Monday, August 8, 2011

Gazelles Take Manhattan–Day 3

Our second day in New York was admittedly more for me – shopping and afternoon tea.  Day three was Mr. Gazelle’s day!  We started our day with a trip to the American Museum of Natural History.  We picked up the all inclusive super saver tickets that would get us into the Hayden Planetarium, the IMAX shows and two special exhibits – The Brain and World’s Largest Dinosaurs.IMGP3852Check out how excited Mr. Gazelle is to see the show at the planetarium!IMGP3864In between special exhibits we checked out the rest of the museum.IMGP3851The museum is huge!!IMGP3896Ms. Gazelle even found the gazelles!  There was so much to see that it really is impossible to tackle it all in one day.  We were there on a weekday, but there were still huge groups of kids all visiting that day so it was pretty busy.

Gazelle’s top tip for seeing the museum?  Download the AMNH Explorer app before you go!  The museum has free wi-fi and this made it easy to get around and find things easily (like the bathrooms).

After the museum we made our way over to Rockefeller Center.  It was time to relax, grab a beverage and enjoy some sunshine at the Rink Bar.IMGP3972Beers are $9-$12, cocktails are $10-$13 and wines are $9-$17.  Drink specials from 5 pm onwards though!

We then visited the Top of the Rock.DSCN5816In the elevators on the way up!  While the Top of the Rock is not as high up as the Empire State Building, where else can you actually look at the Empire State Building?IMGP3995The views of Central Park were amazing too!IMGP3982Tickets for entrance to the Top of the Rock are timed and it never felt very crowded up there.DSCN5835This was one of our favourite things that we did in New York.  Thank you to all of the bees who suggested that we visit here!

It was back to the hotel for a quick change, and then on to dinner.  On our way we decided to stop and check out Grand Central Station quickly.DSCN5844Then on to Les Halles on Park Avenue for dinner!DSCN5846Les Halles is a Parisian style brasserie and also the home base for Anthony Bourdain.  We also just happened to be there on Bastille Day so it was insane!  The food was delicious – my steak with béarnaise sauce was cooked perfectly.DSCN5852We capped dinner off with crepes suzette, because nothing says romance on a honeymoon like food on fire!  DSCN5863Appetizers range from $7.75 – $19.50.  Entrees range $20-$36.  Wines run $39 and up, but select wines are 50% off on Mondays.

It was a short walk to the Empire State Building from the restaurant.  We thought we would check out the views from the top at night.  DSCN5892Check it out, I’ve got tickets!DSCN5872On Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights there is a live jazz saxophonist on the 86th floor.IMGP4038Even though it was about 11 pm it was still really busy up there – in fact it took us ages just to make it to the 86th floor.DSCN5882IMGP4041We decided to buy passes to the 102nd floor as well.  DSCN5889It is teeny tiny up there, but the highlight of the visit was the fellow in charge of the elevator to get up to the 102nd floor.  He was a hoot!

Day 3 was packed and we had a ton of stuff planned for our last full day in New York.  Time to get some rest!

Have you been to the Top of the Rock and the Empire State Building?  Which did you prefer?  I’d definitely recommend the Top of the Rock!!!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

You are making the city look so fun!