I cannot believe it’s
been a year since our Puerto Rico trip! I wish I could post to the
travel section of my blog more frequently, but until I hit the
lottery, one vacation per year is all I can manage.
This year, I decided to
try a road trip from my current home in Florida to my old town in New Jersey
with my daughters (Fallon, 9 and Kyla, 6) and my fiancé John. I thought
it would be fun to pretend to be a tourist and take advantage of all of the
things that I didn’t take advantage of enough when I lived there (aka tourist
traps). My goal was to make a few stops on our way up so that the drive
was bearable. So, I chose Hilton Head Island, SC and Washington DC as our
mini-vacation spots before our arrival in New Jersey. Before I begin
describing our travel experiences, I wanted to give some of the parents who
read this blog this helpful tip-audio books on a long road trip are
AMAZING! We chose the Harry Potter series, and not only did the entire
family enjoy listening on the 20+ hour journey, but my daughters are now huge
fans and can’t wait to continue reading the rest of the series. J
I should warn you that
we crammed a lot into 11 days, so this entry is going to be rather long.
So, get comfortable and enjoy!
Day 1- Hilton Head
Island, South Carolina
We set out toward Hilton
Head Island at about 8:30am, with the intention of taking our time and stopping
for lunch, which we did at about three hours into the trip. We arrived at
our hotel at approximately 3pm (check-in was at 4pm). The hotel I chose
was called the Beach House Resort. Upon check-in, the room I reserved
(the kids suite) was not available. So, the staff offered us an ocean
front room, as well as complimentary breakfast the following morning. The
hotel representative was sincerely apologetic for the mishap and even though
the room type didn’t bother me in the least, it was a really nice gesture for
the staff to be so accommodating. The décor of the hotel was exactly what
you would expect a beach house to look like. For anyone expecting the
type of luxurious welcome a 5 star resort would give you, this is not your
hotel. This hotel had a comfortable, relaxed and friendly
atmosphere. There were many hotels on the island to choose from like the
Disney, Omni or Westin that would have offered a 5 star experience.
However, being that we were there for only one night, the Beach House was
perfect. Also, for the area, this hotel cannot be beat with regard to
price ($179/night) and location. It is right on the beach, it has a large
pool where my girls spent most of their time, and it is literally steps away
from Coligny Beach Park, which offers a water play area for children and
relaxing wooden swing benches overlooking the ocean.
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| View from our room at the Beach House Resort |
VACATION TIP: Early in the morning,
the hotel puts out large blue umbrellas and lounge chairs on the beach.
By about 10am, these chairs are all taken. So, if you want one, be sure
to get up early.
Also, be sure to take
the 5 minute walk along the sidewalk/pathway that leads to Coligny Plaza.
Right at the beginning of the path, there is a lovely tree (possibly an angel
oak) with horizontal branches. The girls just loved climbing it!
Once we arrived at the plaza, we had a wide selection of restaurants, desserts
and souvenir shops to choose from. Even though we were only there for one
night, I will definitely come back to Hilton Head Island and would love to stay
at the Beach House Resort. VACATION TIP: For those
parents with little ones, the ocean front rooms are beautiful, but they also
overlook the tiki bar on the beach. There is live music that plays all
day long until roughly 10pm, so if you are looking for a quiet stay, I would
make sure to ask for a room that isn’t on the ocean.
Day 2/3-Washington DC
Our second day on the
road was mostly spent traveling to Washington DC. We left the Beach House
around noon and we arrived at the State Plaza Hotel in Washington around
9pm. Because of the late hour and the fact that we were all a bit tired from
travel, we went right to bed. Hotels under $200/night are very hard to
come by in Washington DC, especially if you are looking for a place that is
within walking distance of the major attractions. The hotel cost was $179
for the night, plus $37.76 for valet parking (trust me, the valet parking fee
is worth it!). As for the hotel, it was perfect for us! There were
3 rooms-a kitchen (full refrigerator, stove top, small dining table), a vanity
room that led to the bathroom and a bedroom with two very comfortable queen
beds. Though the hotel decor seemed a little outdated, everything was
clean, the staff was welcoming and the room was extremely spacious.
