New York City with Family

Russ caught a wild idea in September . . . that the family might meet up in New York City for a few days. What! Meg is the only city-mouse in the group. Although my time in Prague in 2006 made me much more accepting of city life than ever before. So, I might be a sort of city mouse.

We found a weekend that most of us could be available. Russ, me, Meg, Pam, James, and Phyllis could all make it happen from Saturday October 26, with everyone arriving by mid afternoon, to Wednesday the 30th, with all of us leaving about mid-day. Steve had to work.

Russ and I had to leave at 6:00 from Gainesville and fly to Miami . . . wrong direction, but that's airplane travel for you. When you fly to Miami on a small plane, you land out on the tarmac and walk a long distance outdoors, through corridors of glass block walls to arrive in the terminal. Once inside, we walked even farther to our gate. We had little "down time" before we took off for JFK. Then to JFK, arriving at 11:00. 

We did our research and took the AirTrain to Jamaica, the Long Island Railroad to Penn Station, the subway to 72nd St, and then walked two blocks. Voila! 

We arrived well before the 3:00 check-in time and had a big lunch at the Viand Diner next door. After checking in, we explored the Fairway market across the street. Not Publix! More like Ward's, on steroids.

Phyllis drove to Richmond Friday night to catch a direct flight early Saturday and arrive at Laguardia before 9:00, giving her almost a full day with a friend at the Metopolitan Museum of Art.

After a not great Lyft experience getting from Lexington to the airport, Meg caught a direct flight from Charlottesville to Laguardia, She arrived on time despite the stress.

Pam and James took Amtrak from Fredericksburg to Penn Station. An easy 6-hour ride, without airport hassles of having to arrive two hours early and take off their shoes at security.

We stayed at Hotel Beacon which was recommended by Gainesville friends. Great choice on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. We had four rooms and received two surprise complementary upgrades to suites with living rooms. Perfect for all of us to gather after dinner, to marvel at the skyline views, and to enjoy being together. Phyllis' room had a faulty toilet that would not stop running.When she returned the second day, it was in process of being replaced. Good job Hotel Beacon.

Our first night, we went to the ArtHouse Bar on Broadway, about three blocks from the hotel. The ambiance was great and the service was even better. Phyl's New York friend Anja joined us for drinks and bar food. The server got them to tone down the piped in music so we could have a seven-way conversation. 

Back at the hotel, we gathered in Russ and my living room for wine and cheese  that Pam and James picked up from the Fairway.

Sunday morning, Russ, Pam, and James walked across Central Park to the location of the original New York Foundling Home. Russ and Phyllis' mother was born and adopted there. The original building is long gone, but it was a base to be touched. 

What the location looks like now

The orphanage

The Foundling Home

They also saw the Dakota and Strawberry Field, Balto, and a toddler soccer game.

Phyllis, Anja, Meg and I taxied to Battery Park and took the ferry to Ellis Island to touch the base where earlier ancestors arrived. I was disappointed that it felt like industrial-strength tourism. The security check-point was much like a well-run airport security. Many people, crowded together, lines and lines of scanning machines. After passing through security, as we awaited the ferry outside, we were admonished not to form lines but crowd together near the entrance point to the ferry. Hmmm, not my favorite way of getting on a ferry . . . in a scrum. 

The island itself was lovely. We had tickets for the Hard Hat tour. Meg, Phyllis, and I had all recently read A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner and were eager to see the remains of the hospitals on the Island. The 11:00 tour was full so we spent our first hour in the interesting museum, then went to seek a bite of lunch before our 1:00 tour. After talking to the park ranger about the tour, learning it involved lots of walking on uneven ground, standing, listening to presentations, and more walking, Meg and I opted out. Phyl and Anja loved it, and found it exhausting. Meg and I returned to the mainland happy and satisfied with what we had seen.

After we all rested up, we walked to Zabar's market a few blocks away to take in the glory of their cheese selection and other wonderful foods. Foodie family creds for all the Halls! 

Happy Hour found us a the Owl's Tail, right across the street from Viand Diner. It was an outdoor area with plastic walls and heat. It would have been perfect except for a neighboring table of overly happy folks with very loud voices echoing off the plastic. We retreated to Phyllis' 24th floor living room with amazing views of the city, including the Hudson River, and ordered New York pizza from Patsy's Pizzeria, in honor of our Star Lake friend Patsy Neptune, for dinner.

Monday we headed off to find Russ and Daughters restaurant. Meg had her eye on visiting it since she first heard of it years ago. The name was a siren's call for our foodie group. the restaurant is over 100 years old and specializes in bagels and lox. We chose the closest, newest, and largest of the 3 locations. It was a highlight of our trip. They make a sandwich unlike any we had even experienced before.

