New York City: Celebrating the 4th of July Part 2

July 7, 2017 by edwinandlisa

While we are on tour in Italy there may be times where we do not have any internet or WiFi connection, so in this case here are some previous unpublished blog posts from our current adventures…

Seaport Summer Music Festival with David Sanborn headlining, as members of the Chase Sapphire credit card we were able to purchase VIP tickets for this 4th of July event. $20 each got us an exclusive rooftop lounge, gourmet bites and an open bar. And this being the Fourth of July, we were just a block away from the Hudson River to enjoy the New York City Fireworks at dusk. Or so we thought…

Call card holders of the Chase Sapphire card have their own special reserved area for the concert, but our VIP experience upgraded us to a different Lounge

Gourmet Bites menu

The Char grilled beef was our favorite followed by the little strawberry Shortcake desserts

Open bar. I am not a drinker so I had the bartender make me a drink and he made it with pineapple juice, cranberry juice, vodka, and triple sec. Lisa had some wine and a cranberry vodka.

Me and my drink in front of the outdoor table that had Cayenne spiced nuts and bags of popcorn

Three stories above the action

Just behind us is the seaport area where there is supposedly good views for the fireworks

Getting closer for those Fourth of July fireworks!

And after waiting for almost an hour for the light to turn into dusk and dusk to turn into dark, the fireworks started. We could hear them, but we could not see them. Unfortunately that building basically blocked the entire view of all of the fireworks so we gave up after 10 minutes of looking for various Vantage points to actually see fireworks display. However it was a great night all in all!

Doughnut World Tour Stop: New York City, NY

July 6, 2017 by edwinandlisa

No visit is complete without a visit to a local donut shop and on this, our last hours in New York before catching our plane to Italy, we indulged in one fancy donut from this well-reviewed joint.

The Place: Dough Doughnuts

Location: Times Square area, New York City

Doughnut tried: Horchata Cinnamon Glazed

Price: $3 for regular donuts, $3.50 for the special variety. Our single selection was in the latter category.

Verdict: Pretty Good. Not the best we’ve had. I think the issue was in the name. This doughnut was certainly made up of lots of dough- thick and chewy and not enough glaze in proportion to the dough.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Dough is a mini chain with locations around the city

So many selections! Lisa whittled it down to three choices, and I had to pick one out of the three for us to share.

The other choices Lisa made me decide on were the toasted coconut and the Nutella centered doughnut

Too big and heavy to pick up with your bare hands, this one definitely needed the fork and knife!

New York City: Celebrating the 4th of July Part 1

July 5, 2017 by edwinandlisa

We spent the late morning through the afternoon at the Intrepid Museum, using our OMSI passes to gain free admission and saving $15 each. This is the first time either of us has been on an aircraft carrier.

USS Growler, 1958 Cruise missile submarine

Submarine interior

Torpedo room

Space shuttle Enterprise

On the flight deck of the USS Intrepid

Cavernous hangar floor beneath the flight deck

Lisa samples the bunk life

Room full of bunks. During war time activities, there are just over 3,000 personnel living and manning the ship

New York City: A Stroll Through High Line Park

July 4, 2017 by edwinandlisa

A sunset stroll along Highline Park, an aerial Greenway rail to trail park that runs about a mile and a half above the streets of the Chelsea neighborhood.

The park was very popular with many locals and tourists walking along the path. We did not run into any panhandlers so I guess the sign works.

Lots of art and sculptures all along the way

We were impressed with all of the different types of buildings and unique architecture

New York City: Scenes from Day 1

July 3, 2017 by edwinandlisa

Early 3:45 a.m. Monday morning wake up and a quick ride to the airport for our 6:45 a.m. flight. We were able to use our priority passes to gain access into the Alaska boardroom lounge for some light breakfast items, and then it was onto our gate for our 6 a.m. boarding call. We touched down into New York’s JFK Airport just before 3 p.m. and after collecting our bags we rode the Air train and subway into Penn Station. It was a bit of a harrowing speed walk to our hotel because we were surprised to come into a downpour of rain, but we were able to check in by 5 p.m. a little wet and a little hot from our walk. Here are some highlights of our evening in the Big Apple…