Coddiwomple Stardate 180714
When we arrived at Kalispell about 10.30am on Saturday I needed a hair cut. Looked up the closest barber and happened to be just across from the carpark we were in. The barber reminded me of movies where it was more of a local gathering than a hairdresser. They had a pool table, bar, animal skulls, old historical photographs and posters about their 2nd amendment (right to bare arms). Customers & staff seemed to know each other well and many topics were discussed.
Sunday we had breakfast at the motel which was supplied and plenty of choice. We left at 6.30am too reach Whitefish by 7.00am to book onto our train and drop off the rental car.
After another uncomfortable night sleep with the engine horn blowing continuously. We went and had breakfast at 6.30am. We found out we are now 5 hours behind schedule and we are going to miss our connecting train in Chicago. Others who have a 9.30pm connection should be OK. We sent Amtrak an email to see what can be done. They rescheduled us on the next nights train being Tuesday.
We decided that would be OK. We will change our hotel booking to the next day and spend the day in Chicago. After many phone calls between our booking company and the hotel they refused to move our hotel one day forward. Now we are going to lose a day’s accommodation & also lose a day with our New York Pass. Between phone reception drop outs, calls to our train insurance company, calls to Amtrak, Sharon’s stress level was going off the charts. Sharon finally had everything worked out. We had booked into a hotel a short walk from the train station in Chicago. Catch a 7.00am flight to Indianapolis then another flight to New York and arrive earlier than our train was going to. As we were approaching Chicago I asked Sharon for the address for the hotel again so I could plot our walk. The address was different to when she gave it to me the first time. She had booked into the wrong hotel and was 13.5 miles (22km) away. After checking the new address it was a good error. It put us near the airport we needed. Our Uber driver said it was a good location because we would have had to leave our original hotel at 4.00am in the morning to beat the traffic. When the train finally reached Chicago at 9.45pm even later than they had expected. All the people on the connecting train at 9.30pm were also stranded for the night. When we finally arrived at the hotel we only had use of it for 6 hours before we had to get on the Hotel Shuttle to the airport at 5.00am in the morning. It cost us $46 Au an hour to stay in the hotel. After paying for hotel, air flights, and Uber fares we will have out of pocket expenses after refunds and insurance claims. It is still a lesser loss than if we stayed in Chicago for that extra day. So far this has been our biggest complication on our travels that was not caused by ourselves.
We had not seen a movie for a while and decided to watch “Solo” a Star Wars story. Which I enjoyed between resting my eyes. Then we made our way to Greenwood Village where we stayed for the night. We came across the road being closed due to roadwork's. We were only 2mins from our accommodation. No signs directing you anywhere so I chose another way around entering from the east side rather than the west. After driving down back alleys, that were blocked also. We drove all the way back again. Entered from a different direction and there was a sign directing you to our accommodation and other businesses. This one took us to the North side and turned to the east. Then the road just stopped. We could see our accommodation just couldn't get there. Absolutely getting really shitty with American inefficiency now. I directed Sharon through all the work camps and finally got to our destination in our go anywhere rental. The roadwork's were meant to have been finished 2 weeks ago. The council has given the company 1 more week to complete the works. I would say they are 6 months away from finishing.
The accommodation ended up being built for an old peoples home so our room was huge with a nice conservatory and sitting area. It was great we had so much room available to sort all our gear out and repack it for New York.
The train was due at 7.41am. To my surprise it was on time. When we were on that train last Saturday it was running one hour behind. Once we boarded and made ourselves comfortable we heard an announcement. We are having technical issues and will be on our way shortly. 2.5 hours later they hitched up a freight engine and we were on our way.
