We flew to Rochester, New York. Had a layover in Baltimore. We had 25 veterans on our flight, heading to D.C. to see the Memorials. They had bagpipes, a singer, and the channel 4 news team. We stayed at the Best Western Rochester Marketplace Inn. We ate dinner at John's Tex-Mex Eatery and walked across the bridge to see the High Falls.
We drove to Palmyra. We went to the Smith Farm and took a tour around the Barn, Frame House, Cabin, Cooper Shop, and walked around the Sacred Grove. Our tour guide taught seminary with my uncle. We went to the E.B. Grandin Print Shop, and saw where the Book of Mormon was first published. We a tour guide from Dominican Republic. They gave us a printed sheet with the first sixteen pages of the Book of Mormon. We saw some of the original paintings and one of the first copies of the Book of Mormon. We went into the Latter Day Harvest Gift shop and I bought some pins and a necklace. We ate lunch at Mark's Pizzeria. We went and saw the four churches on one corner and saw Alvin Smith and John Swift's graves. We walked around the Martin Harris farm, but the house has no tours. We drove up to the top of the Hill Cumorah and saw the Moroni Monument and drove down to the visitor's center. We a tour guide from Guatemala City. We drove to Syracuse, and stayed at the Homewood Suites in Liverpool. We went to Wegman's and got some groceries.
On Saturday, my brother graduated from Cornell University with his MBA. We went to his graduation exercises in Ithica, at Bartels Hall in the Ramin Room. Vice President Joe Biden was on campus, speaking at the Senior Commencement at the Stadium, and the stadium was packed. We had lunch in the white tents in the fields of Appel Commons. My brother gave us a tour of campus. We saw 2 waterfalls, Johnson Building, Uris Library, Sage Chapel, the Bookstore, and the Clock Tower. We went to Peppino's Neopolitan in Syracuse for dinner. We went to Wegman's and got some groceries.
On Sunday, we rested. We drove around Syracuse and saw some old churches and mansions. We ate dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in the Destiny USA Mall.
Monday was Memorial Day. We drove down I-80 through Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. We drove through the Lincoln Tunnel into Manhattan. We stayed at the Crowne Plaza Times Square. We walked around Times Square, got to see where the ball drops, and went into the Disney Store and I Heart NY gift shop. We got a hot dog from the food vendors.
On Tuesday, we went on a Circleline Cruise. We sailed passed the Freedom Tower, Colgate Clock, Ellis Island, Statue of Liberty, and Governor's Island. We got to sail under the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, and Williamsburg Bridge. We ate lunch at Genuine in the Gotham West Market. We walked all over Midtown. We walked past Madison Square Garden and walked into the Empire State Building. We walked past Macy's and NYC Public Library. We walked around Bryant Park and saw the fountains and the carousel. They were doing rehearsals of the play, Angels in America. We saw the comedian, Tracy Morgan, driving his car with the windows down. We walked past the Chrysler Building and went into Grand Central Terminal. We walked around Rockafeller Center and saw the Ballerina balloon. We walked past Radio City Music Hall and Magnolia Bakery. We ate at Applebee's for dinner, on the second floor near the windows, so we could see Times Square as we ate. We walked past the Stardust diner and Ed Sullivan theater, where they filmed The Late Show with David Letterman and now, Stephen Colbert. The Hello Deli was closed.
On Wednesday, we took the subway down to Chamber Street. It was my first ever ride on a subway. We walked over to the Freedom Tower. We walked to the 9/11 waterfalls and saw where the World Trade Center used to stand and looked at all the names. We went into the 9/11 museum and walked around all of the artifacts and exhibits. It was a very surreal and somber experience. We took the subway back to 42nd street and walked on 5th avenue, seeing Trump Tower, Bendel's, Bloomingdales, Harry Winston, Tiffany's, and the Plaza Hotel. We walked around the south part of Central Park., We sat in the stone chairs, and walked around Bethesda Fountains, where they filmed the opening of Friends. We sat by the lake and saw the Boathouse. There was 5k marathon in the park, so most of the roads were closed. We ate dinner at Au Bon Pain, a bakery. We went back into the I Heart NY store and bought some t-shirts.
On Thursday, we took the super shuttle to LaGuardia airport in Queens. As we drove by the Rockafeller Center, we could see them taping The Today Show. We ate breakfast at Au Bon Pain in the airport. Flying over the city was amazing. I could the entire Central Park and all the Burroughs around Manhattan. We had a long layover in Dallas. We sat on the runway for a couple of hours, because of flash flooding in the area, and carrying parts for other planes. We got home two hours later than what we were scheduled for.
