Philly and the Big Apple

We made the trip out to Philadelphia again this year to visit Conner's sister's family. We had tons of fun just hanging out for a few days. We ran the Kennet 5K again this year and actually shaved 4 minutes off last year's time...whoo hoo, I can run a ten-minute mile! Thanks to Shannon and Steve for their hospitality. We can't wait to come out again soon. We then took a bus to New York for the rest of our trip. We were trying to save some money, so we took advantage of the public transit system. We were 30 minutes late for the bus due to a marathon that we didn't know would clog up traffic so badly. Luckily, much to the dismay of the other passengers, the bus waited for us. Conner and I had to sit at opposite ends of the bus, a man fumigated the bathroom right behind me five minutes into the trip (don't worry, he apologized saying, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to unleash that stench"), we had a little Asian bus driver that hit the gas then the brake then the gas then the brake the whole trip, we got stuck in traffic due to a car that was up in flames, and I sat next to a man studying Arabic (I was really hoping he wasn't going to blow up the bus). But luckily, somehow, we made it to the big city safely.
This pastrami and corned beef sandwich is called the "Woody Allen". It is from the most famous deli in New York City-Carnegie Deli...it made us sick for days.
This was my 3rd time visiting the Statue of Liberty, but every time it takes my breath away. I love what she stands for. It is a great reminder of how lucky we are to live in such a wonderful country.
We went over to Ellis Island and took an audio tour through the museum. This is where all the immigrants had to stop in order to gain entry into the United States. It was so humbling to hear and see what they had to go through.
We strolled up and down Canal Street and stopped for dinner in Little Italy. I ate the best ravioli I have had in my entire life.
Of course, you can't go to New York without going to a Yankee game. Conner had been waiting to use his tickets to the game since Christmas. We took a tour of the entire stadium. Conner was in 7th heaven.
This is the jersey babe Ruth wore when he pointed to left field, signifying the home run ball he would hit on the very next pitch.


A real Yankee locker...do they really need their own personal flatscreen?
All of these baseballs are signed by Yankee players. They are still trying to track down signatures from every player ever to wear a Yankee jersey.
Monument park out in center field.

The Yankee dugout. This is where they store their helmets and bats.
Conner pretending to be a real Yankee.
Calling the bullpen...Send in Rivera!



In his true element.
We got to the game early to watch batting practice and were able to see some of the greats. This is the one and only, Derek Jeter.
Manager Joe Girardi and Nick Swisher.
Mariano Rivera.
C.C. Sabathia.

That night we watched a great game between the Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. Fans were crazy. A few guys were kicked out in the 3rd inning and the crowd was going wild. The Yankees won with a walk-off homerun. It was fantastic.
The next day we went to Times Square to get discount tickets to a broadway show. It rained cats and dogs...ALL DAY! We stood in line in the pouring rain for an hour and a half to get tickets to Mary Poppins. Before the show, we went to Dave Letterman. We won free tickets on the street and were looking forward to getting out of the rain. Too bad we were soaking wet and they pumped the air conditioning the whole time. It was fun though to see a live taping. We were part of the "chosen group" who got to sit in the first couple rows and laugh like crazy every time Dave said anything that was relatively funny. It was actually rather tiring. By the time we got to Mary Poppins we looked like this...
I had to take off my shoes, ring out my socks, and sit on my cold feet the whole time. It was worth it though because the show was incredible. We sat on the second row, the music was fantastic, and the rain could no longer dampen our spirits. Overall we had a great time, but we learned some important lessons. Vacations are much more expensive without parents, don't take the bus when you can take the train, priceline doesn't always guarantee good mattresses in the hotel (we slept on the floor the last night), and make sure you get off the subway at the right place-things can get a little scary. Thanks to our parents who have taken us and will continue to take us so many wonderful places throughout the world. We will forever be grateful for your sacrifices in getting us there. Conner and I kept saying to each other..."Everything is so expensive...we're not taking our kids anywhere!" We love and appreciate our wonderful parents who have taught us so much...we are just beginning to understand.