Hey Nic - not Tom Waits but who?
The lamb lies down on Broadway.....trip report part 3
“Early morning Manhattan,
Ocean winds blow on the land.
The weary guests are asked to leave the warmth of the all-night theater, having slept on pictures others only dream on.
Movie-palace is now undone,
The all-night watchmen have had their fun.
Sleeping cheaply on the midnight show,
Its the same old ending - time to go.
Get out!
It seems they cannot leave their dream
Suzanne tired her work all done,
Thinks money - honey - be on - neon.
Cabman’s velvet glove sounds the horn
And the sawdust king spits out his scorn.
Wonder women you can draw your blind!
Don’t look at me! I’m not your kind.
I’m Rael!
Something inside me has just begun,
Lord knows what I have done,
And the lamb lies down on Broadway.
On Broadway -
They say the lights are always bright on Broadway.
They say theres always magic in the air.”
We woke up 2 hours later on this Thursday than the day before so around 6:30, that felt a whole lot better. Waking up before six is not human - after six feels better if not great; I am not much of a morning person. We did the usual morning stuff and we were thinking about going to Roosevelt Island by subway and then take the Tram back to Manhattan again but we didn’t have the energy for that so we just had a quiet morning watching TV. Just before 9am we went to the 23rd str station and took the C train to 81st str and the Museum of Natural History. We were early there so we just sat outside in the beautiful weather(this was supposed to be the day with the “worst” weather) waiting for the museum to open. We were among the first in when they opened and quickly bought ourselves tickets for admission and the space show at 10:30. We had some difficulty finding the entrance to the Space show, there is a elevator you take from the first floor up to the 3rd floor where you wait in a sort of….well waiting area. They show clips so you get the background to the main show which was(is) Cosmic Collisions narrated by Robert Redford. They opened the doors and you enter this circular room and then the show begins. We loved the show; it was spectacular unlike anything I have seen before. Robert does a great job narrating and I promise you will never look at the moon and the sun in the same light again, very fascinating stuff.
The show lasted about 20 minutes and when it was finished we began exploring the Rose center for earth %26amp; space from the bottom to the top. You can spend a long time in there but you know…”so much to do and so little time”. When we were through with the Center we looked at the massive Museum shop which had a lot of interesting stuff especially for kids of course. We found some things we wanted to buy for the kids but the boxes were just too big for our tiny luggage(ok, they are not that tiny but hey it was only Thursday and we had a lot of more shopping to take care of so…no). We then proceeded to the elevator to go to the 4th floor to see the DINOSAURS; you can never be too old for dinosaurs, they are just as cool now as when you were a child…..admit it! We walked around the 4th floor for about 90 minutes looking at these amazing skeletons of creatures so different from us that its hard thinking they have really existed but the proof is right there. But I am sure there are some people out there thinking it’s just a hoax masterminded by the evil government or CIA. We and especially I loved the Museum and most of all: the space show – a must in my book.
We said goodbye to the Dinosaurs %26amp; Co. and headed on to Columbus Av where we were going to eat at the Ocean Grill. We got seated right away by the window in this rather upscale dining room – we felt slightly underdressed. I ordered the organic salmon with new potatoes and frisee salad and the lemon emulsion sauce. J ordered the tuna with broccoli and sun dried tomatoes and the tomato relish sauce. The food was excellent; the fish were perfectly cooked and every thing tasted really fresh. It was the best dining experience so far on this trip. The staff was very nice and accommodating but we witnessed sort of harsh argument between two of the women on the staff(and no guys, no catfight), rather strange.
When we were finished we headed town to the green lung of NYC; Central Park. On our last visit it was one of the best things on the trip and it didn’t disappoint this time either. How could it; it was sunny and hot and everything was still green, not like here in Sweden where autumn has really taken over. We bought an Oreo ice cream for THREE bucks which tasted like someone had melted the thing and then put in the freezer again which probably was what happened with it. In December we didn’t get to see the Bethesda fountain in its full glory but this time we got the full experience and it is spectacular. The whole area is just amazingly beautiful so we sat there for a while letting it all sink in. We then continued through the park down to the Grand army plaza and FAO Schwartz which we skipped last time due to the ridicously long queue. We entered the premises and got greeted by stuffed animals from the Harry Potter universe; the animals were huge and plenty in numbers and beautifully crafted. It was just a shame the kids weren’t with us…..but we probably have had to carry them out of there, they wouldn’t have left willingly. We browsed around the store looking for things for the kids especially for Lego which is much cheaper in the US and some dolls for our daughter. We found some good stuff but then we got a little cheap and started wondering if they maybe were cheaper in Toys R Us so we left the store without buying anything at all.
We set our sights on the big GAP store on 5th Av, they have really good jeans for the kids and we were on the hunt for a black hood-jacket for my mother. It was all she wanted from New York and because she was watching our kids and of course she is the woman who gave birth to me, we had to buy her one, a really good one but that wasn’t not going to be easy as we discovered; more about that in future episodes. We bought some stuff and headed to the subway station on 53rd str to take the E train down to our station on 23rd str. It was so hot down there that the devil would probably complain and ask for air conditioning. It was the first time I felt that we had to wait a long time for a train to arrive but eventually the right train came and we got to our apartment. We unloaded our purchases and started the whole “going out on the town” procedure again; shower, make up, changing clothes the etc.
