Friday, August 10
We
got up early today so we could get on the road toward New York City. On the
way, we thought it would be a good idea to see some presidential museums,
since, of course, that is why we are on this trip. First for today, we went
to the home that Dwight D. Eisenhower spent his years before and after his
term as president. Sidenote: my elementary school was named for Eisenhower
so I have a personal interest in him. I really learned a lot about him and
he reminded me of President Washington.
He
was a great military leader and president, but he really preferred the farm
life. He loved soil regeneration and said that he wanted to leave a piece
of land better than he found it. He seemed like a really good guy. Vienna
got to participate in a "Junior Secret Service" program at the farm and when
she completed it, she got a badge and a certificate and is now an honorary
secret serviceperson. She was so excited about it and enjoyed doing that.
Next on our itinerary was Wheatland - the home of James Buchanan. This was an interesting home, too. The house was almost perfectly symmetrical and very formal. There was the bathtub that he used which was actually like an upside-down, wide-rimmed hat with a seat in it. He would sit in it with water in the bottom and a servant would wash him and pour water over him. Much different than we do now. Buchanan hated slavery so he had paid servants but when he was president he had to honor the constitution as it was at the time so took a more neutral stance. We tried ever so hard to get to our next destination on time but Pennsylvania slowed us down. We were trying to make it to Caldwell, NY, to learn about Grover Cleveland but there was no straight shot on a freeway so we ended up on lots of smaller roads with lots of traffic lights and traffic. Then there was the rain. That slowed it down, too but we didn't mind so much since we knew the rain would bring cooler weather.
We got to the Cleveland site about 15 minutes after it closed but Andy took a chance and knocked on the door. We are all so glad he did, too because the nicest curator and volunteer answered. After explaining our plight, the couple was more than happy to give us a tour of the home and share some stories and conversation with us. We really enjoyed their knowledge and kindness. Vienna really had a lot of fun, too. They showed her some games on the front porch that would have been played at the time that Cleveland was a child. We learned a lot about Grover Cleveland including that his baby daughter named Ruth was the real inspiration for the name of the candy bar, Baby Ruth, not the famous baseball player.
After
our very pleasant time at the Cleveland birth home, we headed for our final
destination - New York City. This was Vienna's and my first time in the city
and I was very excited! It was literally everything I had ever heard of and
more! We actually saw fire hydrants open and pouring out onto the street and
jackhammers going. Everything about it was New Yorkish. The only things that
were different, thank goodness, were the stereotypes of heavy crime and rude
New Yorkers. I had heard that Mayor Giuliani cleaned up a lot of the crime
and encouraged the residents not to be rude so as to clean up the reputation.
Well, it seems to have worked. We saw and felt no threat of crime, even on
the subway which we rode at midnight, and we didn't meet a single rude person.
Everyone was very nice and helpful.
The
best part was Times Square. The pictures on TV
don't do it justice at all! The buildings are so big and the lights are so
magnificent. I really have never seen anything like it before. Also, real
good fortune came our way. When we stepped off the subway in Times Square,
we turned around and saw a theater playing the Broadway hit "Rent." Andy
had the great suggestion to just see if they had any tickets available. We
found out that they did and that the play was starting in three minutes. We
had a decision to make and we made the right one. Judging by the seating,
we got the last tickets. The play was awesome! It was all singing and the
numbers were rocking! I really want the soundtrack if I can find it (I
got it on Aug 21! Yayy!). The whole Broadway experience was wonderful.
We really enjoyed it.
After the play, we had a quick dinner at Chevy's. Yeah, yeah, not very original. Then we walked around Times Square a bit and soaked in the sights. Vienna had a drawing done by a street artist. It came out very pretty. Then it was getting very late so we went back to the hotel. It is almost 1:00 am, so we know we won't get a lot of sleep tonight. Well, that is not what our hotel clerk told us to do. He said, "don't sleep - this city doesn't sleep." Unfortunately, we have to sleep because we have a lot to do tomorrow.
