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Spankytoes

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Posts posted by Spankytoes

  1. Southwest is one of the easy ones since points are directly tied to the fare rather than the distance or a fixed price chart. There is no bad redemption. I’ve flown the LGA-DAL route on points dozens of times. The only reason I’d purchase airfare is if it was cheap, like a $49 sale, and I wanted to hoard the points for another time. Otherwise, cash them in.

  2. 1 hour ago, midtown said:

    Just a shout out to AMEX Platinum.  Totally worth carrying.   Just used their free 24/7 roadside service to tow my truck, free of charge.  Bad fuel pump.  Yeah its $550 but its paid for itself and that's not even including the value of the 60,000 bonus points.  $200 a year in uber credits, $200/yr in airline credits and I'll easily eat and drink $150 worth at the amex clubs.

    I’m considering this card but haven’t pulled the trigger yet. It has great perks beyond the points, as you said. I fly out of LGA and DFW enough to enjoy the lounge benefit too. But, I think I’m in the Chase 5/24 penalty box for a few more months. So I need to let that expire first. The AMEX travel partners aren’t that exciting for me. 

  3. Last time I was there was 2013 so I’m a bit hazy on details. I will say that the fried cheese sandwich sounds much better on paper than it tastes in execution. Also, get one of those chimneys from a street vendor. You’ll see.

  4. Have more time to respond now.

    I thought Sagrada Familia was meh. I can appreciate the level of detail in the carvings and stained glass...but meh. (You can take an elevator both ways) Park Guell was by far my favorite site. Casa Balto was cool too. Buy tickets for all sites online. I was disappointed that they didn’t have pass options like other cities. Entrance fees are not cheap.

    The Spanish Village is kind of neat with small shops. We did tapas and a flamenco show at Tablao de Carmen. It was ok.

    Go to the Rambla but branch out. The city is pretty spread out but public transportation is good.

  5. 3 hours ago, chesthair said:

    Im at the hilton on 54/broadway.  

    i like the idea of taking the ferry.  I just want to show him some historical stuff, dont need to do the tour/observation deck...ill pass on those.  Since i'm "in the business" i want to show him wall street.  Trinity sounds like a good idea.  

    Ah. That's the Hilton Garden Inn. (Make sure you know that for directions as there's a Hilton at 54th/6th) You are a couple blocks from CH. I used to live on 56th between 8th and 9th so I know that area well. You can just get on the 1 train at 50th/Broadway all the way to South Ferry then. Listen to the train announcement. Either the 1st 4 or last 4 cars either don't platform or are the only ones that do. I forget. From Juliana's/Brooklyn Bridge, take the 2-3 from the Clark Street station to Times Square and change to the 1 to 50th or walk from there. Google Maps is good, but you won't have cell service in most of the subway. iTrans NYC is a great app that's easy to use and doesn't require data. 

    Central Park is also a 10 minute walk, albeit, you really want to take the A-C or B-D to 72nd. That's where Strawberry Fields is and the walk is great. You can catch the C at 50th/8th or the A-C or B-D at 59th/8th. (Columbus Circle) This is also the routing to get to the AMNH, which is worth the visit. Depending on how old he is, they also have a spend the night at the museum program that is really cool.

    Trinity Church is on the corner of Broadway and Wall, so you'll see it. That won't be impressive. The NYSE a block over is the iconic building.

    • Like 1
  6. 7 minutes ago, chesthair said:

     

    Ok, back up.  How should i plan my WTC/9-11 visit?

    In what sense? The memorial is free and open to the public. The museum requires tickets and usually has a long line. I know nothing about the museum and the experience other than the tickets aren't cheap. I know all about the long lines because I used to pass the people coming from the WTC PATH Station before WTC 3 got built up. 

    Since you're staying across from CH (The Sheraton or Hotel Wellington?), I'd plan my day as follows:

    Take the N-Q-R-W Downtown to Times Square. Switch to the 1 train Downtown to South Ferry

    Get off at South Ferry and take the Staten Island Ferry. The Ferry is big, so don't worry about all the people in the terminal. If you want pictures of the SOL, be on the right side of the ferry en route to Staten Island. When you dock at St. George in SI, take the ferry back. If you want more pictures, be on the left side. The absolute best place to be for a tourist is in the back of the ferry because you will get some great photos of the Manhattan skyline, especially the WTC. (Obviously, be in the front for the journey back)

    When you get back to South Ferry, walk up Broadway. You will pass the Charging Bull/Feminist response. Trinity Church is a couple minutes north up Broadway. The NYSE and Federal Hall are a block over on Nassau St. You'll also see one of Trump's buildings. Since you have a kid, Fraunces Tavern is optional. It's the oldest bar in America and our founding fathers used to drink there. That's about a 5 minute walk away. From that area, I'd continue walking up Broadway passing the Woolworth Building, which doubled as the headquarters in the new Harry Potter series. (Fantastic Beasts?) City Hall is there as is a nice park. Then I'd walk the Brooklyn Bridge. When you get to the other side, eat at Juliana's Pizza. Then walk to the York Street station and take the F train to 57th St. Your hotel is a 4 minute walk from there.

    Times Square is within walking distance from your hotel. Penn Station is pushing it a bit. That's where you'll fine the Empire State Building. Grand Central is also doable. The station itself is great and that's where you'll find the Chrysler Building.

    • Like 2
  7. 9 hours ago, Bone3421 said:

    Also to add to spankytoes attractions...trinity church is very close to places listed.

    As it's literally across the street from the office I posted from, not sure how I forgot about that one. Unless you take the museum tour for WTC instead of just visiting the memorial, your free day is literally a "free day" cost-wise. (Well, the subway will run you $2.75)

  8. 19 minutes ago, chesthair said:

    *thread jack alert*

     

    So, my son is singing at carnegie hall in a couple weeks and i am flying up to watch.  Staying across the street from CH for two days.  I will be at the mercy of uber.

    He loves italian food so would like a solid rec in that general area.  Would prefer casual with real deal italian food if possible. 

    Finally, I have 1 day with him, planning on the 9/11 memorial, what would be stop #2?  Museum of nat history is around the corner, considering that.  

    Everyone is going to have their favorite Italian spots and you have a myriad of places to choose from in that area. If you want good Italian next to CH, go to Patsy’s on 56th between 7th and 8th. It’s smaller, somewhat touristy and you’ll need a reservation. If you can handle a slightly longer walk, go to Tony Di Napoli’s on 43rd between 6th and 7th. Also touristy, but it’s right off the Theatre District and Times Square which you’re going to see at night anyway. They serve dishes family style for dinner and have the best Chicken Parm in Manhattan. (Carmine’s is near there too, but I prefer Tony’s) If you want to spend a little more coin, Marea is worth a visit. It’s a further walk, and you’ll need to dress up, so this will be an Uber. It’s right next to Central Park, which is great at dusk. If you’re just looking for pizza in the area, go to Angelo’s on 57th between 6th and 7th for NY Coal fired or Don Antonio on 50th between 8th and 9th if you want Napoli Italian-Style.

    If you're going to WTC, stop #2 would obviously be the SOL, which is a few blocks away. View it from the Staten Island Ferry for free instead of those crappy tours. The NYSE, Fraunces Tavern and the site where Washington was sworn in as President are also in the vicinity.

    • Like 1
  9. I wanted to like it, and I somewhat did, but Old Man Connor has to get better at reading from the cue cards offstage. It’s distracting.

    Gay kid is expected, but yet feels forced. Darlene’s daughter is doing an impression of Darlene at 18...right?

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