New York City - May 2025 |
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First a trip via
Amtrak to midtown Manhattan The BEST way to travel to "The Big Apple" As NYC natives, getting around by subway is easy for us A view of DC as we sped on by |
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Day
1 - We loved the new "congestion pricing" Midtown is now tremedously walkable and improved Much easier to visit local businesses and restaurants |
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We
walked uptown to Central Park and "ran" a bit to remember the old
days |
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The
Museum of Natural History and Hayden Planetarium was our destination Our photos are HERE |
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We
rode the subway back to midtown Very Interesting mosaics decorate the station |
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A
wonderful Mexican restaurant on "Cinco de Mayo"  |
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We
ended the day with a performance of HAMILTON! |
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Day
2 was "Brooklyn Day"
We took the subway downtown and walked across the Brooklyn Bridge |
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While
Joe had walked this bridge many times commuting from Brooklyn Polytech
to his Wall St job, I never did. I lived in Brooklyn and rode the subway all the way to Manhattan No reason to get off the train, walk across the bridge, get back on the train and ride to my destination - usually midtown or uptown Now we joined the other tourists on a rather rainy day More photos of our trek across the bridge are HERE |
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On
the Brooklyn side we took the subway to one of my old neighborhoods This is 4th Avenue where we would get the subway St Thomas Aquinas Church of my childhood is getting a makeover |
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We
lived on the 2nd floor of 192 Eleventh Street |
The
old neighborhood looks pretty good |
These
houses
that cost around $10,000 in the 1950s are now selling at well over 1 Million Dollars! |
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Lunch was at "Baba's Pierogies" |
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Back
to Broadway to end our day with another great show. "SIX" - The 6 Wives of Henry VIII tell their own story |
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Day
3 was our QUEENS DAY Joe & I both lived and met in this borough of NYC |
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On
our way to the subway Joe's Grandmother Josephine Beck |
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We
took the Subway to Woodhaven, Queens
Our first stop was Schmidt's Candy Store founded in the 1925 by Joe's great grandmother's brother It is still owned and operated by his descendants |
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Next
we walked to my old house on 101st Street, the 1st block of Richmond
Hill My Dad Frank Paukstis did that brickwork |
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Some old industrial buildings on 101st St have been replaced with a Magnet School |
My
mother used to work for Endo Labs in one of those buildings The Pipe Factory was the other Now they are condos |
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We
continued walking along Park Lane South toward the "Triangle" where Jamaica, Hillside and Myrtle Avenues meet with Lefferts Blvd The old diner on the Triangle has been updated We had great Greek food including "Baklava Cheese Cake" a delicious, unique dessert |
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We
continued walking along Hillside Ave toward 139th Street, the 1st Street
into Jamaica, Queens
We passed the stately old Republican Club with its "Oligarchs" Dining Room Was being an OLIGARCH once considered being a GOOD thing? |
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Joe's
grandmother Elizabeth Backofen owned these two houses |
She
earned extra income from signs painted on the side of her house |
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Joe
lived at 8786 |
"Nana"
lived at 8784 |
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Back
in Manhattan we ended our evening with another Broadway Show "Pirates" - An adaptation of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Pirates of Penzance" Before the show those of us in line early were escorted to a reception area including a "pirate" themed cannon |
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