NYC III

May 5-9, 2019

In May I flew to New York City for the third year in a row for work, and this time I brought my wife along. All it cost for her to come was an airplane ticket and a few meals. It was a much better experience having somebody to travel with and explore the city. We flew out of SLC on Sunday and returned on Thursday, giving us three days to play tourist. My manager even rearranged some work meetings on Wednesday to give us the full day to wander around. SLC International Airport was a shit show! We arrived the recommended two hours before boarding, parked the Jeep, and boarded the shuttle for the terminal. I checked my bag and we both used the restroom, then found a long security line. The line wrapped from the upper level, down the escalators to the lower level, and all the way around the baggage claim. Once we finally got through security, we were running to make our flight and were among the last to board. It was raining when we landed at JFK and continued to do so all evening. Traci and I took a cab to our hotel and then braved the rain to walk to the Hudson River for a look-see. The rain quickly became too much and we took shelter in Claudio’s Pizzeria where we each ate a couple of slices before turning in for the night.

Antelope Island
Antelope Island

Wasatch Mountains
Wasatch Mountains

Flying over the Midwest
Flying over the Midwest

Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan

Point Pelee, the southernmost point of Canada’s mainland in Lake Erie
Point Pelee, the southernmost point of Canada's mainland in Lake Erie

Rockaway Beach on the approach to JFK
Rockaway Beach on the approach to JFK

Queens Midtown Tunnel
Queens Midtown Tunnel

Evening view from the hotel
Evening view from the hotel

Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum
Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum

Traci at Claudio’s Pizzeria
Traci at Claudio's Pizzeria

Billy Joel watched me eat dinner
Billy Joel watched me eat dinner

We grabbed some breakfast and ate at a park near our hotel on Monday morning. I left Traci behind and went to work, and she wasn’t very adventurous while I was away. She only left the hotel once to walk across the street to grab something for lunch at a grocery store. I got off work and stopped by the hotel to collect her and then we went to a work function, first stopping at the Vessel with some co-workers. Next we all had dinner at Treadwell Park, where we were served a series of appetizers and entrees and unlimited drinks (the latter being a foreign concept to me having worked in Utah all my life). After leaving the work party, Traci and I walked to Times Square and enjoyed some people-watching.

Morning view from the hotel
Morning view from the hotel

Breakfast at McCaffrey Playground
Breakfast at McCaffrey Playground

Office view from 230 Park Avenue
Office view from 230 Park Avenue

Looking up from Vessel
Looking up from Vessel

Hudson Yards
Hudson Yards

Vessel
Vessel

Some good beer at Treadwell Park
Some good beer at Treadwell Park

Smile, there’s beer
Smile, there's beer

Our hotel, Yotel on 10th Avenue
Our hotel, Yotel on 10th Avenue

Times Square
Times Square

Holy Cross Church
Holy Cross Church

MiMA
MiMA

Nighttime hotel view
Nighttime hotel view

On Tuesday, after another day in the office, I freshened up at the hotel and then Traci and I walked to Central Park where we spent several hours. We grabbed some dinner nearby and then wandered around until well after dark.

Office view over Park Avenue
Office view over Park Avenue

Some building while walking to the hotel from work
Some building while walking to the hotel from work

Church of Saints Cyril & Methodius and Saint Raphael
Church of Saints Cyril & Methodius and Saint Raphael

The Mall at Central Park
The Mall at Central Park

Bethesda Terrace
Bethesda Terrace

Reflection in Conservatory Water
Reflection in Conservatory Water

Reflection in the Lake
Reflection in the Lake

Empire State Building
Empire State Building

Hope sculpture
Hope sculpture

We spent all day Wednesday in Downtown. We hopped on the subway and got off near the World Trade Center, spending a couple of hours in and around the WTC memorial. The street art around the memorial was fascinating, and I don’t remember seeing much of it when I was there the previous year.

Ridin’ the rails
Ridin' the rails

9/11 firefighters memorial
9/11 firefighters memorial

WTC street art: Summer Solstice by Ben Angotti
WTC street art: Summer Solstice by Ben Angotti

WTC street art
WTC street art

WTC street art by Todd Gray
WTC street art by Todd Gray

WTC memorial
WTC memorial

WTC street art by Dragon76
WTC street art by Dragon76

Fritz Koenig’s “Sphere”
Fritz Koenig’s

A piece of the Berlin Wall
A piece of the Berlin Wall

Hudson River
Hudson River

No Standing Anytime
No Standing Anytime

Red Cube
Red Cube

Next we visited the Trinity Church Cemetery and spent quite a bit of time looking for the grave of Alexander Hamilton. Then it was Federal Hall, where George Washington took the oath of office as the first president of the United States. We ate lunch from street carts, then wandered around a bit more before taking the subway back to Midtown. We ate dinner at a restaurant near the hotel and then turned in fairly early.

Mary Dalzell grave from 1764 at Trinity Church Cemetery
Mary Dalzell grave from 1764 at Trinity Church Cemetery

Wandering around Trinity Church Cemetery
Wandering around Trinity Church Cemetery

Alexander Hamilton’s grave at Trinity Church Cemetery
Alexander Hamilton's grave at Trinity Church Cemetery

The dome inside Federal Hall
The dome inside Federal Hall

Me in Federal Hall
Me in Federal Hall

Inaugural balcony at Federal Hall
Inaugural balcony at Federal Hall

Steps of Federal Hall
Steps of Federal Hall

Charging Bull and a horde of people
Charging Bull and a horde of people

A walk along 7th Avenue
A walk along 7th Avenue

Love sculpture
Love sculpture

LOLz
LOLz

Oculus
Oculus

We were up early on Thursday to catch our 11AM flight. We caught an Uber from the hotel and ate a late breakfast at JFK. The flight to SLC and drive home were uneventful, and we arrived home to find out that the kids hadn’t burned down the house while we were gone (and the dogs were still alive!). It was wonderful to share this trip with my wife, and it was a rare opportunity for both of us to pretend to be grown-ups.

Queensboro Bridge during the ride to JFK
Queensboro Bridge during the ride to JFK

Bye, New York!
Bye, New York!

Hello, Utah! Green River at Horseshoe Bend.
Hello, Utah!  Green River at Horseshoe Bend.

Strawberry Reservoir
Strawberry Reservoir

East Bay at Utah Lake
East Bay at Utah Lake


Photo Gallery: NYC III

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