Elbug10's NYC Weekend w/ the Stars March 3-7, 2005 Day1, part 2 UPDATED 5/23! About This Page:

[loobyoxlip]

Lisa, that sounds like such a great time. I can't wait to hear more details back!

[GoofyMom]

I hope you feel better soon, Lisa!

How cool was your weekend. Yeah, yeah, plays in NYC, bla, bla, bla. The REAL cool stuff is Ryan Lavery, Ian Thornehart, Caleb Morley, (yeah I'm still bitter about PC being cancelled ) and Marcie!!! I cannot wait to see those photos!

[wdwlovers]

That sounds soooo awesome Lisa! I am so jealous! Can't wait for all the nitty gritty details!!

[BabieeMelly]

I'm glad you had a great time! What did you think of the NBC Studio Tour?? Was anyone famous there?? My dad works there and we go up all the time to mee whoevers on SNL, Conan or the Today Show. We wave as the tour groups go by, lmao. I can't wait for some pics!

[Colexis Mom]

What a great time you had Lisa Can't wait for all the details

[elbug10]

<font color="blue"> Day 1, Thursday March 3, 2005 </font>

Act I Scene 1: The Train Station
After very little sleep the previous night, I woke up the day of my trip with a tickle in my throat feeling like I was coming down with a cold. I started the Zicam spray right away, and I think that prevented me from feeling sick the rest of the weekend (well, that and all the adrenaline I was on!) My Dad had offered to take me to breakfast and then drop me off at the train station, so we agreed that he would meet me at my house at 8:00 a.m. The train was leaving at 9:56 a.m. and it takes about 5 minutes to get to the station from my house, but I also needed to stop at the bank to cash my paycheck. All the previous week, I had been checking Amtrak’s website for train status, and all week long it had been running at least 20 minutes late. I was hoping it would run a little late today so that I could have a bit more time to get things done. Of course, today was the day they decided to be on time.

As is typical, I wasn’t quite ready at 8 and called him to tell him to make it 8:30. He also told me THAT MORNING (talk about short notice) that he needed my tax info to take to his accountant, who prepares both of our taxes. After momentary panic and some last minute running around I was able to locate most of the paperwork he needed and he picked me up at 8:30. We went to Denny’s for breakfast, where I had the Meat Lover’s Skillet special, $4.99 and a large glass of orange juice.. Dad had corned beef hash, I think. Next, a quick stop at the bank to cash my paycheck for some spending money and we arrived at the train station at about 9:25 to catch the 9:56 train to NYC.

Amtrak’s policy for trains on the Northeast Corridor where I live is that you have to make a reservation. Normally, I do this over the internet at their website, www.amtrak.com, but Dad had given me an Amtrak Gift Certificate for Christmas and we were told that to use this, the reservations had to be made via phone (I 800 USA RAIL). So, I had my reservations, and a confirmation number, but no tickets. I could’ve picked those up prior to my trip, but I don’t drive and the train station is a little out of the way to get to for me. So I needed to pick up my tickets. Luckily, there was no line when I got there, but the Amtrak ticket agent didn’t seem to know how to cash in the voucher, and it took him a long time to figure it out. The line formed behind me, and I was a little embarrassed that I was holding other people up. It took at least five minutes for him to print out my tickets and the remaining credit on my gift certificate, but finally he finished and I was set to go. I still had about 10 minutes until the train came, so I left my bags with Dad while I went to the Ladies Room. It was so nice to have someone to watch my stuff so I didn’t have to take it in there with me, especially since I had 2 bags-one disadvantage of traveling alone!

They announced the train, and Dad gave me a kiss goodbye and told me to be safe and have a fun weekend. I walked out to the platform and for the first time that morning realized how chilly it was; I think about 15 degrees! I had opted for fashion over function and worn my wool dress coat rather than my nice warm anorak. I would regret this on Friday walking in NYC, but that comes later in our story. The train arrived about 5 minutes late and I get on, struggling with my bags. Again, this would be a recurring theme for the weekend. I didn’t think I had over packed, but I needed 5 days of clothes, three pairs of shoes and also my sleep machine for sleep apnea. As I stepped up onto the train, I realized how slippery it was. There was at least a foot of snow on the train steps! I thought this was odd, considering it was a bright, clear day, but once the train got moving, I saw that it came from the motion of the train cars up ahead stirring up the fresh fallen snow and depositing it between the cars. This made it VERY slippery to walk between the cars up to the café car. The train trip from Utica to NYC is a very pretty one especially in the fall. The train mostly follows the paths of the rivers; the Mohawk east to Albany, then the Hudson south to NYC. There are 9 stops between Utica and NYC, but they’re all very quick and the entire trip takes about 4.5 hours. I slept for about half the trip, and then took a walk up to the café car for a bite to eat. I bought a turkey bacon and ranch sandwich, a bag of Doritos and a Mountain Dew, and I think it came to $7.75. This was the driest, most bland sandwich I have ever eaten, and my advice to anyone traveling by train would be to bring your own food whenever possible. Amtrak’s food is overpriced and not very appetizing, at least in the café cars. The club cars may be different, but I’ve never been on a train with a club car, so I can’t say for sure. The difference between a café car and a club car is that a café car serves drinks, snacks and light meals like sandwiches, bagels, hot dogs and pizza, while a club car serves sit-down meals. Club cars are only on long-distance trains.

