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Location: Northern California

Thursday, September 22, 2005

 

More Manhattan moments

Yesterday we were joined in New York by my mother Grammie Martha. She lives in Illinois but joined us for the last days of our Manhattan adventure.

After she arrived we walked over to Little Italy and checked out the Feast of San Gennaro festival. Mulberry Street was filled with food vendors and carnival attractions. We had lunch at one of the many Italian restaurants that line the street—Grotta Azzurra—and enjoyed Caesar salads with grilled chicken along with cold glasses of Pinot Grigio. The salad was great; the dressing had a nice hint of anchovy, the croutons were garlic infused and crispy, and the chicken tasted like it had just come off the grill plus was so moist I could cut it with a fork. Yum.

Last night we had a classic city dinner of hot dogs from Papaya King, and then my mom and I headed off to see Wicked at the George Gershwin Theater. It was an excellent show and very entertaining. I highly recommend it. After the show got out, we journeyed by cab through Times Square, which was lit up and bustling with people. By then I was tired; it was 11 o’clock and I’m used to going to bed at 9:30. These kids of mine are turning me into one of them!

This morning we checked out the Rubin Museum of Art in Chelsea. They had a special program for kids age two to five. Both Emily and Thomas enjoyed painting, playing with blocks, and hearing stories. It was a great experience plus the museum had some interesting Himalayan art that Grammie Martha could enjoy while I hung out with the little people. Oh, and it had nice clean bathrooms, always a plus for any New York attraction.

After the museum we headed over to Union Square Park to check out Circus Amok but couldn’t find them, which seemed odd since I couldn't imagine a circus being hard to find. Perhaps they cancelled the show; I’m disappointed that we missed them. [Note: I just re-checked their website and they were in Union square last Thursday. Fortunately for us, they’ll be in Washington Square Park tomorrow and that’s just five blocks from us. Oh, happy day!]

We had lunch at the Heartland Brewery. I ordered my usual, Caesar salad with grilled chicken. The salad was OK, but not as good as yesterday’s Caesar; the croutons were stale and the chicken was dry. The salad dressing was good but lacked the anchovy oomph of the salad from Grotta Azzurra. At least the beer was good. I had a pint of their Harvest Wheat and my mom had a seasonal Pumpkin Ale. I wish I had another pint right now…

Loving:
People
Energy
Weather
Food
Walking

Hating:
Funky smells
Life with a humongous stroller