New York

I just got back from a 4-day trip to New York. I took my kids, Emma, who just turned 20, and Ethan, just finished with his junior year of high school, and Emma's boyfriend, Matthew.

It was a trip filled with lots of firsts: Matthew's first time on a plane, all the kids' first time on the subway, and the first time all of us had been to NYC.

We stayed in a nice, clean, new Fairfield Inn on the upper West side, rode the subway every day, walked 10+ miles each day, and saw such a long list of sights that I couldn't keep track of them all!

We loved it. We had such a blast, got along great, and really had luck on our side for the entire trip, aside from some rainy weather and flight delays coming home.

Top of the Rock - view of Manhattan

Bryant Park

Carrie Bradshaw's apartment

Staten Island Ferry

View of Manhattan from the Brooklyn Bridge

Here's a list of the stuff we saw that I kept track of:
Chinatown & Little Italy
Statue of Liberty
Empire State Building
Rockefeller Plaza (including an architecture tour and Top of the Rock)
Ground Zero and 9/11 Memorial museum
5th Avenue
Broadway
Brooklyn Bridge
Grand Central Station
Bryant Park and New York Public Library
Time Square
Carnegie Hall
Lincoln Center
Carrie Bradshaw's brownstone and  Sushisamba (featured in season 5)


It was a great primer for Emma and Matthew's upcoming birthright trip to Israel. They are a little more experienced now at navigating airports, flying, and using public transportation, along with being in a new, large city and trying to figure out how to get around. :)

I loved New York, and am excited to go back!