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!