New York, Part 2

On Saturday, I remembered that I had taken my real camera on the trip, and pulled it out. Mark took Kaela and me on a free ferry to see the Statue of Liberty, which none of us had seen before up close. The ferry was the highlight of our trip. It was warmer & sunny on Saturday, and we sat outside on the upper deck. Plus, it was totally free!! We were still way under budget at this point.

I had a real moment while looking at the statue. Thursday night, I had spent some time talking with someone who has adopted internationally--a special needs child. This is where my heart beats. She told me that in China, her child would have been marked to die--not one who was worth nourishing. It's the 3rd time in a week I've heard a story like that. There are no special ed. teachers in China. There are not children in China with needs. They don't live into childhood.
This statue represents so much to them--and to other oppressed, afflicted, battle-weary souls. It keeps me awake sometimes. Here are some pictures from the ferry.




After the ferry, we walked around for awhile, then went back to find out about Broadway choices. White Christmas was on Broadway, but the tickets were $97 apiece. Shrek, the Musical was there, but also too much. I wasn't sure about Altar Boys for Kaela, and Phantom of the Opera was bound to be too much. We walked to the ticket office anyway, where Mark planned to stand in line for discount tickets. Much to our surprise--they weren't sold out! And they had discount tickets from $21 to $40! We sat in the second to the back row, and even the infamous chandelier was but a speck in the distance, but we went to a Broadway show. On budget.
The diction was a bit muffled that far from the stage, but oh! The music! The Phantom! The music! It was awesome. There are strict rules about taking pictures inside Broadway theaters, but here's photo documentation of our antics on the way.



On Sunday we had planned to go to Chinatown, but it was rainy, and Chinatown had been raided earlier in the week and many shops closed due to counterfeiting. (That makes me laugh. Were the authorities unaware of this?)
We had also planned to attend services at the Brooklyn Tabernacle again, but Tiffany was sick.
Pete & Stacy ended up coming to get us, and we walked around an outdoor peddlers' market on Union Station. After, we went to a place called Max Brenner's, which is something akin to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory--in real life. No kidding. Stacy paid for our brunch, and Kaela ordered banana split waffles. While you wait for a table, they give you samples of chocolate sauce in little cups. Over. The. Top. At this point, I was beginning to wonder who lives like this!?!? It was incredible. Just mind boggling.



Then Pete and Stacy took us to other sightseeing places before dropping us off at Mark and Tiffany's to get our things. It was time to head for the airport. The trip was incredible, but we missed our family. And friends. And were missing our Christmas program. And had to be at work in the morning.

Mark put us on a bus to the airport. This is where the long part of the story comes in, about how the flight was canceled, our connecting flight took off without us, and we had to spend the night in Chicago. We felt a little like Mary and Joseph looking for a room at the inn last night around 2:30 AM. The guy who was supposed to pick us up in the shuttle was circling the parking lot in a van on 2 wheels like Animal from The Muppets, screeching and hollering for us, and there was no way we were getting into the van with that lunatic. We ended up walking to the Hilton that adjoins O'Hare, and the nice lady there gave us accommodations for 5 hours that put us just barely over budget for the weekend, but not bad. Our feet were on the ground, we knew where the airport was, and the lunatic in the van may still be circling for all I know.

We got home this morning around noon. Missed work and school. It was a long night, but one full of care and God's protection, too. Our time this weekend was precious time, making memories with family. But I'm glad to be home. To the stress and the routine and the messy house and the unmade bed--that smells like MY Bath & Body Works lotion and my favorite candle--and most of all to my family, friends, and life. It's been a bit of an It's a Wonderful Life experience. You wonder what if you had chosen to live differently, and then realize through a new perspective--there's no place like home.