A Fairytale in New York Christmas 2016 - Day 4 ESB and Brooklyn Bridge

[Melbatb]

Merry Christmas!

A good night was had by all and Santa even visited

Presents opened and breakfast had we were out by about 8.30am which was quite reasonable by my reckoning. The sky was blue - so a perfect day for going up a tall building. Also, all the museums and most shops were shut so there were limited offerings!

We caught the N subway to 34th St (very quiet on the subway).

The ESB was on the City Pass. There was not much queue for security and then we bypassed the ticket line. We were at the top by 9.30am - having walked up the stairs from the 80th floor to the 86th floor.

It was quite busy and in some places bitterly cold but we wandered around a couple of times. The views were fabulous.

We went down by the stairs to the 80th floor and then took the lift for the rest. We all agreed it had been a great visit.

Next up was a Starbucks fix - in my case a hot chocolate!

We then had a bit of a subway snafu! We walked back yo the station, went through the barriers and saw a train and hopped on. Once on realised it was the wrong one. We thought we would get out at the next stop and hop back on the other way. However this was one station where you had to go through the exit to go to the other platform. With the 7 day pass you need 18 mins between badging. We decided to walk back and try again.

Next time all was well and with one change we were at High St station on the Brooklyn side of the bridge - better views.

Lits of people and everyone ignored keeping off the bike path so it wasn't too bad!

Great views of Manhattan.

And where we had just been!

Back on Manhattan there was to be only one place for Christmas lunch - Denny's!

Three make your own Grand Slams and a veggie omelette came yo $65 including tip. It was quite an upscale Denny's - kids were delighted. One of their favourite restaurants

A walk through Chinatown saw us head back yo the hotel for a rest. The advantage of being here for so long is that we can take our time!

I love the mosaics in some of the stations.

Back at the hotel we all relaxed/napped. The 10km so far today had worn everyone out.

I did some research on where yo eat near the ESB - as we were going back for a night viewing (free with the City Pass). I found a chain called Bread and Butter which seemed to be OK.

O has freshly made pasta with a tomato and mushroom sauce, F has grilled cheese and crisps, J had veggie ramen and I had teriyaki veggies and rice. Total was $40. It was very nice - good to get some veggies in again!

There was a bit more of a queue to ho back up. It took about 30 minutes. On the 80th floor we read about how it was built - in less than a year

We walked up again to the 86th floor. It was very cold out and a lot busier. But we still managed to spend a good 20minutes looking at everything.

It was cool to see the airplanes stacking at the various airports too.

We went back down via the stairs and then lift and hotfooted it back to the hotel by subway.

The kids were soon asleep and I don't think we will be far behind!

Numbers of the day: Steps 19859 (about 15km) and 6 subway rides.

[app]

New Photo Added by Melbatb - 26 Dec 16 3:44 AM.

[mick]

Nice Christmas Day 🎅

The views from ESB are fantastic aren't they
We were fortunate to go up on a clear day too

Joan

[CrispyA]

Great pictures, especially the nighttime views.

[Jake71]

The views from ESB are just stunning Mel, and your times is just so not rushed.

[Melbatb]

Originally Posted by mick

Nice Christmas Day 🎅

The views from ESB are fantastic aren't they
We were fortunate to go up on a clear day too

Joan

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I think having the blue sky makes all the difference!

Originally Posted by CrispyA

Great pictures, especially the nighttime views.

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It was the first time I had been up at night - it was worth doing!

Originally Posted by Jake71

The views from ESB are just stunning Mel, and your times is just so not rushed.

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I am trying not to rush things or try to do so much that it feels like a bootcamp! It is good to have time to just be so!

[jocat]

How lucky you were to have a clear view from the ESB, both by day and night. Can't imagine how cold it must have been though.

[abiknox]

How amazing to spend Christmas Day in the city, ESB views look amazing!

[Loopylooloo]

Happy belated Christmas Mel! What a great way to spend it, lucky lady. Fantastic photos x

[Melbatb]

Originally Posted by jocat

How lucky you were to have a clear view from the ESB, both by day and night. Can't imagine how cold it must have been though.

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It actually wasn't as cold as when I went one February. Now that was cold

Originally Posted by abiknox

How amazing to spend Christmas Day in the city, ESB views look amazing!

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I think the ESB was the perfect attraction for Christmas Day

Originally Posted by Loopylooloo

Happy belated Christmas Mel! What a great way to spend it, lucky lady. Fantastic photos x

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Thanks Louise - it was just my iphone!