Monday 22 June

There is no sleeping in even if I wanted to. Construction is going on all around us and is in full swing and the sound is magnified by the empty block next door. We are in a very good area as far as getting to places is concerned. The transport system is quite full on but reasonably easy. You are either going uptown, downtown or across. The trick is getting to the right subway entrance first!!! Uptown and downtown entrys are not necessarily in the same place.

First up is a 3 hour cruise around Manhattan which is very informative and gives us lots of photo opportunities that we otherwise wouldn't have. It's too long really and I am bored after the 2nd hour, especially as we had to turn back at the Harlem River due to the river levels being up and we wouldn't fit under the bridge.

Afterwards we go to the Rockefeller Centre which incorporates NBC Studios and Radio City Music Hall. Radio City is gorgeous and the tour is great up until we meet one of the current Rockettes. She clearly does not wish to talk to us and is quite surly when it comes to answering questions and having her photo taken which she is required to offer. In the gift shop I buy myself a Rockettes t shirt.

We visit Top of the Rock Observation Deck which is terrific with many different levels to get amazing views from. After that we go to NBC for a tour which is lots of fun and I volunteered, naturally, to take the helm as the news anchor and read from the teleprompter. I viewed the video afterwards and I was almost sick. I know why they don't show the hands of newsreaders now. Fiddle, fiddle.

I head off to Grand Central Station which is amazing in size and beautiful in design. I pass by the Algonquin Hotel where Dorothy Parker held many a witty discussion with artists and such like. It's getting late in the evening and I desperately need to rest my blistered feet so I go home. I search for and find a bottle shop and then get some fish in Chinatown for dinner. Chris is out so I have a lovely quiet evening to myself reading and researching my next day out.