3x the Fun!

The fourth weekend of July came and went, but not before more friends from Iowa saw the city for themselves! Thursday night after work, I met two of my classmates from geology classes at Iowa State for a dinner in Times Square. Kyle was visiting his brother on the East Coast and came into New York to check out the sights. Kaylee got in to New York that morning and spent the day walking around before we all got together to dine and catch up. Of course there were lots of stories about the geology field camp I was at in Wyoming last summer, Kaylee was at earlier this summer, and Kyle will go next summer. Rock nerds, unite! :)

Kaylee, Kyle, and I in Times Square

I was expecting three guests to hang out with that weekend and the other two didn't get to the hotel in the city until after 1 in the morning. Flight delays will do that, I guess! Shannon and Craig, friends from high school, finally got to the hotel where they, along with Kaylee would be staying. They say spaces are small in New York, and this hotel room was no exception! 1 bed and we added an air mattress to accommodate everyone. No big deal :)

Friday I went to work while Kaylee, Shannon, and Craig got to know each other while they toured around Midtown. Entertainment was found in the Toys R Us store in Times Square, at the Top of the Rock at the Rockefeller Center, and down to Grand Central Station. I met the crew for lunch at a cafe in the Rockefeller Center before heading back down to Soho to work that afternoon.

Craig, a devoted Yankees fan, and I, a hater of the Yankees have always exchanged friendly banter regarding the baseball team. His trip was really to visit the new Yankee Stadium and go to a game while in town. While the ticket was a bit pricy, Craig and Shannon enjoyed the beauty of a major league baseball game in Yankee Stadium on Friday night. Having only been to the stadium once, Craig must truly be a fan- he remembered what subway train to get on- 4 train Uptown to 161st street!

Meanwhile, Natalie and I met after work and caught up with Kaylee and her friend, Charles, at Pier 46 on the Hudson River to watch Ghostbusters on the big screen. Kaylee met Charles earlier this summer while they were both at geology field camp in Wyoming. He is a native of the East Coast and now lives in Brooklyn. Kaylee and him ran circles around the Village on Friday afternoon seeing everything they could!

Later after the movie, Craig and Shannon made their way back from the Bronx after the game and we all met up at their hotel. Craig was in a good mood since the Yankees won, so of course we continued with the bantering. I had to give him a hard time about his Yankees shirt that was number 42 on the back- Jackie Robinson's number that is now retired, but not before current Yankee, Mariano Rivera snatched it up. Craig's shirt bore the famous number, but had his last name, Lamm, printed on the back. Clever, Craig. :)
The classy decorations in the Best Western hotel at 48th and 8th: the American Presidents. Kaylee, JFK is creeping on you!
Craig's mom, Carolyn's last words to her son were, "Take care of those girls, Craig." Hm. Well I won't say he wasn't a perfect gentleman, but shown clearly in this picture, it looks like wittle Craigy couldn't put in his own eye drops. Good thing our resident pharmacy student was on hand to properly medicate! Nice work, Shannon :)
Charles, Kaylee, Shannon, Craig, and I walked down on 8th Ave to Smith's to toast a drink to being in New York City together. The live band playing was, well, not the greatest...

Shannon and I

This was Kaylee's first trip to NYC!

Craig, you're smiling!

This is a little more like it...Craig goofing off :)
And as Shannon said, "this photo makes me feel a little nostalgic."

Charles and Kaylee

The Iowa gang- Kaylee, Craig, Shannon, and I

Saturday, while Shannon, Craig, and Kaylee went down to Battery Park City, Natalie and I went to a street fair. All of the street fairs are close to the same every Saturday morning. Sundress, scarves, sunglasses, jewelry, hats, etc. all sold for cheap- only in New York- prices. This table was a new sight I've seen at the street fairs. Don't be fooled- these plates don't hold real produce, but rather fake, plastic vegetables and fruit that are glued to magnets. Looks appetizing!

A shot of the street fair.

While walking along the street, Natalie and I noticed a vintage shop and decided to stop in and check it out. A friendly place, complete with a dog that sat on the rug, we deemed the prices waaaaay out of our range. Not exactly "vintage" prices.

I loved this dress in the vintage shop. Reminds me of the dress Julia Roberts wears in Pretty Woman. I called Mom and asked her to sew me clothes again like she used to when I was little. I think the begging worked... :)

Later that afternoon, we all caught up and went to a new place, Roosevelt Island. It is a skinny little island in the East River between Manhattan and Queens. This is a Google Image that looks north with Manhattan on the left, Roosevelt Island in the middle, and Queens to the right.

The Queensboro Bridge crosses Roosevelt Island, but the only way to get to the island, besides a single subway stop, is the tram car that is suspended on a wire above the bustling city below.

Kaylee, Shannon, Craig, and I inside the tram car above the streets of Manhattan.
After getting off the tram car, we walked past a baseball field. America's favorite pastime is everywhere!

Our whole purpose for going to the island was in search of some live music we saw advertised. Jones Street Station and Diane Birch put on a concert for the small (small for NY!) crowd gathered in the green space. It was once again nice to get out of the craziness of Manhattan for a couple of hours. My gray sheet is getting good use at these outdoor events!