Around 6pm we were ready to go and have dinner. We chose to go to an Italian restaurant on 8th Av called Colas. The reviews on Menupages had been favourable so we decided to have a go which turned out to be a big mistake. We were the only ones there on this early hour but it’s never nice to eat totally alone. I ordered the ravioli and J the Whole wheat penne. We soon got the dishes and they were ok but far from great – it tasted like something you could have made at home. We finished our meals and went our way feeling a little bit ripped off even though the meals were quite cheap. We took the 1 train uptown to 50th str where we was going to get our tickets to the Broadway show we were attending this evening; Legally Blonde. We got the tickets at the box office in the Palace theatre and the doors opened soon afterwards. We went in and found our very good seats in the orchestra at the K row, we paid about $73 per ticket via Broadwaybox.
The show started at 8pm and ended about 2 %26amp; ? hours later with an intermission of 15 minutes. We both liked the show but we were a little disappointed; it was not as good as we hoped it would be. The Scenography was great and some of the performers like Orfeh and Michael Rupert were excellent but Laura Bundy in the leading role wasn’t that good and the biggest problem was that the songs weren’t strong enough; they didn’t stick - a long way from the quality of say Mama Mia. I thought that Evil Dead which we saw last year was much better, more camp and funny and better music but hey that’s just me.
After the show we went by Toys R Us which had “already” closed so we headed to Juniors for some of their famous cheesecake. I had the Chocolate swirl and J the raspberry. We took it home to our apartment to eat it. I have to say after two disappointments this evening I was kind of nervous tasting it but it didn’t disappoint. It was fantastic; creamy, full of flavour and absolutely fabulous. So I fell asleep with a smile on my face around 12:30am.
Next episode: East Village, Union Sq and some strange men and women in Tracy J:s
And now for some commercials
The lamb lies down on Broadway.....trip report part 3
sounds good matte . I am just keeping up with your reports.
Matte75,
Peter Gabriel and Genesis!
I%26#39;m loving the ';musical'; introductions to your trip reports. Brilliant!
Didn’t make time for the Museum of Natural History or the Rose Centre when I was in NYC last May but I think it’s definitely something I will have to do next time.
“I ordered the organic salmon with new potatoes and frisee salad and the lemon emulsion sauce. J ordered the tuna with broccoli and sun dried tomatoes and the tomato relish sauce. The food was excellent; the fish were perfectly cooked and every thing tasted really fresh. It was the best dining experience so far on this trip.” My mouth is watering already. I’ll have to check out the Ocean Grill on my return trip.
“… the green lung of NYC; Central Park.” I love that description.
Great travelogues so far Matte. Keep them coming.
I’m trying to guess what the musical introduction will be for your next report!
Hey buddy....am loving your reports and wanted to tell you that i am one who never tires of old dinosaur bones as well...heck, in a few years.....i%26#39;ll be old bones too!!!! whenever I see them, I just allow myself to daydream..... putting myself in the days when they roamed the earth and even picture myself being chased by one. But that sequence never ends well........
other than dinosaurs, Egyptian exhibits also get me excited. lol I swear, I was either a cave man or an Egyptian King (or Queen) in previous lives, I dont know........
I really do love your writing style and sense of humor...all written with ease and a straight face, I%26#39;m sure. From the outside, you appear to be a quiet man, but lurking under that innocent facade you must be quite a jokester!!
Darn it with usair, the storm and those crazy ladies that made me so late to the meet up!!
I will be watching for your return to NYC and it would be my pleasure to take you and mrs matte out to dinner to make up for not being able to sit with you at traceys.
OK...get busy with the rest of you trip, you have us all sitting on the edge of our seats waiting for the next installment!!!
';.... i am one who never tires of old dinosaur bones as well...heck, in a few years.....i%26#39;ll be old bones too!!!! whenever I see them, I just allow myself to daydream..... putting myself in the days when they roamed the earth and even picture myself being chased by one. But that sequence never ends well........';
LOL!
buca45,
You are one who definitely has a great sense of humour. ';.... But that sequence never ends well........'; I almost had coffee coming out of my nose I was laughing so hard! :-)
Now look here, Johannes. You%26#39;re Daniel, I%26#39;m Nic and I knew it was Genesis so there!
Matte, be careful you%26#39;re letting your Swedish side come through. Preferring Mama Mia to Legally Blonde. Man, that%26#39;s dangerous talk round these parts.
So, your mother%26#39;s a hoodie is she? Probably explains a lot.
Other than that, another very entertaining slice of life in old New York for 2 young Swedes. I like the way that you didn%26#39;t make your report the first post - I do find it aggravating having to scroll all the way down to find the next post. Johannes, can you ask your evil twin not to this when he posts his report?
Thanks for the kind words people.
Buca - I thought you were a fast man, run Forrest run!! :-))
Nic - I will come out and say it: Mama Mia is a better show than Legally Blonde. There and its not just patriotism on my part.
Johannes - Ocean Grill was great even though a bit expensive, the fish was $24 each but totally worth it. And you should really visit the space show - I felt like a kid again.
Matte75
Matte, what are you implying by saying Buca is a %26#39;fast man%26#39;?? ;o)
Another great report. I love your sense of humour.
Really looking forward to hearing your version of the meet-up
Ange I wasnt implying anything at all besides speed through the muscles in your LEGS!
Oh and I noticed an error in the report; it should read West village for the next episode
I%26#39;m really enjoying your reports Matte, it sounds like you had a great time.
I%26#39;ll be in New York in just over a month but because both my boyfriend and I have been so busy in work and since we are going to three other places first (Buenos Aires, Iguazu Falls and Rio de Janeiro), I%26#39;m really only starting to think about New York now. We are hoping to spend a day in the Natural History Museum and you have really whetted my appetite for it!
Tack sa mycket!
primer for combination skin
