Don’t get me wrong, I loved it when our kids were little. There was always some sort of activity to go to – soccer, baseball, lacrosse – you know the drill. But now that our kids are older, I have to say that it is a lot more fun to hang out with them, start to develop a more “adult” relationship, and be a part of the things they are doing as independent young adults.
Our daughter is doing an internship in New York City this summer, so a few weeks ago we took a break from camping, grabbed kid #2, and drove up to the city to pay her a visit for the weekend.
I’ve been to New York many times before – both for business and just for fun. The first time I was ever in the city was back in 1986, and back then NYC was kind of scary (at least to a 21 year old) – lots of crime, graffiti, mounds of trash… not exactly the kind of place I would ever want to spend time. Fortunately (thanks Rudy Guiliani!) the city has completely transformed over the last few decades. It was always a vibrant city, but now it is safe and friendly – much less intimidating than it was back in the day.
We have done a lot of the touristy things in the City, and we’ve been there enough times to know to stay away from Times Square in the summer (TOO many people!) – so as we planned out the weekend, we tried to focus on the less-touristy neighborhoods, and do some things we had never done before.
So alongside our “hostess with the most-est” city guide Lexie, the Liston invasion was on!
Our first stop was Chelsea Market. We are complete Food Network fanatics – and in all my trips I had never been to Chelsea Market so we made that our first stop. In a word – COOL! Hundreds of vendors, stalls, little tea shops, butchers, and scores of little food counters. SCORE! Dickson’s Farmstand Meats (http://chelseamarket.com/index.php/Shops/single_shops/dicksons-farmstand ) is where we ended up for lunch – because you can never go wrong with meat! They are a butcher shop that also does sandwiches and roasted meats – and I have to say the sandwiches were some of the best I’ve had (and I really don’t like sandwiches!). You can’t beat fresh and local – and this place does both.
Next, we made our way down through the financial district to the 9-11 Memorial. I’m not sure where to begin to talk about my feelings about the Memorial. I could write pages and pages about that day and the impact it had on me – so many different emotions consumed me as we entered the memorial area.
The memorial itself is, in a word, perfect. The pools that cascade downward seemingly down into infinity brought to mind the never-ending tears that have been shed since that day. The names of the victims and first responders etched in black granite edge the pools – some have flowers lying next to them, some have flags placed within the letters… a heartbreakingly beautiful reminder that these were real people who had real families who still grieve for their losses. I felt like I was on sacred ground – like a church or cemetery – I didn’t want to speak out loud, I could barely breathe and the tears welled up in my eyes.
As we made our way through the area, I started to observe the other visitors. I know this is a “tourist” area and in some strange way an “attraction” – but as I watched smiling families pose for pictures, the memorial pools as background – I was jolted away from my inner thoughts and I started to feel a little angry. This is a place for quiet reverence and reflection – not for smiling selfies. And while Darryl reminded me that many of those posing for pictures weren’t old enough to remember that day – I couldn’t help but feel profoundly sad. It made my heart hurt.
To give ourselves a little pickup after the Memorial, we headed toward the Brooklyn Bridge. In all of the trips I’ve made to NYC I had never walked the bridge or been to Brooklyn. The bridge was PACKED with walkers and bikers (I’ve never heard so many bike bells chime – mostly because the walkers didn’t stay on their side of the walkway!). Pretty cool stuff – and you can’t beat the view! Once we got over the bridge we had to check out one of the cool bars. A little wine and some olives to recharge for the walk back is always a good thing.
Coming off the bridge puts you in the Bowery/Lower East Side of the city. We had walked almost 12 miles already and needed a little carb reinforcement. Food Network – again – to the rescue with a Triple D legend John’s of 12th (http://www.johnsof12thstreet.com/). What restaurant only takes cash?? Restaurants with ATM’s in the foyer! A little cash, a few meatballs and some pizza and on to the next stop – Dessert! Back over to Chelsea for some chocolate fondue and key lime pie to top it all off.
Looking back, I kind of feel like we did the eating tour of NYC – which, again, is always a good thing!
Since we were staying in Jersey City heading back to the hotel for the evening meant the end to our visit. I can’t say that I didn’t miss the calm quiet of the woods, but our NYC trip was a LOT of fun, and anytime we get to hang out with the kids is special (and that’s the most important thing).
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