A Day of Firsts

So, it was the first full day we were there and we had some amazing firsts. Erica had her first subway ride and we all went to our first Broadway musical - The Lion King.

It took us another 3 or 4 days to see our first subway rat. Strangely exciting, mostly because it was expected and we were surprised we didn't see more. In the end, though, we found the subway to be one of the best ways to get around and fairly affordable. I say fairly because by the time we bought tickets for all of us at $2 a ride, we spent close to $100 in that planet under the streets. Once again we noticed that everyone was in their own little world with ear buds in and nobody made eye contact -- if you try, they quickly divert. It was kind of sad that in a crowd, they were truly all alone and worse yet, they seem to like it that way. In a few of our travels though we found a handful of super nice people, maybe 4 or 5. It's a sad commentary that the nice ones were so rare they stood out from the mobs of people we encountered.

The other first for all of us was the musical. Erica and I were giddy with excitement and this was another childhood dream come true for me. I had debated paying extra for premium seats when I bought the tickets but am glad I did not. Our seats were absolutely fabulous - both Erica and I had 100% unobstructed views and I was on the aisle. There were 2 times during the show that the performers came down the aisles. The costumes were amazing, the stage was amazing, and the talent was spectacular. I was completely mesmerized.

Oh, in case you're wondering, YES, we did take a picture of our subway rat. Nothing says tourists like a bunch of nerds photographing a rat in NYC. It's kind of like when someone comes to Montana and gets all excited to see antelope, deer, or even a cow in the pasture. We're like, "yep, that was fun."