Our vacation was terrific.  Definitely a great way to spend my birthday, I pretty much was able to ignore the big fat 3-0.  In fact, for all intents and purposes I may still be 29.

There is so much to say I don’t even know where to begin.  However, I did actually keep track of some stuff I wanted to talk about…this is why N managed to take eleventy-billion pictures of me messing with my iPhone.  I was making reminder notes.  FOR YOU.  (Well, actually for me since I am very forgetful.  But so that I could write this post for you.  Because I am nice like that.)

Since both of us had been to NYC before, we didn’t feel that crushing pressure to hit all the major tourist spots, although we did go to the Empire State Building, Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.  We also took in a Knicks game at Madison Square Garden.  It was nice to be able to just wander around with no particular destination or agenda in mind.  We rode the subway, discovered the Hypnotiq Tea at Hard Rock Cafe (YUM), bought AE a much-adored Mario cap at a store called Nintendo World and sampled coffee all over Manhattan (well, that last one was just me.  N hates coffee.)

We stayed at The Algonquin, which is the oldest operating hotel in NYC.  It was beautiful, and even though the room was tiny it was perfect for us.  The bed was freaking comfortable and I am not even remotely joking when I say that those two nights of sleep were the best I’ve had since…ah, summer 2007?  Glorious.

Here are a few things that I learned while in the Big Apple:

• The full name of the Knicks is actually the New York Knickerbockers.  I had no idea.
• I also had no idea that the current Madison Square Garden is the fourth incarnation of the “historic” arena.  I am actually quite disappointed by this revelation.
• The Knicks suck even worse than the Sacramento Kings.
• Revolving doors and I don’t get along all that well.  It turns out that I have a bit of a problem.  Even worse than regular revolving doors are the hybrid turnstile/revolving gates in the subway.
• If you screw up with your non-transferable subway ticket by not making it through the revolving gate on the first try, you must wait 18 minutes for the system to reset and let you through.  This applies even at different stations, just in case you happen to be capable of magically transporting your ticket several blocks away for another person to use in an effort to beat the system.
• Weather reports can be wrong, and a denim jacket is not a good defense against 30 degree weather and snow flurries.
• The waiters don’t sing “Happy Birthday” at Hard Rock, but they do have all the customers on that level shout it at you.
• The world’s tiniest restroom stall is located at Ellis Island.
• Don’t expect a leisurely breakfast while you’re eating at The Red Flame.  It was a little diner located next door to our hotel, and I have never seen such efficient service in all of my life.  No time for lingering over your coffee there – they wanted you in, out, and moving on because dammit they need your booth.  MOVE IT, PEOPLE.
• Some people really deserve each other, like the guy I encountered at Dean & Deluca.  He stood creepily close while I was doctoring my coffee, then I had an encounter with his lovely wife.  That seat is TAKEN.  Well then good thing I wasn’t sitting, bitch.
• N and I must really have looked like we needed a night at the comedy club.
• Grand Central Station is a constantly moving tide of humanity at rush hour.
• There’s no better way to fly than armed with an iPod, iPhone and wee bottle of wine.
• If we had the kids with us, we may not have come home.

Here are some of my favorite shots – N is our official family photographer.  He got some really great ones, you can see the entire set here if you are interested in that sort of thing.