The City That Never Sleeps

New York.

Friday I went to the Manhattan Temple. That temple is in a location that really exemplifies the fact that when you go to the temple, you leave the world. It is an incredibly peaceful escape. I didn't take this photo--it showed the temple better than I could. The road was MUCH busier when I went.

Curt and I also went out on the town with our friends Todd
and Casey Matheny from BYU. We ate at a great Cuban restaurant and got the most amazing soft-serve pistachio ice cream ever. We enjoyed walking around and visiting. Time sure passed fast. We didn't realize how late it was when we caught the subway because so much was going on around the city.


Saturday was a very eventful day. We went to the Guggenheim Museum. We thought of Shane while we were there. There was an amazing Frank Lloyd Wright exhibit. My favorite parts were 1. The museum itself and 2. Art from MANY famous artists (Cezanne, Picasso, Monet, Manet, etc.).

We then went to the Museum of Modern Art (aka The MoMA). We liked this museum even more than we thought we would. One of the many perks Curt gets us for working at JP Morgan is free admission to many NYC sites. We are "corporate" members of all the museums we went to today (which means admission is free, we get discounts at shops and we can go to some "member only" exhibits). One amazing exhibit was the "member-only" furniture exhibit/preview. It was amazing! We also LOVED seeing Van Gogh's Starry Night and Jackson Pollock's art.

Van Gogh, The Starry Night

Jackson Pollock (I think this was Number 2, but is possibly Number 1. Don't quote me)

We finished up the day (exhausted) at the Metropolitan Museum. There is SO much amazing art packed in a few blocks here in NYC. We could easily spend a day at each museum. We were able to see Van Gogh, Michelangelo, Monet, Manet, Rembrandt, etc. as well as art from all ages and all locations. Curt really liked the Samurai exhibit.

Sunday we went to church and enjoyed relaxing, reading, etc. We had planned to go relax in Central Park, but due to weather our plans changed. It was pouring after church. It's a good thing we had an umbrella and that the church is close to a subway station!

Monday My last day in NYC. So sad! I went looking at apartments for my friend Erin, who will be moving out here in a month and working for Deloitte as an accountant. Rent is SO expensive here! It's hard to find a good place. After that I caught the ferry and also checked out Ellis Island.

Viewing the Statue of Liberty on the way to Staten Island. I saw a bunch of people selling the green foam Statue of Liberty hats. Anna bought me one when I was probably 6 years old. I was definitely Lady Liberty for Halloween in 1st grade :)

The view of Manhattan on the ferry's return trip.

After Curt got home from work we went to Grimaldi's for pizza, the most famous pizza in NYC. We almost went on Saturday afternoon but were discouraged by a 1.5-2 hour line to order our pizza. The line was only 1 hour on Monday night. We walked around, had FHE and enjoyed the evening together.

Tuesday I flew home today, though I almost didn't make my flight. While on the subway just after 6:00am this morning, the train stopped at a station, and stayed stopped. They announced we were waiting for another train to move. After a few more minutes they said the train was down. From what the operator said, the power had been cut or something and they were going to have to remove the train from the tracks. He said this train wasn't going anywhere in the near future and another one wouldn't be using the tracks for some time. AaaaaH! What to do? It is the only Subway that really went where I needed to go. I asked a police officer where Howard Beach Station (where I could get the other train to the airport), and to my surprise it was only about 6 blocks away. I was SO relieved! It really was a miracle!

There were many other panicky people on the Subway that were on their way to the airport. I basically led a parade of people to the station. When we got there this German lady thanked me and said she was glad I had done that before. Ha ha ha. I told her I hadn't and she asked how on earth I knew where to go. There is value in asking questions to those who have knowledge you are seeking. Also, using public transportation and finding my way around Brazil was the best training I could have asked for.

So yes, I am at home in Denver and start a crazy week of work immediately (3am each day: Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sun, Mon and Wed). I am going to be BEAT!