We were given breakfast coupons for a few days of eating in the hotel restaurant. After sleeping in, we got everyone out of bed and going for the day. After breakfast, we realized we hadn't brought any money with us for a tip. When I returned to leave a tip as we were leaving for the day, our waiter was so appreciative that he offered to make us a to-go box of fruit for the day. I declined thinking it would just be one extra thing to carry.
Chris had some how discovered that there would be an F-18 flyover at 11 am along the Hudson River. It had been cancelled the day before and rescheduled for Wednesday morning. Amy was excited. That girl didn't usually walk that fast! We started off for the river walk along the Hudson River and passed cute little Chinese Grandmas doing their Tai Chi in the park.
We got to the Hudson with time to spare. We headed over to Newport Centre Mall to find a bathroom, but hurried back to the water front. We waited and waited. I stood back in the shade of a tree while the rest sat on a bench along the river's edge. Chris was following a Twitter feed about the flyover and people began asking if they missed it or if it was still going to happen. Finally, around 11:30 am two F-18's flew along the Hudson between NYC and Jersey City. They were fairly slow for F-18s and not loud at all. Well, that was done.
We hopped onto PATH, getting passes to last us for the remainder of our week. I tell you, transportation in Washington, DC and NYC was spendy. We took PATH to 33rd and walked a few blocks to Time Square. It was as busy and crazy as you see it on tv. I would say that none of us really loved it, but it was full of interesting people or all types and sizes.
We found a Subway for a quick lunch and were lucky to have arrived when we did. It was small and only had seating for ten people. As it was, we shared one table with different people as they came and went.
We found that Urban Adventure Quest scavenger hunts were also available in NYC and signed up for the Time Square one. Some of our stops included the M&M store, Engine 54 Fire Station (they had a fire call while we were standing there so it was fun to watch them leave), Rockerfeller Plaza, NBC Studios with Jimmy Fallon, St. Paul's Cathedral, the Waldorf Astoria, and Grand Central Station where we finished up.
We were standing waiting to cross the street in one location and Misha missed being pooped on by a pigeon by just inches. Chris was standing beside her and had her move. Sadly, he should have heeded his own advice as the pigeon next to the pooping one, pooped on his arm. Yuck.
The scavenger hunt was fun and a fabulous way to see and learn more about the city. I highly recommend it. They have the scavenger hunts in many major cities across the country. We thought about doing the second one in Central Park, but decided to play it by ear and see if we had time in our schedule.
It was later in the afternoon, getting close to dinner time. The girls wanted to head back to the Newport Centre Mall and have dinner there. We definitely did not beat the rush on the PATH and had to stand the whole way. After a long day of walking, standing for so long was not desirable.
We stopped back in at the hotel where a worker was in and out of our room working on resetting the safe so we could make use of it, exchanging the tv with one that worked, bringing more towels and blankets, and bringing an extra side table. They really tried to make our stay pleasant. Our room in the Double Tree was located on the Penthouse level. The room itself wasn't anything special over rooms on the other floors though.
Chris fell asleep at 10:00 pm and the rest of us settled down shortly after.
Let's just say that the fight when on vacation is who gets a single bed to themselves. Apparently Amy likes to kick in her sleep and hogs the bed and the covers. Misha and Kristen traded off with the single bed. In fact, as Misha or Kristen complained about Amy's sleeping habits, they would say, "You were in my half of the bed!" Her response was, "Well, you were in my two thirds!"