New York 2009

We left Boston quite in a nick of time!

I booked a bus trip from Boston to New York online. BoltBus is the name of the bus line. Our schedule was to leave Boston South Station in 5PM. We never realized that the South Station was a large station with many gates and terminals. All along I assumed that the bus will pick us up outside the station, so JR and Rainier dropped me and Judith outside South Station. Lucky for us, Rainier thought otherwise, he checked inside the station and found the right gate for us to board. Judith immediately ran 3 floors up the terminal and found the bus dispatcher, pleaded him to wait for us before the bus leaves. As we boarded the bus, it began to move out. Whew!

The bus ride was quite nice. The bus has a wifi connection, it has electrical plugs and the leg space is roomy. We enjoyed the scenery from Boston to New York. We even talked to the kids using Skype inside the bus. As we see the skyline of New York coming near, our excitement also grows bigger.

We reached New York City at around 9PM. The moment we alighted from the bus, I already saw Tito Bobs and Tita Josie waiting for us in the station. Again, it was very gratifying to see familiar faces especially relatives in a big new city. We rode a cab going to Tito Bobs' apartment in Manhattan, and enjoyed the night scenes in the street. Tito Bobs' place is like an apartment with a DVD library. His collection of movies, musicals, concerts and other videos are things to envy. The apartment reminded me of my Lola Taba's place (Nanay's, Tito Bobs' and Tita Josie's mother) in Makati when I was still a small boy. The arrangements of the appliances, its designs and its stuff look very familiar. The best part of the apartment is the view outside the bedroom - the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building. Of course, once we set foot in his apartment, Tito Bobs (and Tita Josie) began to be our lifeline. Tita immediately gave us our subway ticket pass good for a week, Tito Bobs went to shop in the nearby grocery for food and other stuff - all for me and Judith. We talked and talked until the wee hours of the morning.



Our first day in New York began with a Sunday Mass in the Church of the Holy Conception just across the street where Tito lives. After the mass, we ate our breakfast in a diner nearby called Ambrosia. Well, the food is quite heavenly-filling and a good preparation for our long day ahead. When Tito and Tita asked us what do we want to see first, we opted to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. So we rode our first subway ride with them and walked until we reached the museum.


The Met is a huge place! Tito bought us the tickets and we REALLY enjoyed our visit there. The Egyptian exhibit is a grand one (as if we were in the pyramids), the European sculptures were very exquisite, the African and the Latin American artworks are very exotic, very mysterious, but the paintings on the second floor are our favorites. Works of Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, Manet, Picasso, etc., were there for us to wonder! We took lots of pictures and bought souvenirs (actually even the souvenirs were bought by Tito so we did not spend a thing there). Me and Judith were worrying for Tito and Tita because the two of us are prepared for such long walks, and they might be tired with us, but to our surprise, we were tiring ahead of them.


After almost 4 hours in the museum, we went to Times Square to buy Broadway show tickets. As we walk towards Broadway Ave we saw parts of the street closed for vehicles to accommodate people, mainly tourists. We took pictures of people, buildings, interesting sights, etc. As we reached the ticket place, Tito Bobs again bought us tickets to watch Mamma Mia. Because the play is still 3 hours away, we decided to go to the Empire State Building. We had snacks first at a nearby McDonald's again courtesy of Tito. Upon entering the Empire State, we found that the queue was long but once we were on the viewdeck of the famous building, the scenery was breath-taking. Well, actually breath-taking for me since I am afraid of heights. Even inside the building, we were all amazed of the classy designs from the walls to the floors. Of course, the viewdeck was paid by Tito Bobs.



We reached the theater just in time, and Tita, me and Judith enjoyed the play. Judith was dancing at the end of the show to her delight. We walked back again to Times Square to see this famous place at night time. It was truly a plaza with a nightly light show. A sight to behold and a grand way to finish the night.



The next day, after breakfast, we rode the Circle Line. It is a tourist ship which routes the whole Manhattan Island. Along the waters, we saw the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Brooklyn Bridge and the other famous and interesting sights of New York. There is a tour guide annotating some facts about the famous places and it is quite informative. Tita Josie, Tito Bobs and his friend Keith were with us during this 3 hour trip. Afterwards, Tita Josie accompanied us going to Queens. We rode the train to reach her son and my cousin, Chris' home. Chris is also a doctor, his wife Iris is also an ophthalmologist. They have a son, Ryan, who is as old as Enzo.


The whole Arboleda clan had a mini reunion in Chris' house because of us. My uncles Francis and Lito were there. Tito Francis came with his son Wesley. Tito Lito's family was complete - Tita Lorna and the kids (well, big kids) Matthew and Mike. We had dinner together and watched the Baseball Home Run Derby. My cousins except for Chris, are all huge, they probably outweigh me at least 50 pounds. But being with them, having fun with them makes me realize how lucky I am to have relatives like them. After the mini-party, Tito Francis even drove us to his home, maybe an hour away from Chris' place. Tito and Wesley were very comfortable during the car trip, but Judith and I were so cold since Tito's car is a convertible, running in a highway at 10PM. Because of the trip in his home, we were able to see my other cousins, Jeffrey and Tiffany, who missed the get-together. After one round of beer, Tito Francis brought us back to Chris' place.


The next day, me, Judith and Tita Josie were fetched by Tito Francis to go to upstate New York to visit Tita Madre in Maryknoll Sisters, Ossening, New York. Tita Madre was diagnosed to have lung cancer last year, and since then, no relatives have visited her yet. After an hour and a half drive, we reached the place, and we were so amazed how beautiful the compound of the Maryknoll lay people. Once we reached the building of Tita Madre, she accompanied us to their dining area and she gave us a feast for our lunch. She just finished a tiring diagnostic exam during the morning but she was so excited and enthusiastically introduced us to ALL people in the building. She even gave us a tour of the place, showed us their museum, their big chapel and their beautiful courtyard with plenty of flowers. She was so thrilled to see us that she was so tired when we reached her room. Of course I was so thrilled as well to see her up and about than languishing in a hospital bed. I gave her some advises regarding her condition, got some medical information from her as well so that I can ask my doctor friends who are pulmonologists and oncologists. As much as we would want to stay more and longer to Tita, we still have to go back to Manhattan, so in the mid afternoon, we bade Tita farewell. Before we reached Manhattan, Tito Francis passed by Coney Island. It is one of the popular beaches in NY. After some pictures, we retired to Tito Bobs place. Judith cooked dinner for all of us to finish the memorable day.


The next day Tito Bobs and Tita Josie let us see NY for ourselves. Of course, before we left the apartment, they even gave us pocket money! Judith and I went to the Central Park, the Chrysler Building, Macy's, the Apple Store, Rockefeller Plaza, St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Philippine Consulate Office, the Disney Store, the NBA Store, and took pictures and shopped for pasalubongs. We returned to Tito's place just to change clothes because we were off again to see my friends from high school. They booked a Japanese restaurant near downtown called Megu, and we (Yeng, Leslie and Jude) had a grand time talking about the younger years. Of course, it was a free treat again for us. Another great way to end the day.

After breakfast the next day, we packed our bags and Tito Bobs accompanied us for our bus trip going to Washington DC.

Next stop: Washington DC!

For more pictures, click HERE.