New York City

May 25th:  One more full day in NYC, following last evenings performance of Cabaret at the Kit Cat Club, starring Eddie Redmayne and Gayle Rankin as the Emcee and Sally Bowles, respectively.  Bebe Neuwirth was also in the show and was one of the audience's favorite.  We arrived an hour before showtime (as instructed) to watch slightly raunchy dance/cabaret acts in the Vault Bar in the Kit Cat Club.  As we entered, the staff put a sticker on everyone's' smartphone camera lens (as in "no photos allowed").  And then we were offered a shot glass-sized tasting of cherry schnapps.  There was also a full bar service.  People came in a wide variety of outfits, often with lots of glitter and lots of bare flesh.

After watching the pre-show for 30 minutes, we climbed the stairs to the mezzanine level, row O for a view down to a stage-in-the-round.  The high price seats were cabaret tables surrounding the stage.  Traditional tiers of seats angled off in opposite directions.  An outer portion of the stage rotated, the inner portion rose up, and the center also elevated or opened up as a hole to below the stage.  The orchestra was on both sides of the stage on elevated platforms that were at right angles to the seating tiers.

Eddie Redmayne is surprisingly good and is over the top with his German accent.  He is very energetic and moves fluidly.  Gayle Rankin is a well-trained singer (Juilliard) and is much better than who Sally Bowles actually was.  In the book that formed the basis of the show, she is a second-rate singer who goes to Berlin to work.  The musical numbers are good and the messages of the show are still relevant today.

Next day (yesterday), we had a full day of sightseeing - first, to the World Trade Center area, then to Battery Park to catch a ferry for a Statue of Liberty Pedestal tour (pre-ordered) and then back to Manhattan and a walk to South Street Seaport.  The photos tell most of the story.

The Oculus, next to World Trade Center Memorial Park.

The South Tower Memorial - a large square with water following from all four sides.  The names of the victims from all the planes and sites are carved into the bronze ledge on the upper rim.

There is smaller central hole in the center.

The ledge at the rim showing the names of the victims.  It includes those on the flights that crashed in Pennsylvania and the Pentagon.

A map of the memorial and the various World Trade Center Buildings

The new One World Trade Center

Map of Liberty Park, south of the memorial park, which contained several points of interest.  Photos for two of them follow.

America's Response Monument.

The Koening Sculpture, an original sculpture that was recovered from under the rubble of the collapsed towers.  Note the hole and dents on its top surface.

First view of 'Lady Liberty,' from Battery Park City across the Hudson River.

This banner was about 10 feet above the sidewalk at the edge of the Hudson River walkway, which was itself 8 or more feet above the water.

A Statue of Liberty Tour Ferry at Battery Park.  Getting on the ferry was a challenge.  Because we had pre-purchased tickets we avoided the General Admission Line that stretched back for 1000 feet or more.  But everyone funneled together with lots of pushing/shoving to pass through airport-type screening machines, which took 30 minutes.  We got to do a second security check after landing on Liberty Island and before preceding up into the Pedestal.

Motoring to Liberty Island.

View of Brooklyn Bridge.

View of Ellis Island.

Second view of the 305-foot statue (185 feet for statue and 120 feet for pedestal).

Arriving at Liberty Island - over 20,000 visitors per day come according to the National Park Service tour guide.  She did a fine job explaining the history of the project and the many layers of meaning and symbolism attached to "Liberty Enlightening the World" (the statue's full name).

Lower Manhattan - the tallest building is the new One World Trade Center.

From the Pedestal looking at the 'Courtyard' and the Statue of Liberty Museum.

Looking up from the top of the Pedestal.

Detail of the Pedestal - this is the third design.  It was built by the U.S., which was part of the deal with France -- the French people donated the statue, but the U.S. had to fund the pedestal.  The French sculptor picked the location - Fort Wood on Bedloe's Island, which was renamed Liberty Island in 1956.

The backside.

Ellis Island buildings, where immigrants were processed historically.

The Ellis Island Nation Museum of Immigration.

After returning to the "mainland," we walked around to the East Side Greenway, passing a number of remaining piers and stopping at the South Side Seaport (Pier 17).  This tourist area gives a nice view of the Brooklyn Bridge and the East River, an active waterway.  We stopped for dinner at Industry Kitchen.

Fine dining at Industry Kitchen.

After dining, we took the subway uptown to our hotel.

Norwalk to New York City

May 23rd and 24th:  We have moved to our last destination - the Big Apple or New York City.  

Wednesday evening, I reported we had dinner with Betsy's cousin Sue and her family, but had no photos.  Here are a couple for the record.

The lobsters were steamed, not boiled (apparently a kinder way to die) ....