Kaylee, Natalie, and Shannon finding seats in the grass.

NYPD on a Segway :)

Shannon and I visited the friendly man at one of the many fruit stands on the street. Fresh grapes and sweet cherries were the produce of choice for a snack that afternoon on Roosevelt Island.

Natalie and I sent Shannon, Craig, and Kaylee on the subway back to their hotel before meeting up for dinner. We took the tram car back since it's stop is just a few blocks up on 2nd Ave from our building. We didn't leave Roosevelt Island without taking a picture with the Queensboro Bridge.

The next few pictures were taken while in the tram car going back to Manhattan.

East River

1st Ave

2nd Ave

After getting off the tram car, Natalie and I were walking back to our building and while crossing one of the streets, a vehicle that normally wouldn't get a second glance out of a couple of Midwestern girls, took us both by surprise- a F150 pick-up truck was waiting for the crowds of people in the crosswalk to pass before making it's turn to the west. Haven't seen one of those in quite a long time! It stuck out like a sore thumb against the yellow taxi cabs.

For dinner that night, we took the guests to Blockheads, the Mexican restaurant down the street. The shaken margaritas were a tad on the strong side...

Kaylee and Shannon expressing their feelings about the margaritas, haha!

We entertained ourselves after a long day of walking by relaxing in the tiny hotel room on the west side of Manhattan. Natalie insisted on jumping on the bed. "It's a must in a hotel." :)

Sunday, I took the gang down to Little Italy for lunch at some genuine Italian pasta. Shannon and Craig enjoyed their dishes without a doubt.

The real highlight of the midday meal was the entertainment provided on the street next to our table. The younger guy in the white shirt worked for the restaurant we were eating at as a representative to get people to come in and eat. What a schmoozer! The other guy to the left of him in the yellow shirt worked for the restaurant across the street. You can understand the competition that was going on as they fought for the business of the innocent people walking down the street between their restaurants. It was highly entertaining to watch Mr. Yellow-Shirt get all worked up and call Mr. Young Guy a discriminator, etc. etc. etc. while Mr. Young Guy went about his business quietly drawing in the ladies from the sidewalks. Too funny. :)

One country to the next! After lunch, we walked into Chinatown where Craig was extremely excited because he recognized the sights after watching the movie and playing the video game,The Godfather. Impressive, Craig. haha

Kaylee, Hallie, Craig, and Shannon in the streets of Chinatown

We consulted the Not For Tourists book that has been leading me around all summer to find a street that is oddly angled and "has a decidedly otherworldly feel." No kidding! Doyers Street was slightly deserted, for Chinatown, and what do you know!? The Chinatown Station Post Office was on this odd street- fitting, don't you think? (Haha, just kidding, Dad!)

We stopped in a "candy" store after leaving the angled street and found things not in the category for candy, well at least we thought. They had sample dishes for anyone to try the "treats" in the store. Shredded Squid, anyone?

We walked up from Chinatown to St. Mark's Place in the East Village. The goods were plentiful and colorful in this Thai store.

Over spring break, we found a place called "Berry Happy Frozen Yogurt" in Encinitas, California. This place on St. Mark's Place in the East Village was pretty much the same- AWESOME. It was self-serve frozen yogurt with lots of flavors- cake batter, dutch chocolate, peanut butter, cheesecake, strawberry, green tea, pomegrante, etc. You took a cup, filled it up with as much as you wanted, and then went to the bar were there were toppings of everthing imaginable- lots of fresh fruit, chocolate, marshmallows, gummi bears, galore! Put it on the scale and pay only 35 cents an ounce- what a sweet treat!

Kaylee, Shannon, and I enjoyed our bliss in the form of frozen yogurt. Yum!
The colorful street lamps were a work of art in the East Village on St. Mark's Place:

"A Nation Once Again"

"East Village"

Us girls ended up on a bench together in the subway ride on the 6 train back up to Midtown while Craig was across on other side of the car. Perhaps out of exhaustion, we found it to be humorous watching Craig sit between regular New Yorkers in the subway car.

Craig and his first set of "friends" on the subway

More "friends" on the subway for Craig...it was a long ride.

No more subway friends by the last stop...Poor Craig. :)

Shannon and Craig flew home to Iowa on Sunday night (delays, many crosswords, and a drive from Kansas City to Panora and Omaha later, they finally made it by 4 and 5am on Monday morning- yikes!) Kaylee didn't fly home until Monday night so we, along with my suitemate, Jessica, used discounted tickets from my housing service and went to see a newly released movie- The Ugly Truth at an AMC Theater down in Kips Bay. $8 instead of the regularly priced $12.50 ticket! I got a kick out of the theater using dated movie posters to decorate the many hallways in the building. I wish I could go see The Little Mermaid in theaters on the big screen! :)

Monday morning, Kaylee and I got up in time for me to go to work for the day while she headed up to 81st street on the west side to visit the American Museum of Natural History. It's still on my to-do list! Kaylee called from LaGuardia while I was watching the Bachelorette finale (Natalie and I watched every episode on Monday nights together. It was a must because we are devoted fans to the show!) to say her flight had gotten cancelled, but she was staying in a hotel near the airport to catch the 6am flight the next morning. LaGuardia better get it together before I fly home in August!