Sara's Visit

It's been a few days since I've blogged because I was actually busy spending time with my daughter.

On Saturday Jim decided not to go sightseeing with us. We would be gone most of the day and that was too much for him. He did walk to the bagel shop and Starbucks with us as we got breakfast before Sara and I took a bus to Battery Park. There was a line out the door at the bagel shop so I waited outside and met a bulldog waiting for his master. He didn't want anything to do with me. Afterwards we said goodbye to Jimmy and walked to catch the bus to Battery Park. The bus ride took close to an hour. Sara ate her yummy bagel on the bus.

It was cold down by the water but luckily we brought gloves and hats. We walked along the water viewing all the statues and memorials in Battery Park and then walked to see the 9/11 Memorial. Today was more crowded than when Jim and I visited a few weeks ago.



 After leaving the Memorial we passed a beautiful Episcopal church, St. Paul's Chapel. It was founded in 1766 and was where George Washington worshiped. The chapel, located very close to where the Twin Towers stood, served as a place of rest and refuge for recovery workers at the WTC site. Inside the chapel were lots of pictures paying tribute to the hundreds of volunteers who for eight months worked 12-hour shifts around the clock, serving meals, making beds, counseling and praying with the fire fighters, construction workers, police and others. Massage therapists, chiropractors, podiatrists and musicians also tended to their needs. It was very touching to walk around the inside of the tiny chapel.

Before we headed back towards the bus Sara wanted to see the Brooklyn Bridge. I had not seen it yet so we walked towards it. Thank goodness for smartphones and google maps so it is easy to find your way. We finally found the bridge and started to walk on it. I couldn't believe all the people waking and biking. We saw a beautiful view of Manhattan from the bridge.

I can't forget to tell you about Jay the bulldog. We met him on  our way to the bus. He is one spoiled dog. He even has his own Instagram. #jaythebulldognyc.

It was great spending the day with Sara. We only wished Jim could have come with us. It's a good thing he didn't. My knees were sore after the almost 6 miles of walking we did.
We went back to the apartment and spent the rest of the night in relaxing with Jim.




Sunday-

Jim was very fatigued today. It was important for him to rest as much as possible because we had a 3:00 broadway show to see. After breakfast I took Sara to Central Park. Instead of walking there we took a bus to the farthest side and worked our way through some of the park. Of course it would take a couple of days to truly see all of the park.

After the park we had lunch at Candle Cafe, the vegan restaurant I took Skye to when she visited. It was delicious. Then we had to hurry back to get ready for the show. Jim was up and showered, still tired but was ready for the show. We cabbed it to the Broadway Theater for FIDDLER ON THE ROOF.

The show was terrific and our seats were three rows from the stage, center orchestra. We took a cab back to the apartment and had a light dinner. Afterwards Sara and I walked to a wine bar not too far from the apartment. We had a wine flight and talked about wedding plans. It was so nice catching up on things. 

Monday 

Sara didn't have to leave until 3:00 so we had time to walk and show her a few more things. Jimmy was feeling better today so he came with us. We walked down York Avenue which happens to be the street MSK is on so we showed her where that was. Then we detoured and walked along the East River.  We ended up going to Whole Foods so she could get something to take on the bus for dinner. On our walk back to the apartment Jim bought her a New York slice of pizza and then he ducked into his Brazilian bakery, Padoca, to get her a few sweets for the road.  Around 3:15 Sara got in a cab and started her journey back to Virginia. I miss both my girls and it has really been great that they both have been able to visit and see a little of New York at the same time.

Tuesday

Today we moved out of the apartment and back to the Hope Lodge. Once again we looked like gypsies with all of our luggage and bags on the street trying to hail a cab. It couldn't be just any cab either. It had to be a boxy van-like cab in order to fit all of our stuff. The first driver that stopped changed his mind when he saw all of our belongings. Luckily the second driver was not intimidated.

We checked into the Hope Lodge around 4:00. Our room is very nice. King bed with another smaller sitting area with TV and extra seating. We are on the 12th floor. For those of you reading this that don't know it The Hope Lodge is run by the American Cancer Society and it is 100% free to the people that stay here. We are here until March 23rd but that date can change depending on Jim's treatment schedule. We still are waiting to hear back from Dr. Horwitz regarding Jimmy's most recent PET scan. Dr. H. has been out of town but we hope to hear from him soon. 

I didn't have to do dinner tonight. Down on the main residential floor AOL sponsored a breakfast for dinner evening. They had breakfast burritos, fruit and cinnamon rolls. It was a nice treat. Thank you AOL and the wonderful young employees of AOL who served us dinner. Volunteers are a blessing.