Nigel’s First Day In The Big Apple– On The Buses

Nigel says that his hotel is only about five minutes walk from Times Square, which was very handy after he decided that the best way to acquaint himself with New York for his first two days was to take one of the many bus tour buses that ran from there.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t anticipated on the impact that the inclement weather would have on those plans.

As Nigel took his place under the cover on the upper deck of the bus ……

 

……… it soon became apparent that because of said rain and subsequent steaming up of the cover, he couldn’t actually see a thing, and being told that if he looked to his right he would see the Empire State Building was not a little frustrating and resulted in no money shots of all the famous landmarks he was passing!

But you know Nigel, he stuck it out until Central Park, as the commentary was really  informative and he was learning  lots about the history of the The Big Apple and its people, and as the rain settled and the other passengers got off, he was able to move from under the cover and get a better, if not damp, view of things.

He said, throughout the journey he had to keep pinching his leg and telling himself  that he was actually, really and truly in New York and not in a very wet dream!

At Central Park he decided to get off the bus and stretch his legs …….

I have to admit both Darrell and I did start to wonder if the little fella had managed to hood wink us and was, in fact, judging from his photos, actually in Wolverhampton’s West Park!

But then we saw the romantic horse drawn carriages that take tourists around the park and it was our turn to pinch ourselves, Nigel really was in NEW YORK!  He said that he had resisted the temptation to take a ride in the rain, sitting wrapped under a heavy, soggy blanket, surrounded by plastic flowers on such a day didn’t really appeal, despite taking in where he was.

 

Then he decided, as it really was so wet to get back on the bus, and lo, miraculously the rain started to clear ……… and the bus de-mistified, so that he could take in the final leg of the journey back to where he started, Times Square …….

……. where even more leg pinching ensued.

Times Square might be regarded by “the locals” as a tourist trap, but this was the place of dreams, a place we have seen so many times in films, travelogues and on New Years Eve and Nigel could now say that he experienced it on top of an almost empty New York tour bus where he could squeal, sigh and breathe it all  in unhindered, and live that dream himself!

Father Christmas done good!

But, as Nigel had a two day pass, he decided that if the weather was any better tomorrow he would do it all again, and see all the bits that he had missed today, bless him!