Notes From The Big Apple, Part 2

Greetings everyone!!  Well, the hour is late and we’re finally back in our hotel room from our second day of action here in NYC.  What a great day it was too.  We were able to get a wonderful night’s sleep and awoke to a great breakfast down in the hotel lobby.   After breakfast, we boarded our motor coach and headed back into the city for another unforgettable adventure.

Our first stop was the famous Rockefeller Plaza and a tour of the NBC Studios.  While waiting outside the building, we managed to catch a peak of the Today show that was going on just across the street.  The tour gave us a  sneak peek at the studios of Brian Williams and the Nightly News, Conan O’Brien, and the Saturday Night Live Show. 

Next, we head across the street for a tour of the Radio City Music Hall.  We were able to go behind the scenes and check out the inner workings of this famous American Icon, and we were even able to meet one of the world-famous Radio City Rockettes.  What a cool way to start the day.

From there, it was off to Time Square and a couple of hours of shopping.  This place is every bit as impressive as what you see on television.  Very cool!!  After dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company in Time Square, we went right around the corner and saw Lion King.  WOW, what a show!!  We all loved it and there wasn’t a bad seat in the house.  This was definitely one of the most exciting parts of our trip. 

After the show, we went outside and were able to take a group photo with all the great lights in the background.  The weather was absolutely perfect tonight, so the picture should turn out wonderful.  All of the students will get a copy of this picture as well.

Well, as I said before the hour is late.  It’s hard to believe that we actually check out of the hotel tomorrow, so this will be the last time you hear from us on the road.  Anyway, it’s time to get to bed and rest up for another big day tomorrow.  We will visit the Lincoln Center, and Central Park tomorrow.  The trip will be capped off tomorrow evening with a dinner cruise.  What a great way to finish off this wonderful adventure. 

March  25, 2008

Notes From The Big Apple, Part 1

Hello everybody!!  Well, we’ve just ended day two of our New York trip and we’ve had an absolute blast so far.  I am pleased to announce that we arrived safely this morning after a very smooth night of travel.  Though we did not get much sleep, the trip went very well.  The kids have done a fabulous job of following rules and deadlines and because of that things are going extremely smooth. 

Our first day in NYC was awesome!!  Our first stop this morning was Liberty Island where we were able to see The Statue of Liberty and take some great group shots.  Next we spent some time at Ellis Island and checked out the great museum.  It was an awesome chance to get to know more about the history of immigration in our country.  The kids seemed to really enjoy that.

By this time, the students were ready to get some sleep.  Unfortunately we were only half way through our first day.  From Ellis Island, we hopped back on the ferry and made our way to Battery Park.  We took a walking tour through the park and saw some great memorials.  From there we made our way up Broadway to the famous Wall Street.  A few more photo ops and we were on our way to St. Paul’s Chapel.  The kids got a chance to see this wonderful church where George Washington attended.  This church was also made famous during the 9/11 attacks.  It was one of the very few buildings within close proximity to the towers to survive unscathed. 

From there, we made our way to the most powerful activity of this trip, our tour of Ground Zero.  I have never seen our students more engaged in an informational tour as they were on this tour.  We were able to tour the new construction site and hear first hand from survivors and rescue workers that were actually there on that fateful day.  The progress that’s been made is unbelievable.  We really enjoyed this part of our day.

From there, we made our way to Little Italy and ate dinner at Da Nico’s Italian restaurant.  The food was delicious, and we really enjoyed the chance to sit a while after so much walking.  When we were well fed and rested, we made our way to our final stop for the day, a trip up the famous Empire State Building.  The night time view from the top was a fabulous way to end our first exciting day in the Big Apple, even though it was a little cold. 

We are now checked into our hotel and ready to enjoy our first night of real sleep on the trip.  We did not have much trouble from the kids regarding curfew as most of them were begging for the chance to get some much needed “shut-eye.”  We’ve had a great time so far and can’t wait until tomorrow.  Until then, so long from this great city!!  Be sure and check out the pictures.