New York City with Road Scholar

 If you haven’t heard of Road Scholar, they have fairly priced trips all over the world for people over 50. Tours are more educational than most. The even have a list of books to read before hand. I actually read quite a few of them. However, I found that most Road Scholars don’t actually read those books. Oh, well. I learned a lot.

This trip was well-organized. We all had yellow hats for our guides to keep track of us plus if we paused to take a picture or something, we could easily find our group. The hats drew attention but they really helped. We wore headsets so we could hear the guide explain what we were seeing or to give us directions. The days were VERY full of travel all over Manhattan and included many subway trips.

We visited most of the big places in Manhattan. We walked the Brooklyn Bridge at sunset. It was full of other tourists plus lots of couples posing and trying to get the perfect shot.

We spent time at the 911 Memorial & Museum.

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Grand Central Terminal (no Avengers - did I mention I like movies and TV shows?)

Rockefeller Center (no Hawkeye)

Times Square (no Captain America here unless there was a fake costumed one).

One day was mostly spent at the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. One interesting tidbit was on a ships manifest. The immigrants name, age, sex, country, and occupation was listed. Apparently these 18 & 19 year old women had the occupation of being a spinster!

BTW, to save money a single-person can sign up to share a room. This is my roommate Shelly. We had a great time all week. I felt old here in the museum. The last time I visited the Statue of Liberty was 45 years ago in 1978. This “old” flame was replaced back in the 1980’s.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) is extraordinary but a maze. I looped around the Music Instruments area twice before finding a door out. I saw the Great Hall at least 6 times since I couldn’t find back ways to parts on the other side of museum. Some areas are well-named (Egyptian Art) but how would you know Rembrandt’s are in the Robert Lehman Collection? I’m sure if you have a membership and visit a lot, it all makes sense but not to me in my first visit. Anyhow, I enjoyed the Egyptian section the best.

There are 8.5 million people that live in New York City and growing. When I was there I saw construction everywhere. New skyscrapers are being built along with restorations (which meant scaffolding is everywhere too). I’ve been reading that the island is actually sinking due to the combined weight of all the human construction (especially skyscrapers) and people. Scientist say it is sinking by ~0.05” per year while the sea level is rising by ~0.15” per year. Overtime, that’s a lot. Not only is the actual load a problem, but much of Manhattan is actually built on landfill not bedrock (29% by one estimate) so they sink faster. Interesting situation. I realize what I saw in NYC is just a moment in time and will be different next week.

The Road Scholar trip was very busy (sometimes being from the hotel for 12 hours). Very interesting tour guide with very friendly people. I plan to do another Road Scholar trip this fall too.

New York City on My Own

While the Road Scholar tour was going to be quite extensive, I wanted to see the weird places too. I walked all over the city those days. At one point after walking 10 miles, I realized I had another 4 miles to get back to the hotel. I took the subway!

I am very into movie and TV locations. I was disappointed not seeing King Kong on the Empire State Building, no baby Godzilla’s in Madison Square Garden, the Rose Main Reading Room in the NY Public Library where ghosts hang out was closed to the public, only old ladies like me on the “Big” piano (and it was terribly out-of-tune), and no one was dancing and singing at Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. But I did see dogs playing there. Maybe internally the dogs are singing and dancing?

The signs are still up for the Ghost-buster's Headquarters.

Most likely everywhere in NYC has been in some film or TV show. This diner had great food for a good price, was 80 years old with a wooden ceiling, and was a set in the “Daredevil” TV show (Karen and Ben ate here).

The Equitable Building was interesting. Because it was built so tall and straight, it darkened the streets below. The city made new laws after this to require set-backs depending on the height.

This creepy building without any windows is called the NSA Building. It’s owned by AT&T but the story is it is filled with phone servers that the NSA uses to tap calls. The building is supposed to be able to withstand an atomic blast and have enough food to last 1,500 people for 2 weeks. The big vents in front and on the building is probably used to get rid of the heat from the servers.

The hotel had a great view of the Empire State Building. However, I loved these wooden water tanks on the tops of buildings. After I took the picture I realized that’s the Chrysler Building too.

