The Big Apple, Day 3

THE BIG APPLE, DAY 3

Sonia took Sofia to school so that Glenys could prepare to spend the day with me.  We knew it was raining, but had no idea how hard until Sonia phoned Glenys to say that she had to take shelter and wait for the rain to let up a bit before heading home.  She was quite wet when she finally arrived.

Armed with umbrellas and wearing the only “coat” (very light windbreaker) I packed, Glenys and I set out for the subway station.  It was rainy and windy, but that didn’t dampen our spirits nor deter us from our adventure.  Glenys was the perfect companion.  She was my personal tour guide, and I, once again, felt very spoiled. 

We made our way to the 9/11 Memorial (http://www.911memorial.org/).  We had to get tickets to enter the site and pass through a security screening process similar to the one the TSA conducts at airports.  A little video loop reminded us that “if you see something, say something.”  A small crowd accompanied us to the actual site where the World Trade Center twin towers used to stand.  The names of those who died in each building were engraved on the large granite square fountains that bordered each empty space.  (It’s hard to describe in writing.)  The experience was sobering, and the rainy, windy weather was befitting the occasion.  Tears from heaven for the many who lost their lives.

The wind gusts were so strong that it made taking photos very difficult.  I had to have two hands on my umbrella—one hand on the handle, and the other on the fabric top to prevent it from turning inside out.  Glenys held the umbrella while I snapped a couple of pictures.  It was even a struggle to walk into the wind, and the rain was still coming down hard.

The Tenement Museum (http://www.tenement.org/) on the Lower East Side was our next stop.  We browsed the museum and shop, watched a movie about immigration in the 1800s and took the Irish Outsiders Tour.  For the most part, the interior and exterior of the building at 97 Orchard (site of the tour) have remained unchanged from when it was condemned in the 1930s.  Lasting about an hour, the tour focused on the life on one Irish family and the challenges they faced as new immigrants. 

For lunch we stopped at a small, funky Mexican Café, Casa Mezcal, in Greenwich Village.  (http://www.casamezcalny.com/)   Many of the menu options were very appealing, and I wanted to try a cup of the soup-of-the-day.  The waitress said they didn’t have any, so we placed our entrée order.  A few minutes later, the waitress arrived with two steaming bowls of soup for us.  We were a bit confused, but Glenys thought that the soup came with our order.  I tasted mine, and it was delicious.  Just as Glenys was about to taste hers, the waitress appeared again and said she had delivered the soup to the wrong table.  As she tried to correct her mistake by picking up our bowls, I confessed that I had already eaten a spoonful but Glenys hadn’t.  She took Glenys’s bowl but left mine when I told her to add it to my tab.  We laughed about that for a long time.  The waitress got our entrée orders correct, and we enjoyed a delicious lunch.

After filling ourselves with delicious and warm Mexican food, we headed back outside.  We were happy to discover that the wind had abated and the rain had let up a little.  My tour guide discovered which train we needed to take to return to Harlem, so we found a station and descended the stairs to the subway.

The “underground” world is quite a place with all kinds of characters.  It was another rich cultural experience for me, and was similar to the Metro in Washington, DC and Paris.  Glenys chatted briefly with a police officer who used to frequent the check-cashing business where she worked.  When several officers worked overtime, they’d take their separate overtime checks to the business to get cash so that their wives wouldn’t know they had been paid extra money.  Hmmm . . .

We had to take 2 trains to get to our destination.  We walked a couple of blocks to the apartment and were glad to get in out of the weather.  I LOVED our excursion despite the foul weather, and would venture out every day in those conditions to have the same wonderful experience.

Waiting for us was Pauletta (?), a delightful 80-year-old lady from Sonia’s LDS Church branch, and her three adorable young grandchildren.  Pauletta had a gift for me and one to take to Rachelle.  I enjoyed meeting her and the cute kids.  Sofia enjoyed the kids as well, and the played together nicely during our visit.  After the visitors left, Sonia served us a delicious salmon dinner—one of the best I’ve ever had.  That lovely lady can cook!

 

We had a nice, relaxing evening, and I had a lot of attention and affection from Sofia.  She is such a cutie, and I loved spending time with her.  I felt a little sad knowing it would be my last night there.  The time passed all too quickly!