Lady Liberty, Top of NYC and Book of Mormons

Day 2 was simply, STATUE OF LIBERTY. We made our way all the way to the ferry and after a rigorous security check, we boarded the ferry to Liberty Island. It was a relatively cold morning and was not the best day due to the large fog cover over Manhattan. However, it was better than the predicted rainy day we were supposed to experience so i was very thankful. When we arrived, we slowly walked around the Statue, reading parts of her history everyday. The Iconic Statue of Liberty was really a sight to behold. She was regularly featured on TV, both fiction and non-fiction as well as synonymous with the USA and the ideals of freedom. To finally get to see her up close in real-life was an absolute privilege. I was just so incredibly happy 🙂

We took a lot of photos walking around and eventually heading up to the viewing gallery. The view of Manhattan was stunning for me, not so much for my family as they had seen this view the day before on their tour on the boat. After saying farewell to Lady Liberty (not easy), we headed to Ellis Island. This island was the place immigrants came before they were allowed into the country and unsurprisingly, there were a whole museum dedicated to the immigrants that came to America. The photo opportunity at Ellis Island was endless and we dutifully took advantage of that. We were completely exhausted by our adventure but we still had an important dinner reservation. So we headed back to the hotel to rest for an hour or so, before heading to the famous steakhouse known as Peter Luger’s. It was a pricey place but the steak was one of the best i had ever had. That steak was just….amazing.

We left the restaurant in Brooklyn quite late and thus we all ended up sleeping pretty late as well.

Day 3 started with the Empire State Building. After packing up our hotel room (we were gonna move hotels), we headed out to see the Empire State Building (just a 5 min walk from The Gregory). However, we did not expect the hour long wait to get to the top, which, in hindsight we should have expected. However, it was not dull as we had a lively conversation as a family and there were many interesting facts about the building as we walked through the line. Eventually, we did reach the top and the view was worth the wait. It was so spectacular, being able to see all the way to the ends of Brooklyn. Every big landmark building in NYC was visible. The part that i found most important was that i finally felt that i was in the city i had always dreamed about visiting. I had finally arrived in NYC, the cultural heart of the free world (in my humble opinion).   Once again, i absolutely loathed to leave but we had to as we spent our entire morning there and it was about time to check in to our new hotel. After picking our bags, we made our way to the much anticipated Mariott Marquis hotel. This hotel was on Broadway and next to Times Square! To make it even better, our room had a view of Times Square!!! It was just so awesome, i really could not believe it. By time we were settled in, it was around 430 and we had our Broadway play at 7, so we had to rest for that. Thanks to our awesomely placed hotel, we were on Broadway so when we exited our hotel the famous Broadway shows were all there. Lion King was literally just below our hotel!

It took us about 5 minutes to get to the Theatre for…..BOOK OF MORMONS! My brother picked out this play due to the fact that it was never going to be shown in Singapore due to the content it had. The theatre was nice but the play was just mind-blowing. I had no idea what the play was about at all, so i was just blown away. It took shots at religion in general (even though the show was about mormons) and it was amazing. The story was fantastic as it kept drawing my intrigue. The singing and dancing left me speechless. It was clever, funny and just…WOW. At the end, i had to get a poster and get it signed by all the stars that came out to greet the fans.  WHAT A DAY!