June 10

I started the day with a run. I had planned to do some running in Central Park and the day was absolutely gorgeous, ordered perfectly for a run - about 75 with a gentle breeze. I loved running in Central Park. Loved it. I only ran a little over three miles because our day was too full to allow more time on the trails but it was wonderful and fed my soul.

Today, our plan was to visit Liberty and Ellis Island. We decided to get a cab this time and not drive ourselves. It was a little too much fun for us the day before. Besides, you can't come to New York without the cab ride experience. UGH. Not fun. Horrible car. Horrible driver. We did arrive in one piece but that was about it - and it cost a fortune. But we are used to that by now. Everything does. We boarded the Statue Cruise ferry - after standing in line of course - and we were on our way. The ferry ride was gorgeous. New York is a beautiful city. And I guess 8,000,000 people are in agreement about that. I loved seeing the Statue of Liberty. It is so awe-inspiring and once again, I felt very emotional standing there looking at her and thinking about what this statue has meant to so many people. We walked around Liberty Island, enjoyed the beauty, grabbed some lunch and then boarded the ferry for Ellis Island. I could have skipped Ellis Island and Avi really could have skipped it. But David really wanted to see it so see it we did. It was interesting. We stood in the rooms where 12 million immigrants passed for health inspections and to see if their paperwork was in order to allow them to enter the United States. Ellis Island also has a museum of history which allows you to see the pattern of immigration and the way America has been peopled for centuries. It doesn't try to hide the atrocities of America either - the slave trade and the destruction of the native Americans. If you are a history buff, you cannot miss this place. It shows the good, the bad and the ugly in the history of immigration and how America grew to be the nation we know today.

We boarded the ferry and headed back to Battery Park in New York. When we got off, there was a group of young black men doing a street show that we stopped and watched. They were amazing acrobats and did a pretty good job of working the crowd as amateurs and getting a little bit of money out of the crowd. Very New York.

Back to the street to find another cab, we finally got one to stop for us and crawled in. Our first stop was a restaurant for David - he was meeting the three members of his quartet from almost forty years ago when he was at New England Conservatory. When we got there, the cabbie informed us that he couldn't take Avi and I to the hotel because it was time for him to finish his shift. We were pretty disgusted as we had told him what we needed prior to entering the cab, but whatever, it was two miles away and I was fine with walking at that point. Walking back to our hotel was one of the more unusual experiences of my life - we were literally in a sea of people that moved along the sidewalk. You could not walk quickly. There was no room. At one point, we were in a group of women that were painted like flags and completely naked except for a lacy little loin cloth. Avi looked at me and asked if that was legal. I told him we were in Times Square, maybe anything was legal. We finally got home and it was yet another adventure.

But we weren't done yet! Avi and I decided to go rent bikes and bike around Central Park. It was awesome! But by now, I have run 3.5 miles, walked about 4 miles and biked about 8 miles. And there hasn't been much time to eat - just a quick bite at Liberty Island. Avi and I were ready for a BIG dinner. We ate at an amazing restaurant - filet mignon and finished it off with lime pie and crème brulee. Ah, New York, we love you but glad we don't have to live with you all the time. Leaving for Boston tomorrow.