The hotel (The New Yorker) was also the place where Nicola Tesla lived for 10 years and where he died. His rooms are marked plus there is a small display about him near the lobby.

A few weeks ago, I was extremely excited to be able to get tickets to the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Then...the writer’s strike. Instead, I got tickets to the Morgan Library and Museum. A cool secret at the Morgan Library is that you can’t get to the upper shelves from the main room. There are secret stairs behind the shelves that are opened by pivoting open a bookcase.

I was also able to get fairly low-cost and last-minute tickets to the musical Hamilton ($112 vs $200-$400). One story here...I went to the bathroom during intermission. By moving quickly, I got to the bathroom with a short line. By the time I left the entire lobby was full of women trying to get to the one ladies bathroom in the theater. We were told to "push and shove with love” our way back to our seats. I placed myself behind a tall lady who was confused why this little old lady was following her so closely and drafted behind her. Turns out she was sitting just in front of me.

Central Park on a Saturday morning was full of runners, people walking their dogs, bikers, bird watchers, ball games, and tourists getting selfies at all the famous spots. The park is BIG (843 acres). My hint for Central Park is to have “Where is the Public Toilet” app loaded. There are several free restrooms in the park but they are difficult to find.

The tour of the Alexander Hamilton family home at Hamilton Grange was very interesting. If you look at the picture, the silverware is upside-down. The guide said this was the way it was done then. The story is that this showed off the makers mark / monogram on the back of silverware. The internet also says this is the French formal method for silverware which was also popular with the British in the 17^th & 18^th century. So I don’t know if the Hamilton’s were showing off or just following fashion. Another story was that Eliza’s portrait was done by an artist in debtor's prison. This set a fashion for others to use this artist so he was finally able to make enough money to get out of debt.

The Alexander Hamilton family is buried in the Trinity Church Cemetery.

There is an area in NYC where ticker tape parades are held. Each time there is a strip put into the sidewalks explaining who and when they had a parade. It included heads of state, astronauts, and US hostages in Iran.

There are both classic foods and classic scams in NYC. I paid $20 for 1 hot dog and 2 drinks with a street vendor. It should have been $10 so always ask the price before buying. The hot dog wasn’t even good. The NY bagels and pizza I had weren’t very special either. I did love the pork tacos at Los Tacos No. 1 and the Scotch Egg at Fraunces Tavern.

The Charging Bull at Wall Street was funny. I went Sunday and there weren’t many people there. However, there was probably 20 people waiting in line to get their picture taken at the head of the bull. There was only 3 people in line to get their picture taken by the balls. When I returned on Tuesday with the group, there was probably 30 people in line by the balls and fewer at the head. We Americans are weird!

Actual New Yorkers were much nicer people than the myth. Follow the rules and you are OK (stay on the right side for sidewalks, escalators, and stairs and leave enough space for faster people to pass on the left; people exiting from the subway car have priority while people entering the subway station have priority; have your order ready when you reach the counter at a restaurant). Some don’t want to chat (they have their own life going on and may not have time for yours right now) while some enjoy a chat. Because I was with a group of older people, I saw many instances of NYers offering their seat on the subway. One man stopped me to tell me to keep my phone out of my back pocket since it could be stolen. There are homeless but most were quietly sleeping or sitting somewhere in the corners not bothering anyone or wanting to be bothered.

I saw two instances of Loud Rude People (both seemed to be people with a mental illness) but both involved a Nice NY Person who helped. In one instance, a Loud Woman randomly screamed at an Innocent Man on the sidewalk. A Nice Businessman stepped up to talk to the Innocent Man to reassure and support him. Another time a Loud Man was verbally harassing women on the subway. The Nice Man (who had already helped me get on the right train and looked like he could protect himself), moved to sit across from the man to be prepared if the Loud Man got physical with anyone.

A funny example of NY people was when I sat at the counter of a deli. The waitress came up with a customer’s order for specially cut onions on her chopped liver. The cook stared at her for a second then said he would do it only if she served it “with disdain”. I ate a more acceptable Rueben sandwich.

