Well it had to be done, and when the weather lady informed us that a wet morning was in store with 'maybe a patch of sun' in the afternoon, we knew that it was time to shop.
Macy's was the first destination although we did meander through several other stores en route. Macy's is undergoing renovations at the moment and was a little disrupted but we did managed to outfit ourselves with new purses and a few other knick knacks.
The ubiquitous shoe sale was on (always seems to be in the States when I visit?) so we spent a while there.
Honestly though, the funniest thing we saw all day was the two girls being subjected to facials right in a main store thoroughfare, absolutely hilarious and worthy of a quick candid shot.
We then had a restorative coffee and cake before venturing outside to light rain and discovering Desigual conveniently across the road! Not a large one though and we managed to escape unscathed before finding the big one, Victoria's Secret, next door!
Happily (?) H & M beckoned from across the road and kept us occupied for another wee while until our feet began screaming at us and we turned toward the hotel, bashing into New Yorkers and tourists alike with our shiny big bags on crowded sidewalks.
A couple more unscheduled stops at Loft and a shoe store increased our weight training and as we turned into West 48th we were stunned to discover it was nearly 6 pm!
We had planned to return to the “top of the Roc” for sunset having bought the Sun and Stars ticket allowing a repeat visit within 48 hours and by now the cloud had largely retreated ( unfortunately toward the west we discovered later.)
Zoe allowed me a quick cup of tea before we were once again out the door but this time unfettered by bags! After a small (bad map reading) detour through Times Square ( frenetic as always and preparing for a taping of “Express Runway”) we found ourselves at the Rockefeller Center and happily skipping long queues due to our previously obtained tickets.
Surprisingly, hundreds of other people had also read their Lonely Planets and it was packed! Well not literally, as it as a capacity of 499 max. and I think they were all there including the Asian man who proposed to his stunned girlfriend in front of the other 497 of us amid loud cheers when he placed the ring on her finger.
The city skyline view was stunning and worth jostling for position as the lights came on one by one affording an ever changing vista.
The view to the west, over the Hudson, obstructed by cloud but still stunning.
The Empire State Building – certainly the main attraction for many and wearing it's everyday colour of white tonight. The light colour can change depending on the sponsor/ event of the day – pink for Breast Cancer Awareness, green for St. Patrick's Day etc.
I thought it looked pristine in white.
Eventually we tore ourselves away and managed to find pizza, NY cheesecake and a nice bottle of Provençal Rosé for a very late bed picnic back at the hotel.
Exhausted, we turned the lights out at midnight and slept soundly until the smoke alarm started chirping at 3 am! Ten minutes later the night porter arrived to change the battery and we were literally out like lights ….
Posted with Blogsy