Also, there is a CVS right next to the hotel, which was a nice
convenience.
We woke up early and
were checked out of the hotel by 8:30am. Even though we checked out
early, they allowed us to keep our car with them until we returned (after
sightseeing) in the afternoon. The staff did ask very politely if we
could try to get back to our car by 12:30 or 1pm, which was perfect for
us! So, we started our morning with a 10 minute walk to the Lincoln
Memorial. Because the girls really enjoyed the Night at the Museum:
Battle of the Smithsonian movie, they were floored by how large the statue
actually is. I’m sure they were only slightly disappointed that the
statue didn’t come to life as it did in the movie. For the adults,
standing on a piece of history on the top of those steps and turning around to
see the Washington Monument that early in the morning was spectacular.
The morning sunshine on the Reflecting Pool was gorgeous! I’ve been to
Washington DC plenty of times as a child and as a teenager, but it really does
take on a newfound respect to see it as an adult. Not to mention, even
though it was the day before Independence Day, there was hardly anyone there,
which made for a very serene environment.
After the Lincoln
Memorial, we walked down the steps, towards the Reflecting Pool and decided to
take a quick walk through the Vietnam Wall Memorial. My girls asked what
it was and we gave a very brief summary so that they could appreciate what our
soldiers do for us. But we didn’t stay there too long. We continued
along Constitution Avenue and passed the White House.
Then, we moved on to the
Smithsonian Museum of Natural History (which is free of charge). I wish
we had more time to go to some of the other museums in Washington, but I chose
this one above the others because it had more things that my girls were
interested in, such as the Mammals exhibit, the Oceans exhibit, the Gemstone
collection, the Easter Head Island statue, the Neanderthal digital face
transformation, and of course, the live tarantula feedings.
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| Museum of Natural History |
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| Oceans Exhibit-Whale |
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| Oceans Exhibit-Giant Squid |
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| Hope Diamond |
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| Easter Head Island Statue |
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| Digital Neanderthal Face Transformation |
The only things we
didn’t get a chance to see were one of the IMAX movies and the butterfly
pavilion. However, I found something that made me really appreciate the
vacations that we have taken so far. There was an exhibit in the Oceans
section of the museum which described bioluminesence in Puerto Rico. It
made me smile because we actually saw that on a Bioluminesence tour that we
took on our vacation just last year! It is nice to be able to say that we
all experienced something that is currently on display in a museum. J
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| Oceans Exhibit-Bioluminesence |
After the museum, we
were lucky enough to grab a cab back to the hotel (cabs are not as readily
available in DC as they are in New York). In roughly four hours, we made
it to New Jersey and ate dinner at the Saddle Brook Diner. J Because most of my family lives in New
Jersey, we did not need to stay in a hotel. So, I do not have any tips on
which hotels are best in New Jersey or Manhattan.
Day 4-Family Day &
Bagels!
July 4th was
a family day spent in Milltown, New Jersey. The fireworks display was
really great and it was wonderful to spend time with my family!
The only other thing I
wanted to write about was breakfast. When you are in NJ, you have to eat
the bagels! The food in NJ/NYC (even food as simple as a bagel) is
incomparable to anywhere I’ve ever eaten. Now that I live in Florida,
great food like that is sorely missed. So, each chance I get to go
“home”, I make sure to get my fill of all of my favorites!
Day 5-Carlo’s Bakery,
MoMath, Scholastic Store, Washington Square Park, 9/11 Memorial
Our 5th day
was the day I planned the most activities, and I honestly did not expect to get
through them all. We drove to Hoboken and parked the car in a lot right
next to the PATH train (parking the entire day was only $20, which is much
cheaper than any garage in NYC). Before heading into the city, we stopped
at the famous Carlo’s Bakery (aka The Cake Boss) on Washington Street.
