Friday, July 10, 2015

A New York City Photojournal (July Blogging Challenge - Travel)


A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

It's getting late on a strangely busy Friday, and I just realized I hadn't posted anything for the July Blogging Challenge of the day! The prompt for today is Travel - Where are you going or where have you been? - so I'm sharing some rather overdue photos from our trip to New York City in June. Kennady is a member of a choir that was invited to be part of the National Children's Festival Chorus that sang at Carnegie Hall. I shared her pictures on a Middle School Monday post recently (this one: Middle School Monday - NYC Field Trip Photojournal), and had intended to do a separate post with my pictures, but I kind of forgot about it until today.

So here we go! The hubster and I got on a bus chartered by the parents/family/friends of our chorus members early-early on that Saturday morning. By early, I mean before o'dark thirty. I made sure I had coffee in a travel mug, and we were both ever so glad that someone else was doing the driving. We arrived in NYC around 11am, and we started our day by joining forces with another couple and heading over to the Rockefeller Center.

But first, a photo to prove we were there. So touristy.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

We didn't have time to do a ton of things, so walking past Radio City was about the best we could do for that particular attraction.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

Here is our destination - the Observation Deck above NBC Studies. Otherwise known as "The Top of the Rock"
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

(It should be noted that only a couple of weeks earlier, I had the misfortune to be stuck for a few minutes in a faulty elevator in a two-story building. And I had vowed to never get on another elevator again. Yeah, I knew I wouldn't be able to keep that vow, but it did give me pause that the next elevator I found myself on rose 50-some floors in 20 seconds or something crazy like that. I handled it very well, thankyouverymuch.)

More touristy stuff, as I took a bunch of pictures from the Observation Decks on that drizzly overcast day. 
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

I have to say that the famous ball that drops every New Years? Is not all that impressive in real life.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

Central Park. Kind of an oasis in the middle of all the skyscrapers and cement.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

Loved the artistic touch on some of the buildings.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

We took a Top of the Rock picture of the hubster, but not of me. Typical.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

After we went back down the elevator (ride down was much more stomach-churning than on the way up, but by that time I was also hungry, so that might have played a role), we took a look up at where we'd been. Wow.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

This area is the iconic skating rink during the winter months. It is a seating area for a restaurant during warmer times of year, but a restaurant out of our price range for the day.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

We felt we should stop in at the Lego store for a bit.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

We also enjoyed this comic and collectibles store.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

We lunched at a place called the Brooklyn Diner that claimed to have the best burgers in NYC. Not having tried any other burgers in NYC that day, we can't say for sure, but it was a large and delicious meal. We parted ways with our friends at that point, and the hubster and I went to explore Central Park. After some time walking around, we came upon the Literary Walk, and not far from that, we noticed some type of exhibition...
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com
Robert Burns is obviously listening to the sweet sounds of chain saws coming from just beyond the Literary Walk.
... and when we got close enough, we saw that it was a log-sawing competition! Only in NYC.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com
This is a serious competition, y'all. There were slow-mo replays and everything.
I would have expected this in Idaho or Alaska, maybe.
Then we spent a little time at the Bethesda Fountain, where I had to fight the urge to start an Enchanted sing-along.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com
Join in! "That's how you know..."
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com
She's called the Angel of the Waters.
After Central Park, we returned to the hotel where the choir was staying, where we were able to use some of the rooms to relax for a little bit and change into our concert attire if we wished. Then we walked back towards Carnegie Hall, making sure to pass through Times Square. I can now say I've been there, and it was interesting, but it will be okay with me if I never go there again. Much too crowded for my taste. I can't even imagine being there during the crush of the New Years Eve festivities.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

And no, I'm not a fan of the crowds, but other than the most crowded blocks right around Times Square, we felt quite comfortable and completely safe in NYC.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

Finally time for the main event - the concert at Carnegie Hall! Here's the reason we made this trip, this girl right here.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

The concert hall was amazing, but of course I didn't take any pictures during the concert.
A New York City Photojournal (part of the July Blogging Challenge) on Homeschool Coffee Break @ kympossibleblog.blogspot.com

If you'd like to see some other wonderful places we've traveled on field trips or on vacation, you might want to check out these posts from my archives.

And of course, visit This Day Has Great Potential and A Glimpse of Our Life to read about others' travels.
July Blogging Challenge

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This post was added to the Throwback Thursday Blog-Style link-up hosted by Tots and Me... Growing Up Together! on July 14, 2016.

Tots and Me

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1 comments:

K Quinn said...

Ah memories! Love that log sawing competition. Used to live in NY. Thank you for sharing your great pictures. It's like I'm there :)

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