I chose the title for this post because that's the song that came to my mind as we were winding down our visit to NYC. There are just so many people and buildings!! Even after three days I found myself looking forward to getting back to open spaces and good ol' Texas. BUT.......that doesn't mean that I didn't have a great time. And I wanted to share with you my favorite day. On Sunday we woke up bright and early and walked down 5th Ave. to Grand Central Station to purchase tickets and board our train to New Haven, Connecticut, stopping along the way to grab coffee and a little breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts. Here is Mimi, Lily, and me in front of Grand Central Station.
It looks like not very many people ride the train on Sunday morning but we were there early and made our way to one of the front cars. By the time we departed there were quite a few more people, including a motley crew of young people sitting right in front of us that were quite entertaining. This train wasn't as nice as the Amtrak we took in Colorado but it was comfortable enough for our hour and a half ride through places like Harlem, Fairfield, Conn., and Westport, Conn. Caryl Ann told us that Westport is home to such icons as Martha Stewart and David Letterman. Too bad we didn't have time to pop in and say hi!
On the flight to NYC the guy sitting next to me was an attorney and when I told him we were going to visit Yale he said that we really needed to go to a great little pizza place called Frank Pepe Pizzeria. Since he had attended Yale I figured he knew what he was talking about so as soon as we got off the train in New Haven Kaylee looked it up on her handy little IPhone and we were off. It was in walking distance and wasn't far from campus so we found it, enjoying the beautiful views along the way. Here you can see our delicious pizzas and birch beer. The bb tasted just like Root Beer but I liked it better.
Here are a couple of pictures showing the pizza ovens.
When we got to the restaurant at 11:30 we just walked right in but as we were leaving we realized just how great it was when there was a line forming around the corner and a man was in the parking lot monitoring and directing the cars. I'm glad we got there early because we had a scheduled tour at 1:30 and since we were walking, didn't have time to spare.
After leaving Pepe's we meandered our way past homes and churches as old as our country. It was such a privilege to see them and I would love to drive up there sometime and see more of that area. I think we had to walk about five or six blocks to Yale University and we got there just in time for our tour. From the first building to the last, I was amazed at the architecture, beauty, and history. But the whole experience was kind of a study in irony and contradictions. All over the place we saw proof that Yale's foundation was Christianity but most of the people inhabiting the buildings are non-believers. Our 21 year old guide stood on the steps of the chapel and talked about the diversity of the school and how, even though he's not Buddhist, he attends Buddhist ceremonies in that very building to destress or get in the zone or something of the sort. He even told us that the school motto is and always has been "For God, For Country, For Yale"........huh???? It's just so amazing to me how so many smart people can fool themselves, thinking they've discovered the REAL answer when the truth is surrounding them. In spite of this sad aspect, I savored the beauty and thought I'd show you a tiny bit of what we saw.
This is sort of a parlor that each "college" (I think that sort of means a dorm) has. I could just imagine the generations of scholars that "hung out" in that room. Can you believe that wood?
Right next to the parlor was this dining hall! Unbelievable! It's sure not like any dining hall I've ever seen in Texas.
The picture above and below are of the library. A great example of the Christian foundation. The windows had many pictures depicting stories from the Bible.
I was sad to leave the campus. We honestly could have spent a day looking around and roaming through the buildings and still not have seen it all. But we had a train to catch and so we found our way back to the station and then to New York City. Monday it was raining but we did get to go on a tour of the NBC studios and then made a quick run through the New York Public Library before our plane took off for home. That library was another jaw-dropping place. Everything pretty much was marble and old wood! They sure knew how to do things up right back in the day!
It was a quick trip but it was lots of fun experiencing it with my family. Thanks to Caryl Ann, Mimi, and Lily for allowing Kaylee and me to tag along!
