New York, New York, it is a fabulous town. I am a New Yorker at heart, you can take the girl out of the city but you can’t take the city out of the girl.
It seems that the only time I have taken the “tourist” route in NYC, is when I was entertaining friends from out of town. What type of hostess would I be if I didn’t take my guest to the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Museum of Natural History, and Central Park?
My favorite time to visit the city is definitely during the Christmas season. Magically, the city loses the cold, industrial feel, and transforms into a place that is very warm and welcoming. The scene is set with a large snowflake of light, store window decorations and of course the large tree at Rockefeller Center. To me, Christmas is not the same if I don’t have the chance to visit Manhattan.
In December, 2007, I took my husband on the “tourist route”. We met up with a very dear friend of mine, Jennifer, and plotted our path though the city.
First stop was Macy’s, we had to visit Santa. I know, we might be a little too old for that, but who cares, we’re young at heart. There is a lot more involved than walking up to Santa, sitting on his lap, and telling him what you want for Christmas. The path to Santa is a long one, (patience is required). However, the Christmas display reminds me of Disneyworld, there are animated figurines, talking trees and elves. It is a visual overload. It is worth waiting in line, just to see this. At the end of the line, you get to take your picture with Santa. (If you want a copy, you have to pay for it, of course. Nothing is free, in NY). I recommend getting the CD. You can use the picture to make your own key chains and mugs later on if you want. It’s the better buy.
The next stop was FAO Schwartz. You are never too old to enjoy this store. The Lego displays there are awesome, you would be amazed at what you can make out of lego! I really liked the Star Wars figures. Then there is the life-sized keyboard, made famous by the movie “BIG”. Jen and I just had to check it out. Nevermind that there were only kids in line, we had to do it. (The line keeper told us that when there are no kids around, all of the adults come of the woodwork, and play). We tried to perform the song from “BIG”, we are both musically inclined, but it’s a lot harder than you think, (and we had to be careful not to knock any little kids down. There were a few close calls). So, when I edited the video that my husband took, I used that song as background music instead 
St Patrick’s Cathedral was next on the list. I have never attended Christmas mass there, but I always try to visit it around Christmas time. The architecture is so beautiful, and I like to light a candle and say a prayer. Not this time, we got more than we bargained for. I guess our mistake was to go into the side entrance. I thought it was strange that no one else was going in this way, (usually there are lots of people going in and out). As we entered, I said to Jen, maybe there’s a mass going on. When we opened the door, giggling about this possibility, that was exactly what was going on. It took a few seconds to sink in, then we carefully retreated.
Slightly mortified, but still laughing about it, we traveled on to the famous Rockefeller Center. It was packed, we had to weave in and out of the crowd to get close enough to take a picture. We didn’t linger there very long, there were too many people.
Our final destination was the Wollman Rink, at Central Park. Once again we encountered a long line, that is one of the drawbacks of making this trip so close to Christmas. It was definitely worth it. I had not gone ice skating in a long time, but it’s like riding a bike, it comes back to you. I managed to keep from falling, despite all of the people falling around me, (the rink was an obstacle course). Josh skated circles around us, but Jen and I were talking as we skated, so we were in no hurry.
After an hour or so, we left the rink, and stopped at a small coffee shop for a mocha and dessert. We wanted to go to “Serendipity”, one of Jen’s favorite places, but the line was long, and our tolerance level for waiting had worn thin.
Josh and I parted with Jen at Penn Station, and the memories I walked away with still make me smile.