- Tuesday (11/12): Took an early train from the New Carrolton Amtrak station to Penn Station. Arrived at the New Carrolton station a little after 6 AM (still dark), and found plenty of parking available (the garage was almost empty). Thousands of crows were perched on the roof of the garage and in the nearby trees (lots of noise and movement of the birds from one place to another). The train was on time. I had two seats to myself all the way to NY, arriving there around 10:30 AM. I walked up Seventh Avenue to my hotel, the WestHouse on West 55th, where I dropped off my luggage (a daypack). It was very windy and chilly in the city (high 20s), and I was dealing with a lingering cold and cough. I walked from the hotel through Central Park (a few blocks north) to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where I spent the rest of the day (lunch in the museum). I walked back through the park as the sun was setting, then checked in at the hotel. After resting for a while (lovely room), I walked to the Szechuan Gourmet on West 56th for dinner.
- Wednesday (11/13): Up around 7 AM, showered, then headed to the hotel dining room for breakfast. Great buffet (including a large plate of lox). I went back to my room with a cup of coffee, after breakfast, and spent an hour or so planning the next two days. Around 10 AM, I walked back to the Met, and explored the museum until lunch (at the gallery). After lunch, I walked across Central Park to the American Museum of Natural History. Entering on the first floor, I found the museum very disappointing; the routine dioramas, drab lighting, poorly curated displays, lackadaisical staff, and was tempted to leave. Luckily, I stuck around to explore the other floors, which were all well worth the visit. After a few hours, I left the museum and strolled around the city for a while, then headed back to the hotel for a few hours of rest. Dinner again at the nearby szechuan restaurant. After dinner I checked the Amtrak schedule and pricing for an earlier train on Thursday (still feeling lousy from the cold), but the price for an earlier return trip would’ve been triple what I paid for the original ticket, so I decided to stick around.
- Thursday (11/14): Breakfast again at the hotel, then I packed up (left my daypack with the concierge), and headed back to the Met to see a few more exhibits. Around lunchtime, I walked to Lexington Avenue, stopped by a pizza place for a (very) large slice, then headed to the nearby subway station to take the train to Hudson Yards to check out the High Line walkway. I walked the length of the path, winding up near the Whitney (around sunset). From there I walked across town to Seventh Avenue and then north to my hotel (41 blocks). I stopped near the hotel for a cup of coffee, then grabbed my pack, and headed back south to Penn Station for the train home. I got back to New Carrolton (packed train until Philadelphia) around 11:30 PM.
Kerry Snow's Travel Blog (and other stuff)
