In the Big Apple

With our precision planning, we arrived in NYC from DC during the evening rush hour on Tuesday, May 13.  Coming in from the south, we negotiated Chinatown and the lower east side to get to our hotel, the Affinia Gardens on the upper east side.  We were just in time for a weekly wine and cheese event for guests, where Ziggy was an immediate hit.  That night we settled into our apartment and explored the neighborhood.  We learned that before nine A.M. dogs are permitted off leash in Central Park, a short distance from our hotel.  

 

The next morning we dragged ourselves up early so Ziggy could go jogging in the park.  He met some new friends, including a group of poodles who are regulars (see picture of us all having breakfast).

The next task was to move the car out of Manhattan, where daily parking costs as much as some of the motels we stayed in on the trip out.  After depositing the car in Long Island City, an accommodating cabby agreed to take us back to Manhattan, and Ziggy had his first ride in a taxi.  That night we saw the musical Spring Awakening.

Weather permitting, we've been getting up early to get Ziggy to the park before 9.  The hotel lets us leave Ziggy in the room unattended when we're at the theater or places he's not allowed, but otherwise he's been walking all over Manhattan with us.  He's been to Times Square and Carnegie Hall, shopping on Fifth Avenue, and inspecting the street vendors.  We do occasionally get the feeling that he would just as soon be stretched out on the sofa.  One time we got caught in the rain, and finding a cab wasn't made any easier by Ziggy's presence.

Thursday night we saw the straight play, August, Osage County, which we agreed

 deserved the Tony and the 2008

Pulitzer Prize the author received.  Friday night the comedy, The 39 Steps, with dozens of parts performed by the cast of four.  Saturday we had lunch at one of our favorite NYC spots, the Atlantic Grill, while Ziggy waited patiently nearby, as usual, hoping for leftovers.

Saturday night, May 17, was the Frost-Johnson wedding at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, which was the impetus for our cross country trip.  The wedding was wonderful.

Sunday we got last minute tickets for a new off-Broadway musical called Saved, based on the movie of the same name.  We took Courtney's close friend Isabelle, who works in the Times Square area and graciously acts as our ticket agent when we come to New York, saving us the outrageous Ticketmaster charges.  We all agreed the show was an unexpected treat.

We spent much of Monday with our cousins Paula and Jack Frost, also in town for the wedding.  Ziggy was very happy to see them, particularly Paula (see picture).  We had lunch at one of the ubiquitous Italian restaurants that seem to populate every block.  We were hoping to find soft shelled crab, and we succeeded.  No theater this night, so we had a leisurely dinner at a little French restaurant, Fleur de Sel, recommended by some New Yorkers who, like so many others, stopped us on the street to admire Ziggy.