Working on the next blog post.

There is a saying that goes..."What you do not see, do not hear, do not experience, you never really know." 

Well, in regards to New York...we came, we saw, we heard, we experienced, and now we really know.  It was a trip of a lifetime for five friends who turned 50.  Who says 50 is old?  50 is fabulous!  Here's to friendship.  Here's to the Fab Five and the next 50!

The ladies still need to get together, but here are more pictures.  Tried to put video clips, too, but having some technical difficulties.

Thank you again for your continued interest in this blog.  It has garnered close to 1,000 hits since it's inception thanks to all of you!



10 luggages and 5 carry ons.  The shuttle guy looked at us with dismay.  Haha!

  We stayed at the Jewel Hotel:  http://www.thejewelny.com/index.php

On the bleachers at Times Square (Who's that guy?  He just stuck his face in there.)






NYPD

 

NYPD and Yellow Taxi in the background



Passes for the NBC Studios Tour

 

"Top of the Rock" observation deck at Rockefeller Center



St. Patrick's Cathedral

 

Organ pipes at St. Patrick's Cathedral



Across Trump Tower

More to come...

The Fab Five and I are safely home!!

Because you have all been so supportive and excited for us, this blog was a way to share this experience with you.  Thank you for following it.  This is not the end of the blog.  Final thoughts from each of the Fab Five and more photos will be posted when the ladies get a chance to get together to gather all their photos.  So, please check back from time to time.

Also, I will share the winners of our hoss election for categories such as, "The one most likely to take care of Keoki."  "The one most likely to stay up with Keoki."  "The one who could care less for Keoki".

But for now, I'm signing off because I'm still on New York time and right now I should be sleeping.

More to come..

My snack on the plane.



Today was our last full day.  Rain was predicted, but it was a beautiful day again (50s-60s).  The Fab Five was one short today because sadly Robin was not feeling well.

The ladies explored more of the city and did some last minute shopping.  As if yesterday wasn't enough!

Kosher pickles at Junior's Restaurant in Grand Central Terminal.  Kosher pickles are like appetizers in NY and is complimentary.

They walked around Rockefeller Center one last time.


The Hawaii flag proudly flew among the other 49 state flags at Rockefeller Center.




Skating rink at Rockefeller Center.


We came across the Philippine Consulate while on Fifth Ave.  You know, for some reason, people here assume that just because four of the ladies are Filipino that they can actually speak the language and start speaking to them in Tagalog or Ilocano.  How presumptuous of them!

We strolled through Bryant Park, which is the site of Fashion Week in the spring and fall when the most prestigious designers such as, Vera Wang, Ralph Lauren, Dolce & Gabana, Calvin Klein, etc., show off their hottest creations to celebrities and fashionistas.  The park is turned into a sort of International Market place in November and December where artisans show off their creations.  (Think high-end International Market/craft fair.)  And we were lucky enough to be here during this time.  The ambience was very cool and classy.

And right across Bryant Park is the New York Public Library.  It's huge!  It even has an outdoor reading area where you can read your book and drink coffee.  It looks like a huge Starbucks.



New York Public Library



Then, the ladies walked to Grand Central Terminal the largest train station in the world.  This is where they filmed the AT&T commercial where the guy breaks into a dance all by himself because he didn't get the text that the flash mob was delayed.  It's filled with many restaurants and shops for commuters.



Grand Central Terminal from Lexington Ave.



The famous stairs at Grand Central Terminal



View of the opposite end from the the famous stairs.



The evening was spent one last time at Times Square.  The Fab Five less one took in the sites and savored the moment one last time knowing that same time tomorrow they will be back home...



Hanging around my bud Matt Lauer at NBC.



The Fab Five with Matt Lauer at the NBC Studios



Posing with my new friends at NBC.



Hiding from the Fab Five.  They thought they lost me.  Teehee!  (They didn't think it was funny.)

 Today was a little warmer (60's-50s).  The Fab Five spent the day doing damage on 5th Ave., Park Ave., Madison Ave. and Lexington Ave., baby!!  Talk about shop till you drop!

We had lunch at Serendipity Restaurant and the ladies shared their Frozen Hot Chocolate with me.  This is the famous dessert that John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale ate in the movie Serendipity.  The ladies just love that movie.  They met the owner of the restaurant, Stephen Bruce, who signed his Serendipity cookbook for them.


"Yummy!  This beats a banana."



Enjoying Serendipity's signature dessert--Frozen Hot Chocolate



Desserts at Serendipity



Fab Five with their Serendipity shopping bags in front of Serendipity.

 The evening was spent with the "Jersey Boys" at the August Wilson Theater.  It's a story of how Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons were formed.  OMG!  It was EXCELLENT!  The Fab Five laughed, cried and were up on their feet cheering.  They agreed that it's one of the best shows they've seen, along with Wicked.  The ladies loved them before and even more so now.  It was very special for them to see it together on Broadway because of their mutual appreciation for the group and their songs.



