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I want to be a part of it - New York, New York!
What a week it has been! Jim and I are a bit overwhelmed at the amazing sights and scenes we have taken in. From July 2, until today, July 8, 2018, we have laughed, and I have cried, a multitude of times. New York, by water or land is a sight to behold. New York is not a city - it’s a world.
As I left off from last weeks blog, we had Matt and Ryan disassembling our engine. The parts were ordered, so we were dead in the water, so to speak, for a few days. Needless to say, Jim and I had plans to take on the city. The weather in New York this weekend was 95 degrees with 90% humidity. It was so hot! We left the marina and walked to the bus stop that would take us to the Staten Island Ferry.
It was a 40 minute trip and we certainly enjoyed the air conditioning on the bus. As we rolled across the cities in Staten Island, I was full of anticipation. I knew that we were about to encounter a whole bunch of firsts. First sight of The Ferry, First sight of the Hudson River. Seeing Ground Zero and Liberty Park. First sight of Manhattan. I’ve had a real thing going on over the years about the Statue of Liberty. I’ve been dreaming of the day that I, Kim O’Connell, would cross in front of the Statue of Liberty in our own boat. I was struggling with the whole idea of seeing Lady Liberty from the Staten Island Ferry. The Ferry goes right past her. I was going to hide - close my eyes!
We got to the ferry terminal and proceeded to board the Ferry. This is a free service to Manhattan which was surprising to me. It makes sense though. I can’t imagine trying to collect a fare from every person who crosses on this boat. It was mayhem!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staten_Island_Ferry
Staten Island Ferry
The trip into Manhattan was amazing. It was so hot, but the breeze blowing by was refreshing and most welcomed. My eyes could not believe what I was seeing most of the time. We were on the Hudson River! We stood on the top deck of the Ferry, Starboard side. I knew if I was on this side of the boat I would not catch a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty. I was wrong. I needed to use the restroom. So off I went in search of, and to my wonder and amazement there she was, port side! I stopped in my tracks, no longer needing to pee, hustled back to Jim and we both went to see the magnificent view of the Statue of Liberty! It was quite humbling and I relinquished the idea that the first time I saw her I would be on my own boat. What I did think is that I’m about the luckiest girl in the world, because in a few days, I’d get to see her again, up close and personal from the bow of the Happy Destiny.
We arrived in Manhattan and it was bustling with people. From what I was to understand, being a holiday week, New Yorkers flock to the Jersey Shore for their holidays. That being said, I think the traffic, both by vehicle and by pedestrians was a bit lighter. We wandered, with no real direction. We walked by Wall Street and the famous Bull and Little Girl. It was a photo fest for most people. I’m not a fan of large gatherings. Too many people = too much noise. I love my small, quiet life. I did not have to stop and have Jim take a picture of the Wall Street Bull. The stock market is not being friendly to us right now, so fuck em!
Not knowing anything much about Manhattan, we continued walking and found the 9-11 Memorial Museum. We entered into a museum so to speak, of television monitors, reliving that tragic day. News reports, memorabilia, and stories from the real hero’s and the survivors. There were papers, and pieces of an airplane window. Strangled, twisted metal from the tower itself. A pair of ladies high heels. A photo montage of the “missing persons” and the “have you seen my loved one” push pin wall. The “falling man” photo. I think Jim and I had a quiet moment of reflection, and I found myself saying a prayer.
We walked to the site where the World Trade Centers used to stand, and visited the incredible memorial to those whose lives were taken on that fateful day. It is quite humbling and something I will never forget.
Jim and I had a nice lunch in Little Italy. We had walked about 5 miles by this point and decided to call it a day. A very hot day. We walked back to the Ferry and headed back to Staten Island. Once back there, we hopped a train back home to Great Kills Yacht Club.
We met this little family of Swans tonight. The babies (Cygnets) are gray. They will turn white as they mature.
