Travel Log - Day 1, Part 2
It's taking much longer to write this than the actual trip took! Anyway, once Boy secured his hat, we went to a noodle shop for lunch. Nice, hot tea, good dumplings, good food. Then we headed down to Century 21 Department Store (highly recommended by my hairdresser, Jesus). It is right across from Ground Zero, which has much less impact, IMO, now that it is a construction site. We had lots of fun at Century 21. Boy found some wool socks and a funky ribbon belt that looked quite 70s with a side of preppy thrown in. But it matched his tri-colored Members Only jacket so well! (Never thought the Members Only jacket would be resurrected, btw.) We went upstairs and I found an almost-perfect black leather jacket. FYI, I have been searching for a black leather jacket for at least 3 or 4 years. This one was the right length with nice long sleeves (no elastic). It zipped fine, but then I thought it didn't lay quite as I wanted, so I was able to say, "No." Good thing, too, since it was still too expensive, even at Century 21!
I found wonderful gift boxes (suitcase-style with handle) and lovely personal care gift sets for my critique partners. I hope they appreciate the fact that the TSA was so suspicious of these three, identical, fully-loaded, large boxes that they had to inspect my suitcase! It had already been a fruitful trip for me, since one of my goals was to find something special and lovely for the Hip & Edgy. Headed back to midtown to dump our parcels at the hotel. Still no hairdryer, but I am hopeful. I call to ask about it and am told someone will check on it We walked over to FAO Schwartz.
FAO Schwartz really is a kid's paradise. Besides the huge puppies, there were the cutest penguins ever! One of my critique partners pointed out there were Huskies in the picture, too. What do you know? I really only saw the penguins and seals. Loved the old school toy area. I got a kaleidoscope and bought Adam some Robot blocks. He hasn't opened them yet, but my kaleidoscope has already gotten a ton of play. Also bought a couple of things I cannot disclose here because they are for my friend Suzell's birthday. In July. Yes, I know how horrid and cruel I am to tease her so. They had more Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings stuff than you can shake a stick at. They also had a very cool design-your-own Hot Wheels program. Anyway, we enjoyed the life-sized Lego Chewie, Batman and Hagrid (who had some pieces broken off). These things are especially amazing because they are made from small Legos, all put together then glued. Not the big cheater Duplo blocks, but tiny Legos. Makes it all the more impressive, IMO.
As we were checking out, the cute cashier told Boy she liked his hat. Yes, the chewed-up one. She asked him if he made it (didn't I tell you it looked like it?). He told her where he bought it. Then, she said she really liked the Robot blocks he was buying. After we left, he figured out she was totally flirting with him. Duh! For a smart guy he's a bit dim at times. He also has no idea how cute he is. It's kind of sweet. On the way back, it was bitterly cold. We decided to go to a place called Sushiya near our hotel for dinner. Nice atmosphere, very warm (have I mentioned it was freezing?), lovely green tea, really good Shrimp Dragon and California rolls, great miso soup (who knew it could be so good?) and pretty good katsudon. Waddled back to hotel to get ready for the theater.
Got changed in record time and dashed to the subway. Took the yellow line down to Times Square station. Big mistake. I had forgotten this is the most confusing station ever. The markings messed me up badly and I got a bit disoriented. Went all the way down to 8th, then headed north a block, turned the corner and - bam - there was the Majestic Theater, home of "Phantom of the Opera". We picked up our (really great) tickets from the Will Call window and slid into our seats about 2 minutes before the lights went down. I told you it was that sort of trip! Confession time: I had never seen "Phantom" in any form. Not live, movie or made-for-TV movie. I didn't even know the story beyond the premise. The staging was dramatic and magnificent. Great performances all the way around. I, Boy and the hundreds of teenaged girls in the audience were captivated. Passed up the merch as too expensive, though. Made the big mistake of going back to Times Square station. Got on southbound train rather than north. Got off at the first stop, got back on the northbound and off at 57th. Sheesh!
Went to 55th St Deli (next door to Carnegie Deli). Great selection of many yummy things. Everything from cheesecake to whole grain Kashi cookies. Yes, I got the Kashi cookies! boy was lured by the hot food and got some intensely good eats. At the hotel, I collapsed. boy made hone calls and tried to unwind. Unsuccessful. He went out for a bit around midnight but came back relatively soon. Said he found some cool shops. I slept.
So ends Day 1.
Labels: Vacation
posted by Caren Crane @ 9:06 PM
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