"Everyone's your friend in New York City"

They Might Be Giants sings a song called "New York City."  One of the lines is "Everyone's your friend in New York City," and I've always thought that was a funny line since the stereotype is that New Yorkers are so busy that they don't have time to be friendly.  However, I have to say that after walking through New York with a baby on my chest, I have to agree that everyone's your friend in New York City.  I swear, New Yorkers must not see babies very often because everyone was ohhing and ahhing over our sweet Madelyn--and rightfully so.  After all, she is adorable.

During the third week in September, Madelyn and I accompanied Matt on a business trip to New York.  Kirsten and Reagan stayed with Nana and Grampa in Utah while I took my first trip ever to New York.  The first night we were there we took the elevator to the top of the Freedom Tower and got a magnificent 360 degree view of New York City. 
 

Madelyn and me at the top of the Freedom Tower

The three of us at the top of the Freedom Tower

We stayed in Jersey City on the other side of the Hudson River, and in the afternoon of my first full day, I walked along the river with this incredible view of Manhattan.

View of Manhattan

 After Matt got off work, we ate dinner at a Turkish Restaurant and headed over to the 9/11 Memorial Museum.  The museum was detailed, interesting, and sobering.  There was so much to see that we couldn't possibly see it all before it closed at 9.

The next day was Saturday, and we went to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  The ferry ride to Liberty Island was nice.

Matt on the ferry

Me on the ferry

The three of us on the ferry

I took a silly selfie in front of the Statue of Liberty.  With that face, I feel like I should be wearing one of those foam Lady Liberty crowns.

Matt took a nicer picture of me

We went to the museum in the pedestal, which was quite interesting.  This replica of the foot was there to give us a sense of how large the statue is and to provide an example of the original copper coloring.

Madelyn and me with Lady Liberty's foot

Next we went to Ellis Island, which apparently I didn't take any good pictures of, but even though Ellis Island is less visually iconic, I think I enjoyed it even more than seeing the Statue of Liberty.  I learned so much history and really got a better sense of what it might have been like to be an immigrant to our country during that time.  The cramped conditions, the hunger, the hope.  At one point I said to Matt that I would never have survived an ocean voyage like most of the Ellis Island immigrants had to endure because I do so poorly in crowds.  They spent weeks cramped up in steerage, and I have been known to panic after being in a large crowd after only a couple of hours.  Granted, as Matt pointed out, my expectations for space and comfort are much higher than theirs were.

The next day Matt and I walked to Times Square and continued on to Central Park.

Madelyn and me in Times Square

Madelyn and I met Big Bird and Cookie Monster in Central Park

Big Bird sure was silly

At the top of the Belvedere Castle

At the Friends fountain

After touring Central Park, we went to Sabinskys Cafe to eat some German food.  Matt and I both had Wiener Schnitzel, and I had Schwarzwald Torte.  Yum! 

That evening we met up with Matt's dad in Jersey City and had a nice dinner at a restaurant called the Vu, which had a fantastic view of the Hudson and Manhattan.  It was really nice to see Marc, and I had the pleasure of eating Prince Edward Island mussels.  I'll admit that I ordered them because they were from Prince Edward Island more than because they were mussels, but fortunately, I really liked the taste of mussels.

On Monday, Madelyn and I mostly stayed in the hotel because she was tired, and I suppose I was too.  At any rate, she needed some real naps.  That evening we went out to dinner with some of Matt's colleagues.  They were all very excited to see our baby, and a couple of them took pictures of her to text to their wives, which I thought was amusing.  That evening I ate what I think was the most expensive meal of my life, and it was delicious.  The veal was so tender I didn't even need a knife to cut it. 

On Tuesday, Madelyn and I went to the American Museum of Natural History, which was detailed and very fascinating.  We enjoyed ourselves immensely.

Elephants

Entrance to the museum

On Wednesday morning, I went back over to Manhattan to buy some souvenirs and explore a bit before we had to catch our flight.  I went to St. Paul's Chapel, which is the church that President George Washington attended for a time.  That was neat to me.

I really enjoyed the trip to NYC, and I look forward to getting to see it again.  Someday I really want to see a show on Broadway.