This is part 1 of an “Encore” blog of my trip to New York in Aug 29-Sept. 8, 2015. The original blog was published on TravelPod. Hope you enjoy it.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/KvSWujscE4rmrHsk2
All my friends know that I am a big fan of Broadway musicals. When I read that the famous Chinese Opera Singer Zhang Huo Ding (张火丁）was coming to Lincoln Center to perform the Beijing Opera’s, “the Legend of the White Snake”, it didn’t take a lot of persuasion to get me to the Big Apple. I was very lucky that my good friend Frances agreed to accompany me on this trip. Frances loves Chinese language and cultural and just like me, enjoys the shows and ethnic foods. We plan to take our time walking around different parts of New York and sample street food and various ethnic delicacies like a true New Yorker.
We know that the best way to explore NY is by foot and public transportation. We each bought a seven day unlimited usage Metro card for $31 which was essential and a valuable purchase. We used it for both subway and bus rides. NY subway is old, smelly and dirty but it runs 24/7 and 365 days and can get you almost anywhere in NY. Manhattan is an island about 14 miles long and 2 mile wide and is divided into grids – Avenues are going South to North and the numbered streets going East to West. Time Square, where all the tourists gathered, is at 5th Ave and 42 Street. Once you understand the layout of NY, it is easy to explore even for a directional challenged person like me.
I found Hotel 3 West Club from Booking.com on 51st Street and 5th Ave because of its location and reasonable price (for Manhattan standard). I didn’t realize how good the location is until we checked in. The hotel is half a block from 5 th Ave. close to Saint Patrick church and across street from the Radio City Music Hall. We can walk to Rockefeller Plaza in 5 minutes and Time Square in 10. The hotel is quite, clean, and old fashion. We found out that this hotel belongs to the Women’s National Republican Club. We did see a few conservative and well dressed ladies in the lobby but they didn’t ask us to join the club so I guess I will return to this hotel when we visit NY next time. Another great find is the little deli next door called Simple Foods. We can get a good hot breakfast or a bagel with cream cheese and lox plus a good cup of coffee for $5. I doubted that we could have found any better deals than this.
One of our goals in NY is to see a Broadway Musical Show. We were very luck to find 40% discount tickets for 2015 Tony Award Winner “Fun Home” the first day we arrived there. The show was in the Circle in the Square Theater. The performances of the young actors/actresses almost surpassed the adults. It is quite a different type of show and we enjoyed it very much.
There are many different type of NY Passes one can purchase online with big discounts on activities, museums and tours. We purchased the “Smart Decision” 3 activities pass for $72 and found it a good deal. One of the activities we selected was the Harlem Cultural walk. Our tour guide Reggae Reg is a Hip Pop singer, the Captain of the band called Crash Crew with several records under his belt. Reggae took us first to a Hip Pop Revolution photo exhibition in The Museum of The City of New York. Hip pop culture originated on the streets of NY City in the 1970s. The four elements of Hip pop incorporate Deejaying (turntables), Emceeing (rapping), Breaking (dance) and Graffiti Art. We walked pass the Wall of Graffiti into Spanish Harlem area. Reggae told us even with its bad reputation, Harlem now is one of the safest communities in NY. There was a lot of gentrification going on and a very diverse population bustling around. I was glad to see many community gardens among the housing projects. Harlem is a historical place, Malcolm X, ML King, the Apollo Theater, Milton jazz club and many Baptist churches. Every block has some significant building and stories. We ended our tour with a lunch in a local favorite soul food restaurant called Jacob. Its buffet offers authentic soul and Caribbean dishes. At $5.99 per pound, it was good not only for the soul and stomach but also the wallet. After a long day of walking, we took it easy and enjoyed an evening cruise in NY Harbor. The NY landscape was illuminated brilliantly against the night sky. Lady Liberty’s torch was shining in the calm sea. The NY evening was enchanting and peaceful.
My Junior High school classmates hosted a lunch for me in a Chinese restaurant in NJ. Five of us took the bus from the Port Authority bus terminal to NJ to meet with the rest of the group. What a surprise to see my 8th and 9th grade science teacher Ms. Liu and her husband there. I told Teacher Liu she was the reason why I had chosen Chemistry as a career. After half a century, It is nice finally able to thank her in person how much I appreciated her teaching. Teacher Liu and her husband gave each of us a framed calligraphy with the characters of our names inserted in beautiful phrases. What a thoughtful and unique gift. We will always treasure this present. Our classmate Lee May, who started the Ai-Ban Yahoo group, unfortunately lost her courageous struggle with breast cancer in July. Her good friend Dr. Lin came to our luncheon and shared the last moment of Lee May’s life with us. Our classmates and Lee May’s friends got together and donated a bench in her name to the Botanic Garden on Rutgers University campus. She will always be remembered in our hearts and memories. At night, we took the Subway to Greenwich village, meandering in Washington Square Park, mingling with students from NY University, enjoyed a moon cake from a Chinese bakery and had a wonderful salad and duck burger at a popular restaurant called Bareburgers. What a fun day in NY!