Photo TR: Jason Takes Manhattan

[rollin_n_coastinDon't put that donkey on the floor!]

Why:
So I managed to score some hotel nights through work in Manhattan before they expire and decided to head down solo to visit my very first roomie from university and his girlfriend. We had a 4 day long weekend for Canada Day, which fell on a Tuesday this year. So the trip fit in perfectly with enough time to make it back home on Canada Day.

Tough Travel Lessons:
One thing I learned, if flying out of Buffalo, they don’t care for smaller airports in jam-packed LaGuardia so they’ll bump you, yes you Buffalo. If you’re booked in a small prop plan (ie Dash-8), they can’t land in all types of weather that a larger plane may be able to land in, especially at LaGuardia. That is potential for a double bump. So, bad weather for small prop planes plus congestion at LaGuardia that afternoon, evening and night = cancelled flights for all Dash 8s! I was peeved that I wouldn’t make it in on time to meet up with my buddy and all the Friday night plans were flushed down the jon of that US Airways plane outside the window. I also had plans for Saturday in Jersey (a little Six Flags goodness) and there was no way I’d let US Airways ruin two of my days and I especially didn’t want to mess up a fellow El Toro fan’s day who already planned to meet up with me. I sucked it up and took the Greyhound down since any other flight would get me there by Saturday night, pretty much ruining the trip by making a short getaway that much shorter.

Getting there:
So, I left work at 12:30pm on Friday to begin travelling to catch my flight and rolled’ into NYC for 6:30am on Saturday. Mamma mia! That was a long a trip! Oh, did I mention the cabs didn’t know where the hotel was so they dropped me off in the middle of Manhattan and told me “it’s down that street just keep walking”. Needless to say, it wasn’t there. So, I hopped into another cab and he just asked me to look it up in his guide book and rather than throw it back, I made him look it up. Got to the hotel, slept for 1.5 hours, got up and went to catch the Jersey Express! (..because 8 hours on the Greyhound just wasn’t enough..haha)

What happened?:
..and so began what actually turned out to be a great trip, notwithstanding the adventure of actually getting there. It really was an awesome trip and I have to thank Mia, Jay and Jeff for hanging out!

Coming up:
The ‘themepark’ parts of the trip and some other cool stuff!

Stay tuned!

[rollin_n_coastinDon't put that donkey on the floor!]

Oookie Dookie..on to some good stuff!

So, knowing that I was close to SFGA, not going would be sacrilege, even though I knew I'd be going at least two more times this year. Besides, I thought spending one of four days at the park would be cool since those I knew in NYC were working that afternoon/ evening.

Who better to ride coasters with than someone from TPR? I met up with another Jay (ElToroExtreme) who was an awesome Jersey and SFGA host. I hope that I can remember all the cool short cuts and ways around the park!

Since most everyone knows what the coasters look like, there is more on the safari here. Enjoy!

After the park, it was back to NYC, rest and check out Mansion Ultra Lounge, a high recommend along with the park and Safari!

Next up:
Brooklyn & Coney Island, Stay tuned!

[ElToroExtremeResident MINI Enthusiast]

Yes it was an awesome day an it was great hanging out with you! See ya on the Pregame and the ECT!

[thrillrideseekerBaby I'm Ready To Gooooooooo]

WOW! Great photos! I love the second one of Kingda Ka. I can honestly say I do not think I have ever seen that photo before!
~Matthew

[krazekidddFIRE HAIRED BOY]

Cool pics Jayson!

MMMMMM I can't wait for ERT on El Toro.

[rollin_n_coastinDon't put that donkey on the floor!]

Hey, thanks guys. I've been a bit swamped but will get the rest of the trip up soon.

That KK photo was taken from a cool spot that I never would have thought to look for. I'm pretty sure that I looked like a geek (I was the only one out of the car) but at least it turned out..haha.

Oh and for sure, Gold Qbots are amazing but just imagine ERT!

Cheers,
J

[rollin_n_coastinDon't put that donkey on the floor!]

So on to a borough with a ton of character, Brooklyn. Williamsberg and Brooklyn Heights were cool places to visit on past trips. I even ended up in some of the places I shouldn't have been at the wrong time of day (only because a friend lived there) so I think I've seen and experienced a bit more than I ever wanted to. I even lost a cell phone in Bushwick.

Anyhow, two things left..the pizza tour and Coney Island! It rained on the Sunday so I did some geeky stuff including a Lincoln Center tour, some museums and hanging out with Mia, who is the only one who escaped my camera! Everyone was working on the Monday so before I met up with my old roomie again there was some time to fill and shopping is never really on my radar. After missing the pizza tour, I decided to fill the time by taking the subway downtown, walking over the bridge and back on the subway to the end of the line---Coney Island. I know I'm going there with East Coast but I've always been so curious about it.

After Coney, it was off to meet up with my old roomie for a bite and lots of wine, catch a show and get ready to head home the next morning.

Thanks for checking out the Photo TR!

Cheers,
J

[dinoWhen I grow up, I want to breed donkeys!]

Cool TR. Looks like you had a great time and were able to do alot of things while you were there. Never been to New York myself *sigh*...

[rollin_n_coastinDon't put that donkey on the floor!]

Hey thanks. It is a cool city. I try to go once or twice a year, whenver there's a seat sale since the flight is only an hour. There's still so much left to check out/ see/ do.

So yah, friends, coasters, culture, great food and drinks! Just what a trip should be.