We decided that would be OK. We will change our hotel booking to the next day and spend the day in Chicago. After many phone calls between our booking company and the hotel they refused to move our hotel one day forward. Now we are going to lose a day’s accommodation & also lose a day with our New York Pass. Between phone reception drop outs, calls to our train insurance company, calls to Amtrak, Sharon’s stress level was going off the charts. Sharon finally had everything worked out. We had booked into a hotel a short walk from the train station in Chicago. Catch a 7.00am flight to Indianapolis then another flight to New York and arrive earlier than our train was going to. As we were approaching Chicago I asked Sharon for the address for the hotel again so I could plot our walk. The address was different to when she gave it to me the first time. She had booked into the wrong hotel and was 13.5 miles (22km) away. After checking the new address it was a good error. It put us near the airport we needed. Our Uber driver said it was a good location because we would have had to leave our original hotel at 4.00am in the morning to beat the traffic. When the train finally reached Chicago at 9.45pm even later than they had expected. All the people on the connecting train at 9.30pm were also stranded for the night. When we finally arrived at the hotel we only had use of it for 6 hours before we had to get on the Hotel Shuttle to the airport at 5.00am in the morning. It cost us $46 Au an hour to stay in the hotel. After paying for hotel, air flights, and Uber fares we will have out of pocket expenses after refunds and insurance claims. It is still a lesser loss than if we stayed in Chicago for that extra day. So far this has been our biggest complication on our travels that was not caused by ourselves.
When we arrived at O’Hare airport we printed out our
boarding passes. Then made our way to the baggage check in area we were
informed we had pre-check. The women didn't explain what it was. Just told us
to go down to the security area after she took our bags. Sharon noticed I had
pre-check she didn't. When we arrived at the security area and got through the
queue I could go through but not Sharon. She had to go to another area. I
decided to go with her. After lining up again I was informed I had pre-check
& to go back down to the other line. I told the security officer we wanted
to enter together. She let us through. The only difference between pre-check &
normal was Sharon had to remove her shoes I didn't.
The flight to Indianapolis was only 29mins. Then a 2.5 hr
wait for the next plane. We hadn't worked out how to get to New York city from
JFK Airport. Checked Uber it was between $70-90 US (88-113 Au). Our first
indication NY was going to be very expensive. We had lousy airport wifi &
mobile coverage. Something we have come to expect in the US. We tried shuttle
services but we just couldn't load enough data through the phone. Tried ringing
them we were just left on hold. We gave up trying then it was time to board our
next plane to NY.
We arrived in NY about 1.30pm. Collected our luggage and
walked out to the taxi and shuttle area. First shuttle service were advertising
$19 each but only dropped us off at Grand Central Station then Bryant Park. Had
no idea where they were to our hotel so we declined. After aimlessly wandering around
for a while I was about to concede to Uber. I looked at the map and realised
the 2 places the shuttle drops you off is close enough to our hotel. We can
always get a taxi from there. At 2.30pm we left on the shuttle with our bus
driver constantly leaning on the horn. On the way out we passed a couple of State
Troupers just casually dropping their assault rifles in the trunk of their car.
It took over an hour to drive into NY city and get dropped
off at Bryant Park. In the end it was only a 1.5 mile (2.4km) walk that took us
an hour. We quickly realised you cannot travel through NY streets very fast by
any means of surface transport. We passed Sheraton Hotel on the way to our accommodation. Out the front were 2x heavily armed police at the main entrance. It is starting to be the norm where ever we go. It was 3 hours in the end to get from the
airport to the hotel. If we had arrived by train as originally planned we would
of been there in a ½ hour by walking.
After we booked into the hotel & payed our stupid $20 US
per day for a resort fee which you have to pay and they don’t even have any
resort facilities in the hotel. We arrived on the 21st floor of our
hotel that looks down 7th Ave to the tiny Times Square. We quickly
showered and went looking for somewhere to have dinner.
We found a diner not far away and had dinner there. After a
burger each, a beer for me and a glass of wine for Sharon add on your tax &
gratuities we walked away with little change from $100 AU.
I have only been in NY for 5 hours and have already come to
an unfavourable conclusion.
