The Big Apple

Gui, Christine, and Nina Ferreira

New York Deli

Debbie, her son, Lou, Kristin, and Ashley

The NY Skyline

At last I can check off something on my "Bucket List." Ever since Matt and Brian brought Trader past the Statue of Liberty and Manhattan, I've wanted to do the same thing. We've cruised the NY harbor and dodged the ferry and cruise boats for a water view of this amazing city with a local who told us what we were seeing.

What a thrill to come down the Hudson River and pass the entire west side of Manhattan! We sailed up to the East River, around the Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island, drove through the incredible traffic of the city with our personal tour guide, Debbie, and even ate lunch at a real NY deli. What a nice day.......except for the heat. It must be in the 90s again with 100% humidity. Our marina in Jersey City looks across to the NY skyline.

We've been able to spend time with my nephew, Steve, and his family (we missed Lori though), and his neighbor, Debbie, and her son & daughter. Debbie was our guide, and I must say she shared her love of the city. We can't thank her enough for driving us around. She is my hero for her driving skills and non-stop narration.

Between the ferries in the NY harbor and the cars on the island and the hundreds (or so it seemed) diners in Katz deli it's easy to get a feel for the millions of people living in such a small space. I'm not sure what is the most impressive thing.......seeing the NY skyline from the water, looking across the Hudson at night at all the lights, or "sneaking out" of the harbor before the crack of dawn while the city is still asleep. I loved it all!

A true highlight of our stay in Jersey City was having dinner with Gui, our first exchange student, and his wife, Christine, and 3 year old daughter, Nina. He lived with us 20 years ago in East Lansing. We plan to meet them again in Connecticut this weekend. (Nine speaks 3 languages and she's only 3.)

August 20, 2009

We left NY at 5:30 am today to get the incoming tide in the East River. I haven't figured this high and low tide stuff out yet, but Lou's timing worked! Through Hells Gate and into Long Island Sound we were going 11 knots and no slower than 9 knots over the land. Towns were closer than we're used to in Michigan, so we had to keep a close eye on the charts and the road map. What a neat experience.