ROAD TRIP DAY 4 - Due West

AAAAaaaaahhhhh!!! 11:25am! We had all overslept from the long night of festivities. Check out was in about 30 minutes and I didn’t want to be charged an extra night, so I shot out of bed with the quickness and shook everyone up. Half awake, everyone hurriedly packed up all their stuff and took quick showers. Amazingly, we were all able to finish with about 5 minutes to spare. We checked out and left our belongings in the car and set out for Central Park for a few more pics, since it was one of Tiff’s goals to make a wish at the large fountain there.

Today was one of those days when you could really feel the hustle and bustle of New York life. It seemed as if everyone and their mama’s was out and about to enjoy the day. Sun shining, the air was crisp and cool, perfect for a day at the park. Only thing was, everyone else had the same idea! It was nearly impossible to get a taxi and once we did, we were blocked halfway by a festival and parade. We made a decision to walk the rest of the way and just enjoy the sun.

On the way to the park, we ran into Raul once more who was on his way to work. Ironically, we were just thinking about going into the Apple store where he worked to see what he was up to. We said our last goodbyes, and made our way into the crowd of people gathering in the skyscraper enclosed meadow.

As I mentioned earlier, EVERYONE was out on this Sunday morning. What made it even more difficult was that there was a kids’ convention also going on with literally at least a couple thousand in attendance. I joked with everyone, saying that if I had a kid, I would probably have had to use that little toddler leash even though I’m such a strong opponent to its use! Nevertheless, we made out way through the sea of children to the fountain where we snapped a few last pics and made wishes.

Central Park

Tiff x Nino = MAGNUM

Stroll in the Park

Before we left the concrete jungle of New York, we decided to meet up with some of our relatives who lived in the area, Grandpa Tony and his son, Largent. Remember when I mentioned that our family had a weird spread in ages? Well Grandpa Tony was more of our uncle and Largent, who was actually our uncle, was more like our cousin since he was younger than we were! Since they lived in Queens and we were going to head in the opposite direction, we decided to meet halfway and had a late lunch at a pizza joint in the East Village called Motorino’s. Although it was a brief reunion, we were able to catch up with Grandpa Tony and Largent and share a meal with them. Next time, we planned, we would try to spend more time together, be it if they came out to the West Coast or whenever we returned again to the East.

Another long day in the books and we were finally heading west. New York had been great and we couldn’t wait to come back again. For now, we were due west to finally start the long drive home. Next stop? Cleveland.

Ridin off into the sunset.