My heart broke for NYC

After a but of a sleep in this morning we ventured into the cold for our first day in NYC. I was so excited. The city feels so safe. I like it immediately. We stopped in to get some tickets to do the touristy thing and see the sights aboard a double decker bus. We all giggle nervously about the cool as we walk down the street. It'd be ok if it was just the cold - but that wind.

We had all worked up an appetite with all that sleeping and traveling. A quick stop at the deli and some French toast later and we head down to join our bus. Despite our reservations in the cold we chose a seat outdoors to take in the sights. I can't believe how close everything is. 

It's cool to hear how to take on the city from a NYorkers perspective. And off we go. We decide to get off at Macy's where the girls enjoy a spot of shopping. That store just keeps on going. It's great that there was a discount for out of town shoppers. Just had to head to the information desk and show your passport ant 10% off is all yours. 

We jump back on the bus and head down to the 9/11 site but realise it's already lunch time. We pop into a deli where we enjoyed some fries with gravy and grilled cheese sandwiches. This warmed our hearts and Jamei's appetite sent her back for seconds. When her 2nd grilled cheese was made he said to her "are you ready?" And then threw the sandwich to her. 

While she was sitting there in her chair I noticed a new idiosyncrasy of twiddling her thumbs in the same way both my mum does and Babushka did. Made us both chuckle. 

Off to the 9/11 site. It's hard to fathom the sheer volume of the loss of lives till you read every name. As I walked around the 2 holes in the ground where the twin towers once stood I was overcome with emotion. I couldn't understand how others around me were snapping typical holiday pictures with smiles and laughs. I was doing all I could not to break into a sob. 

It was time to enter the 9/11 Memorial museum which I knew would be both interesting and heartbreaking all at once. The security is tight with bag and body scanning like at the airport. 

 I was truly amazed when I saw actual items from that moment in time. Damaged fire trucks, notes that were thrown out of the building "12 people trapped north tower level 11", seat belts from the planes, footage from that day, voicemail messages recorded for loved ones trying to connect, soft toys from kids traveling, the mayors schedule for September 11. I could go on for hours about what I saw in there today. Truly incredible and so privileged to have been there. 

This is a picture of actual stairs people walked, then ran, on to escape the building. 

I refused to stop and give any of my time to the terrorists though. I'm sure the artefacts and information was interesting but on principle I didn't think that was right. I was surprised to see as I glanced over toward that area to see security camera footage of 2 of them being security screened at the airport that day. Just a routine day that no one could have predicted the ending of. 

It was time to head back as the girls were tired and feeling a bit jet lagged. Just before we jumped back on the bus we stopped into AT&T to get our phones connected which will serve us well for being able to stay in touch with each other and be able to plan on the fly. 

We jumped back on the bus and had a very cool tour guide named Debbie. She made us laugh the rest of the way back to our hotel. Even stopped for a quick selfie with us. 

 It's about 6.00pm when we walk back in and decide to settle in for the night. Not before grabbing a quick bite to eat. 

My knee has held up so well today with no pain, even took some stairs like a normal person and a little jog across the crossing - thankful for my knee brace. 

If only I could have got my fingers to work. I pretty much couldn't be trusted to hang onto to anything today. Hehehe. 

Today's travellers tip : we generally always bring a power board when we travel anywhere but this time I invested in a new one so we could charge multiple devices too which includes USB ports but only needing one AUS to USA adaptor. Thanks to my boss Whyatt for sharing that tip with me