Wednesday morning we decided to go on the big bus tour. We
had bought a 3 day NY pass which cost $540 AU for us both. I had every intention
of using it as much as we possibly could. We arrived at the ticket office
around 9.00am. There are 2 routes our pass covers. Downtown & Uptown NY. We started
on the downtown circuit. It took us past many sites everyone is familiar with.
Most people know the concept of Hop on Hop off bus. You do a circuit then go
around again and get off at places you want to see then back on the next
available bus. It took us 2.5 hours to do 10 miles (16km). By the time we had
done both circuits had beer and lunch it
was after 3.00pm. I wanted to see the Aircraft Carrier Intrepid. We walked
there in 20mins. Catching the Big Bus would of taken us another 2.5hrs.
The Intrepid was commissioned in 1943 and decommissioned in 1974.
It is known for the most heavily damaged vessel ever to survive. It had 2 kamikaze
pilots fly into it during the 2nd world war. This is a great
floating museum but only had 2 hours here before closing at 5.00pm (thanks to
NY traffic). The hanger deck has a great museum about the history of the
Intrepid also how it was involved in early space flight. They have a Aurora 7
capsule from the early space programs including a Soyuz capsule. They had a lot
of on hands activities for kids and some old planes from the second world war
that flew from the Intrepid.
When you go up on the flight deck it is covered in a huge
array of military aircraft including helicopters & spy planes. It covers many
decades off flight. Among them was the British Harrier, A-12 Lockheed built in
1962 and capable of Mach 3.35. There was a polish Mig17 and the best of the lot
was the USS Enterprise space shuttle. On our way out they had 1 of the 20 Concords
built on display. I was surprised at how small they were. You may have guessed
I enjoyed this much more than 5 hours on a open top bus in blazing sun stuck in
NY traffic.
Next after a brief time back at the hotel we walked to meet
Lauren & Adrian from our Alaska tour at Flatiron Hall. It was 1.6 miles (2.5km)
away. It took us 50 mins to walk there. It was great meeting them again and all
to short a time. We decided to go to the Empire State Building on the way back
to the hotel. We arrived at 10.30pm expecting it to be quiet. Wrong again.
There were still large groups still going through. I am glad we went at night.
One it was cooler & I assume a lot less people and the lights of the city
are worth seeing. During the day there is a lot of haze and reduces visibility.
We both loved it and another 2 hours just slipped by.
Thursday morning was the No.1 tourist thing to do. The
Statue of Liberty. The subway was right outside our hotel door. So down we went
for our first experience of the NY subway. I knew what line to take and also
knew we needed to purchase a metro card to use through there machine. Standing
in front of the machine we were quickly receiving help from a homeless gentleman.
Showing us how to buy the metro card add value and what train to catch. I
didn't mind giving him a couple of dollars because he was so helpful. I don't
tip anymore if I don't think I’m getting value from people. I don't like the
fact you are constantly reminded to tip people I know who are getting payed
well. I'll tip people I think deserve it and not just expect it.
The NY subway is the fastest way to travel around. On the
surface it is bedlam. A taxi fare is based on time and you are always
gridlocked in traffic.
When we reached our station at Whitehall St we made our way
to Battery Park to get our tickets for the ferry to Liberty Island & Ellis
Island. Another long wait for our tickets then we had to go through full
security before getting on our ferry. By the time we got to Liberty Island we
had wasted about 2 hours of our day just getting there. After another queue to
disembark onto liberty Island we were finally there. It was great to see the
Statue of Liberty but should of stayed on the boat. By the time we got on the
island spent 30 mins looking around wasting another 1 hr in a queue waiting to
get on a ferry. Even though the ferries run every 20 mins we could not get on
the first available ferry there were just too many people. Also a lot of rude people pushing in. They were not Americans.
When we did finally get back on a ferry our next stop was
Ellis Island. This is where 12 million immigrants to USA arrived before being
processed to go on the mainland. The facility closed in the 1950’s and left derelict
for many years. It is now a National Park and museum of immigration.
