NYC: Day Five

On Tuesday of last week, we went to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty!  Of course, it was the only day on our trip that it rained, but really I shouldn't complain because we had truly great weather considering how long we were there and the time of year!  We woke up and made our way to the Ferry, having to stop along the way for an extra umbrella and a few panchos.  Jonathan ran into Walgreens while I got us some coffee from Starbucks, and he came out with two bright yellow, I <3 NY panchos with hoodies.  Let me just tell you....we looked HOT!  And NOT AT ALL like tourists!!!  HAHA!

Anyway, we boarded the ferry and our first stop was at the Statue of Liberty.  Jonathan had planned ahead and ordered us an audio tour for both the Statue and Ellis Island, and I am so glad he did!  We had the best time listening to the history behind such a monumental time in our nation's history and all about the way the Statue of Liberty was made.  Did you know that Lady Liberty was a gift from France?  I guess I always assumed she was something we Americans came up with and decided to build, but no!  Several French politicians decided to give her to us as a gift (and as a political message to England that France was on our side regarding our independence).  And, all of the details about the building of the statue was just incredible!

After our Statue tour, we grabbed some lunch, then hopped on the ferry to Ellis Island.  Again, amazing!  The audio tour was so educational and had so many awesome features such as personal stories of actual immigrants that came to the island before getting approval to remain in the U.S.  I loved learning about our nation's history and standing in the very place that hundreds of thousands of early immigrants stood.  It must have been such a scary yet exciting time for them!

I would say that seeing the Statue of Liberty and being able to walk up to the top of her pedestal and the tour through Ellis Island were some of my favorite moments in our trip to NYC.  We loved it, rain and all!

When that was all done and we made it back to land, Jonathan and I ventured back to our hotel in the pouring rain.  We took a breather, changed some clothes, and then went to pick up our tickets at Rockefeller Center for the NBC Studio Tour that we were taking the next morning.  After doing a little shopping there, we got dressed and grabbed some dinner at a pub next door to our hotel.

THEN!  (drum roll please......)

We went to see WICKED!

AAHHHH!  It was just wonderful.  I had heard that seeing Wicked was worth the trip alone!  We were on the first row of the balcony, and Jonathan and I both loved it.  The music, the plot, the cast, the set!  It was all phenomenal.  Seriously, if Wicked comes to a theater near you. GO SEE IT!  I want to see it again so badly, and I just heard that it is coming to Atlanta sometime in the near future, so maybe we can arrange for it.  We had such a great time, and I am so thankful Jonathan took us!

After the theater, we crashed!  So tired, yet still one more full day of sight-seeing and exploring to do!

Here are a few pictures that I managed to capture of our time on the ferry and near the Statue of Liberty.  Because it was raining so hard, I was forced to wrap my camera in a plastic back and stuff in our backpack.  I can't get it too wet!  These will have to do:

We can see her in the distance as we approach.

Day 6:  Fitting in the rest!