"Give my regards to Broadway...

...remember me to Herald Square.
Tell all the gang at Forty Second Street
That I will soon be there."

Written by George M. Cohan for a musical in the early 19th Century and covered multiple times by artists including Barry Manilow and Donny Osmond, this song is a quintessential element from my childhood. I remember my mom singing it, as if she were on stage herself, as she cleaned our house. This past week, I stood on Broadway, and on 42nd Street, and on Herald Square, making a lifelong dream of visiting New York City and the Broadway stage a reality.

And it was quite incredible.

New Year's week, though an exciting time to be in Times Square, is crazy crowded. We heard they were expecting 5,000,000 people. I'm not sure if there were really that many, but it sure seemed like it. Here is the view from our hotel window. We were two blocks from where the ball dropped.

And speaking of our hotel. It was just two years old, so essentially brand new and very nice. The decor, though? It must be a modern type of interior design that favors stark, white walls with an almost institutional feel and no carpet. Walking through the halls, we felt a bit like we were in a mental hospital. Well here, you see what you think:

We arrived late Wednesday night, after flying across the country and then riding a shuttle for over an hour, so we were tired and hungry! But we soon learned two important things about hotels that resemble mental institutions: (1) they don't have room service, and (2) they don't have vending machines. Since the dining room closed at 11:00 p.m., there was literally no way to get any food or (worse) any Diet Coke, unless we left the hotel. It was nearly midnight, so we opted to cut our losses and just go to bed. We slept well in large, comfortable queen beds and awoke to prepare for our first day in NYC.

It was pouring rain. Those of you know know me, know that rain is my absolute favorite. And this was perfect rain, too, pelting straight down, not blowing. It was really lovely. Except that I had left my brand new rain boots at home, following the weather forecast which showed no rain whatsoever in the four days we would be there or snow either. We had both. After walking all over Rockefeller Center, including NBC studios, where I got to pretend to host The Today Show, my mom insisted on buying me new lace-up combat style boots to replace my athletic shoes that were soaked through. Here are a couple of pictures from Rockefeller Center.

Of course it never rained again after that first day, but the boots are super cute, so thank you, Mom! We did have one evening of pretty snowfall, not enough to stick to the ground, but enough to create a festive ambiance in the NYC lights. Regardless of weather conditions, our most challenging task was transportation. Isaiah uses Uber when he travels, so we tried that. Here's my advice about Uber: If you are not in a city with 5,000,000 other people, Uber might be an excellent choice. But in NYC approaching New Year's Eve, maybe not. The problem is that once you call for an Uber and a driver accepts your request, he still has to find you. Or you have to find him. But when the app tells you to "meet your driver on the NW corner of West 5th Avenue and 52nd Street," it helps if you know which way is north. Or west. It also helps if there are not 200 other people in the same intersection, all looking like they might be waiting for an Uber.

We actually had two successful Uber rides, but our third try left us standing in an intersection for 30 minutes, only to have the driver cancel our ride. Ugh! From that point on, we chose taxis. Though decidedly more expensive, they are certainly more convenient. We also rode the "Big Bus," a two-tier tour bus that circles Manhattan and includes a live, guided tour monologue. We stopped at the Statue of Liberty. My mom had pre-purchased tickets to ride a ferry out to the island, but we arrived to find a line literally circling a giant block. We asked someone in that line how long she had been waiting, and she replied "We've been freezing our asses off for over two hours, and we aren't even close." Yeah, we decided to forgo that experience, but I saw the Statue from a distance:

My mom also wanted to see the 9/11 Memorial, so on our final day we took a taxi to Ground Zero, where we saw the fountains where the Twin Towers once were, surrounded by a memorial plaque with the names of those who died.

Now you may be wondering, "What about the Broadway shows?" I like to save the best for last. We saw three shows: Something Rotten, School of Rock, and Cats. Each was excellent! Honestly, I was in love all three times. My favorite, though? Hands down, Something Rotten. Set in Shakespeare's time, but with incredible contemporary music and brilliant writing, this production combines the best in acting, dancing, and singing. I can't describe how wonderful it was. All I can say is when it goes on tour at some point in the future, run (don't walk) to get your tickets immediately. Preferably, sit in the second row of the orchestra section, like we did.

School of Rock spotlighted some crazy talented kid actors and musicians, and Cats....well, it was spectacular as always, and of course I cried during "Memory" because I'm wimpy like that, and her voice was unbelievable.

We also saw the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes' Christmas show, which was enormously, over-the-top big! This was nostalgic for me because my grandma loved the Rockettes and always wanted me to be one. Sadly, I am only 5'5", and Rockettes must be at least 5'6". Sorry, Grandma! Most of this show was focused on the more secular parts of Christmas, with lots of fun Santa stuff and reindeer, but the final scene was a live nativity, and when I say "live," I mean it. Two live camels and one live donkey walked across the stage to join the Holy Family. It was really beautiful.

"Give my regards to Broadway
Remember me to Herald Square.
Tell all the gang at Forty Second Street
That I will soon be there."

Well I WAS there. And it was spectacular. Thank you, Mom.