The Big Apple

Thanks to some generous friends from the church where we were married when Dill was stationed in New Jersey we had a great spot to park the trailer for free so we could explore the big city!  We stayed at the Navy Lodge on Staten Island so we got to see a lot of Lady Liberty with 3 trips into Manhatten and back.

 We went to the 9-11 memorial and museum which was very powerful.  They place a rose on the name on their birthday.

 We got a clear night departure from Manhatten

 Day 2 brought rain and lots of boat rides - ferry to the city, ferry to Ellis Island, Ferry to Liberty Island, city and then back to Staten Island.  They had a good ranger search at Ellis Island.

 Gherkin and KimChee weren't quite exited about doing the Lady Liberty Jr. Ranger because they had already done 2 for the day and it was the same badge ad Ellis Island.  They did however enjoy the audio tour of the pedestal museum.  Heads up to anyone who ever wants to go - schedule your tickets at least 3-6 months in advance!!!  Because it was a rainy day they were able to get us into the pedestal but not the crown since others had canceled their tickets at the last minute.  It was really neat to see the history behind the statue and who all had a hand in making it.  Did you know Eiffel did the inside of Lady Liberty before he did his famous tower?

 We got to see the original torch.  The current one is gilded and lit from the outside.

 The boys were impressed with the situation...

 Day 3 brought a trip to Central Park.  The boys got to be boys at the playgrounds and we saw Balto!

Off to our next adventure!