In Minnesota

We had an uneventful trip home.  Stopped in PA and had dinner with good friends Ron and Linda Fleeger.  Always a good time visiting with them. 

The fall colors were in full bloom.

We’ve been home for a week, seems like a month.  We have been busy with dad’s estate, getting the house ready to sell.  Him and mom lived in the house for over 30 years and accumulated lots of stuff, Mom was a collector of many things.  we have a plumber and a contractor doing some needed work on the house to get it ready to go on the market this coming Monday.  It is priced to sell, hopefully it will go fast. 

Mike and I both had Doc and Dentist appointments this past week, and into next week.  I was having some pain on my side when in NY,  went to the doctor last Wed and found out I have gallstones.  The gallbladder will be removed this Friday.  The Doc says it’s a simple 30 minute procedure, in and out the same day.  I will let you know how simple it was.  Pretty sure it won’t be pain free.  Mike says that's why they have pain meds, bring them on. 

The David Lettermen Show

Thursday October, 7th 2010

We drove to a train station in Hoboken NJ and took the train from there to Penn station.  From Penn Station we  took a cab to the Ed Sullivan Theater, only $5.40 plus tip for the cab.

The first place we stopped was Hello Deli for lunch. 

Mike and owner of the Deli Rupert. 

We had instructions to be at the Ed Sullivan Theater by 2pm.  We waited in line one for maybe 30 minutes.  Showed our drivers license  to the person in charge of our line.  Our license was checked again as we went thru the door to get our tickets.  Our License was checked again as we waited in line to get our tickets.  We picked up the tickets and were told to come back at 3:45 and wait in the red line.  Another half hour standing in line.  About 4:15 we entered the theater for the second time, and was seated in the balcony.

It takes one hour to the tape the show and it’s just like watching it on TV.

The first guest was Steven Colbert, he hosts the Colbert Report on TV.

The second guest was Johnny Knoxville, from the Jackass movies.  We really did not know who he was, or anything about his movies.

The band at the end of the show was not someone we had heard of.  That’s all I will say about the band.

After the show we walked from 53rd street to 43rd street for dinner at Tony’s Di Napoli.  Mike had made reservation when we heard we had the tickets to Lettermen.  

A couple from Queens was seated next to us and we had a just the best time visiting with them.  They were in town to see a Broadway play. 

We had to stop at the M&M store on Broadway.  We also stopped at the Hershey store.  I was good we bought no chocolate. 

Time Square. 

We took a cab back to Penn station and the train to Hoboken.  We got back to the RV park about 11:00.  It was another long day. 

We are leaving New York Friday and heading back to Minnesota.  We hope to home on Tuesday. 

Pay no attention to my spelling and punctuation because as you read these stories you will find that I didn’t read them before publishing.

West Point US Military Academy

Tuesday October 5th 2010

Our last day with the tour group.  There is 100 of us on two buses.  We didn’t get to know everyone, but the people we got to know were tons of fun. 

West Point, the nation's oldest and foremost military college -- which celebrated its 200th anniversary in 2002 and is the oldest continually used military post in the U.S, has produced some of the greatest generals and leaders this country has known, including Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Douglas MacArthur, George Patton, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Edgar Allan Poe, however, dropped out!) West Point is one of the nation's most esteemed and rigorous science and engineering colleges. The most popular attraction in the entire Hudson Valley.

As you can tell from the pictures it is still raining.

The picture on the right is the place they hold concerts on Sunday afternoons, during the summer.

West Point Museum is the Nation’s oldest and largest military museum with collections encompassing all aspects of military history. 

Cadet Chapel completed in 1910 is constructed from blue and gray granite.

 

We had lunch at the famous West Point Club.

I tried to get pictures of the group.

After lunch we had a cruise up the Hudson River, departing for Newburgh Landing in Newburgh New York. 

Our ship was called the Pride of the Hudson, and has seating for 130.  The two hour tour, in the rain, was narrated. 

