NYC Pt. 2

New York City - Day 2.

The rain stopped and was replaced by very cold temperatures and blustery winds. Mommy gave Daddy a little lecture about getting tickets in the spring or summer next time!

First order of business was the NBC Studio tour. They got to:

• ask the pages if Kenneth (the page from 30 Rock) has made their lives difficult and if they are obsessive about their jackets
• see where Brian Williams tapes the "Nightly News"
• learn cool things about the SNL set and how 400,000 people apply for the 1500 tickets that are available each year
• see a random person getting a photo shoot done on the SNL stage. (Mommy and Daddy like to think he was some new cast member or guest host. But he was probably just an NBC suit getting his corporate photo taken.)

Then Daddy got to participate! He volunteered to be the anchor for our tour's demonstration. He bought the video to show his students, so it might be coming to a YouTube page near you soon! He put on his announcer voice and did great!

After the NBC tour, Mommy and Daddy did a architecture/history tour of Rockefeller Plaza. It was freezing as they walked outside the buildings but interesting nonetheless.

Here's a tidbit of info... Junior Rockefeller was a very religious man. He wanted Atlas's world to frame the cross at St. Patrick's Cathedral across the street. Oh and he wouldn't use the side entrances to 30 Rock because of the nudes etched into the building. (His wife was an art patron and convinced him they were appropriate! She started MoMA.)

After the tour, Daddy wanted to see Central Park. So they headed toward 5th Avenue and window shopped. And wouldn't you know it, what store is located across the street from Central Park??? Golly gee, it is the Apple Store! Now, did Daddy really want to see the park or the Apple Store? Hmmmm....

But the store was pretty neat. There is nothing above ground but the glass box. You have to go down (via stairs or elevator) to get the store. And it was packed! It figures though, everyone seems to have an iPhone in NYC.

Mommy and Daddy decided to get something to eat. Since they were right there, they ate at the cafe at the Central Park Zoo. Afterwards, they had some time kill before the show, so they headed out the rear exit of the cafe and visited the rain forest exhibit and caught the penguins in a feeding frenzy (very cool to see). (These are puffins... the penguin pictures didn't turn out.)

As they were leaving, they noticed the zoo ticket booth and realized the zoo wasn't free after all! Oops!  The guy minding the door in the cafe must have stepped away for a minute...

It was time to leave for the taping. Daddy's super helpful iPhone told them exactly which bus would take them to the studio in Hell's Kitchen. The bus driver was great. His bus wasn't the one the iPhone recommended, but the driver told them he'd get them there and then he refused to let them pay.  There ARE nice people in NYC! :)