{TEEN Trip} New York City - Day 2

Since we got to bed pretty late last night, we scratched our plans for an early trip into the city and a morning walk on The High Line... 

That'll have to wait for the next trip...

Instead, knowing that we have another early morning tomorrow, we took it easy...

and made it to town for a late lunch at one of my favorites, El Vez, that's very close to the new One World Trade Center building...

where they were kind enough to serve me their cauliflower tacos, even though they are usually reserved for the dinner menu only...

{I seriously dream about these tacos...they are so good!}

After lunch, we headed over to One World Observatory... 

to take in the sights from atop the highest building in the Western Hemisphere...

Back down on the ground...

we walked through the 9/11 Memorial...

There's really nothing to say to do this justice... There's just so much to take in, and it's still so hard to fathom...

From there we headed back to Grand Central Terminal and caught the train out to Uncle B and Aunt E's new home in Hastings-on-Hudson...

B enjoyed getting the grand house tour from his cousins, A & E, and being celebrated once again with a surprise cake...

as we enjoyed dessert with the cousins before heading off to dinner at Maud's Tavern with Uncle B and Aunt E...

Uncle B was kind enough to drive us back to our friends' house for the night...

Another great day!

{TEEN Trip} New York City - Day 1

To say we packed it in today would be a gross understatement, I'd say!

We hit the road running, arriving at the Today Show Plaza bright and early...

 {Notice the temperature ~ Coincidence? I think not!}

B snagged a picture with Savannah...

and after the anchors went back inside, a nice employee let us inside the gates to get a proper picture with our signs...

We loved getting pics from a few committed friends back home, too!

From the plaza, we headed on over to the Shop at NBC Studios to warm up a bit before our 9:00 tour...

While we were sadly not allowed to take any photos while on the actual tour, we had SO MUCH FUN going on the Tour at NBC Studios!

We learned a lot about the inside workings of some of the shows we know and love and visited the sets of Nightly News with Lester Holt (Studio 3C), Saturday Night Live (Studio 8H), and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (Studio 6B) before getting the opportunity to try our hands at our own talk show, On Air at NBC Studios, along with the other guests on our tour. B got to play the role of the "guest" and LOVED it!

After a quick stop in Nintendo NY...

we headed uptown to grab lunch at Burger Joint NY, a true "hole in the wall" located behind a draped red curtain in the fancy lobby of the Parker New York hotel...

From there, we took a chilly walk through the edge of Central Park...

over to Dylan's Candy Bar...

After a real SWEET time, we booked it back down to Rockefeller Center...

and warmed up in the Lego Store...

before meeting in the lobby for our Rockefeller Center Tour...

Our guide was really great, and we learned a little bit about both the history and the art of the complex, along with some information about the Rockefeller family, too...

before heading straight up to the Top of the Rock...

After watching the sun begin to set, we bid farewell to Rockefeller Center...

{hard to believe that we were just at the TOP of that building!}

and walked down to Grand Central Terminal for dinner at the famous Grand Central Oyster Bar and Restaurant...

where B...

ordered...

BOTH a lobster...

AND half a dozen oysters...

PHEW...

After dinner, we headed back towards Times Square to meet up with Hubby for B's FIRST (official) Broadway Show (and mine, too!) ~ The Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic Theatre...

The Phantom of the Opera opened HERE just over 31 years ago on January 26, 1988, and is currently the longest running production in Broadway history!

So, that's one of the reasons I picked it for B's (and my) FIRST (official) Broadway Show...it's also one of Hubby's favorites...

You just can't go wrong with a classic...

 {I have binders FULL of playbills from all of the (touring) shows that I have seen, but I am truly SO EXCITED to finally have one with the iconic yellow PLAYBILL heading!}

{Hubby has arrived!}

What a show!

We walked back through Times Square...

grabbed the luggage that our hotel was gracious enough to store for the day, booked it back to Grand Central Terminal, and caught a late train to our dear friends' home in Connecticut.

More on tap for tomorrow!