From there, it was a short walk to the High Line, another highlight of the trip. We walked to Chelsea Market, and visited Saxelby's Cheese. When Meg took a cheese class in 2006 at Murry's, she and others in the cohort went to see Anne Saxelby's start-up stall at the Essex Market. It was tiny in space . . . about 100 square feet . . . and huge in the vision of founder who delivered the cheese by bicycle in Manhattan and Brooklyn! Anne has died, but her store is a classic!

Exhausted when we got back to the hotel, we all crashed for a few hours. Later, Russ and I took a walk around the neighborhood, scouting dinner possibilities. We decided to recommend Playa Betty's. All agree and we arrived in time for Happy Hour pitchers of margaritas followed by an abundance of California-style Mexican fare and another late night family gathering in our living room, with only a 10th floor view . .  still quite spectacular.

Tuesday, Phyllis opted to return to the Met with Anja for a couple of guided tours. The second one, after Anja had to leave, turned out to have a docent, a docent-in-training, and only Phyllis as a "student." The teacher in her loved it. It was her most special experience of the trip . . . other than all the family time :)

Pam and James opted for the Museum of Modern Art, where they independently spotted works by an artist from whom they have a print at their home. That was special! They had picked up the print at an estate sale in Florida.Their good taste was affirmed. They returned to the hotel and had a big late lunch at Viand Diner.

Meg, Russ, and I went by Lyft to the Brooklyn bike ramp entrance to the Brooklyn Bridge pedestrian pathway. The bikes and pedestrians share a ramp to the point where the "bike path" veers off from the pedestrian path and a stairway brings many more pedestrians up onto the bridge. We wanted the slightly longer experience on the bridge and not to have to climb the stairs with the crowds. We spent about an hour slowly walking the bridge. It was in the 60s and sunny . . . delightful. Occasionally the breeze came up and was a bit chilly, but overall, perfect weather.

We could barely take in all the views. It is a panorama. We tried for photos, but nothing showed what we were seeing. It is a place you need to be and experience. We loved it. 

At the Manhattan end of the bridge, we found a bench and asked Google maps to suggest a place to get lunch. We settled on Noodle Nation and headed into Chinatown. Within a half mile or so we decided to forget noodles and we popped into one of the abundant places with no long lines and interesting looking menus. 

The Lyft back to the hotel again took us through many city locations that were new to us and we would not have seen on the subway.

Russ and I took a last walk to Central Park. Houses were decked out for Halloween. All the time we were there, dogs and kids were in costume. We wish we had photos of them.

Some of us foraged at the wine store next door to the hotel  while Pam and James again went looking for light-fare for us at Fairway. We gathered in Phyllis' room for our final evening together, reviewing what each of us found as a highlight, laughing at our miscues, and looking forward to the next adventure.

Wednesday morning's reverse travel for me and Russ . . . walk two blocks, subway to Penn Station, find the Long Island Railroad, get to Jamaica, find the AirTrain, and travel to all the stops before arriving at our Terminal, seemed a bit more stressful than the trip into the City. But then, having a plane to catch did that to us :) All in all, we had no delays and just enough leftover cheese and charcuterie from the night before to keep us from being super hungry on our two flights. We went to Charlotte on the return and then to Gainesville. Much more direct than the Miami detour on the way up.

Phyl and Meg Lyfted to Laguardia together. Phyllis was practically back in Richmond before Meg's flight left, but with both of them having direct flights neither was very long. Meg was not looking forward to getting back to Lexington from Charlottesville after the Lyft glitch on the way up. As if by magic, like much of our trip, Steve learned that their friend Ian was arriving in Charlottesville within minutes of Meg. Steve put them in touch and Ian drove her back. Everyone was home again by dinner time.

When Pam and James arrived back in Fredericksburg on Amtrak, they managed one final adventure by locking their car keys in the trunk at the parking lot. they had to take a Lyft home for their extra set of keys and then back to retrieve the car. Ha! never a dull moment. Luckily, they live close to the train station :)

 We are all thinking about the next time :)

A Road Trip, for the Ages

In 2024, we took a Road Trip for the Ages. The idea, as with our 2022 Camino for the Ages, was to plan short days getting from place to place, and long, rejuvenating afternoons and evenings in interesting accommodations.

