We woke to a foggy, drizzly morning so we just grabbed our rain jackets and decided it wasn’t going to slow us down. Breakfast (if gooey sweetness can be called that) was at the donut plant. I seriously don’t even like donuts but those beautiful confections are more a work of art than what we typically call donuts. We passed each flavor around the table so we could all be amazed at each one. After breakfast we headed downtown since we had tickets to the Freedom Tower. We arrived early and were whisked up 105 floors in about 40 seconds flat. It seemed even quicker since there was a “view” on the elevator walls as if we were in a glass elevator. We reached the top floor and watched a short video about the tower and then were left to marvel at the 360degree views from the massive windows. We could see every burrough of the city in its entirety and a lot of New Jersey. The Statue of Liberty sat far below us in the Hudson River as if it were no larger than a Barbie doll. Words and even pictures don’t come close to describing the views, so I won’t waste time trying.

After we left One World Trade Center we toured St Pauls Cathedral across the street.  Although they still hold services here, it’s a moving museum in itself with so many mementos from the 9 months it served as a base for 9/11 workers.

Shopping was next on the list, along with lunch at an adorable but tiny restaurant in Little Italy. Maggie bought a knockoff purse from a man in Chinatown. This was a fairly easy transaction a few years ago but now we felt like we were involved in a drug deal with the exchange of the purse and the money to buy it in a phone booth.

Heavy bags in hand (mostly Maggie’s hand), we returned to our apt to drop them off. We couldn’t resist a short nap after all that walking before we headed to the meat packing district. We meandered through Chelsea Market and made a visit to the friends building. We stopped at a gourmet French Fry place and on to Washington Square Park.

Since we had tickets to the Upstanding Citizens Brigade stand up comedy show tonight, we took a subway to the lower east side. I’m amazed each time we emerge from an underground station, I feel like I’m in a new city. Every neighborhood has its own vibe, no 2 seem to be alike.

We were less than impressed with the comedy, these were the type of comedians that make you realize how hard it must be to get up and tell jokes (i.e. they DO NOT make it look easy). This was a little different from our previous experience with UCB when Amy Poler and some of the Saturday night live crew showed up.

Back to the apt before 10, Maggie and Olivia will have a very early day leaving for Central Park at 4:30 a.m. to see Demi Lavata.

Still no A/C- we are again promised tomorrow. So tonight we sleep with open windows to catch the cool night air and the sound of blaring horns and breaking glass along with it. But this is New York! And I’m loving every minute of it.