There was a line outside of the door just to take pictures of the shop.
But being that I am a NJ girl, I have tasted Carlo’s cakes and pastries on many
occasions, so I had every intention of going in to actually buy some
treats. The line inside was insane. I grabbed a ticket with the
number 50 and the number being served was only 20. So, we were in for a
very long wait. That is, until a complete stranger gave us his number,
which was 22. Now, I know Jersey-ites often get a bad rap, but there are
some good ones out there! So, to the man who so kindly gave us that
number, thank you!! Within the next 5 minutes, we ordered 2 pieces of
crumb cake and 2 chocolate chip cookies (and a t-shirt for my own personal cake
boss, John). We also got to see Mauro, so that was a nice surprise.
Once we left the shop,
we took the PATH to 23rd and walked over to Madison Square Park
to sit in the shade and enjoy our goodies from the bakery. Once we were
done, we headed over to the MoMath Museum on E26th Street. Because it was
just around the corner and on the way to the museum, we got to stop and take
some pictures of the Flat Iron Building.
Although both of my
girls do very well in math, they both don’t particularly love the
subject. So, they were hesitant about going to a museum dedicated to
mathematics. But once they were inside, that quickly changed. The
exhibits were interesting and perfect for their ages! As soon as we
walked in (on floor 0), there was the Hyper Hyperboloid chair. Once you
climb inside the cylindrical chamber and spin the chair, the straight lines
around you create a curved surface. It takes some force to spin the chair
and my little one had to stand up and push the hand grips to make it work for
her, but her smile told me that it was worth her effort.
Two other exhibits we
tried were the Square-Wheeled Trike (the name really does say it all) and the
Coaster Rollers, which was a scooter-like ride that allowed the girls to roll
over bumpy acorn shapes, while still having a smooth ride. Both girls
really enjoyed these exhibits!
Next, we tried the
Pollypaint exhibit where the girls got to create shapes and colors on a blank
digital canvas with a digital paintbrush. We also tried the Mathenaeum,
where the girls got to create 3D shapes out of basic shapes on a large
monitor. They also got to work on their multiplication tables in a very
fun way on the String Product exhibit. They chose 2 numbers by pressing
buttons and the product lit up on the inside of a giant parabola that started
on Floor -1 and wound its way up to Floor 0.
On the -1 Floor (which I
thought was very clever), there were even more fun exhibits that the girls
really enjoyed! The Math Square was one of their favorites. By
simply moving their feet around the neon square, it created different shapes
based on the distance between each person on the square. Every 15
minutes, the game changes, so it gives the people standing on it something new
to figure out.
One of my favorite
exhibits was the Human Tree. You stand in front of a screen and wave your
arms and miniature versions of yourself become the branches of the tree.
It really amazed me!
One of the girls’
favorite exhibits was the Tessellation Station, which allowed them to create
patterns from magnetic shapes like dinosaurs and monkeys.
Another favorite was the
Rhythms of Life exhibit which allowed the girls to put fractions together on a
disc. If they did it correctly, the box with the sound of their choice
would light up. My girls loved the dog and cat sounds! J
I also loved the Dynamic
Wall, which was simply a wall of shapes that move with you.
What I loved the most
about this museum was that every exhibit was hands on, which is perfect for
children of any age. As an adult, this museum really kept my
interest. I was a little worried that the museum might be a bit boring
for everyone, but each exhibit was more stimulating than the next. With
that said, I would definitely recommend the museum to anyone with or without
children!
Just to note, the ticket
prices were really affordable ($15 per adult; $9 per child)! For less
than $50, a family of four can experience hours of educational entertainment!