Bill and Sue Abrams

Yesterday, we spent the afternoon in Central Park walking around.  Getting there (or more properly to NYC) was challenging.  I had no problem getting Betsy and our luggage to the nearest train station that would take us into the city.  Before dropping her at the station, we had a great breakfast at Knead, just a short distance from the station in Saugatuck.  I then returned the rental car and Enterprise gave me a ride back to the station.  I quickly bought tickets at a machine (with no instructions) that would take us to Grand Central Station.  Everything mostly worked well up to this point.  We didn't even need to wait very long for the train to arrive.  But the train was SRO because the NY Yankees had a afternoon game (against the Seattle Mariners), and yep, you guessed it, the fans were rowdy, noisy and hogged all of the seats on the train.  We stood up for the entire trip from Norwalk, CT to the 125th St./Harlem Station (the nearest connection to Yankee Stadium from the train station on the subway).  It was rather uncomfortable to say the least.  There was one guy (with a young son) who was wearing a Mariner jersey - he was booed whenever he arose from his seat.  (It was raining seriously when we got up that morning, and poured during the train ride, so we half expected the game to be cancelled.  The day gradually improved and warmed.  Oh, the Yankees beat the Mariners (5-0).

We arrived at Grand Central Station, followed the crowd into the great hall and then were totally confused on where to go.  Of course, signs were rather sparse and they are probably targeted  more at locals who understand the shorthand.  We exited through an office building, wandered toward a street that would go north (we were heading from 43rd St. up to 72nd St.) and then a bit westward.  The streets were jammed packed with cars and trucks, none moving very fast, lots of pedestrians, and no taxis.  So, I called up an Uber, which came fairly quickly (there were 5 or 6 cars in the immediate vicinity) and Ana, our driver, took us to the Hotel Beacon.  Whew, we arrived about noon.  The hotel staff are very gracious and our room was available.

After resting a bit, we pulled ourselves up and walked around the lower half of Central Park.  The photos tell the story.

Our room at the Hotel Beacon - comfortable, quiet, and in a great location.

Professional dog walking. New York has lots of dogs who seem calm and nonchalant about the racket and chaos around them.  We have even seen a couple of chill cats - one riding on the front of a motor scooter and wearing sunglasses!

An interesting fence in Central Park with integrated benches.

Belvedere Castle.

Turtle Pond with a thriving turtle population.  They seem to come to the humans.

Natural History Museum, from inside the park (it is just outside of the park on Central Park West).

The Obelisk.

Lobsters (or crabs) holding up the Obelisk.

A panther watching for unwary squirrels or tourists.

Women Rights Pioneers.

The skinny buildings?

The Plaza Hotel.

The Dakota (home to many celebrities, including John Lennon).

On the way back to the hotel from our walk (BTW 4.4 miles), we stopped at Trader's Joe for dinner supplies and other treats.  Then we cleaned up and had dinner in our room before hustling off to the Hudson Theater, near Times Square.  We rode the express subway which, after not stopping at the next several stations, did stop at Times Square.  We learned later the nuances of the subway train lines and the different types of trains running on these lines (locals versus express, downtown vs crosstown, etc.).  In any event, we made it through the crush of people in Times Square to the theater a half hour before showtime.  We saw Merrily We Roll Along, a musical written Stephen Sondheim, starring Jonathan Groff (previously King George in Hamilton), Daniel Radcliffe (the original Harry Potter), and Lindsay Mendez (a Broadway regular with TV credits), and others.  It was well done, the music was good and we enjoyed it.

Today, we slept in, had breakfast in our room, and decided to head toward southern parts of Manhattan.  We took the subway to 14th St. and 7th Ave., walked through some of Greenwich West Village, then into Greenwich Village proper, through Washington Square into Soho ("south of Houston"), to Canal St., the edge of Chinatown and into Little Italy.  We stopped for lunch at Da Nico, the home for the 25th anniversary of The Sopranos.

Washington Arch

One of many manhole covers - note where it was made.

Fire escapes

Lunch stop.

We then moved northwest up to Chelsea and walked the Highline, a former rail line, restored and altered into a raised art and garden path.  It is popular with locals and out-of-towners, since it offers great views of the city, has cooling breezes and sitting areas, and no motorized traffic or even bicycles.

Inside a subway station.....

The start of the High Line

Dolphin art.

Remembrance of the trail's past.  The building in the far distance has a platform, known at the Edge - a 100-stories-high observation deck with a glass floor, bar and 360 degree views, for $36 per person.

More art.

The Shed (performance center) and the stairway to no-where.

The Shed's roof support.

The High Line looking west, just before the Hudson Yards.

The stairway to no-where, actually called The Vessel.

The Empire State Building in the far distance.

And, finally more "street" art.

Con Ed.

We returned to our hotel to rest up and get prepared to go to Cabaret tonight, our second musical.  More on that later.