It’s been a while, but I’m back. Overtaken by family duties and trying to get the fourth book in my series finished, I’ve just found a way to get back into my blog that I’d let drift by the wayside.
“What have you been up to?” I hear you ask.
A good question.
The most startling news from this year, is that at the ripe old age of 50 (where the hell did that come from?) I finally got to travel to another continent at the start of January this year.
For some context, we have to step back eighteen months.
My children both came home from school, excited about a letter they’d been given. My wife and I took a look. The school choir they belong to had arranged a trip to New York for January 2019, to sing at some breath taking buildings and to visit some of the historic sites. Dizzy with excitement, they asked if they could go. Bearing in mind that they’d never been abroad, even to Wales or Scotland, let alone flown on a plane, this was quite something. After attending a preliminary meeting, we agreed that they could. Both were delighted.
As time rolled nearer, I couldn’t stop thinking about what they were doing, and whether or not it would be possible for my wife and I to join them on their little sojourn. Out of the blue one day, I suggested it to her. Surprised was an understatement, but also she was intrigued. Like me, she’d only ever visited Europe and had never even contemplated another continent. Perhaps now was our chance. Talking about it once or twice more, we put it very much on the back burner with everything else going on in our lives, leaving it until the coldest, darkest days of late 2018 before contemplating our next moves. With birthdays gone and Christmas fast approaching, we hit the internet with all the enthusiasm of a social media addicted teenager. Hotel found, we struggled to find the right flights, much to our disappointment. But through what can only really be described as a fluke, at the very last minute, on our travels out and about, we discovered a travel agent who found us what we were looking for, at very reasonable rates. It was on!
By now though, the pesky kids, 16 and 12, had cottoned on to something being up. Confronting me, they announced exactly that. What could I tell them? More of a big ‘white lie’ than anything little, I proudly declared that I was trying to surprise their mother and take her away to a seaside resort on England’s stunning south coast for a break, while they were away. They got on board with this faster than a rat out of an aqueduct, and promised to keep my secret. Phewww!
On January 3rd, the day of the departure dawned. Up early, packed and ready, we duly delivered them to the coach at school at some ungodly hour. Sad farewells were shared and they departed excited, and ever so slightly cautious. Whizzing back home, we packed our cases and duly followed them up to Heathrow, arriving a few hours behind them. Just as we got there, my wife sent them a text to say that I had surprised her and taken her to one of our favourite places for a three day break. Instantly she received a text back, saying “We knew all along LOL! Have a great time!” Boy were they in for a shock.
Checking our luggage in, we scanned the airport for planes taking off at the time they were supposed to leave. As you can imagine, there were quite a few. Four hours behind them, we followed in their footsteps and shot up into the air.
After an uneventful flight (well almost Mrs Cude) we touched down at JFK in New York, passed through the airport and jumped into a taxi. Barely able to believe we were on American soil, we watched goggle eyed as buildings and cars shot by in the blink of an eye, and the ever expanding metropolis got closer. By now it was 10pm local time, with us having been up for about 20 hours. Still…..we couldn’t get enough. Reaching the hotel and our room, we had a brief bite to eat before getting some well earned rest.
Up early the next day, we had a brief look at Times Square, which at pre-seven am, still looked mightily impressive. Hitting the subway, and enjoying every minute of it, we headed south for our boat trip around the Statue of Liberty. Not sure what to expect, I can tell you I was entranced by the lady herself. In real life, it’s something special, let me tell you. After that, and we were winging it, we wandered up to the financial district (both impressive and magical. Don’t forget the Christmas decorations were still up) before grabbing a bite to eat and heading up north of Central Park.
We had to check out the Cathedral Church of St John the Divine because that’s where our kids were singing the following day, and that’s where we’d planned to surprise them. Check out done, we decided to walk back through Central Park to our hotel. Blimey!…..that was one hell of a walk. Beautiful beyond belief, with all the skyscrapers setting it off, all I can say is that it looks much smaller on a map, and much flatter. We had a fantastic time, but boy did we need a rest for an hour or so after that. Amusingly enough, our room on the 32nd floor looked out onto Times Square, and down onto the Stardust Diner where our children’s group was about to eat at exactly this time. Waiting with my camera to see if they appeared, thinking it great fun to capture an unknowing picture, I was disappointed when they didn’t join the queue. Feeling refreshed enough to go out and explore, we hit the streets, determined to see Times Square in all its glory at night. On the way though, we had to pass the Stardust Diner, and I couldn’t resist blending into the crowd and heading towards the windows. Sure enough, on the first floor, staring out at the window, there was my youngest daughter, totally oblivious to me with my hood up, shrouded by my camera, taking pictures of her. This amused me greatly!
A trip up the Empire State building was next, and something that was absolutely stunning. What a building! What a view! How unbelievably iconic. After that, food and sleep. It turns out we walked nearly sixteen miles that day.
Out before seven am the next morning, we headed for Grand Central station on the subway, loving every minute of it. What a place! I could have stayed there for hours. So could my wife. Awesome is the only way to describe it and I’m desperate to go back. After the best breakfast in the world in a café opposite one of its entrances, it was back on the subway and up to the Cathedral Church of St John the Divine for the big reveal. Getting there early, we found some seats at the front of where they were due to sing, and waited patiently, all the time taking in the stunning historic building. Less than an hour later they arrived, the whole group of thirty or so, all unknowingly walking down to our position to set up. As the throng passed our seated position, our eldest daughter stopped, aghast, mouth hanging open. In all my life, I’ve never seen any human being looking so shocked. She stayed like that for about thirty seconds. It was unreal. And then came her sister, equally stunned. In all the time I’d been planning the surprise, turning up in another continent to watch them sing together, which would be the last time they did, never did I expect the reaction that we got. There were tears, they had to be comforted by their friends. It was unreal. The staff though were fabulous and thought it a brilliant thing to have done. We sat through the whole concert, taking pictures and videos. Afterwards the staff asked if we were coming to the concert in the afternoon further down in the city, excited that we’d be there. After what had happened, I can easily say that we had no intention of doing that. After a brief chat, we bade our farewell, promising not to see them until they reached their homeland, and off we sped to Fifth Avenue, with a view to doing some shopping. Another great afternoon ensued despite the weather.
The following day once again we were out early, back to the café opposite Grand Central station (that’s how good it was), before visiting the 9/11 memorial site. Raw unadulterated emotions consumed us both as we paid our respects to all of those that had lost their lives. Only in America could they conceive something so wonderfully poignant and magnificent. It was an honour to have visited. Both of us can vividly remember where we were when tragedy struck, and the messages we scrawled in the books of remembrance in the days after.
After that, it was back into the city for a wander…..Fifth Avenue again, Times Square, all of that. And before you know it our three full days were up. Gone, over…..time to go home. And so we did. I just wanted you to know about the trip, because for me it was such a stunning adventure. What a city, and in my humble opinion, easily the greatest in the world. I would just like to say, that everywhere we went, from the customs officers at the airport, to the staff at the hotel, on the subway, the boat trip around the Statue of Liberty, to all the shops and places we ate, the people were fantastic. So kind, nothing was too much trouble. Never before have I felt so welcomed. Every time I see it on the television, I yearn to go back. Hopefully one day I will, but not with those pesky kids who still haven’t forgiven us, and still can’t laugh about it. “Too soon,” I say when I make another reference about it to them. Too soon is something of an understatement. I hope you enjoy my photos.