After the museum, we
headed to Ray’s Pizza on 9th Avenue. Now I know that
Ray’s Pizza is not the best pizza NYC has to offer, but because of a joke
between John and I, Ray’s was the place we just had to go. Long story
short, John is a southerner and has some southern sayings that I don’t always
understand. So, he used to always tell me that “I didn’t take him to
raise.” I thought he was saying, “I didn’t take you to Ray’s”, so one
day, I decided to ask him who Ray was. So, taking him to Ray’s Pizza was
my spin on the joke. J
After Ray’s, we headed
to the Scholastic Store on Broadway so the girls could pick out some
books. The store is a typical large-scale bookstore, similar to Barnes
and Nobles. The only difference is that it only carries books for
children and teens. Though my girls were a bit overwhelmed by the
store, I think they really liked it.
After book shopping, we
went for ice cream at Emack and Bolio’s on West Houston Street. What an
incredible selection of flavors! Flavors like Salted Caramel Chocolate
Pretzel, Chocolate Addiction, Peanut Butter Oreo, Cake Batter, Maple Walnut,
and Almond Coconut Bar were available at the store. Not only were their
flavors hard to choose from, but the cone selection was out of this
world! John chose a rice krispie treat waffle cone! I went with the
S’moreo Shake because how can s’mores mixed with Oreo cookies be bad? The
girls weren’t very adventurous, but they enjoyed a chocolate shake and cup of
chocolate ice cream.
After our ice cream cool
down, we walked to Washington Square Park. The girls sat under a tree and
in true New York style, took off their shoes and relaxed. We also got to
see some amazing street dancers called the Tic & Tac
All-Stars. They were dancers/entertainers/comedians and they
were unbelievable. The entire reason for bringing John & the girls to
Washington Square Park was to see some street performers. The Tic &
Tac All-Stars blew our minds! One of the highlights of their show was one
brother laid across the other brother’s head and the standing brother spun
around very fast without holding onto the guy on his head! Another
highlight was when one dancer jumped over 4 people standing up! It was so
great and I am glad my daughters got to see it!
Our final stop for the
day was the 9/11 Memorial. We didn’t go into the museum because I didn’t
think my daughters needed to see every detail just yet. Simply walking up
to the memorial is enough, and it is absolutely breathtaking. It really
puts the immensity of the buildings into perspective. I had been to the
World Trade Center numerous times when I lived there and never really thought
anything of the size. But when you are standing over the site with the
water falling into a large black hole, the sadness from that time is present
and indescribable. It is beautiful, yet the sadness is palpable. The mood
around us was somber. Even though there was a crowd of people all around
the site, there was quiet and calm. It almost felt like another place,
like we weren’t even in New York City. Though it was a difficult subject
to talk about with the girls, I am really glad we all got to see it.
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| the only surviving tree from 9/11 |
Day 6-Sal &
Carmine's Pizza, Magnolia Bakery, Central Park Strawberry Fields/Horse &
Carriage Ride, Stomp
Our 6th day
was a bit more relaxed because most of our plans were on the Upper West Side,
which is my favorite part of New York! It is quieter and prettier than
just about every other part of New York. If New York City had a suburb,
the Upper West Side would be it. I love that you can take a relaxing
stroll on West End and in 5 minutes, you can be on Broadway. I also love
that driving on the Upper West Side is stress free. And most importantly,
the best pizza that New York City has to offer (in my opinion) is located on
the Upper West Side. On Broadway between 101st & 102nd,
there is a don’t-blink-or-you’ll-miss-it pizza parlor called Sal &
Carmine. When it comes to pizza, there just isn’t anything like it.
Trust me on this and go try a slice if you are ever in the area. I
promise that you will not be disappointed. VACATION TIP:
There is no air conditioning or public restrooms in this pizza place. It
also has a very small seating area in the back with only about 5 small tables.
After lunch, we went to
Central Park’s Strawberry Fields, sat on a bench in the shade and looked on as
people got a glimpse of the Imagine circle.
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| The Dakota |
We also took a walk to
the Adventure Playground in Central Park on W67th. It was pretty hot out,
and this playground had a nice water feature which the girls loved. VACATION
TIP: There are restrooms at Mineral Springs (69th mid
park).