Sadly, we spent our first weekend of our Road Trip in Williamsburg for the funeral of our brother-in-law Otis Haislip. As funerals do, it allowed us to meet up with relatives we seldom see including nephew Alex Haislip and his family. Pam and James were there, and we had some extended time with Russ' sister Phyllis. It was good to be together, like Phyllis and her grands in the photo below, and share our thankfulness for Otis' life.

From there, we were on to Fredericksburg, to Pam and James' home for a short visit.

Heading north, our first day was a bit long . . . 7 hours to Ithaca. We stayed at the Key Cottage near Taughannock Falls State Park. The Cottage fit the unique-lodgings bill. The grounds were amazingly landscaped with flowers everywhere, swings on porches, little cabins for each "room", unusual decorations, and the only place we have ever stayed where the front door leads into a shower and toilet room! It even had a container of water to use for flushing if the power went out. Totally charming lodging. 

From Ithaca, we drove about 4 hours to Star Lake, stopping in Watertown for groceries since the only place to get food in Star Lake is Dollar General. We stayed 10 days in our favorite camp, The Stone House. It had undergone stellar renovations without loosing its charming Adirondack ambiance. 

Stela swam in the lake, digging and diving for rocks. 

Friends came for dinner and the evening. We watched the Star Lake rafts go by. We went to wonderful Wanakena, where we bought fresh food at Otto's Abode, walked the pedestrian bridge, marveled again at the Oswegatchie River, and enjoyed the Historical Society Museum and walking tour.

We spent one day in Watertown for Cousin Charlene's internment ceremony. It was touching and beautiful. We were reunited with some of her caregivers. Robin, who brought her to visit in Cedar Key years ago and Lauren who came back from a maternity leave to have Charlene greet her with "Where's the baby! I have been waiting to hold her!"came. Robin's husband, who also was Charlene's friend and Natalie, another caregiver friend, were there. Three childhood friends who played cards with Charlene in the afternoons came. Russ, Pam, Robin, and Lauren all told tales of Charlene's life, wit, and humor.

From Star Lake, we drove a few hours to Vanderkamp on Lake Oneida where we had two special activities planned. The first crashed when Boyd broke his ankle and ended up in surgery instead of him and Linda having dinner with us at the camp. Bummer for all, mostly Boyd who now has 6 weeks of no walking.

The event that did happen was super special. Through genealogy and DNA research, Russ had found a new cousin and she lives in the Lake Oneida area. Lori came to visit and shared lots of photos and tales of their family, all new to Russ. Her great uncle is Russ' grandfather. We hadn't known who his grandfather was previously and her family didn't know the great uncle had an unknown son, Russ' dad. We had a grand conversation in our quaint, camp . . . a restored one-room log cabin.

We visited Meg and Steve in Lexington for a day, with lots of good conversation, mezé, cheese, and great foodie items to bring home.

Then, for four days and three nights, we cruised the Blue Ridge Parkway, driving a few hours a day, stopping at the overlooks and Visitors Centers to our hearts' delight, and staying in unique lodgings each evening. In Roanoke, we had another restored log cabin in the woods, with a large fenced yard that Stela loved. It also had several decks and outdoor sitting areas, with few bugs. We sat out until sundown.

Each day we stopped at a picnic area for lunch, snacking on cheeses from Meg.

 

 

In Blowing Rock, we celebrated our 58th Anniversary staying at the Hellbender Bed and Beverage. We rented their dog-friendly cabin and spent much of the afternoon and evening, Stela in tow, at their outdoor restaurant. Their cocktails were curated on site and delightful.

Driving at a maximum speed of 45, around curves and over hills, is a welcome change from interstates. Pulling off at overlooks is a benefit.

In Waynesville, we rented a small, restored bungalow within waking distance of the old downtown and a short drive from the new downtown. It also had a fenced yard, making Stela happy. It was comfortable, cozy, and had a great kitchen. However, we did think that perhaps the toilet should be taller than a hanger.

We drove to the end of the Parkway, at Cherokee, which is also the entrance to the Smokey Mountain National Park. Suddenly traffic and honky-tonk was everywhere. It required a purchased parking permit to enter the Visitors Center. We will surely visit the Parkway again, but the National Park looked a bit crowded for our taste. 

Our last stop was in Athens where we stayed in a guest cottage on a 25-acre farm that had been in the owner's family for generations. Instead of a guest book, we were asked to sign in on the walls of the bunk-bed room. Cute!

 All in all, a wonderful trip. And, as always, it is good to be home. Our plants were well cared for our our neighbor Zoe, who also left in our refrigerator for us to discover when we returned, a bag of oranges from their family tree. And, we harvested a cucumber from the garden for our homecoming salad. All is well.