Then it was back on a ferry again. Once again had to wait
about an hour. We could'nt get on the first ferry again. When we finally got
back to NY after our fully armed Coast Guard escort. We felt like it was a waste of the day. It took us 5 hours
just to do those two touristy things.
We had lunch at a Burger King (Hungary Jacks) near the World
Trade Centre. I normally wouldn't
mention this but they had table service and beer on tap.
Next was the 9/11 Museum. The area that had been the Twin
Towers has been transformed into a magnificent area for reflection on that
tragic day nearly 17 years ago. The museum is underground and is between where
the 2 towers had stood. There is a lot to take in and before we knew it another
2.5 hours had passed.
Friday morning was a walk on the western side of Central
Park. My first reaction was it is all weedy & over grown. With lots of push
bikes, people walking dogs & people everywhere. The park is only 4km long
& 0.5km wide. It is the largest park in NY City & well loved.
We walked to the Museum of Natural History. It opened at
10.00am. We arrived as the crowd was starting to enter. The line would of
been 40m long with an average 3 people across. Once through that queue it was
another one to get our tickets. When we finally got in we went up to the 4th
floor where all the dinosaur skeletons where to avoid all the people on the
first floor. It is another museum you could spent plenty of time in. We were on information overload after 2 hours. Our favourite displays where all the taxidermy
animals of Africa. It would be nice to see these animals in the wild but many
of them are now extinct. The displays were very well done. The animals are set
in their native environment complete with trees, soil, rocks and grasses. The
background is painted but in such fine detail it all looks real. The other area
we loved was looking at all the fine clothing detail of the American Indians well before white man arrived.
It was then time to explore more of Central Park. New York is very noisy. All you hear all
the time are emergency sirens and car horns 24 hrs a day. We are staying on the
21st floor and you still hear it. You need to turn on the noisy air
conditioner to drown out the noise. I decided to just wander down random paths
in Central Park. I could not believe how very few people ventured into the
centre of the park. Everything in the park is landscaped nothing is natural. It
is designed to look natural hence it is not manicured gardens. Some of the
areas we came across were stunning. There were stone archways, flowing creeks,
lush forest granite outcrops & no traffic noise. Once out of this area it
was back to thousands of people and noise of the city.
Next we went into the subway again to catch a train to 14th
street to the end of the Highline Gardens. We walked back to the start which is 2.33km
long. It is an old elevated train line that has been converted to gardens &
walkway. There was even a bar. I just had to stop and have a beer being such a
unique use of such an old structure. The last train to use the highline was
back in 1980. The line was originally used to avoid traffic congestion on the
roads. Also it led straight to where the goods needed to go and less risk of
theft. The whole concept was payed for by volunteers and ongoing costs are is
still 99% covered by private members.
Our next touristy thing was a Harbour Lights Cruise. It was
a 2 hour boat trip that went down the Hudson River near the Statue of Liberty
again. Then up East River that is not a river then back again.
Saturday and it is back with Amtrak to take us to Boston. My
first impression of NY was not favourable. After spending 3 days there you
start to understand it's uniqueness. At first everything appears dirty and
hectic. The city does not rest it is alive 24 hours a day. You do realise
people are constantly cleaning but just can't keep up with the populations
garbage. If you seek out other avenues of food there is plenty of places you
can get cheap meals & drinks. The subway is reasonably priced. Staton
Island Ferry is free. You just need to be confident enough to go down far less
touristy spots. NY businesses love tourists. We are prepared to spend way to
much money on well known tourist spots. That even the locals don't go to. If you
read our blog about San Francisco you will know we absolutely hated the place.
NY grew on me. There are homeless people around but I would say less than we
have in Perth. We never felt unsafe in the subways or the back streets. Even
when we were out late at night. We had more things we wanted to do but unfortunatly most of our time was wasted in long queues. I would not be in a hurry to return but if someone said lets go to NY I'm paying I would go again.
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