After cooling off, we walked to Columbus (at 69th)
to have some dessert at Magnolia Bakery. I think it’s a bit unfortunate
that Magnolia is known for their cupcakes, because if I’m being honest, their
cupcakes aren’t that great. They are a little dry and have way too much
frosting. But Magnolia Bakery wins the Best Ice Box Cake award, hands
down! I can’t even describe with words how good it is, so here’s a
picture. If you happen to visit Magnolia, skip the cupcake and order one
of these instead! VACATION TIP: For the parents, the
shop on Columbus has a seating area in the back with restrooms.
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| Ice Box Cake |
After our dessert, we
had some time to kill. Rather than hopping in a cab, I thought it would
be fun to ride a horse and carriage over to the East Side. I am so glad
we did! It was easily one of the highlights of the trip. I know
horse drawn carriages have been a sore topic recently in New York City news, as
there are people who oppose them and others who don’t. I am not sure how
I feel on the topic because I don’t know enough about the care of horses, but I
can tell you that this man loved his horse, Darcy. And this man was not
an angry/sarcastic/cynical New Yorker at all. He was actually born in
Ireland and was friendly, knowledgeable and kind. And he was someone who
really loved the city and loved his job. And being around a person like
that is something that just made me smile. The ride around Central Park,
taking it all in, was really delightful. And we even rode near the
Summer Stage and heard Willie Nelson singing!
When we arrived on the
East Side, we were all relaxed and had big smiles on our faces and were ready
to go to our final stop-the Orpheum Theatre to see Stomp. My girls really
aren’t into the Disney musicals, so I wanted to take them to a show that they
would appreciate. Also, because John is a drummer, I knew that Stomp was
the right show for him. And it did not disappoint. The cast was
really engaging and the energy in the small theatre was phenomenal. We
all loved it! And at the end, we got to meet and take pictures with two
of the cast members. We had such a fantastic day!
Day 7-Central Park Zoo,
FAO Schwartz, Coppola's
Our 7th day
was spent on Manhattan’s East Side. We started the morning at the Central
Park Zoo. VACATION TIP: Before leaving for vacation, I used
parkingpanda.com to pre-pay for a parking garage nearby. It was only $28
for the day, and it was only 2 blocks from Central Park! The
penguin exhibit and the Rio 4D movie were definitely the highlights of this
zoo. VACATION TIP: The Rio 4D movie line is insane
after lunch. We went right at noon while everyone else was eating and
there was no line at all. The zoo is definitely lacking in
animals, but it is really pretty and nice for an afternoon stroll. We
also went to the children’s petting zoo section called the Tisch Children’s
Zoo. There were only a few animals (a llama, a few goats and a cow), but
my girls loved feeding and petting them. Just to note, the animals are in
cages, so feeding and petting isn’t exactly easy, especially if there are a lot
of kids there. In Florida, most petting zoos allow the animals and kids
to roam free in a fenced in area. So, the NYC zoo experience was a little
disappointing for my girls. Luckily, I have AAA and was able to purchase
four Total Experience tickets (which include admission for the zoo, petting zoo
and 4D movie) for $48.30. So, even though it wasn’t our favorite
experience, it really wasn’t a bad price for a family of four.
After the zoo, we took a
very short walk to 5th Avenue to the famous FAO Schwartz mega
toy store. Seeing the toy soldier at the store’s entrance made me smile,
but the girls really had no idea what they were in for. From the outside,
it looks rather small in comparison with the giant Apple building right next to
it.
So, when the girls
walked in, both of their jaws literally dropped. The first thing my
youngest said was, “Two floors of toys?!!?” We started with the first
floor and combed through every section. The candy section was
incredible! Every kind of candy you can possibly imagine was right in
front of us. So, of course, we made a few candy purchases before
continuing up to the second floor. The second floor is where the BIG
piano is, and we all had a turn playing on it with our feet. And yes,
it’s just as much fun as you would think it is!
We spent over two hours
in the store. Each of my girls picked out a toy to bring home, and we
also picked out our plant shelf item (chalkboard vase pictured below).
