Happy Holidays from New York

When I’ll think of New York, I think of the many museums this city has to offer. The tiny art galleries and the more popular museums like the Museum of Modern Art aka MoMA. This was my second visit and I didn’t know what to expect this time, because the collections changes throughout the year. It was a rainy day, you can imagine how crowded it was. I prefer to go to the museum on a weekday when it is not raining. After the purchase of two tickets and leaving our coats at the checkroom, we started our day at the MoMA.

We started at Pipilotti Rist’s Exhibition. Pipilotti Rist’s exhibition ‘Pour Your Body Out’ include a multimedia installation with images and music. This project is showing twenty-five-foot-high moving images. There is a large round sitting area in the middle of the ground floor. Visitors can walk, sit or lay down to enjoy the work of this artist. The video projection at the MoMa’s atrium shows images of flowers, animals, colors and also fantasy and reality images.

There was an exhibition of artist Marlene Dumas. It’s not my kind of art. I found it very depressive. What I really enjoyed were the photography exhibits and the pieces of the old genius master like Van Gogh. Their permanent collection is stunning.

Overall it was a little bit disappointing, because of the temporarily exhibitions. I’ve seen better exhibitions at the MoMA. The building itself is really awesome. I really enjoy the spaces at the MoMA.

We'd passed Blue Water Grill so many times. Also this time, when we walk to the Heartland Brewery for lunch. The heartland was crapped with people, so we had to find another restaurant in the area. My boyfriend said that we walked by a restaurant named the Blue Water Grill. We decided to try this restaurant. We were welcomed by a lady when we entered the restaurant. She asked us to take our coats. You can leave your coat at the front desk (reception of the restaurant). Another staff member brought us to our table. I was surprised by the many seating opportunities. Since we were only with the two of us, we were seated in the back against the wall. It was a good spot. It felted like a get away from the hustle and bustle of the busy Union Square.

The waitress was very nice and gave us the menu. The menu has a large variety. If you are a fish eater, than this is the place. It has a mix of American and Asian fish, Oysters and Sushi. We both had the Salmon Burger ($16). Which included Cucumber Slaw, Shoe String Potatoes, and Five Spice BBQ Sauce. The salmon was delicious! We had a nice glass of Sauvignon Blanc with our dish. As dessert we shared a vanilla crème brulée ($7). It was all very tasteful and a restaurant that we keep in mind! I definitely want to try diner some day.

Note: If you like Jazz; this restaurant has a Jazz room downstairs.

First visit:
I never heard of this restaurant until this year. I was searching the internet for restaurants nearby our hotel. Normally we don’t look for restaurant in this area, but with our hotel nearby and the rain, we thought it wasn’t so bad to try this restaurant. We didn't have reservations, but they were able to accommodate us quickly. The décor of Thalia is nice. Warm colors, high ceilings and a good ambiance. Thalia scores good in their presentation and style. Although, I don’t understand which way they want to go. French restaurant, French ‘art’ and decorations, but an Italian menu? It all looks great; the cocktails, the décor and the food. It depends where you sit, but there is a change you sit in the dark. To dark, if you ask me. Our table was fine (we could read our menu).

The menu is ok, not very surprising. Simple dishes, not very inspiring, but for a one time visit it is ok. Before starting diner you’ll get a basket with bread and an olive paste to spread. I didn’t like it. We are Europeans and we know how an olive paste should taste, but I have never tasted it this strong. I prefer paste with sundried tomatoes. As for the main course, we both took the fish of the day, which was Snapper, with vegetables and potatoes. The food was well cooked and tasteful. As dessert I had the Tiramisu with warm Espresso syrup (and mascarpone mousse and hazelnuts). My boyfriend had the ultra light cheesecake with fresh raspberries & Hawaiian passion fruit. We satisfied with our choices. Our waiter was very polite and helpful. He frequently checked on us.

Second visit:
A few days later, we decided to have lunch at Thalia. When we came to the restaurant, the place was pretty empty. It was 2pm when we asked if we could have lunch and it was still possible. But instead of leading us to a nice table, she brought us to the lounge area and wanted that we had a sit in the couch. All the tables were not taken by people, I didn’t see the problem why we had to sit in the couch. We didn’t want to have lunch served while sitting in the couch / lunch area and we asked again if we could sit at a table. There were about 50 other tables we could've been seated at. But no was no and probably they are doing good business, because they let us leave. We wanted to spend a lunch and some good glasses of wine, but hey…if they don’t need customers… We went elsewhere for lunch. It was disappointing, because we had a great diner earlier that week. No Thalia again, just because of the attitude.

Snow, like any other kind of weather, isn't always predictable. You can hope for it, but you'll never know what you get it. I wanted to snow during our stay in December, and gosh, we were lucky! After two ‘calm’ days, it began to snow! A storm system (coming from the Midwest) moved into New York City on Friday. The city began to change. Beautiful giant snow flakes turned the city totally white. We had this weather once before, we knew that Central Park was the perfect spot. It didn’t take long to be there; just some gloves, an extra scarf and comfortable shoes, our camera and we were ready for a day in the snow! It never stopped snowing that day. It was cold, so cold, but so beautiful! Go once in a while indoor, just to warm up.

