I ♥ NY

I'm ba-ack!

Steve and I spent an extended Labor Day weekend putting about 2,000 miles on the car. But it was much more fun than it sounds!

The first leg of our trip was a Thursday-night stay with one of my best friends from high school, Jill, and her husband, Dan, in Ohio. We didn't get to spend much time with them, unfortunately, but it was still great to see them, plus it was a perfect place to break up the trip to the East Coast.

After driving all day Friday, we arrived in New York, where we stayed with Steve's brother Chris and his wife, Michelle. This was the most time we've ever gotten to spend with them, and it was a lot of fun to hang out just the four of us. Plus we got to see their new place! (Buying a house in Westchester County is completely unrealistic unless you're a millionaire...so they settled for buying an apartment in a co-op...but they really found a great apartment.)

We spent Saturday doing some sightseeing in the area, including a trip to West Point. As a side note, I'd like to meet the exceptionally brilliant person who thought it a good idea to put an all-girls Catholic school right outside the gates of a then-all-male military academy. (The Catholic school is no longer in operation.) Anyway, I never knew the area so close to New York City was so mountainous and green--but the Hudson River Valley has some gorgeous views. Tropical Depression Ernesto plagued us all day, but it could have been a lot worse. Then on Sunday the weather cleared and we went into the city. How much do I love NYC!!! I cannot even explain to you why...but when I get there I just feel like it's in my blood.

Unfortunately we didn't get to see a Broadway show--I had really hoped to see Wicked, but we weren't able to get reasonably priced tickets. However, we found something else to do that was definitely memorable: We checked out Bodies: The Exhibition at the South Street Seaport. It's described on the website as "A phenomenal look at the phenomenon we call the human body"--and I would have to agree.

Using a process called plastination, scientists replace body tissues with polymers so that they can be preserved completely, then dissect the bodies to various levels. It is, as someone said, "An extraordinary unveiling of the human body." We got an up-close glimpse of muscles, bones, nerves and organs. Perhaps most spectacular was the circulatory system exhibit, which displayed arteries and veins down to the tiniest hair-width capillaries. We found it telling that the information cards explaining each display could not avoid using the word "design," as in "the design of the arm" or "the design of the nerves in the feet." Truly God is powerful, wise and magnificently creative.

After that we just walked around Manhattan--something I, to the complete bafflement of my husband, could be content to do all day long. We ended up around NYU eating at a fantastic Thai place and then headed back to Chris and Michelle's.

We had a wonderful weekend of relaxing and enjoying the company of family who are also friends! Then on Monday afternoon we were off for the second part of our trip. More on that to come...