For those of you who didn’t get a chance to read my Puerto Rico blog, every
time we travel, we pick something out to put on our plant shelf at home.
So, rather than having fake plants, our plant shelf is now filled with mementos
from all of the places we have been. It makes me so happy when I look up
at our plant shelf because all of the vacation memories come back with just a
glance.
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| Our chalkboard vase from FAO Schwartz NYC |
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| our plant shelf...so far |
After our shopping spree
in FAO Schwartz, we headed to one of my favorite Italian restaurants called
Coppola’s (378 3rd Avenue).
There are so many
Italian restaurants to choose from in New York City, but time and time again, I
will always go back to Coppola’s. When walking into Coppola’s, it looks
high class, yet has a relaxed atmosphere which makes it easy for families with
children. From appetizers to the main course, the food has always been
consistently excellent. Once seated, the waiter was prompt and
friendly. He took our drink orders and returned minutes later with
different types of warm bread with an Italian oil dish. We had the fried
calamari for an appetizer and even my picky-eater daughter loved it! I’m
afraid that despite the overabundance of items on the menu, we were a bit
boring when making our main menu course choices. And for me, it is
because living in Florida really does deprive you of the kind of great Italian
food that New York is known for, so I wanted a classic. So, almost all of
us ordered the Classic Chicken Parmigiana.
My youngest daughter had
the Spaghetti with Mom’s Meatball, which turned out to be a lot of fun for a
six year old. The size of the meatball in the middle of that plate of
spaghetti was almost comical for her and she did a great job tackling it!
They do not offer a kids meal section, but there is plenty on the menu for kids
to choose from.
VACATION TIP: They
serve really large portions, so be sure to eat only half of your meal so you
can save room for dessert! Unfortunately, we were too full for dessert, plus we
stopped at the La Delice Pastry shop, located across the street from Coppola’s
(373 3rd Avenue), for some take home pastries before we got to
the restaurant. VACATION TIP: Definitely
make a stop into this bakery!!
All in all, we had
another really amazing day in New York. I absolutely loved sharing the
city that I love so much with the people I love the most.
Day 8-Statue of Liberty,
Ellis Island, Liberty Science Center
Our 8th vacation
day was reserved for the Statue of Liberty. The idea of climbing 182
steps to the crown did not appeal to anyone, so the excitement was not
overwhelming when the day started. However, the minute we got on the
ferry in the morning, there were smiles all around. VACATION TIP:
If you are planning a trip to the crown, word has it that it sells out really
quickly. I booked it 3 months in advance. If you
choose the "reserve with crown" access ticket ($66 for 2 adults & 2
children), you not only get to tour the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, but
you also get priority entry, which means NO WAITING IN LINE! Being that I
booked the 10am time slot, it wasn’t all that crowded when we got there.
However, it was filled with people by noon. So, I strongly recommend a
morning statue tour followed by the Ellis Island visit. It is tempting to
go to Ellis Island first because it is the first ferry stop, but the statue
definitely gets more crowded than Ellis Island.
The initial part of the
tour is an easy elevator ride to the pedestal. The views from this part
of the statue are really beautiful, so if you can’t make it to the crown, don’t
be too upset. Here are some shots with the view from the pedestal.
If you are venturing up
to the crown, you need to climb 182 teeny spiral steps. The cool part is
that with every step up, you get to see the inside of the
structure.
And because it was 90
degrees, it really did feel like an accomplishment when we all reached the top
together. The windows in the crown are very small, and the space in the
crown is very tight, as you can probably only fit about 6-8 people at one time.
But looking through those windows and seeing parts of the statue, in particular
the clear view of the book she is holding with the July 4, 1776 date on it, is
an amazing sight and is completely worth the climb. Also, on the way
down, you get to see a very close view of the inside of her face.
Once we got to the
bottom, we found a spot in the shade and had some lunch. The lunch
available on site is what you would expect-overpriced and not that great.
But when you are stuck on an island, convenience and availability is what
counts. VACATION TIP: Restrooms are in the gift shop.