At the Wilson Theater



The evening weather was cool and misty.  We hear that it's been raining in Hawaii since we left.  We must have brought the sunshine to New York because we've been blessed with clear, sunny, cool weather the whole time.  But rain is predicted for tomorrow.  It's probably because it's sad that tomorrow is our last full day in this grand city...



Lincoln Memorial

 Today was a warm, beautiful, clear day.  Temperatures were in the 60s.  The day started with the ladies hailing a cab to take us to our tour bus check-in place for our one-day adventure to Washington D.C.  Hey, they did pretty good, too!  Before the tour began, the tour guide asked everyone where they were from.  The bus was a melting pot of tourists from Brazil, Peru, Australia, Columbia and California.  But, when they heard we were from Hawaii, they all had to turn around to see who we were.  Everyone ooed and ahhed.  We seem to get the same response everywhere we go.  The other day someone asked if the ladies danced hula.  They told them yeah and they play the ukulele, surf and go to the beach everyday, too.  The other day while shopping, the cashier asked if Hawaii used U.S. dollars?!  No, we use coconuts.  Anyway, I digress.

The bus left NYC on time at 7 a.m.  First, stop was Delaware where we passed the famous John Hopkins Hospital.  When passing through Maryland, we saw the stadium where the Baltimore Orioles play.  After four hours, we finally crossed the Potomac River into Washington D.C.  First, we were in view of the D.C. United Stadium where soccer is played, National Stadium where the Washington Nationals play baseball and the Verizon Center where the Wizards play basketball.


Spectacular fall colors in Washington D.C.

 After several more miles, we were finally in full view of the Washington Monument.  Our first stop was the Lincoln Memorial.  We stood on the top of the stairs at the spot where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his famous "I Have A Dream" speech.  When we look across the reflecting pools, the Washington Monument is directly opposite in all its glory.  Any photos or anything on T.V. that we've seen at home did not prepare us for all its massive glory.

We walked over to the Korean Memorial where there were life-size statues of soldiers.



Korean Memorial



Korean Memorial

 Then, we went to the White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.  I swear that was President Obama waving the shaka sign at us from the top right hand corner window.  But, isn't he in Hawaii for APEC?



White House

 Anyway, afterwards we went to Madame Tussauds Wax Museum where we saw the figures of all the Presidents.


The Kennedys

 Then, off to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum where historic air and spacecraft collection are on display.

The last stop was the State Capitol.  By then, the building reflected the gold color of the sunset and it looked spectacular against the clear blue sky and moon.  Then, it was time to trek it back to NYC.  After four hours on the bus, we were back at Times Square.


State Capitol at sunset.

 Before I end for the day, just wanted to say thank you for everyone's support and positive comments whether on the blog, text, e-mails or phone calls.  (Pardon any typographical and grammatical errors.  I'm sure there's a lot.  Hard for me to concentrate when the ladies are laughing and talking so loud in the room.)  The Fab Five is having a fabulous time and I'm so glad they brought me along.  They love taking my picture because besides being so cute, I'm always smiling and I never blink!  Anyway, knowing that everyone back home is following them on the blog makes it so much more special.  Wish you were all here!!


Fries just my size.





View from the 102nd floor of the Empire State Building

 Today the Fab Five took me to the Empire State Building.  The world renown structure is the sight of scenes for "Sleepless In Seattle", "An Affair To Remember" and "King Kong".  Just to name a few.  It was a perfect, clear day for a 360 degree view of this grand city from the 86th and 102nd floor, which was 1,454 feet high.


Fab Five and Keoki on the 86th floor





Lobby of Empire State Building

 They walked through the Garment District on their way to Macy's.  Nine floors of shopping heaven!  This is the well-known store of "Miracle on 34th Street".  The store has started to deck out the Christmas decorations and is looking grander than ever.

Miracle on 34th Street



Lobby of Macy's

 They walked through the Fashion District, pass the Parsons School of Design, which is the institution used for "Project Runway".



Public artwork of needle and button that is occasionally shown on Project Runway.



Parsons School of Design

 Ever wonder who's taking the pictures when all of the five ladies and myself are in them?  Well, it's because they have no shame.  They'll ask any passing fellow tourist to take their pictures.  Once they even asked a cop.  Speaking of cops, NYPD was all over the place in Times Square tonight.  It's probably the safest place to be right now.

Speaking of Times Square, we saw ourselves on a gargantuan jumbo tron advertising for Forever 21.


Find us on Forever 21's jumbo tron in Times Square.



Where the heck is the Fab Five?





Freezing on the top of the open double-decker bus.





Our midnight snack--New York pizza and canonli split in  5.  



I'll end here because I need to pass out the Advil for their aching feet.  More to come....tomorrow we have an early start because we're going on a one-day trip to Washington D.C....stay tuned!





"Okay ladies, who's first?"