Day 14--October 28---New York & Then Home!

We had arranged for a late check out so we slept in a little later and met for breakfast next door again.  (Interesting that the most expensive hotel we stayed in did not have free internet or continental breakfast as all of the other places had had.)  We packed and weighed our luggage trying to make sure that we had all 4 bags under 50 pounds---we all need "packing less"  lessons :)  Then we went over to Rockefeller Center and took the NBC Tour which was interesting and fun.  We went into Dr. Oz's and Jimmy Fallon's studios.  We came back to the hotel, checked out, and settled our luggage in the lobby/bar area to wait for our shuttle at 1:45.

We arrived at the airport really early which was good since so many people were trying to get out of town ahead of Hurricane Sandy.  New York announced that they would close the subway system at 7PM and buses would stop at 9PM.  At the airport, stores and restaurants started to close around 5PM!  We managed to grab something to eat and our boarding was right on time at 5:45 for our 6:15PM flight.  Once we were all on and settled the captain informed us that since everyone was trying to leave we were in the twenties--number of planes waiting to take off.  It was a smooth flight and they made up all of that extra wait time which was nice.  During the flight I was talking to one of the flight attendants while waiting for the restroom--where we were from, etc .  I told him Randi and I were celebrating our 40 years of teaching by taking this trip.  He bought us both a glass of wine!!  (I continue to be impressed with JetBlue :) )  During the flight we watched our Giants win the World Series in the tenth inning.  I believe that the Giants fans on board were a bit annoying to those who were trying to rest or sleep :)  Once we arrived and collected all our luggage, the four of us wedged ourselves and all the luggage into a taxi (van) and headed for their house where we had left our car.
We arrived home to two cats that were very happy to see us--and left all the luggage to be unpacked tomorrow!  We had a terrific time and remained friends at the end of it :)  We visited so many places and saw a huge variety of things.  It was a strenuous trip as except for NH and NY, we were in a different place each night.  Our longest drives were about four hours.  It was certainly a fitting celebration of our years of teaching and our friendship and certainly will stand out as a once in a lifetime type of trip!

Day 13 - October 27--New York

We met at a little restaurant next door to the hotel and then took the subway down to the World Trade Center.  Bill always carries a pocketknife which we had to check as they did the airport style security check :)  We wandered around the site viewing the impressive tower which is not complete but appears finished on the outside quite a ways up.  The new museum is not open yet.  The two pools with water flowing in the footprint of the original two towers held the names of the  9/11 victims on the walls surrounding them.  There was a "survivor" tree that had been found in the debris, removed, nursed back to health, and brought back to the site.  It was very moving and the crowds were very quiet and respectful.

After that we split up with Bill and I heading to Battery Park to see about going to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  Although I grew up nearby in CT I have never been to either and Randi and David had done those tours on their last trip.  When we got there we found that the wait was for more than 1 and a half hours and I just didn't have the desire to stand in the huge line for that long.  We noticed a water taxi that was doing a tour and decided to take that.  The views were spectacular--they didn't stop at either place but went out and stopped for photos.  It was a hop on and hop off tour of sites such as the seaport, Times Square, etc.  It was a beautiful view of the city and when it went up the river we got off near Times Square and then took the subway back up to the hotel.  We collapsed for a while and then went down to the bar to meet my niece Willa and her fiance Evan.  We had about an hour to catch up before meeting Randi and David to head out for dinner and the show.  Willa and Evan live in Brooklyn and we were so glad that they were able to come over to see us!  We all left about 5:30 and they headed home as we headed back down to Times Square.  We had dinner at an Italian restaurant and then went to see Newsies--which was terrific!  The dancing was fabulous.  The weather while we were in NY was nice--in the 60's.,

Day 12--October 26--Providence to New York

Today is going to be a long drive as we take 95 along the entire Connecticut coast.  Foliage continues to be pretty but not as spectacular as it might have been a week earlier.  We stopped in Old Greenwich, CT for lunch and then headed into New York.  A wrong turn took us through sections we would not have seen otherwise :)  We ended up at the hotel late in the afternoon.  Thanks to Randi and David's son Darren, our rental car return was just around the corner so David dropped us with all the luggage and went to drop the car off.  After a brief time to get organized and rest a little in our rooms we headed out into the city.  Our hotel was the Doubletree/Hilton on Lexington so we walked from there down through Times Square to the theater district.  We even had time to visit the Times Square Visitors Center and watched a short movie on the history of the square.  Took photos of the Centennial Ball as it changed colors high above the square.  After dinner at a Japanese restaurant we headed over to the theater to see Spiderman.  The show was very different--I loved the staging--the sets were constantly moving and changing to accomadate the high flying spidermen and the villain perched on top of the Chrysler Building.  The music was done by Bono.  Parts of it were very campy and the high flying actors were amazing.  It's probably not a show that most theater goers would love but I thought it was fun and as a former Geometry teacher, loved the perspective as the sets changed.  After the show we hiked back to our hotel.

Photos from Cape Cod

Cape Cod on rotary

Sandwich Glass Factory

Thornton Burgess wrote some of my favorite childrens' books

Provincetown

Nauset Light

South Yarmouth on Cape Cod

Cranberry Bogs

Hyannis

Car Collection that Bill & David visited

New Hampshire---Photos w/family & at Dartmouth