July 3rd brought Matt and Ryan back to the boat to put in the new Turbo on the Starboard engine. These two young men are just about the nicest boys I’ve ever met. They are master mechanics and put our engine back together. They worked all day long and I just have to say that Jim and I are so grateful to my brother Kelly for helping us to source the parts and for sending Ryan and Matt to help us.
July 4, 2018
I’ve talked a minute about my brother Kelly. Kelly lives here in New York. He is the VP of Harley Marine Service which is a Tug and Barge company in the United States. He is a maritime expert. He is here in New York working. He is married to Joni. Their home is in Southern California. Kelly works here in New York, Joni lives and works in So. Cal, and they travel a few weeks a month back and forth. Without going into detail, because it’s not important, Kelly and I haven’t seen each other in 5 years. Life is in session, and my brother is a busy man. All that matters is that we are family and we have each other today. This trip to New York has been met with a fabulous reunion between the two of us. He has been following our Great Loop Adventure and he is genuinely excited for us. He gets it!
Joni and her mother Nan came to town for the 4th of July holiday. They came to pick Jim and I up at the marina and all of us were about to share a New York Dream. Because Kelly has local knowledge, he was the tour guide for the day. We all enjoyed an air conditioned, town car drive to every point of interest the New York Burroughs have to offer. We started in Coney Island. Our whole day trip was traffic free and the parking was fabulous. The Coney Island boardwalk is fantastic and everything I thought it would be. Thousands of people were on the beach enjoying the day as we headed to Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog stand. We missed Joey Chestnuts eating his 74 hotdogs by about an hour. We stood in the line and all of us ate Nathan’s hot dogs on the 4th of July. You probably don’t get more American than that. We did get to be spectators at a hamburger eating contest. Not as fabulous as the Nathan’s contest, but fun just the same.
We then traveled to Times Square. This seemed like a dream to me. I’ve only seen Times Square on television, New Years Eve, watching the ball drop welcoming a New Year in. Now, here I was! I cried. It was bright, and beautiful and it wasn’t too crowded. We found parking on 42nd Street and wandered into the abyss. I seriously was in shock! It was everything and more than I dreamed it would be.
Times Square
Kelly took us to or through all 5 Burroughs of New York. We didn’t get out of the car after Times Square as we needed to get back to Kelly’s Condo in Jersey City for the Fireworks show on the Hudson River. We did drive through Central Park, 5th Avenue and all its finery. We drove past the Plaza Hotel, Trump Towers, we saw the above ground subways and felt as though we were in a scene straight out of Hill Street Blues. We got educated on the Russian Mob, the Hasidic Jews, and saw where John Lennon was killed.
All the photos below were taken from a moving car, so they aren’t that great!
Kelly, my brother, is living in Jersey City right now for work. He lives in a high rise condo that overlooks the Hudson River. July 4th fireworks show looked like this!
There couldn’t have been a more perfect way to end our day. My heart felt like it was going to explode with happiness. I was in New York, with Jim, my little brother, Joni and Nan, after the most crazy day in New York, seeing everything a person would want to see, after eating Hot dogs on Coney Island and experiencing Times Square. I was just north of the Statue of Liberty, which we could see from the rooftop, knowing in the morning I would be up close and personal with her, on my own boat with the man I love. We were eating pizza which was delivered to the rooftop, and I felt so American, and so proud, and so god damn lucky, that a girl like me, was having an adventure like this! I am truly blessed.
As morning rolled around, as I awoke, I was filled with excitement and felt a little sick to my stomach. Not sure if it was the pizza and hot dogs I ate the previous day, or just knowing that in a few hours, Jim and I would be on our Happy Destiny boat bobbing in front of the Statue of Liberty. This day, as I have stated before was about to become a Great Loop dream come true. Even before we began the whole “Quit your job, sell your stuff, live on a boat” became a reality, the sheer fantasy of what this moment might look like kept me up at night and was always the most exciting thing I was looking forward to on our journey.
