Day Four … Hello NYC. Who is feeling a little Wicked? (Part 2)

As promised here is the remainder of the fourth day of our NE USA adventure.

When we left each other yesterday Ian and I were travelling on a train from Philly to NY. Our ride was smooth and comfortable and I had the chance to write the first part of this blog. We arrived into NY just before 6.00 which was just a few minutes ahead of schedule. My trusty travelling companion had worked out that we could catch a subway train from NY Penn station to within just a 10 min walk to our hotel.

So off we headed, suitcases in tow heading off to catch Subway Line 2. It was easy to navigate and the biggest barriers we had were having to carry our suitcases up stairs (no escalators in the subway) and squeezing onto a crowded train with our suitcases. However, we managed it and we emerged from the subway into the bottom end of Times Square to be hit with the neon lights, blaring music, honking horns and sirens that is the Square.

To say that it is an assault on your senses is probably true but I would describe it more as being absorbed into a world on steroids. The hustle and bustle is dramatic but not threatening or scary. It is fascinating. It is constant movement and sounds. I didn’t take many photos … we are here for 3 nights so I will get more when we aren’t lugging suitcases or just soaking it in.

With suitcases in tow (thank goodness for our new lightweight luggage with super wheely wheels) we muscled our way through the crowds to our hotel on 44th Street and entered a slightly quieter world and one definitely more glamorous than our hotel in Washington. We were greeted warmly by Chris at the desk who laughed at our “star struckness” … Ian will hate that sentence … and who cheerfully approved a  room upgrade for us and then posed for a photo with our travelling buddies.

Our room (which is huge) is on the 33rd floor and looks down upon Times Square. So from high up we can see the neon lights and hear the muted sounds of the bustle still. Pretty fascinating and definitely luxurious. The bed is massive … and super comfortable.

No stopping though as we had tickets booked for Wicked. So a quick shower, a change of clothes and we headed back out the door a little after 7.00 to head up to the Gershwin Theatre on 50th St. Again we negotiated the crowds, dodged the street hawkers (I never thought I’d see so many people in costumes again after having been to Disneyland and Las Vegas back in 2012), as well as trying to avoid being in the Instagram photo shoots being carried out … sometimes in the middle of the road amongst the traffic!

Arriving at the theatre we joined the queue to enter the theatre which stretched around the city block. I’ve never queued to enter a theatre before … nor have I had to go through a security scan before I could watch a show! But the Gershwin has 1,926 seats and it was full, even in Wicked’s 20th year. It was a pretty smooth process, just fascinating as we don’t have to do that in Australia.

And so we went to Wicked. And yes I cried … during “Defying Gravity”, “As Long as You’re Mine” and “For Good”. We laughed with Galinda, felt empathy with Elphaba, marvelled at the costumes and the sets. I tried hard not to sing throughout and I had to pinch myself that I was actually sitting in a theatre in Broadway watching my favourite musical. Thankfully Ian enjoyed it too (he had never seen it before)!

And so back to the hotel we headed … having ended another incredible day. 

As I sit here in bed writing this blog piece the sun is rising, the sky is blue and Ian is sitting working on his computer. Stay tuned for the next exciting instalment!

The final tally …

Photos - 523

Steps - 25,525

Kms walked - 19.54

Ad Labs - no change (just the 2 from earlier in the day)