Back home!

It took us "only" 2.5 hours from the hotel in Far Rockaway to our gate in EWR (Newark). Flight was smooth, "only" 7:30 hours from NY to Munich (Honolulu to NY: over 9 hours!). We were fortunate and had the center seat in a 3-seat-row in Eco Plus of a Boeing 777-200 for ourselves, but, nevertheless, sleep wasn't an option. 

Dinner was the same as always: "chicken or pasta" (though, portions are getting smaller,,,), breakfast,,, After our experience on the Honolulu flight, where they simply skipped the pre-announced breakfast, we were expecting the "usual", but this time we were set on a diet: only a 0% yoghurt and a biscotto (cookie) to eat. 

 Arrived on time (photo above shows descent into Munich), weather similar to what we had in NYC for the last two days. Temps around 60 deg F / 15 deg C.

Murals and Storefronts

Here a couple of murals we found mostly on our yesterday's stroll through the Lower East Side. Many of them were painted on the closed doors of former shops. Also, see two old storefronts below, which are getting rare nowadays.

 

And, Rockefeller Center in the rain, the gorgeous Grand Central Terminal, some fancy (and very expensive) sneakers in one of many new sneaker stores on Broadway, and, finally, a new discovery: Croissant Donuts at Donut Pub: Maple-bacon and Capuccino.

And, finally, view of Rockaway Beach, closeby our hotel Rockaway Hotel & Spa, unfortunately in the rain:

A slice of Brooklyn

Touring new Brooklyn neighborhoods with our dear friend Dom - owner and producer of "Made in Brooklyn Tours", this time Canarsie, Flatbush and BoCoCa.

Mural in Canarsie and our friend Dom

Dutch settler's house in Canarsie (above)

FAD Market, BoCoCa

King's Theatre, Flatbush

Smith Street BoCoCa - famous for dining and shopping

Manhattan Impressions

Boy, four days for NYC - two of them rained out - are definetely too few! We walked over 32 mi/50 km and covered many, many more miles by subway. Following are a couple of photos taken on Manhattan, where - to our full surprise! - a lot of German was to be heard again! 

Times Square & Empire State Building:

 

Wall Street / Stock Exchange:

World Trade Center Site with Calatrava's Oculus and Mural (right)

Union Square Market

The newly opened Tin building (a Food Hall) at South Street Seaport:

The always fantastic High Line, packed on Sunday, with sculptures, art installations, food vendors and great views (one towards the mural below).

Hudson Yards and the Vessel, a walkable structure:

Little Island, newest addition to Hudson River Piers:

Brandnew: Jackie Robinson Museum (famous baseball player):

,,, and a mural

Evening entertainment at The Porch in Harlem: Great Jazz and superb food!

New York, New York!

Flight over from Honolulu to Newark/NY was uneventful, with sparse service, and, long (9.5 hours). Arrived in the morning - not having shut an eye all night - and it took us over two hours to get to Harlem, to our friend Heidi's brownstone house. 

Weather was beautiful, fall-like with great colors.  

(left: view from Gantry Park in Queens towards UN Buildings)

Long Island City with more and more gigantic highrises (above).

Louis Armstrong House - new Visitor Center under construction (below).
 

Socrates Sculpture Park in Astoria (above)

We dropped our luggage, had a cup of coffee, and out we went again for a Queens tour. We met with the Queens tourism rep at noon and he showed us the "secrets" and the known attractions in his borough. Especially interesting: the neighborhoods along train #7 (subway) - pics below -, e.g. the Chinatown in Flushing the Louis Armstrong House (first time visit!) and Long Island City - the up&coming residential area.

 

In the evening, after a nice meal of tacos at Birrieria Landia (photos below), we took the train back to Harlem and were pooped - had been such a long day without sleep.  

Farewell to Honolulu

Over one hour on a city bus to get to the Pearl Harbor National Memorial on Wednesday - on another sticky, very hot day. Wanted to see this important memorial, to get a better idea about this pivotal event in US history: the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the subsequent entry of the United States into World War II. 

 

Couldn't make advance reservations for the Arizona Memorial through the internet (photos above show anker, reality and a model in the museum), therefore we weren't sure what we could expect. Well, first, no bags and, even no purses, allowed on the grounds! No lockers, but $ 6 per piece storage. Inside, all a bit chaotic, no maps at all, you had to scan the QR quode (like in restaurants nowadays to get a menu) to get oriented. 

Then, figured out that the only parts of the whole complex for free are the Arizona Memorial (where long lines of people were forming to access the boats which bring them over), the Exhibit Gallery (photo above - interesting exhibition about the events leading up to the attack on Oahu and its aftermath), and, the bus trip over to the USS Missouri (but, not including the visit of the battleship!) - photos below. Submarine and Aviation Museum cost separately (and hefly!) as well.

The USS Missouri (below) has served through WWII, the Korean War, and the Gulf War from 1944 on. Launched from the Naval Shipyard in Brooklyn she entered the Pacific Theatre in early 1945. Most famously, the battleship hosted the surrender ceremony of Japan in Sept. 1945.

Trip back by bus, passing a funny mural. Stopped at Ala Moana Shopping Center to check out Uniqlo and throw a glance at the windows of all the famous brand stores, where we would never buy anything: Gucchi, Tiffany's, Balenciaga, Bulgari, Chanel, Fendi, etc.

A refreshing shaved ice at the hotel (below) was just what we needed then, followed by a beach walk and a pizza & beer at Maui Brewery. Instead of a sunset: rain this evening! Makes farewell easier.

This (Thursday) morning: a swim in the ocean at 7:30 am. Beaches not crowded yet, recliners already set up for hotel guests. Water nice and warm and after the rain last night, everything looks fresh and clean.

Our hotel, the Shoreline Waikiki: