Parents - Welcome to New York!We've spent the first couple of days seeing the sights and now it's time to do what we came for . . . Rehearse & Compete! We're at the Morristown New Jersey Stake Center right now warming up for a four hour rehearsal.
But let's begin at the beginning - where you dropped them all off at the airport.
It was all chit chat and energy in Phoenix - getting checked in, a first experience going through security for some, and finding our gate. The "red-eye" flight was three hours and landed us in Atlanta Georgia at 5 am (2 am Good Ol' Gilbert Time). The kids were excited and some managed to make the whole flight without a wink of sleep. Kids Kids Kids. With a three hour layover, some took a nap on the floor, some got breakfast, while the rest of us just sat in the chairs with a dazed look on our faces :-) Our football star Matt managed to peg Sis Hunt while playing catch in the empty corridor with Afonso and Scott. Not sure if it was Afonso's catching, Matt's throwing, or Sis Hunt's timing who
saw them playing and tried to get across between tosses. It was all in good fun :-)Our flight from Atlanta to Philadelphia was another two hours - with almost everyone immediately asleep once their heads hit the window or shoulder of their friend. Wednesday morning still felt like Tuesday, but we made it! We met the bus, and Kenny our new best friend and bus driver drove us to our hotel in New Jersey. After settling in, it was back on the bus and into the city. Cool sites! The Empire State building was immediately recognizable. We passed Time Square and lots of yellow taxi cabs. Driving in New York is quite the experience - it's amazing the little spaces that Kenny can fit through and the cars and pedestrians that are willing to take on a full-sized bus. Yellow lights seem to mean speed up and Red lights generally let through an extra car or two. Driving in New York is definitely not a high speed adventure, however. The average speed in the city is 17 miles per hour (according to our Thursday tour guide, Jonah).
Our dinner was a group barbecue at Dave's Texas Barbecue. Yum Yum Yum! And as loaded a plate as we've seen since Uncle Joe at our last family reunion. Ribs, Chicken, To-Die-For Cornbread, and a literal mountain of fries. There was another performing group there and it was fun to see the energy in the room.
After dinner it was on to Broadway! The theater district was fascinating with billboards for all the famous shows. (Although the New York version of a billboard is 5 times larger, attached to the building, and sometimes a huge video screen.) We saw Mary Poppins. Incredible. Tim directed the kids to watch for the choreography and timing and energy on the stage. The show was familiar with our favorite Mary Poppins songs, but with lots of added Broadway extras. Mary Poppins flew across the stage and over the entire audience. The theater itself was beautiful. It was a late night as we headed back to the hotel for some sleep in a real bed!
Thursday was a day in New York City. After breakfast we headed to the Jersey side of the harbor to get to the Statue of Liberty. (p.s. If any of you got a schedule, we most certainly did not get up at 6 and out by 7 after two nights with little sleep) Tim suggested we get some rest, so we left at 9. The boat ride over was a little chilly, but the rest of the day was gorgeous. Ellis Island was our first stop. Tim reminded the kids about the history there and we broke into groups and toured the building. It was fascinating to see the process the immigrants went through to enter this country. Thousands a day went through medical inspections, interviews, and lots of waiting to enter the country. Those with disease recovered in a hospital while their families waited for them. There were 355 births on the Island. Some (only about 2 percent) had to be sent back because of communicable diseases or the probability that they would become wards of the state because they couldn't care for themselves. Gave us all something to think about. Next stop was a photo shoot on Liberty Island in front of the New York skyline and the Statue of Liberty. We all ran to catch the boat to New York, but the lines were too long, so we ended up waiting another 30 minutes. However, even waiting in lines can be fun with this group.
We met our bus in New York, and a tour guide named Jonah jumped on with us for a few hours. When we got off the bus, we just had to follow his bright green Star Wars Jedi light saber. On the tour we saw the unique ways New Yorkers (especially Manhattaners) use space. Got a little space between high rises, build a soccer field. Got a stretch of land a few feet wide all along the water's edge - build a 6 mile long park just wide enough for a few strollers and joggers and an occasional playground. Find abandoned railroad tracks running above the city (this was not near the sky scrapers, but was literally above many of the buildings, winding it's way through town) - build yet another park with cute benches and trees. Jonah guided us through all of Manhattan. We saw the memorial in progress for the twin towers and the new buildings going up around them. We saw the famous buildings of New York. We saw Central Park (and may be able to visit on Friday afternoon after rehearsal). We saw Lincoln Center and Julliard which just happen to be right next to the Manhattan Temple. That was our best stop of the day. The Manhattan Temple is the only temple built inside another building. The first floor is the baptistry and entrance. The second floor is the public relations building. The third floor is a regular chapel
complete with the same carpeting, furniture, and cultural hall. The fourth through sixth floors are the rest of the temple. They do have a Moroni on top. The peace and quiet inside are remarkable compared to the traffic noises just outside the doors. We ended the evening with New York pizza and on back to the hotel.
Friday, so far, has been a rehearsal day. As the words of the song I'm listening to right now as I blog say, "This joint is jumpin'" - even if it is the Morristown New Jersey stake center we are in.
There are so many pictures, far too many to post on this blog. To view all our photos go to lightentco gmail account and look under photos.
What we've learned:
The energy level of teenagers goes up as their hours of sleep go down
New York Pizza is as good as you hear (even if Tim does call it unleavened bread with sauce)
Given an Embassy Suites breakfast buffet with cook-to-order omelets, french toast, eggs, bacon, sausage, bagels, pastries, etc., some kids will still choose Fruit Loops for breakfast.
Minnie is the queen of all things photography
Jonah the Tour Guide when he caught a stranger on the street staring at him "What - you've never seen a Jedi before?"
New Yorkers aren't really mad at you, they just sound like it.
Manhattan streets really are paved with gold. Oops - those were yellow taxis.
The Empire State Building is Green on Saint Patricks Day. No really . . . it is.
7 buildings were actually destroyed in 9-11, not just 2.
Pedestrians are not afraid of 30 foot buses or almost anything else.
Track practice does occur on the streets of New York. Or was that an audition for Mr. Incredible?
When a visitor told the Temple President they'd come to see the Temple Grounds, he said "You're looking at them" pointing to the 10 foot entrance between the building's outer doors and the doors of the temple.
