As usual, we stayed at Lotte New York Palace. We were on the 32nd floor with an incredible view of St. Patrick's Cathedral. The staff there is extraordinary. When the bellman delivered our bags, he brought a teddy bear to our 7-year old granddaughter.
We were starved so we went next door to Monterey on 50th Street. When we visited in 2020, this was a good Italian place but the new Monterey was perfect with pasta for the granddaughters.
Then we walked across Madison Avenue to St. Patrick's. It's always incredible and a great place for photos.
The Central Park Zoo was next on our list. On the way, we got a glimpse of the Steinway Tower between the buildings. Before we got to the Zoo, we came upon ROCKS. The girls had to climb all of them. There were awesome views from the tops.
We headed on to the Zoo only to find that they wouldn't admit us. There were plenty of people in it but there was a private event scheduled for later that afternoon.
While everyone else found a bench and a concession stand, I struck out on a quest to find a Randel's Bolt. Knowing where to look took me hours of Internet searching but I found it. It's "off the beaten path" if that's even possible in Manhattan. There was a student sitting within 10 feet of it but he didn't know what it was. Now, I've read that there's another one in a different park. Maybe next time...
On the way back, we found the doorman at F.A.O. Schwartz.
As the sun set, the spires of St. Patrick's were lit up.
We had dinner at Serendipity3, one of our favorite places and walked back through Times Square.
Overview:
