PLANES, TRAINS AND A WALK ON THE MILD SIDE

The first leg of our journey to Turkey is an all too common tale of  delayed flights, missed connections, unhelpful agents, overcrowded planes and misinformation.  Stuck in SFO for six hours we were rescued by good friend Patsy who whisked us away, made us dinner and drove us back to the airport to catch our redeye to New York.

Engine snout of our plane to SFO

Already fried and half drunk from our nearly thirteen hour sojourn from Mt Shasta to SFO,  I noted with some relief that my center seat on the plane was flanked by a diminutive Chinese man.  However, my  hopes were soon dashed when a gent, whom I will call Vinny, sat beside me.  “Vinny” had a physique like a Mack truck slightly gone to seed.  He was  dressed in a tailored, black satin-like jogging suit and running shoes that had only seen the kind of track that horses raced around.   “Vinny” settled himself in his seat, draped his arms over both armrests and spread his legs; one halfway into my leg area and the other half blocking the aisle. Undaunted, I promptly put my arm on the arm rest and pushed my leg out to the width of my seat.  Vinny  said in a gruff, thick Jersey accent,”We are going to have to do something about this space issue”.  As I looked into his unsmiling, slightly menacing face, I quickly realized that his “we” meant me.   I promptly removed my arm from the rest and pulled my legs together and did my best to disappear into the other side of my seat.

I was so exhausted  from our earlier ordeal that I  was asleep before the plane was in the air.  It was a fitful sleep.  My seat did not recline and I certainly did not want to lean on Vinny.  I spent my night alternately nodding off and jerking awake.   Each nod to the right was a jerk of self preservation fearing any possibility of revisiting Vinny’s space issue.  Fortunately it was only a five hour flight and after a few quick train rides and a short walk along Central Park we arrived at daughter Kate’s apartment.

After a much needed shower I fell into bed and slept til noon.  When we awoke Kate’s friend Jean-Paul slipped out to Alice’s Tea Shop and returned with a bag of some of the best scones to be found anywhere on the planet.    My favorite was a Vegan raspberry and feta scone.  Some strong, black Chinese tea provided the added stimulus to get us up and running for our day in New York.

Kate,  Deb (shadow) and me in Central Park

Much refreshed we took a stroll through Central Park on a crisp fall day.  Being mid-week and out of season, the park was not too crowded and we were treated by Kate to a tour-guide worthy stroll though mid Central Park. 

Belveder Castle-Central Park

Turtles sunning in Central Park

After a two hour walk, we realized, thanks to Kate, that we could just catch a late lunch at Momoya which for my money is one of the best sushi joints on the east coast.  We feasted on sashimi, sushi rolls and a really smooth sake.

Momoya fare

As the sun was setting over Manhattan, we returned to Kate’s apartment for a break and ended up hanging out to watch the second Presidential debate. 

After a nightcap of anejo rums, barley tea and a gourmet chocolate bar. We laughed our heads off until well after midnight and literally fell into bed after a great day in New York.

San Remo at Sunset

Next stop Vermont