It takes a crafty business woman and noted Hotel Snob to make the most out of 24 hour trip to New York City. It’s the city that never sleeps and I rarely sleep on a business trip anyway, so I was determined to take in the sights, sounds and tastes of this glorious opportunity.
My ten year old had a grand illusion that I’d make my way to Canal Street to buy him a white pair of knock off Oakley sunglasses. He begged me the night before. He said, “Mom, with the glasses I’ll command the respect I deserve.” Ughhhh. I’d deal with this drama another time. I didn’t promise anything but the 14 year old got us to Chinatown a few weeks ago with only a smart phone app. How hard could it be?
My loving husband drove me to the airport at 5:00 am to catch my flight for a noon meeting in Manhattan. I’m all about cutting it close as a hotel snob. I’ve conquered far tighter business travel schedules. Arriving to the meeting was no problem as my travel companion arranged for a car at LaGuardia. This painless process gave us plenty of time to enjoy the sites as we made our way through the city. My heart stopped as we drove past Bryant Park. I quickly made friends with my colleague who also had a love for both fashion and anything aired on Bravo. Better yet, our business meeting included real showbiz types that were funny, energetic and made me laugh. All fans of the “Real Housewives of Anything.” The meeting was productive so I was on my way for a real adventure.
This time, I was all alone to find the way to the discount hotel located near the airport. (This was a business trip. No five star hotel this time.) According to my calculations, I could grab a cab to the hotel, change and find my way back to Manhattan for an evening of fun. I assertively walked to the busy street near the venue. Cab after cab passed me by regardless of my assertive wave. Finally after fifteen minutes of dozens of cabbies zooming past, one stopped. I jumped in immediately and told him Flushing, where my hotel was located. “No Way,” he said. “Too far. It will take us hours to get across the bridge. Get out or I take you to subway.”
"Subway?” I thought as the cab driver made his way through the heavy traffic. “You take F to Queens. I take $10,” he said. I slowly handed him the bill…no tip for him. The subway was packed as it was the height of commute time. F it would be. I forced my way onto the busy train and rode for several stops. It dawned on me about five stops into the ride that I didn’t know where the hell I was going or what stop I’d depart. I pushed my way toward the map and noticed an airplane with LGA. Phew..not so bad. I’ll go to the airport and grab a taxi to the hotel. Smart hotel snob!!! Smart.
The Subway took me directly to CitiPark, home of the Mets. My love for baseball lured me off the train to take a peek at the new ball park. I jumped off the subway and made my way to the stadium. Surely there would be a cab by the stadium that could take me to my hotel. There was a game that evening. If it weren’t for the business clothing and two inch pumps, I would have stayed for the game. Surely there would be a cab by the stadium that could take me to my hotel. This was NYC, correct? After my short walk around the stadium, I looked for a cab. None to be found. I did find a police officer. He told me that I closest place I could find a cab was five blocks away. “Ugh…what to do now?” I thought. Back to the subway. I asked the attendant how I could get to the airport. “Next window,” she crabbed. The tired man at the next window told me I needed to take a city bus.
Exhausted…I’d taken a plane, car, taxi, subway and now a bus??? Just to get to a budget hotel. I dragged myself onto the city bus name “LaGuardia Airport”. Guessing this would take me there eventually. In the heart of our country’s melting pot, I stuck out like a sore thumb in my business attire. I had “lost traveler” written all over my face. I sat up front as we traveled through some of the roughest streets I’d seen in a long time. Finally we arrived at LGA. I hopped on cab and the taxi driver took me to what he described as the “real” Chinatown. “Don’t leave the hotel…Miss” he said kindly. I left the cab never so happy to see a hotel lobby.
Check in later for the rest of the story.
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