After a good nights rest, we set off to explore a few New York sights today. To start our day, we grab some coffee and pastries near the World Trade Center Memorial pools. Since the whole point of this trip is to spend more time together as a family. Both The Sister and I take opportunities whenever we can to hang out with the parental minions!
Though, sometimes, other priorities do pop up!
World Trade Centre Memorial
Across the street from the coffee shop is the World Trade Centre Memorial Pools. We spend a bit of time walking around the two main memorial pools and take it all in. We have tickets for tomorrow to visit the memorial museum itself, but we still take the time to walk around the outdoor pools since there’s still some somberness reading the names on the memorials.
Oculus
Our next stop is Little Island. But to get there, we would need to take a train and that would require us to transit through the Oculus building, which is this cool “whale bone” looking building that is a major transportation hub. I think in general the architecture is worth mentioning as its fairly impressive. So we spend a few minutes wandering the building and marvelling the inside and outside of it!
Little Island
Our next stop is Little Island. This is a man made public park which is built on what used to be Pier 54. It is now a super cool green space along the water. When you first arrive, the exterior already looks unique with its “alien” looking supports jutting out of the water. I don’t know if its on purpose, but it’s also difficult to see what the inside looks like, so you actually need to walk in before it opens up to the park space. If that’s intentional, I think its a great little design choice!
Upon, entering, it opens up into a very well thought out green space with food trucks, walking paths and a picnic area for people to sit and have a meal. Throughout the space are elevated viewpoints that offer great views of the Manhattan skyline, and even Newark across the the Hudson river.
Pier 57
Right beside Little Island is another cool spot called Pier 57. It’s kind of like a shared community and market space and since we’re at lunch time, we decide to pop in to see if we could grab a few snacks. We also found ourselves on the rooftop area which offered some additional views of the New York Skyline which doesn’t seem to get old! Somehow, we also end up bumping into a few Canadian “friends” too!
Soon our thoughts turn to food and we head to the food area of Pier 57 where Mama Minion and The Sister share some food from Ammi while I pick up a snack from Bessou. None of the options seemed to appeal to Papa Minion. But he did have this desire to get a “New York” hot dog from a stand on the street. So Papa Minion and I end up finding a Nathan’s hot dog stand outside and check that off his list. By the end of it, our stomachs are all satisfied, we’re all happy and all smiles as we set off for our next destination!
The Highline
The Highline is an old elevated rail line that runs along the West side of New York that has since been converted into park and art space. From a previous sibling trip, The Sister and I really enjoyed our visit to the Highline and really wanted the Parental Minions to see it too. So we make our way up from Pier 57 as a starting point and walk along the Highline heading North. We meander our way towards Hudson Yards, checking out the different art installations along the way and admiring the cool architecture of the buildings as well.
Bit of a Breather at Hudson Yards
After walking for a while, we eventually arrive at the Hudson Yards area and the home of the Vessel. We would have loved to have visited it, but unfortunately it was closed so we can really only admire it from afar. But maybe its a bit of a blessing in disguise because at this point we’re all just a little tired. And we decide to duck into the nearby shopping centre to grab a quick snack and breather. It’s at this point we spot a Magnolia Bakery where The Sister and I share a Banana Pudding which is excellent!
After a bit of a break we set off once again. This time we’re heading across town enroute to the Empire State Building. It’s not a super long walk but it does take us past a few pretty notable landmarks like Penn Station and Madison Square Gardens.
Empire State Building
Eventually, we arrive at the Empire State Building. This is something that was on Mama Minions list for things she wanted to see in New York. As we got closer and closer to the building we started to take photos of it from the street. And once we got to the base and in the lobby, Mama Minion got to step foot into this iconic building! I think when given the option to go to the top she declined. I think being able to see it from afar and also being able to go inside was enough for her. Simply seeing the view from the top didn’t appeal to her. I’m still glad we could check this off her New York list!
Upstate Craft Beer & Oyster Bar
Our last stop for today is dinner. The Sister scoped out Upstate Craft Beer & Oyster Bar which has a great dollar oyster happy hour menu! So along with a wonderful selection of beers, we load up on oysters, grab a few appetizers and enjoy some super tasty steak dinners as well (Fish for Mama Minion!). While the food isn’t of the fine dining variety, we are all very satisfied and happy with the choice! We spend the time recounting our day and lament all the walking we did today!
We still have just a little more walking to do. And That’s to head back to our hotel. Our first full day in New York Complete. I think we’re all a little tired given the amount of activity but we’re all happy with the smiles and memories made. Tomorrow will be another busy day as we have tickets to the World Trade Center Memorial Museum and a few other things on the list.