garyandpearl

Sunday August 24, 2014

We have been enjoying our 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom condo in the Murray Hill district. We are a few blocks away from the Empire State Building, and we catch the Subway at either 28th street or 33rd street. Gary and Laura have been excellent navigators throughout the metro system.

This morning we headed back to Brooklyn to attend the 12:00 service at the Brooklyn Tabernacle. People were already lined up by the time we got there at 10:45. The building is a refurbished performance theater, and we took some time to look around before the service started. The choir sang, and we enjoyed worshipping together in such a diverse crowd. Pastor Jim Cymbala was on vacation today, but Pastor Tim had great words to share from Psalm 119: God’s word and the Holy Spirit will help you in times of trouble.

After church we took the Subway to Jimmy’s Diner, another recommendation from the TV show “Diners, Drive ins, and Dives”. This was Parker’s favorite restaurant, as he enjoyed a Reuben sandwich. We also tried deep fried deviled eggs, home made tator tots, empanadas, burgers, fried chicken, all day breakfast, and for myself a waffle with a sauce made of butter, bacon, sugar, spices, and apples. Sadly, we were too full for dessert.

Our group then returned to our place to change clothes, and we headed to Central Park for the evening. It was very busy since it was Sunday. There were drumming groups performing as well as various vendors selling their wares. Laura, Keanna, and Parker posed for charcoal portraits.

We continued exploring the park and found the lake where you could rent a rowboat, the turtle pond, the castle, and the “Alice in Wonderland” statue. Gary continued to take pictures at various times, and we also took impromptu selfies.

On the way home, the girls stopped to shop for souvenirs while the guys picked up a few groceries. It was our last night together, and we were reluctant to call it a night, but sleep and packing needed to happen.