April 12 started with a drive to the train station in New Haven, CT. Patty, Bob, and I took the Commuter train into Grand Central Terminal in New York City. We ate turkey and cheese sandwiches for lunch while we were on the train! We then walked down 42nd Street (East and West) to Broadway. We walked into the New York Public Library, but we weren't allowed to stay with our luggage! We also made a brief visit to the former FAO Schwartz store near Broadway, which is now Toys 'R' Us.
We then headed towards our hotel! Originally, I thought that we were killing time before Check-In time of 3:00 P.M. Actually, Patty was having trouble finding our hotel! We asked a friendly New Yorker who later flagged us down to tell us that he called our hotel! Fortunately, we were not that far from our hotel.
We then entered the Holiday Inn Express on West 45th Street near Fifth Avenue. Our room was ready when we arrived. It was small, but nice. I think that it was way overpriced, but average for New York City. After resting briefly, we headed for the Ed Sullivan Theater. We visited St. Patrick's Cathedral sometime in the afternoon!
Bob and I had tickets to attend the second taping of The Late Show with David Letterman (Dave tapes two shows on Thursdays.). Patty came along for the walk. She ended up being in the Standby line for the taping, but she was too far down the list, so she did some sightseeing.
We waited in the line to be processed based on the information that I gave online and on the phone! We were told to return at 4:50 P.M. To kill time, we walked down to West 66th Street to visit ABC/WABC, where Live with Kelly and The View are produced. On the way back, we saw the school where Kelly's kids attend or attended school. (Regis Philbin had blurted out the name of the school on at least one episode.) We then headed back to the line to be admitted into the show. We were prompted on how to act and what happened before the show! Eventually, we were seated!
We heard some pre-recorded music! The band, minus Paul Shaffer, was introduced and performed a couple of songs. Paul was finally introduced and joined in the performance! Eddie Brill warmed up the audience. Alan Kalter, the announcer was introduced sometime during this sequence. Dave came out and talked briefly to the audience, so he could gather some monologue material.
The show then began! There was a technical problem, so the introduction to the Top Ten List was modified when re-produced. During commercial breaks, the band performed for the audience. Our seats were very close to where Alan Kalter is located during the show. I enjoyed Julia Louis Dreyfuss, comedian Keith Alberstadt, and Bonnie Raitt! The Top Ten List was performed by ten actual accountants because the topic was tips on how to spot a bad accountant! After the show, Dave thanked us for coming! We were then dismissed. Despite being near doors marked "Exit", we exited where we entered.
We then re-connected with Patty. We looked for the Ranch One Restaurant that was supposedly on West 45th (Near Eighth Avenue). There was a restaurant called Chicken Bar, which was closed for renovations. As it turned out, the restaurant was now on West 46th Street! We didn't know this at the time, so we ended up at a restaurant that had a lot of diners called Smith's Bar and Restaurant! I had grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and "julienned" carrots, squash, and zucchini. I also had Coke as my beverage. Once again, the food was tasty!
After dinner, we went near Rockefeller Center and its surroundings a couple of times. We also went to the 86th Floor Observation Deck of the Empire State Building. After a long wait, we reached the elevators (The crazy option of taking the stairs to our destination was not offered.). One elevator took us to the Eightieth Floor! Another elevator took us to the observation deck. The view was incredible! We walked all the way around the deck. We then ended up in the Gift Shop. We eventually made it back to our hotel.
My biggest regret was that I didn't see the late local news that I would have enjoyed. I wanted to go back to the hotel after dinner, but I was talked out of it by Patty. Maybe, if I return to New York City, I will have one of my favorite out of town activities. The Empire State Building (at night) and Rockefeller Center were worth the sacrifice, though!
The evening concluded with relaxation. We had another busy day planned for Friday! The fun has not ended yet!
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