Our trip to New York began on Saturday. We found and booked a pretty good inexpensive hotel and we got a rental van for 8 people during the week. So, we loaded our selves in this van at 6 o'clock. It was rather comfortable drive. Vitaminych drove all the way, despite some attempts to change him. We spent one hour for a breakfast in side road cafeteria. We arrived at the hotel about 11.30 a.m. Looks like, only the road took 3 hours and a half. Our hotel was between 34th Street and 6th avenue in Manhattan next to Empire State building. We parked our car and went for a walk. During the rest of Saturday we saw Broadway, Time Square, Central Park, Columbus Monument, 5th Avenue, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick Church, some stores, restaurants and the rest of Manhattan from the top of Empire State Building at night. It was a long line to get up and down from there. Otherwise, everything was great. We even had time to eat in Greenwich Village, where university campus atmosphere added more charm to the evening.
It was one but large suit for all of us. We could've canned even more people in there. It had kitchen, two big rooms, a lot of closets, two bathrooms and two TVs. There were two beds in one room and large sofa in the other one. Nevertheless, they brought up one more bed for us. Everybody had enough space.
We woke up at 8, ate our breakfast at the nearest bistro and realized that it was cold and windy, despite the sun and clear sky. Well, we were forced to buy hats. We quickly found our way to the ferry to Freedom Island, where we parked our van. Ferry ride lasted just a few minutes, while we was taking some pictures of Manhattan. Once we arrived we walked around. We could've walk up on the Stature of Liberty pedestal, but we've decided to save 45 minutes and parking time was almost over anyway.
Afterwards, we drove to Briton Beach to check up the local Russian community. Well, the poorest and saddest Russian place I never saw. Old two-story houses-stores or houses-restaurants formed a street, above which at the second story level an open metro steel path was built. It was lunchtime and we went to the one of the Russian restaurants called Kavkaz. Menu was extensive, but following one of the Russian restaurant tradition the dish I was thinking about they advised not to take. They point on veal kebob (shashlyk) instead, which was great, likewise our other dishes including Russian dumplings (pelemeny). The overall service, the interior and the restrooms are just like in a restaurant in Russia. The feeling that you are in US quickly disappeared (may it was the point). We spent another hour in the electronic shops on this street. After 4 or 5 of them we understood that everything is rather inexpensive, but you've got to know what you want exactly, because they sell all kind of standards there.
One more thing, one of us wanted to drink and we walk into the local food store. Well, we walk out of there even faster. The smell was far beyond any possibility to explain. Moreover, some people even formed a line in there, may be because they were accepting the food stamps. It was while everybody in Russia forgot both the food stamps and the lines. So, we run away from the "store". Well, they brought with them to US not only the best memories or maybe they are sick for the old times and found them in the food stamps again.
People speak Russian on the streets. Fruits and vegetables sold in the street shops priced much less than in Maryland. However, it seams that nobody likes the credit cads here. Cash only.
Anyway, we run back to the van dusk, which you can't see. By the way, the highway itself costs some amount. Every 30-50 miles we paid anywhere $1 to $7. It was only five o'clock, but blue sky quickly changed its color to black and the whole way back we ride in the dark. We got into serious traffic jam somewhere around Philadelphia right between New York and Washington. We spent there are good 45 minutes, before exit to some alternative rout with some traffic lights and 50 miles per hour speed limit. We came back to Washington around 23.00 pretty tired not much from the whole trip but from the last ride.
Another trip to New York with our friends Tanya and Dima has been even more pleasant. It has added Broadway shots, Battery Park, and Metropolitan museum pictures.