I can’t tell you how many sights along this adventure have taken my breath away. Every single day I have marveled at the Adventure we are on. I have loved every moment and every port we have stopped safely in. Today though, July 5, 2018, was this day -
Statue of Liberty as seen from the Happy Destiny
As we crossed in front of her, I sat on the bow of the boat and seriously sobbed like a child. All of the emotion from the last few years came to light. This moment, I thought of my parents, and my children, my grandchildren. I thought of the home we left in California, and my job in the Emergency Room that I quit. I thought of Jim’s retirement party. I thought of the countless hours spent on my iPad researching America’s Great Loop, and looking at other’s Looper photos of them doing exactly what I was doing right now. I thought of a relationship healed, and I thought of my sister who, I know, will retire soon and have her own cruising adventure. I thought of a new life, that will be here soon. I thought of Jim up at the helm, dodging other boats and the Staten Island Ferry to make this dream come true for me, and the sacrifices he has made to make this dream a reality.
I know thats a lot of thinking for a girl who is bobbing up and down on the Hudson River. The moments were alive, and here I was, and then- we kept going.
Joni, Kelly’s wife, went up on the penthouse rooftop with Nan and took pictures of us as we passed Kelly’s building. It was so fun, and the perfect ending to a perfect reunion.
Next stop, Croton-on-Hudson, which is town along the Hudson River. It’s about 57 miles from Manhattan. Here we pass Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow which are on the Eastern Bank of the Hudson River. Sleepy Hollow is known as the setting of Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”. We did some grocery shopping and hit the sack early. Boaters Midnight is 9:00pm.
In the morning we headed to Kingston New York. It was a stormy morning and it rained a lot. We passed Westpoint today, which was one of the other waypoints I had been looking forward to. It was a gray day, and Westpoint is a very dark, almost dungeon looking, massive Army Academy. It was as beautiful as it was ominous.
During this passage we saw many trains that skirt right alongside of the river. The topography is fascinating. Tall rock mountains line the shores. We passed Vassar College and Sing-Sing Prison which is in Ossining, New York.
Saturday, July 7, 2018 we left early and headed to the State Capital of New York, Albany. It was a beautiful day and I was very excited because my son Robert and his girl Steph, were driving from Boston to come visit Jim and I on the Happy Destiny.
On our trip this day we encountered beautiful scenery. That sounds so lame, because I swear, every single place we have been, on every single day we have been on the water, has been phenomenal! We ran into a huge container ship in a very skinny channel. Jim called the captain of the ship and had a chat with him about what side he wanted our little 42 foot boat on. I started crying! I still can’t believe my life right now. My husband was talking to the captain of a container ship! 😂 The captain chose Portside to Portside, so that’s how this was handled!
I also got to swim in the Hudson River! I have now swam in the Chesapeake Bay and in the River here. The water was warm and beautiful and salt free. I hope I get to swim again - somewhere.
I’ve got to tell you that it has been one hell of a week. Both mine and Jim’s emotional well being has been stretched to their limits. Every day has been a “are you kidding me right now” and “this is crazy, right?” Kind of day.
As I watched my son Robert pull into the parking lot of the marina, I thought I might just die. I’m so glad that he drove so far to have a meal with Jim and I. Meeting his girl Steph was a very nice added bonus. I miss my children and grandchildren a lot. California is a very long way away, and my heart hurts sometimes. But, we all talk and text and they know I love them. Having my boy, in a mama bear hug, was just what the doctor ordered.
Robert and Kim
We shared and amazing meal at a really weird restaurant that is only open one night a week, maybe, if they feel like it, and we were their only guests. It was so fun! We laughed and made jokes, and laughed some more. It was a dinner I won’t soon forget.
Well, that is certainly enough out of me. We have been on the Happy Destiny Great Loop Adventure for 49 days now. We have traveled 1,964 miles. We have been headed North this whole time and today we will turn Left at the Erie Canal and traverse the New York Canal System.
We always enjoy having you as guests on our journey. We hope you are enjoying our blogsite. I am enjoying documenting our trip, because one day, I will look back and remember just how blessed I am to be with a man who had a dream, and allowed me to share in that dream.
Until next time,
Peace and our love❤️
