We are close enough to NYC to drive, but honestly I am not comfortable with the thought of Jay navigating NYC traffic. So we decided to drive to Poughkeepsie and take the train from there. Originally we looked into taking the train from Albany, but the price difference in tickets was significant. We took the trade off of driving an extra hour to Poughkeepsie, for the lesser fare and shorter train ride.
Everything was going great until we actually got to the train station. My husband suffers from GPS brain. In case you don't know what this is, basically if there is a GPS or another driver is in the car his mind goes blank. He literally will ignore the GPS directions, and turn which ever way he wants, and then starts asking, "Which way do I go???" How about, the way the GPS told you to! So after finding the station, it took us about 30 minutes to find the parking garage. Needless to say, some shouting occurred and there were two very grumpy adults. Deep breath!
We are settled again, we bought our tickets, and yippee the fares were even cheaper than the computer said. Apparently traveling "off peak" hours, made our tickets less, Brandon was free for being under 5 years old, and Adam was $1.75 family fare round trip. This brightened our moods a bit.
We arrive in Grand Central Station about 8:30 p.m. The kids are in awe as am I, it's been 7 years since I was there. Every time it takes my breath away, it's one of my favorite places in NYC. Ok, my moment of astonishment is soon over and now we need to find the passageway to our hotel. We were staying at the Grand Hyatt, which is connected to Grand Central Station. Let me preface this, Jay was in charge of our hotel accommodations, and he did a fabulous job. He sprung for a fancy hotel, and the location was unbeatable, however, he didn't research how to find it from the train station. He had left over GPS brain when looking at the big map at Grand Central. Another few words muttered to each other, but we finally found it.
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| Grand Hyatt Lobby |
After a good nights rest, we ventured out into the wonderful streets of New York. Our first stop was Rockefeller Center to look at the tree.
Then we hit some toy stores and found the much wanted, Evil Emperor Zurg, for Brandon and Adam found a new PS3 game. After a few hours of walking, we opted for subway passes to save the little legs. The boys were thrilled. We could've just taken them on the subway and the trip would have been complete.
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| 7 Train to Grand Central |
More sight seeing, a carriage ride through Central Park ( I won't go into the scuffle I got into over that), and a few more subway rides and Brandon was done for the night. He was tired, his asthma was acting up, so we settled into the hotel for the night while Adam and Jay went to the Empire State Building. Adam managed to call me and my mom from the top and had great "Adam and Daddy" time. While Brandon and I lounged in the room, watching cartoons, and playing with Zurg.
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| Carriage Ride |
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| Adam at Empire State Building |
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| Brandon relaxing at the hotel |
The next day was my personal highlight, ROCKETTES!!!!! Jay surprised us with floor seats to the Christmas Spectacular, and I have to say it was spectacular. I now understand why people go every year. Adam loved the show, Brandon remarked about their legs, but his highlight was the hot chocolate. Oh and by the way, you can get any kind of alcohol served at 8:30 am on a Sunday morning at Radio City Music Hall. I guess the liquor laws don't apply there ;)
After the show, we ventured back on the train to Poughkeepsie. It was a very quiet drive home, as ALL my boys napped in the car. So, did we have low moments?? Of course. Did we have a blast?? Absolutely. Are we going back??? Most definitely!!!
Happy Holidays!!!!
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