I was nominated to travel to New York to represent my business unit’s products at the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) East (NY) trade show. I’ve been to New York several times, but always on business and I have never taken time to take in the city; I was determined to do whatever I could on this work trip to get a better sense of the New York scene.
My first observation – mind you, I just got back from the pristine island of Iceland – was how this was absolutely a concrete jungle. There was tension in my bones as I took in the crowds and the concrete, getting high on second hand pot smoke everywhere I walked, the noises that go on 24/7 along with the construction and everchanging skyline.
View from my room at the Edison Hotel… meh.
OK – that was the first 12 hours. I stayed at the Edison hotel which gave me the opportunity to walk 1.3 miles to the convention center on Wednesday and Thursday – 1.3 miles that I could zig zag around to see what I could see. The Edison hotel is located in what I believe is called the “Theater District”, also very close to Times Square. So, after I arrived I sought out dinner at a close by trattoria (Trattoria Trecolori), and a stroll to see Times Square.
Linguine Nere Alla Monsignore
homemade black (squid ink) linguini with shrimp, scallops, squid, clams, and mussels in our flavorful marinara
On Tuesday morning I took an early (7am) brisk walk to the convention center – focused primarily on staying safe (mostly out of ignorance) and finding my way to the Jacob Javits Convention Center.
I made it early to the convention center, so was there when set up began at 8am and stayed through until closing at 6pm. We had good traffic at the booth, and I was able to reconnect with some old acquaintances I know from the industry.
After a long day I was beat. Walked back to the hotel, and had dinner downstairs at Friedman’s where the wait staff entertains the diners with song – some really good, some REALLY LOUD. After a Manhattan and French Dip I went to my room to relax my achy bones.
Thursday… another early walk to convention center with gorgeous weather. I discovered 46th street and other nice segments of the walk along the way. After another long day (but a couple hours shorter than Wednesday), I moseyed along the Hudson river next to the convention center to see what sights might be there.
I eventually changed direction to continue the stroll toward my hotel. I found an awesome eatery: Yum Yum Too. The service and the food were both excellent, and the area around there offers so much more to explore. This is the point where I decided I want to come back to New York to explore more of this area and many others.
Friday – time to go home. However!… I had a couple hours in the morning before I needed to head to the airport, so I decided to go see Central Park. I’ve never been there and I wanted to gain a first hand perspective. The walk to the park was about three quarters of a mile, and then I strolled for about 30 minutes within the park. I only covered about 25% of the park in that time, so add this to more reason to come back to spend some more time in New York.
I returned from Central Park via Madison Avenue, and had a wonderful Nova Scotia Salmon on Bagel sandwich at the Deli on Madison.
The End
All in all a good trip. The show was good and opened up some new opportunities for me to pursue. I finally got my own taste of New York; enough to lure me back to explore more.