NYC Trip: Day 1

This is a picture of D and I driving at 6am the morning after his company Christmas Party....excited....but looking a little....um...uh...rough.... : )

During our visit we stayed with my aunt and uncle who live on the Jersey Shore. They live about an hour and fifteen minutes outside of the city. When they visit NYC they take a bus..now I'm not talking about a dirty, smelly, public bus...I'm talking about a $30 per ticket, cushy seated, tour bus. So we all loaded up on Monday morning (bright/early) and took the bus into the city. When we walked out of the bus station this is what greeted us.

I gasped. This view to me = Hello, Welcome to New York!

Here we are right smack dab in the middle of Times Square. If you look closely you will see that the New Years ball and 2009 sign are still on top of this tower thingy. D's only request of our NYC visit was that we eat everything in sight and gain 10 lbs. So our first stop was to John's Pizzeria for some DELICIOUS, authentic, pizza. yum! yum!

I was a bad blogger and ate my pizza right up before even thinking to take a picture. THE Tree in Rockerfeller Plaza

D and me in front of THE treeUncle J, Aunt M and Cousin J in front of THE TreeAfter taking 20 million pictures and craning our necks to get a good view of The Tree at Rockefeller Plaza we bopped across the street to St. Patrick's Cathedral. Oh my gosh! What a beautiful, beautiful church. At one point in time it was the largest Catholic Church in North America. It's gorgeous.

I teared up walking inside. D and I lit a candle and said a prayer.Then we walked over to Radio City Hall to see The Rockettes! This is the lobby at Radio City. LOOK, at that chandelier!

I teared up again.

All the beauty and Christmas stuff was overwhelming.

Too much Christmas for me!

The show was truly, indeed, spectacular. D and I waited until everyone left the theater to take this picture.

I love love love it! Outside was a replica of the Swarovski Crystal Star that sits on top of the Rockefeller Tree.

ohh! Sparkly! Halley loves!After all the Christmas excitement a sugar break was needed. Luckily for us, Dylan's Candy Bar was ready and waiting.

Now...if you have never been to or heard of Dylan's Candy Bar it is the largest candy store in the world. Yes, THE WORLD. The store offers more than 5,000 different selections of candy. Dylan Lauren (the store owner) is the daughter of legendary fashion designer Ralph Lauren and artist/photographer Ricky Lauren. We went upstairs to the cafe, where I ordered this:Which made me hyper:Here is D on the subway. Next stop: The Saks Fifth Ave Christmas Displays!! Here is my favorite, favorite Christmas Window: Shoe Heaven!!

A shoe Christmas Tree! How creative!
Finally we cooled our heels and met up with my other cousin and her boyfriend for dinner at Becco's.
Here's a bit of info about the restaurant:

The name Becco is derived from the Italian verb beccare, which means to peck, nibble or savor something in a discriminating way.

Lidia Bastianich & her son, Joseph, opened Becco in the theater district in 1993. It is best known for its acclaimed $17.95 pre fix lunch menu & $22.95 pre fix dinner menu that includes a large assortment of Italian antipasti or a classics Caesar salad together with unlimited tableside servings of our 3 daily pasta preparations (That's what we got!- Shrimp Alfredo, Ziti in a classic red sauce, and Mushroom Ravioli in Truffle Butter).

After a long day of walking and sight seeing we were more than ready for bed!

Stop back tomorrow for Day 2.

-H