Amtrak Train Overnighter

 

I recently came back from 3 different adventures. First, I took an overnight Amtrak train ride to and from New York City from Jacksonville Florida. Next, I spent 2.5 days seeing the city by myself. Finally, I did a 6-day Road Scholar tour of the city. John had no desire to see New York City, so I went by myself. First, to talk about the train.

Departure time on the ticket means when the train departs. So, you actually get on 10-15 minutes before. Which means you should be at the station 30 minutes before departure time (versus the 2-3 hours at an airport). However, both my trains ran one hour late. I’m not sure why they were late. While I was on the train I noticed the train slowing down several places. The attendant mentioned that train slows due to speed limits, workers on line, track conditions, etc. Anyhow, I could have watched the app to see it was late but I ended up just waiting at the station. On the way back I texted John when I was close.

Get your tickets early. Roomettes seems to sell out. Coach seats are much cheaper (~$150) versus $550 for a roomette on this trip (a 2^nd person in your roomette is only $200 more). But that means sleeping overnight in a chair with people around you getting off and on the train versus a private bedroom. The roomette gives you more privacy for the whole trip (this one was 18 hours) plus the food is included (and I think better) while the coach seats have an expensive food car. The food doesn't necessarily look great but tastes good. The unusual thing with lunch and dinner is that you have to reserve a time for roomettes. The kitchen can only heat only so many meals every hour.

The higher price also allows you to sit in a special lounge at the train station. At a small station like Jacksonville, there isn’t any special place. In New York City at Moynihan Hall the Metropolitian Lounge is pretty great. The seats are comfortable and the food and drinks are free. I ended up spending several hours there before my trip back and enjoyed this benefit.

I watched quite a few youtube videos to be prepared for my first trip. I was ready to pay the customary tips of $2-5 for meals and $10 for the attendant. The videos show the rooms and explain how everything worked so I wasn’t very worried about doing this the first time and by myself.

The roomette door can be locked and curtains pulled for privacy. It had two seats which converted into a bed with a second bed that is pulled down from the ceiling. I slept on the top bed and liked it. I found it pretty quiet at night with just a hum from ventilation, the occasional train whistle in the distance (must have been far from the engine), and a gentle movement. The room also has a sink and some have a toilet but I liked using the bathroom in the train car. You can adjust ventilation and lighting.

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What really surprised me was how relaxing the trip was. I brought a Kindle to keep busy but instead just spent my awake time sitting and looking out the window. For this trip, I didn’t see great views except a far-off view of the Washington Monument in DC. The windows were dirty plus mostly I saw trees that were planted near the railroad to keep sound down for neighbors. But it was still just relaxing. I would definitely do this again.

Okefenokee Swamp III

 We’re back to Stephen C. Foster State Park in Georgia (1,2 ).

Even though this is the third time we’ve been here, this is the first time we’ve taken a boat tour through the swamp. We loved it! It was quite educational. Plus we all had the fun of pointing out the alligators hiding along the edges.

The group was very interesting. Besides us and another couple who lived in South Carolina, there was a group of 5 people from Italy. I can’t imagine people in Italy even knowing about the Okefenokee Swamp. It made our tour much more fun as we shared experiences. They mentioned there is an alligator that was in a nearby church that they joked must be a saint. Turns out it is a crocodile (similar though) that isn’t a saint but at over 500 years old is considered to be the oldest piece of taxidermy in the world!

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/crocodile-at-the-santuario-madonna-delle-lacrime-immacolate

We saw a lot pond cypress, bald cypress, and blackgum trees, water lilies, and even a carnivorous plant called a bladderwort.

This tree is about 1,000 years old. It’s been used as a marker with its distinctive shape where you can see straight through the tree.

I didn’t see as many deer while hiking the trails this time, but a few.

Some birds…

The lack of deer was, of course, offset by seeing all the alligators on the boat ride along with a resident large alligator and a baby one near the store. The bigger one is said to be 10’, but the baby was about 1.5’.