After the statue, we got back on the ferry and headed to Ellis Island. We
went to the Through America’s Gate exhibit on the 2nd floor,
and to my surprise, it was fascinating. Reading about the struggles and
seeing pictures of people who actually came through really made me realize how
easy we have it as American citizens today. Even my girls were interested
in some of the sections. At one point, my oldest daughter was reading
something and we were all going into the next room, and she asked us to wait
until she finished reading the caption below a picture she was looking
at. I didn’t think my girls would be as interested as they were, so that
really was a bonus.
After Ellis Island, we
took the ferry back to our car and had a few hours left before the Liberty
Science Center closed (5:30pm), so we spent the $69 on general admission (we
didn’t have time to watch an IMAX film, but you can purchase tickets for that
when you arrive) and enjoyed four floors of hands on exhibits. My girls
enjoyed the Beyond Rubik’s Cube area, the Block Party area, the Eat & Be
Eaten area, the Skyscraper area (where John walked on a scaffold), the outdoor
Wildlife Challenge (where the girls got to climb & crawl through an animal
obstacle course), and the Wonder Why area (where they got to see a six foot
bubble). There were other sections that we didn’t get to due to the
closing time of the museum, but we all had a good time here, and it was a nice
way to end our day.
Day 9-Tom’s Restaurant
& Madison Square Garden
Today was more of a rest
day because I was planning a large surprise for the evening. We went for
brunch at the famous Tom’s Restaurant (2880 Broadway), or, for all of you
Seinfeld fans, Monks. Tom’s has a diner menu, so you can order breakfast,
lunch or dinner regardless of the time. We all opted for breakfast,
followed by a milkshake that we all tasted. The great thing about Tom’s
is that we were waiting on a friend of mine to arrive and even though we had
all finished eating, they were great about letting us hold the table. Of
course, we ordered the milkshake as to not waste the table, but most
restaurants in New York City probably would have tossed us out. The food
was really good and the chocolate milkshake was one of the best I’ve tasted, so
I would definitely recommend this place. VACATION TIP:
This diner only accepts cash, so bring extra money for the delicious milkshake!
After Tom’s, we headed
back to Sal & Carmine’s to grab some pizza to bring home for dinner later
on.
After dinner, it was
time for the surprise. I surprised John & my girls with a limo ride
to Madison Square Garden. I purchased Katy Perry tickets (John knew about
that part) for my girls. I wanted their first concert experience to be
special, so what better way than to hire a limo to take us to the greatest
concert venue there is, Madison Square Garden! And because we were early,
the limo driver drove us around Times Square so we could all see the lights and
the craziness.
The concert was great,
and Katy Perry really put on a wonderful show! Our seats were much better
than I expected. Before I bought the tickets, I had the option to
buy floor seats or seats in section 104, row 16 (tickets sold out quicker than
my fingers could type, so seating was slim pickins). I almost went with
the floor seats, but I am so glad that I didn’t! Section 104, Row 16 is
on the side, but towards the middle, and the seats are on an incline, so my
little ones were able to see everything. The floor seats aren’t on an
incline, and my girls would have been staring at the backs of heads all night
had I chose differently. So, I was really pleased with where we were
located (and there were bathrooms right outside our seating area, which was a
huge bonus)!
We all really loved the
concert, but mostly, I loved watching my girls jump up and down, singing the
songs out loud like no one was watching. Moments like that really make my
heart happy. Oh…and the limo was perfect on the way home because we were
all exhausted and there was plenty of room for us all to stretch out and
relax. J
Day 10-Lakota Wolf
Preserve, Empire State Building
We headed out west to
Columbia, New Jersey for our 10th day. Because my girls
are avid animal lovers, I thought the Lakota Wolf Preserve would be a great
experience. The preserve is run by a very caring and knowledgeable couple
who literally gave up their lives and dedicated themselves to these
wolves. As soon as we got there, we paid for our admission ($44 for 2
adults & 2 children), jumped on the shuttle and were off to the preserve
for our 10:30am tour. VACATION TIP-During the week, they offer
10:30am & 4pm tours, but you need to make a reservation. You do not
need reservations on weekends. Also, because the preserve is located on a
campground, restrooms are located on the campground site. Make sure to go
before the tour because there are no restrooms in the preserve.
