Wednesday in NYC

(and also in Connecticut...)

The Wednesday of our NYC trip started late and lazily.  There was a Starbucks run (a block away - here are some photos from the neighbourhood on that short jaunt). 

Then the three of us finally made our way through Madison Square Park,

pausing to admire the dogs and the surroundings, to Eataly.  Shopping for light snacks for the room and a spot of lunch.  Ah, Eataly is fun.  We parked at the little Campari bar

in the centre of everything

and had a cocktail

and something to eat. 

Service was wonky, but we were unbothered.  After lunch, we popped next door to the Eataly wine shop where we browsed, Conrad bought a bottle for the room (that we never did open), and left gobsmacked at the prices of some of the reserve bottles.

The rest of the afternoon, as I recall, was devoted to napping and reading and relaxing.  As it should be!

Late that afternoon we headed to Grand Central Station

and boarded a commuter train up to Stamford. 

In Connecticut.  That's where we met up with Steven - so good to see him. 

It's been a couple of years or more, I think.  Ryan couldn't join us, so the four of us enjoyed catching up over a dinner not too far from the station. 

Steven is just so damn delightful.  I hope it's not so long before we see him again.

After dinner, her dropped us off at the nearby station, and it was two trains back into the city.  Once there, we headed to Wine:30 again.  Marco seemed glad to see us.  We splurged on a nice wine to end the night,

and then came back to the room, took a last look at the city at night,

and then headed off to bed. 

and then we went to NYC...

The trip to the east coast saw the three of us come together in Philadelphia before heading up to NYC for a few days of being tourists.  And when I saw being tourists, I don't mean jamming our days full of stuff to see and do.  Not our style, as you'll already know and will see in the posts to come.  Nope.  Easy days, and the trip up to there set the tone for that.  First class on the Acela, a high speed train and some comforts for us. 

Food and beverage! 

Before we knew it, we were at Penn Station,

and from there it was a short distance (but a cab, considering the heat, humidity, and our luggage) to our hotel, the Hotel AKA NoMad.

Ah, Van.  The king of finding good accommodations for us.  I have never stayed in a Manhattan hotel that was so comfortable.  Oh, I know that there is real luxury to be had in NYC, but that's too rich for us.  But no, Van found us a great two-bedroom, two-bathroom suite

with a nice patio

that had good views

(hello there, Empire State Building two or so blocks away). 

How nice to settle into that for a few days.

We didn't settle long, though.  Unpacking, freshening up, then on to meet Van's friends Bill and Gene at Frankie and Johnnie's for a pre-show dinner.  It was nice to meet them!  I've heard a lot about them.  Dinner was fine - a good cocktail, some oysters,

and then liver and onions with bacon. 

Not the best liver I've had, I admit, but it was alright.

The show, though?  Holy doodle, that was good.  Orville Peck and Eva Noblezada starring in a production of Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club.  No photos of that, of course, but it blew me away.  I had seen the movie some 25 years ago, but the stage musical differs significantly.  We went so that we could see Orville, and that man did not disappoint.  His physicality was perfect for the role of the Emcee.  Nobelzada was great as well, truly.  And some applause for Ellen Harvey as Fraulein Schneider.  She was a real force as well.  The staging was in the round, and we had good seats, albeit on what seemed to be the back side.  Still, we hardly suffered.

Back to the hotel after that where we found that the hotel bar was already closed.  The desk staff recommended Wine:30 around the corner on 30th, and so we popped over for late cocktails at the bar. 

Terrific little place, and Marco took good care of us.  You'll see me blog them again before I'm done with the NYC posts.

To bed after that.  And rather late!  No matter.  We had no schedule for the next day save for dinner in Connecticut.  We would easily be up in time for that.  The Empire State Building was lit up for Canada Day (truly, it was - we checked!), and that was a great cap to the night.