On our way to NYC

We took a 10am Amtrak train from Union Station in DC to Penn Station in NYC. We arrived in NYC around 2pm. The train was going over 200kms per hour at times! (according to the GPS). There were a few stops along the way, as well as some unsightly residences and neighborhoods viewable out the windows – the ones you only see or hear about in movies – see the Flickr site for some pics. The kids likes the train ride. Arriving in NYC was a bit overwhelming. Washington DC was busy, but getting off the train and out to street level with dozens of yellow cabs waiting and hundreds of people shouting was more than anticipated. We got used to it fast. The streets in NYC are all very narrow and there are simply a ton of people – mostly tourists it seems. We are renting a small studio apartment a few steps from Times Square…we can’t believe how close it is to Times Square – like right out the door. Everything is close here. The blocks are about one-tenth the size of the blocks in DC, so much easier to walk places. Unfortunately, accommodations are small and everything is kind of expensive…but we expected all this and its okay once you are used to it. Nice place to visit, but wouldn’t want to live here. Boston actually asked why our apartment doesn’t have a back yard – he wants to play with his NY Yankee bat/ball/glove set. Madison and Camden can’t get over why people would want to live here permanently.