They only picture we took was in side the ship.

That’s the end of our guided tours.

Will we do another tour?  Probably not.  This was our first guided tour, all the traveling we’ve done has always been on our own.  We did get to a lot of places and saw many sites, but when you are moving 50 – 100 people at a time it is slow going.  We especially enjoyed the time on our own.  Don’t get me wrong it was a very good group of people and we had a very good time, we just like doing things in a much smaller group. 

Our Bus driver Bin and our guide Traci were the best.  Driving a huge tour bus in New York City is not an easy job.  Keeping 50 people together can’t be easy either.  Everyone going in different directions.  How did she do it?  

Wednesday we are taking a day off from site seeing. Cleaning the MH and doing the laundry are on the agenda.  Thursday is the tapping of the Lettermen Show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the Hudson

Day Three New York City

Monday October 4th 2010

Up early again, 4:30am.  Breakfast is catered every morning,  but who can eat at 6am.  I just grab a bagel and put it in my back pack for later.

Today started by driving by some more landmarks.  First was Yankee Stadium, then the Brooklyn Bridge.

    

The Empire State Building.

We didn’t have the opportunity to go to the top of the Empire State Building  but I did go to the top when I was a teenager.

The Bull on Wall Street

This was taken from the bus window, a drive by, it was raining pretty good as it has must of our time here in New York.

Grand Central Terminal

Rockefeller Plaza, the ice rink.  They were getting it ready to flood, but with all the rain maybe it will be done by Mother Nature.  

I remember as a teenage walking around China Town and I loved, it was very exciting and still is.

I don’t remember seeing a dollar store back in the 60s.

  

We spent time on our own in China Town and Little Italy.  We ate lunch at a nice Italian restaurant, the food was very tasty.  I would certainly eat here again.

After lunch we toured St. Patrick's Cathedral. 

 

We saw so much I can’t remember where this was taken, but it sure is a nice picture.

Why is there no standing on this street.  I found out you can not pull your car, cab or bus over here, not for any reason. 

This was our last day in the city with the tour.  Mike and I will be back on Thursday for the Letterman show. 

Day Two In New York City

Saturday October 2nd 2010

We woke to what we think was sunshine, not having seen it for sometime I was just not sure.  We did get to sleep in, the bus was not leaving until noon today.  Traffic into the city was not bad at all. 

We spent much of our time driving by famous landmarks and getting the history of the city and some of the buildings.  Our guide Traci is a history major and very knowledgeable.  She has been doing tours of City for 16 years.

Our first stop was Central Park West.  Being Saturday the park was busy. 

Views of the City from the Park.

The Band shell.

Bethesda Fountain in Central Park.

A lot of entertainment goes on in the park, most of it very good.  We were lucky to catch this performance by some talented young men. 

We visited Strawberry fields in central park a tribute to John Lennon.  The tour bus drove by the Dakota Hotel were we saw the archway were John was shot.

 

Cathedral of Saint John the Divine  Once a year they hold the blessing of the animals at this church and Sunday Oct 3rd is the date this year.  We were here on Saturday and they were setting up for the event.

The alter of St. John the Divine.

Our next stop was time square.  We had a couple of hours on our own in time square and for dinner before the Broadway play the Lion King. We stopped at Sardi’s and was able to get a table.  Sardi’s is a restaurant in New York City's theater district at 234 West 44th Street in Manhattan. Known for the hundreds of caricatures of show-business celebrities that adorn its walls, Sardi's opened at its current location on March 5, 1927. 

We were seated next to a couple from Alabama celebrating a 72nd birthday and a mother and daughter from London on holiday for the weekend. 

  

What a great time we had talking with our new friends.  It was a wonderful dinner and the food was excellent.

Under the marquee for Lion King and looking down at time square from inside the theater. 

It was after 1am when we arrived back at the RV park.  No getting up at some horrible time on Sunday morning, we had the day off from touring.