Monday, April 30, 2007

The Girls in NYC


Let's start at the very beginning!

It's a long story that involved the original possiblility of 5 adults with luggage and how do you fit all that in a taxi! So Donica had reserved a limo beforehand to surprise my sister, Ruth, and her daughter, Lesley, at the airport when we all arrived that Saturday (the 21st) around noon.


Ginnie, Ruth, Lesley and Donica
It was Ruth and Lesley's first limo ride. And with it Donica ordered a bottle of champagne, which we easily finished off in the 30 minutes from the airport to our hotel! (DUH!)


In front of our hotel, on 34th and Lexington, where Donica and I spent the week, was this fabulous photo op. Were we ever ready to hit NYC and paint it red!


As you see, there were photo ops all over the place. Donica and I are both taking pics of Ruth and Lesley giving scale to this very important concept. I don't know when this "statue" was erected but I think NYC has become a city of LOVE since 9/11. We talked to tour guides who said the city has a different feel today than pre-Twin Towers. I totally believe it.


Ruth (from our home state of Michigan) was with us for only Saturday and Sunday, so we made sure we saw what SHE wanted to see. Since Sunday was Earth Day, the 22nd, it was appropriate that we spent most of the day in Central Park. And yes, we were as touristy as we could possibly be.


Lesley is holding her mom's hand on the horse-and-buggy ride. I have never seen such a loving Mother-Daughter relationship. Now that Lesley lives in NYC, she and Ruth are separated most of the year. So this was a joy for Donica and me to observe how demonstrative they are with each other. Maybe they got specially "zapped" on that LOVE statue!


If you haven't been to Central Park, you wouldn't believe it. SEEING is believing! Even though we didn't see all 843 acres of it, we saw enough to amaze us. I know it has had its reputation of crime in the past but not today. With 25 million visitors per year, with only 100 crimes now per year (as compared to 1000 in the early '80s), it is one of the safest parks in the world. We were there on a warm, spring day when it felt like the world was celebrating Earth Day!


Of course, we tired ourselves out! We knew Ruth would be leaving too soon! Earlier in the day we had been to the Top of the Rock at the Rockefeller Center, 70 stories up, where we had views of the whole city, including Central Park. So we really did tire ourselves out before we went to dinner and said Good-Bye to Ruth.


Lesley, Nathan and Nancy
After Ruth left (some people have to work, of course!), we still had Lesley the rest of the week (even though she had to work as well). On Tuesday evening we had a fabulous dinner at my nephew, Nathan, and his lovely wife, Nancy's apartment near Central Park. Nathan is ordained and is working in a ministry to high school prep students. He said he would gladly be called "one of the girls" for this post. What a guy!


On Wednesday night, Donica and I took Lesley out to dinner before seeing "Wicked" on Broadway for her 26th birthday (which happens to be today!). Lesley took this pic of the 3 of us with her cell phone before the play started.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Lesley!

These are just tidbits of one aspect of our week in NYC, related to all us girls! We actually spent time with Lesley on 5 of our 7 days, visiting her and her boyfriend at her apartment in Queens on Thursday. We don't normally go on a vacation week and have family nearby (unless we're going to the family cottage in Michigan, of course). So this was was an extra special vacation!

More impressions of the Cig Bity (as my mom called it) to come! But I definitely had to start at the very beginning. :)

18 comments:

  1. It looks like you had a maaahvelous time! I loved Wicked. Glad you enjoyed your vacation!

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  2. Thank you Aunt Boots!
    your photos look great, very good documentation of the wonderful week i got to spend with you two.
    thank you so much for everything!!!
    love you.

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  3. Rachel: It was fabulous. All of it. Of course, now we need to take a vacation! :D

    Lesley: You are so very welcome. It was totally our pleasure!

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  4. I love NYC! You've definitely whet my appetite to visit and to hear a lot more about your trip.
    I've heard the same about NYC since 9/11, and felt the same when we were there in 2004. J and I are hoping to go again this year because his brother and wife moved there recently.

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  5. Ginnie: Your NYC pics are great, and the stories to go with them are super, I feel as though I were there vacationing with you! I last visited NYC in 1980... I'm sure there have been lots of changes since then.
    Thanks for scrolling down to all the Alphabet posts that you missed while you were away. You didn't miss many as I have been totally involved with performing in the Variety Show, however, it's all over now, so I'll have more time to spare.

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  6. She's back! No time to read your post now, but I can tell it's a great one. I'll return after dinner. :-)

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  7. Mad: You'll definitely be hearing a lot more about our trip on both blogs! It's a fantastic city! I can't believe it took me almost 62 years to visit it in earnest!

    Ex-S: I'm sure you'd find the city much different from back in 1980! But that's true everywhere, I'd guess. It was fun to catch up on you from since we were gone!

    Christina: HA! See you then. :)

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  8. How did you like Wicked? We saw the show in Toronto in November and enjoyed it very much. Your photos are great! (I'm a bit embarrassed though. I realize now that I have been mixing up you and Donica in previous photos. Oh well, I know who's who now, and I can certainly see family resemblances.)

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  9. Thanks for this guided tour in The Big Apple and with wonderful pics as always. I've been there a couple of times and find it scaring, big, exciting, advantageous and quite different from Norwegians cities!
    Give Lesley a big Happy Birthday hug from me please:-)

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  10. I was surprised by some of these photos, which I didn't know you were taking, like the LOVE one. I thought you were off somewhere taking a pic of something else. :)

    This is a really great summary in words and pics of the start of your week, the part I got to share!

    Great job, as always, of documenting your trip. And like Lesley, I also thank you and Donica from the bottom of my heart.

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  11. Awww Ginnie - I knew you'd take us all along for a great time. LOVE it! I've not seen the "LOVE" art but how fun. Love too, to see Ruth and Lesley together. Excites my heart to see moms and daughters like that - and don't forget HAPPY BIRTHDAY LESLEY - and many, many more - and may they all be so much fun! Can't wait for the rest. Thanks for sharing - as always.

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  12. Uhhh. I'm sure I left a comment here earlier. Hmmm.

    You girls certainly look like you had a fabulous time together. I'd love to visit NYC and do all the touristy stuff, too. What great pictures. I especially like the LOVE art one with mother and daughter. Can't wait to read more about your trip :)

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  13. Aww, how great that you all got to spend time together. And we got to learn more about your wonderful family.

    Love those pictures. So vibrant!

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  14. Sounds like this was a great trip going both by your stories and photos. Thanks for sharing. :)

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  15. Karen: It was my second time to see "Wicked," and I loved it even more this time, especially since I was seeing it through Donica's and Lesley's eyes. I had to LOL about your mix-up of Donica and me. No need to be embarrassed, though. I'm sure it happens to the best of us. :)

    Renny: Oh yes, very different from the little bit I've seen of Norway. It's even very different from Atlanta!! Thank you so much for your kind words, always!

    Ruth: HA! I'm glad I could surprise you! :) And you are so very welcome. We had so much fun!

    Judy: You're a sweetheart. You would have had a blast if you had been with us. Maybe someday with Dennis and Amy, too. :)

    CS: We DID have a fabulous time! So glad I can show you a bit of it.

    Christina: Thanks! I'm so glad you can get to know a bit more of my family. :) It's a big one!

    Tim: You're very welcome!

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  16. what an incredible trip! Thanks for those pics, loving em and all that sun (gotta live it somehow right!) :)

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  17. Glad you are back, Ginie! Can't wait to see all the rest of your pics!

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