My train arrived at Penn Station at 2:45 p.m. about 20 minutes late. After getting off the train and getting lost (I was looking for an elevator rather than the stairs up to the main level; there’s an escalator DOWN to the trains, but only stairs going up? Memo to self: ask Amtrak staff next time) I got my bearings and made my way up to the main level to the Baggage Check area at the end of the terminal. I knew from previous trips that ticketed Amtrak passengers can leave luggage at Baggage Claim to be picked up later. It costs $4.50 per bag, but it’s worth not having to drag your luggage around NYC if you’re going to a show or out to eat before you check into your hotel. On previous trips, I had been able to leave my bags there until midnight when they closed, but the attendant informed me that the new closing time was 10 p.m.! I found this to be ridiculously early in “the city that never sleeps”, but I had no choice in the matter, so I left my luggage and $9 with the agent and hoped that we’d be able to make it back before 10 p.m. It was going to be tight since our event started at 7 and was all the way up on 79th St. The agent informed me that if I didn’t make it back before 10, I could check with Station Services and they MIGHT go in and get my things for me that night, or I may just have to wait until tomorrow. That was not going to happen since I couldn’t imagine having to spend the next 24+ hours in the same clothes! Yuck! So I called Rita to tell her I had made it in to Penn Station and explained the luggage situation. She thought that was pretty early of them to close, also, but knew there was no other alternative, other than to bring my stuff with me. So it was agreed that I’d leave my stuff at Penn Station and we’d just leave our event by 9:30 to get back to Penn Station by 10 for the luggage, and catch the 10:35 p.m. NJ Transit home to her house in South Orange, getting us back to her house by about 11:30 p.m. and in bed by midnight to be up for the next day’s adventures by 6:30 a.m. No time to sleep when we’ve got all this fun planned!

So, I dropped off my luggage and went to a newsstand to pick up a magazine to read and a bottled water. I was also looking in a few of the little bookstores to see if they had a copy of “The Killing Club” by “Marcie Walsh”, a character played by Kathy Brier on One Life to Live. This is a real book you can buy, “written” by a fictional character on a TV show (it’s actually written by the show’s former head writer). Got that? I was thinking that maybe we could get Kathy to sign it for us on Saturday night at the Gabriel Project event. After looking at several of the bookstores with no luck, I settled for a People Magazine Oscar results issue and headed to the NJ Transit waiting area to wait for Rita. On the way, I picked up the NJ Transit tickets I would need for the weekend; two off peak tickets and two peak tickets. It’s cheaper to buy them at the station than on the train, and not all the outlying stations are open on the weekends, so it was better to get them in advance. $16 later and I was set for the weekend’s transit to and from the city. I still had about an hour to wait until Rita could get out of work and come meet me, so I visited the ladies room (theirs is MUCH nicer and cleaner than the restroom in the main concourse) and then sat down to wait for Rita. NJ Transit’s waiting area is much nicer than the Amtrak waiting area, and it’s not as busy, of course. I believe only NJ Transit ticketed passengers can wait there, but no one ever asked me if I had a ticket, so I didn’t feel out of place at all. A neat feature of the waiting area is the little train they have going around in an oval behind a glass partition It’s maybe 1:24 scale and got about 8 cars on it; each car carries the name of one of the end points of the NJ Transit system; Dover, Trenton, etc. It reminds me a little of “It’s A Small World”.

Coming up: Act 1: Scene 2: Blondie's a Sports Bar in NYC!

[chezp]

Great first installment Lisa - I'm looking forward to more.

[lauren-roxy]

Just got caught up with your trip report Lisa!! Can't wait to read more!!

[DrDolphin]

Great beginning Lisa!! Can't wait to read more!

[loobyoxlip]

Glad you're writing again, Lisa. Sounds like quite a trip.

[DopeyGirl]

YAY!!! I have been looking forward to this!!!

[statelady01]

Glad to see another simultaneous take on NYC round these parts- great start Lisa!

[katspjs]

Great start Lisa! Looking forward to the next installment!

[GoofyMom]

Glad you're working on this again, Lisa! I'm looking forward to more!!

[luvnwdwgal]

Looking forward to more Lisa!!