NYC
Wednesday soon came along, and it was time to leave Philly for New York. That journey would be done by bus – Megabus to be precise. I had reserved our tickets on the web for $5.50 each beforehand – fantastic value. We were among the first on to the double-decker bus, and took seats upstairs, right at the front so we could see all the sights along the journey. To be honest, there weren’t too many sights to be seen on the 2.5hour journey, but to be fair, it was essentially a motorway (freeway?) the entire journey. I’d happily use Megabus again, comfortable seats, Air-con and free wifi – what more could anyone need??
Our hotel was in Queens (Quality Inn Woodside), so once in Manhattan, there was a short ride to Times Sq subway station to change to the 7 train, which would take us within a block of the hotel. I know most people tend to stay around the Times Sq area, especially first time visitors to NYC, but having walked around Times Sq a few times during our stay, I cannot for the life of understand why. There’s nothing there but for some bright flashing lights!! It’s overcrowded and the bars serve over-priced, second rate beer. While staying in Manhattan (but not Times Sq!!) would have been more convenient for popping back and forth to the hotel during our stay, we probably saved around £400-500 by staying in Queens, which was only 20 minutes on the subway from Grand Central. Personally, I chose to spend the saving elsewhere, and it’s a decision I would happily make again.
Again the hotel itself was perfectly adequate; comfortable bed, free wi-fi, and I believe only built in the last year or two, so very modern, with a simple continental breakfast provided in the room rate. Its right on Queens Boulevard, in what is mainly a residential area, and while the vicinity may appear a little rough around the edges, it was perfectly safe, and I felt comfortable taking the subway back at 4am then walking from the station to the hotel.
After checking in at around 4pm on Wednesday, we immediately made our way all the way back from Queens to New Jersey!! I had bought tickets for that evening’s football match between NY Red Bulls and Chivas USA. This meant getting a subway down to the World Trade Center and then getting the PATH train to New Jersey – at rush hour!! We made it on time though and The Red Bull Arena, a new purpose built football stadium, was quite impressive. The match itself wasn’t quite as impressive though. I was quite shocked at how low the standard was. The MLS seems to be a great set-up, and with the game growing in popularity, I’m sure standards will improve eventually. I was left pondering what on earth possessed Thierry Henry, David Beckham and Robbie Keane to go and play in the MLS though – it must have been the NYC and LA lifestyle, ‘cause it sure as hell wasn’t for the football!!
The rest of our NYC stay was typically touristy, with visits to Central Park, Museum of Natural History, Top of The Rock, Liberty & Ellis Island, WTC Memorial, Schwarz, Grand Central, Brooklyn Bridge etc.
We came across some great bars and did a bit of a pub crawl towards the lower end of 1st and 2nd Avenues, and took in a late show at The Comedy Cellar on the Thursday night. Fantastic value at $15 to see top class comedians, including Aziz Ansari, and my favourite of the night, Andrew Schulz – a name to remember if you’re a stand up fan. We certainly made the most of the city that ‘never sleeps’ – the earliest we arrived back at the hotel for the first four nights was about 4am!!
The Sunday was of course the day of the Wales-Mexico match, which was held at the very impressive MetLife stadium, again in New Jersey. There were around 250 Wales fans that had made the trip over to NYC for the match, and we met up with many familiar faces at the Legends Bar, which is opposite the Empire State Building. We had actually met the Wales team here on Thursday evening, getting some photos with star players Aaron Ramsey and Craig Bellamy (neither of which seemed very pleased to be there!), as well as with coach Chris Coleman. Unfortunately, our true star player, Gareth Bale, was injured, and hadn’t made the trip. (For those who don’t follow football, Gareth Bale is considered to be among the best, and certainly most exciting players in the World)
On match day, buses had been arranged to ferry us from Legends Bar to New Jersey and back again, all done very efficiently to be fair. The game itself was a disappointment, Wales losing 2-0 to a superior Mexican side, in searing heat and humidity, which we’re just not used to back home!! I was having a hard time standing up, so I can’t imagine what it must have been like for the players running around the field!! I don’t want to bleat about football (honestly!!) but it’s been a strange and difficult few months for the Wales team, and I don’t think they’ve yet recovered from the tragic passing of Gary Speed, the team’s Head Coach, late in 2011. It’s a young team though, and I’m confident of success in the future.
We would be leaving New York for Las Vegas early the following morning (Monday 28th, which was also Memorial Day in the US), so there would be no drinking until 4am! It was a particularly early night by our standards, and we were checking out promptly at 6am to get the Subway, and then bus to LaGuardia airport. The early hour, combined with a reduced Memorial Day schedule, meant quite a long wait for the bus, and a packed bus when it did arrive, but it was a fairly short ride from 83rd Street to the United terminal at LaGuardia