New York/Pet Shop Boys - Day 1

On Monday we returned from a 4-day trip to New York where we saw the Pet Shop Boys again in concert at the theater at Madison Square Garden.  This was our third trip to New York (the last was in November of 2014 - read about it starting here), so we didn't do some of the typical sightseeing this time.

Let's jump right in, shall we?

We flew American this time and were served breakfast on the plane.  I had steel cut oatmeal with shaved coconut and dried fruit, brown sugar, and butter.  It came with vanilla yogurt, a side of fresh fruit, and milk.  Todd had biscuits and gravy.

Other planes waiting to taxi

Downtown Dallas in the haze

I think this is the Beaver Valley nuclear power plant in PA

A closer look

I see the Statue of Liberty

Passing Lower Manhattan as we near LaGuardia

A closer look

Midtown Manhattan

The vestiges of the 1964 World's Fair

We used Uber to get from the airport to our hotel which worked out great - mainly because even though it was only 9.5 miles away it took almost an hour to get there with traffic.

Our accommodation for this trip was a Marvelous Suite in the W New York - Times Square which is right in the heart of, well, Times Square.  We couldn't have been happier with the choice.

Street-level detail.  You enter off the street into an anteroom with 3 elevators, and take an elevator to the lobby on the 7th floor.

Doors leading to the street are on the left, elevators are on the right, and this is the entrance to the Dos Caminos restaurant (we ate there on Saturday night).  The glass ceiling is covered in water, and water sheets down the inside of the glass columns.

Ceiling shot

Stepping out on the 7th floor you enter the "Living Room"/lobby.  The registration desk is at the back where the white latticework is (it's actually a digital display that constantly changes).

The other side of the Living Room

At the far end near the bar is the dj booth...

...which also has the always moving digital display behind it.

After checking in we headed down this hallway to the elevator banks that lead to the upper floors  

A closer look at the neon claw

Room 4311 - our temporary home for the next few days

Main bathroom

Bedroom.  This bed was so comfortable!

Bedroom window and door leading into sitting area

Bedroom tv and doors connecting the sitting area and the bedroom

Sitting area

Tv and bookshelf

Mini-bar, entrance, and 1/2 bath

1/2 bath for the sitting area

Our view from the 43rd floor.  Let's get out there and explore.

After we got settled and unpacked we freshened up then walked about 6 blocks to Ruth's Chris Steak House.  I know they're a chain, and we have a couple in the DFW area, but I had never been to one.  Turns out Todd made a good suggestion, because dinner was great.  I had the 11oz filet, medium rare, a side of steamed broccoli, and a Siduri pinot noir.  It was a great start to our trip!

On our way back to the hotel we walked through Times Square, bought $36 worth (yikes) of M&Ms from the M&M store, and stopped at Starbucks where they thankfully were making the holiday spice flat white (my favorite).  Then it was back to the hotel to lounge around before turning in for the night.

Times Square is always hopping

The entrance to the W

The W

Another look at the W

There I am

The big UFC match at Madison Square Garden was the same night we would be there for the Pet Shop Boys concert in the adjacent theater

The nighttime view from our room.  The M&Ms store is at the bottom where the billboard with the giant red M&M face is (duh).

Skyline view

Our travel day had gone well and we were looking forward to the first full day in New York.