The Big Apple

Despite what he says on his blog, Shawn treated me to a weekend in New York for my birthday this year. Despite the hot weather, we had a good time wandering around downtown neighborhoods and ducking into coffee shops to cool down.

We got in too late on Friday night to do much other than look for a midnight snack to tide us over. You'd think that it would have been easy -- after all, New York is the city that never sleeps. Our hotel, however, was way downtown, across from Ground Zero and in the heart of the city's financial district. If we'd wanted an expense account lunch, no problem. Late night, however, our choices were slices and subs. Not a bad choice, but not exactly the 24-hour Greek diner we'd have found in a more residential neighborhood.

Saturday, we started the day by going up to Union Square for breakfast at a Brazilian cafe that we'd been in once before. Shawn was pleased to find the same crowd of up-and-coming actresses and models still waiting on tables there! Outside the restaurant, we stopped at the Greenmarket, where I caught up with a couple old friends who sell their farm goods at the market. From there, we made our way back downtown by way of Soho, Greenwich Village, and Tribeca.

We went to dinner at a nouveau Asian restaurant in Chelsea called Saba. Based on the perfectly prepared striped bass and the yummy Korean barbeque, we'd recommend the restaurant to anyone who asked! Afterward, we caught Clark Terry's Big Band at the Blue Note. Clark Terry is the real deal -- he's played trumpet with everyone from Duke Ellington to Doc Severinson and back again. One of Daniel's friends from UT plays third trombone in the band. It was fun to be at one of the most famous jazz clubs in the world and see someone we knew from Knoxville!

I was not the only birthday girl at the Blue Note. At one point, Mr. Terry interrupted his show to sing Happy Birthday to Tony Bennett who was at the best table in the house. He did not get up and sing, but acknowledged the attention and well wishes of the crowd like an old pro.

Sunday was uptown day for us. We took the train to the Upper West Side and had brunch at Isabella's, one of the most reliable places in the city. Though we were just across the street from the Museum of Natural History, we passed up dinosaur bones and the planetarium for the Columbus Avenue flea market on the other side of the street. Shawn bought me a treasure from a woman who just knew he had to be from out of town -- "There just aren't any big blond men in New York," she told him.

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at Crumbs Bake Shop for another cup of coffee (iced for me) and a chocolate cupcake (no candles). We read someone's abandoned Sunday Times and commented that a city weekend couldn't get much better than ours!

Dianne