Before we even got off
the shuttle, we saw about five wolves. The girls jumped off the shuttle
and ran right over to where the wolves were. Of course, they were fenced
in, but they were so close to us! If not for the absolute fear of getting
my hand chewed off, I would have wanted to touch them. When Jim, the
owner, opened the gates to the preserve, it was like opening the gates to a
different world. There were British Columbian, Artic and Timber wolves
all within a few feet of us. There was not a question Jim couldn’t
answer, and we all really appreciated all of the facts and stories he had about
the wolves. It was truly a beautiful and educational experience.
Towards the end of the tour, Jim even got the wolves to howl for us!
After we exited the wolf preserve, we also were able to view and learn about
the bobcats and foxes that were onsite. Just a note-the wolves are
not caged as animals are in a zoo. The fences are there to keep the
wolves and the campers separated. They have 12 acres of land dedicated
just to them, so they can roam free and live in their natural
environment. J
I would definitely
recommend this tour to anyone living in or visiting the New Jersey area.
VACATION TIP: The
Wolf Preserve only accepts cash.
After the tour and
having an ice cream break at Dairy Queen with some of my family, we went to the
Empire State Building. My older daughter is a Percy Jackson fan, so she
was psyched to see where “Mount Olympus” was (in the book, Mount Olympus was at
the top of the Empire State Building). VACATION TIP:
Before we left for the road trip, I purchased the tickets online. I chose
the Main Deck + Top Deck Express ticket. While these tickets are more
expensive ($276 for the four of us), they were well worth it simply because we
were able to cut through all of the long lines (at least an hour wait).
The tickets were for the Main Deck on the 86th Floor and also
for the Observation Deck on the 102nd floor. The 86th floor
was pretty crowded, so it was hard to get a good spot where the four of us
could all stand next to each other while taking in the view. However, the
102nd floor was nearly empty. The difference is that the
86th Floor is outdoors and the 102nd floor view
is enclosed.
As you can imagine, the
views from both the 86th and 102nd floors are
simply amazing. Even though my daughter did not get to see the Gods and
Goddesses from Mount Olympus, she still really enjoyed the view. Both of
my girls were really excited when they were able to point out some of the
places we had been to over the course of the week (Statue of Liberty, Ellis
Island, Times Square, Central Park). For that reason, I was glad I saved
the Empire State Building as our last thing to see in New York before we headed
back to Florida.
Day 11-Seaside Heights,
NJ
On our way back to
Florida, I wanted to take my girls “down the shore” to revisit the place where
I used to go on vacations when I was a little girl. We got there around
9:30am, which is earlier than most of the boardwalk opens, so we just walked around.
At 10am, everything started opening up, so we went to my favorite arcade, Lucky
Leos, and played games for about an hour (yes, I still love skee
ball).
I wish we had more time
just to sample all of the boardwalk food, but we only had time for lunch, so we
got super large slices of pizza at Three Brothers for the girls, and sausage
sandwiches at Midway for John & me. My older daughter loves lemonade
and was also extremely happy to have Midway’s amazing lemonade!
We bought some fudge to
bring on the trip with us, but unfortunately did not get to have any of the
delicious junk like funnel cake or Kohr Brother’s custard. Even though it
was a very short visit, I’m really glad we got a chance to spend some time in a
place that I will always love.
And that wraps up our
road trip experience! This was our first road trip and though I was
skeptical at first, I have to admit that I really loved every minute.
There are so many things we wouldn’t have gotten to experience had we taken
this trip by plane. Just like the old saying goes, “It’s the journey, not
the destination”. J
Hope to see you again next year! Thanks for reading!
