Back in 2003, Janet and I took a trip to NYC during the Christmas holidays to see some Broadway shows. It was a magical time and one we wanted to repeat, but given all the problems that went on with travel last year due to weather and numbers of people, we thought perhaps it wasn't the best time to go. I mentioned to Janet that my guardian/mom's 99th birthday was coming up in October and she readily agreed to a trip at that time to see Mid and also visit other friends and relatives in New York. We also planned some time in the Big Apple to see Madame Butterfly at the Met, Wicked on Broadway and also visit MOMA to see several special works of art.
All in all, the trip took us about 1600 miles (including miles in Oregon to the airport and back) on a huge circle through New York as well as its bordering states over a two-week period. It was a whirlwind trip with no more than three nights in one spot, but it gave us a chance to visit many friends and relatives, some of whom I hadn't seen in over 20 years. We also had time for fun things like Niagara Falls and, most importantly, reconnecting with some special people.
First Stop - Western NY including Batavia, Niagara Falls and the Great Pumpkin Farm
Kae, Ann, Janet and June enjoying Buffalo Style Chicken Wings at Pontillo's
This time, in addition to the Maid of the Mist, we also did the Cave of the Winds. In all the times I have been to the Falls, I have never done that before. An elevator takes you to the base of the American Falls and you can climb around on wooden scaffolding and get up close and personal (i.e. WET!) with the falls. It was a great adventure.
Second Stop - The Big Birthday Celebration in Penn Yan
We stretched our visit with Mid over three days. The first day we shared her birthday lunch at Clinton Crest. That was actually Mid's birthday and we were very pleased to be able to be there with her. My friend Trudy also shared the day with Mid.
On Saturday, Mid's entire family traveled from Rochester to share the day with her. We met for a wonderful lunch at a local restaurant. I hadn't seen these folks in 18 years, so it was a very nice reunion for me too.
Sunday, before we left town, we visited with Mid one final time to share what else we had done and who we had seen while in Penn Yan. It was a special weekend for me and I think one Mid will also remember for quite some time.
I also had a chance to visit with two high school friends on Friday night. Janet, Trudy (our hostess), and I met Betty for dinner at the Waterfront restaurant near Hammondsport. Betty and I grew up next to each other from when she moved to Penn Yan in 6th grade. We hadn't seen each other in something like 15 years or possibly longer. I hadn't seen Trudy since the 20 year high school reunion and that was almost 20 years ago. It was really a nice evening for us all. We hope they will come visit us in Coos Bay some time in the future.
From left to right: June, Betty and Trudy
On to Long Island and the Big Apple
We had heard the colors weren't very brilliant this year, but we didn't find that to be true in the Finger Lakes or the Southern Tier - it was beautiful.
We stopped off to tour the Corning Glass Museum on our way. I hadn't been there in years and I'm quite sure it is an entire new facility. The only thing I remembered was a big lens and that is in a science area with interactive exhibits now. It was a nice way to spend a few hours. Here is a bowl of fruit that is probably 5 or 6 times bigger than life sized.
We also watched a glass blowing exhibition - that is always fun and how nice to sit for a while!
We drove south into Pennsylvania from Binghamton to have lunch with a college friend. Jim and I have emailed occasionally for a year or so and this was a golden opportunity to say hi and catch up in person after not seeing each other for 35 years. Here he and Janet are sitting on a bench where his name is inscribed in gratitude for service to the youth of his community. He taught instrumental music in the local schools there for 31 years. Go Jim!
We crossed the George Washington Bridge about 4:00 - just in time to hit rush hour going across Manhattan and on into Long Island. It took us 2.5 hours to go the last 35 miles or so to my cousin's house. She was about to send out a search party when we pulled into her driveway.
On the left: My cousin Joan, me, her daughter (also my cousin) Beverly
Above: Me and my cousin, Peachy, Joan's oldest daughter. We are the same age and I vaguely remember visiting her as a kid when we were 7 or 8 so this is the first time we have seen each other in almost 50 years!
The two days we spent in NYC were fun but exhausting. The first trip in was for an evening performance of Madame Butterfly. We caught the 4:46 from Ronkonkoma and got into Penn Station a little after 6:00. The bus we got uptown took almost an hour and a half to go 31 blocks. We arrived at Lincoln Center at 7:30 for an 8:00 curtain. We had no idea it would take that long. The opera was spectacular and if every venue was set up as well, I might get to like opera.
We got home after 2:00 a.m. and it was almost 3:00 before we got to sleep. We had to get up and out of the house by 8:30 to catch the train back into the city because we wanted to go to MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) before going to Wicked. We have prints of two works, Van Gogh's Starry Night and Wyeth's Christina's World, that Janet absolutely loves. MoMA has the originals so that is what we went to see. The place was packed with people - something we hadn't envisioned at all. So after seeing the two pieces we came for and a few others on the way, we left there and found a cafe where we indulged in two Mexican coffees each to soothe our frazzled nerves. Then we headed over to 51st St. for Wicked.
Janet viewing Christina's World at MOMA
Wicked was a fabulous show. We have the CD and have listened to it several times since seeing it. We will never think of the Wicked Witch of the West in the same way again.
It may come to Eugene next year and if it does, we want to see it again.
Fourth Stop - Massachusetts
From my cousin Joan's we took the Port Jefferson Ferry to Bridgeport, CT and then drove up to Harvard, MA where my other cousin, Susan, and her husband live. Joan is my mother's family and Susan is my father's so I hit both sides. Back in 2000 we did a similar trip only started at Susan's and took the ferry to Joan's.
This was most definitely a rest stop and we are very grateful to Susan and Mark for letting us do just that. We were pooped. We spent one day catching up on our email and playing on our computers. Since they have a wireless connection, we were all on the Internet simultaneously. That was just too funny to miss.
Fifth Stop - the Adirondacks
This was another rest stop with friends Marilyn & Shirley. The weather finally cooled and it was too brisk and wet for golf, so we just relaxed at Boulder Lodge. We did go out for dinner and on the way caught the tail end of a Halloween parade. This little town in the Adirondacks goes all out decorating!
Final Stop - Erie Canal Territory
We headed west back towards Buffalo where we started. We were paralleling the Erie Canal which caused us to break out in song a number of times. Our final destination was Lockport and my good friend, Susan's. We had dinner with her, her daughter, Ericka, and Ericka's husband, Terry. Oh, and don't forget the critters - Figment, Brutus and Bella. We had a delightful evening with them, a good night's rest. The next day we headed for home.
We had a great time, the plane flights were all on time - amazing in this day and age - and when we finally got to Bandon and picked up Buddy, he was most happy to see us.
