We slid into New York Friday morning, one of the last planes to land at LaGuardia ahead of Nemo, the curiously named blizzard that skimmed Manhattan before slamming the East Coast.
With exactly 46.5 hours to spend and a New York Neophyte on board, we barely notice the sleet pelting our taxi.
We noticed a little when it pelted our faces, but still, we remained determined.
We planned to stroll through Central Park, nosh on a New York bagel, see a Broadway show or two, sight a celebrity, and, most importantly, visit Charlie, oldest son and Chelsea resident.
Dodging slush piles and clinging to flapping umbrellas, we managed to check all those to-do’s off our list and preserve our love for one of the greatest cities on earth.
First stop was Anderson Live to see Charlie, who works as an AP there. We had the extreme pleasure of meeting the affable, worldly Anderson Cooper and our unexpected stop in the Anderson photo booth made our weekend. Iconic New York celebrity sighting? Check and we hadn’t yet unpacked our bags.
A leisurely lunch at the edge of Central Park allowed us to catch up with Charlie and watch the storm roll in. We had no plans at all so we popped into the theatre and got tickets for that night’s Rock of Ages, where I fist pumped and sang along with the rest of the audience. (Favorite line? From Charlie “Mom! That’s hang ten. You have to bend your thumb for rock on.” Hilarious and mildly embarrassing.)
Vinnie’s first glimpse of Times Square came through eye lids squinted against the sleet, but we loved our walk home from the theatre amidst the hearty, jovial crowds.
On Saturday we walked through a Central Park that was bursting with joy. Sled riders, who apparently hadn’t seen snow this year, dotted every spare hill.
We caught a subway to Chinatown and enjoyed soup dumplings, the perfect antidote for our frozen fingers. My toes froze solid and I walked like Festus for a while after we stood in line at the half-price ticket booth, but we came away with great seats for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
As our cab pulled away Sunday morning I looked back at the impressive New York Skyline and thought about resiliency and joy.
Until next time, New York, rock on.
Sounds like a great trip. So jealous that you met Anderson, but not surprised. Charlie looks great & I sure hope that was a Starbucks cup in his hand.
Charlie does love Starbucks…as do the rest of us.