep and a full work day on Monday.   To solve this dilemma, I try to schedule my flights out to California or the West Coast over long weekends.   This way I can enjoy the entire weekend and return East on Monday.   Otherwise I would have to take a vacation day and that makes it too easy.   Maneuvering to maximize a travel experience while minimizing time away from work is half the fun of planning.

The weekend was very fun as I was able to spend a lot of time being worn out by my non-stop playing 16 month old niece!   The good part for me is that spending so much time playing with her and at this age where she is picking things up quickly, only gives me hope that she may actually know who I am at some point!   My proudest moment of the weekend was when I taught my niece to say ‘shadow’.  She was walking out of the lighted kitchen into the dark hallway and saw her shadow.  She then began saying shadow and pointing at her shadow.  

History in the Harbor

Today I had the opportunity to explore 2 very historic landmarks of the American culture – The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.    Now both of these have very storied pasts.   However to get to experience them first hand was very stirring.   As I meandered through Ellis Island, I could only wonder if any of my ancestors came through there.  To me history is very fascinating especially in light of the imaginative contemplation that occurs trying to mentally picture what things may have been like back then.  Considering the mass of humanity that paraded through Ellis Island, it is no surprise that New York City is so culturally diverse and maintains diversity unlike any other city in the United States of America.   Some interesting facts that I learned during this tour were that Ellis Island shut down in the 1950’s and lay in a state of disrepair until renovation began in the early 1980’s.   At the peak of immigration in the late 1910’s and early 1920’s, ships from around the world would weeks to disembark their passengers due to the high volume of traffic.  Also, Ellis Island expanded quite a bit over the early years of its use primarily from dirt excavated during the building of the New York Subway system.   

The Statue of Liberty Tour was quite fascinating as well.  Although we were only allowed to go to the Observation Deck at the base of the Statue, it was still fascinating to learn some interesting facts.   First of all, the Statue was originally constructed in France piece by piece and then disassembled and shipped to New York.  The ship carrying the disassembled statue almost sunk prior to arriving to New York.   The face of the Statue was created in the likeness of the mother of the architect.   One very amazing view was from within the statue looking up.   You could see the extensive internal frame that supported the Statue.   It was quite a contrast to what you see on the outside!

One side note was that it was COLD that day but very sunny.   However, I would encourage everyone to take time to go see that as it is indeed 2 of the more famous pieces of American history.