Although it’s cold, I love the frigid cold, the frost, and the nice cold breezes. Many people were in the park. I can tell you; lots of Christmas cards were photographed this day! I can only advice you… don’t go shopping with this weather, but go for a walk in the park!

Always wanted to stay at the New York Palace….and it happened. We booked a Holiday Special, which included four nights/pay three in a King Room with all American Breakfast. We took a cab to this hotel and when we arrived, there were people waiting for a cab to the airport. The doorman did take of our luggage and brought it inside for us. The lady at the reception was very polite and friendly. We requested a view of the cathedral, which they gave us. Also as high as possible and wit a room on the 17th floor (room number 1716) we were already satisfied. It was ‘rush hour’ of people checking in and out. So there was no bell boy available to take our luggage to our room. we left our luggage at the bell desk. We did go in front and she would take care of the luggage.

It’s always excited to open the door and not now what to expect. Well, I can assure you it meets our expectations very well. Wow, what a great room and the view…..just fantastic. We had a view of Saint Patrick’s Cathedral with Rockefeller Center in the background. Our luggage came five minutes later, which was very quick. The room was large, what a space and it was super clean. Every room has a door bell instead of bonking at the door. Two chairs and a table by the window. Working space/desk with also a comfortable desk chair. There was also a large (40 inch) flat screen, a mini bar (very expensive) and a safe in the closet.

The bathroom had a the perfect size. Enough towels who were large and fluffy and European Bath Products. The enormous bed was extremely comfortable. There is a control panel by the bed for heat, air, lights, etc. With one touch you can put out all the lights. Is it to warm, you don’t have to go out of bed, just use the control panel. Turn down service is faultless. Delicious Lindt chocolates by the pillows. Some background music. Bathrobe laid out on the bed. Soft slippers next to the bed. Well, do I need to say more?

The house keeping did an excellent job! We wrote her a ‘thank you note’ (it was Christmas Eve when she had to work) and gave her some extra money. When we came back she also wrote to us. That was nice. On Christmas Eve we were pleasant surprised by a tasteful gift from the hotel. Happy Holidays in Chocolate. That was so thoughtful!

The lobby/entrance is classic, with the grand staircase and high ceilings. An enormous chandelier hangs in the middle of the staircase. The Christmas decorations were lovely. The Christmas trees were luxurious decorated. The courtyard in front of the hotel was decorated with a large Christmas tree and thousands of Christmas lights. It was a favorite ‘photo spot’ by tourists. Sometimes it was very crowded of people hanging around at the courtyard. It was sometimes annoying!

This place is quiet! People are not screaming to each other. Most people who stay here have manners and respect other guests.

I found my hotel…but I don’t know if it’s always affordable. We had such a great deal during Christmas. I’m on the mailing list, so who knows in the future…..
I really do not have bad things to say about this hotel except for one thing. We had to pay $16 per night for internet access.

After staying at Milford Plaza, Helmsley Park Lane, Hotel Park Central, Hilton New York and Hilton Garden Inn Times Square, I can say that the New York Palace was the best of all!!

We booked this hotel for 6 nights. The first 4 nights with HHonors reward points points and two nights for $268 p.n. Because of the good reviews we decided to stay at the Hilton Garden Inn Times Square. The rooms looked ok on the internet and everybody talked about the service and kindness of the staff. We wanted to experience that ourselves.

As emailed to the hotel, we did arrived late in the evening (about 12pm). The cab stopped right in front of the hotel and there was no doorman of the hotel. Nobody to take care of the bags, so we dragged our luggage into the reception. The man at the front desk was very friendly and called the doorman to take us up to our room. After a journey of 24 hours, we were finally at our room! The first night we slept well.

We booked this hotel directly through the hotel's website and gave up our preferences. As high as possible and at the back of the hotel. Well, they listened well, because we stayed at room number 1107 and at the back! No noise from the street! It was just as we wanted. We had a view of a back of a building and it was just fine, because the view at the front isn’t that much better. The street where this hotel is located, has a cheap, budget trashy atmosphere. There is a fire station just down the street, but I didn’t hear any sirens or honking. The hotel is located a one block from times square.

The room had a good size, with a micro, a fridge and a coffee maker. If you have loud people as neighbors, you can hear the noise between the rooms very good. The flatscreen TV was great just as the free internet access in the room. I wasn’t satisfied with the comfort of the bed and the cleanness of bedding. Many reviews said the beds were so comfortable, but ours wasn’t. You supposed to have the choice of a hard or soft bed, but it wasn’t working or were didn’t noticed. The bedding was dirty. It was original white, but our bedding looked grey. It’s where everybody sits on and doing things I don’t want to know and it’s also where you sleeping under. Ok, you have a thin linen between you and the bedding, but that’s it. I woke up several times during the night, because of the lousy condition of the bed. In the hall way was a very loud noise of the air conditioning. It was like a plane took off or a wind tunnel. Amazingly we didn’t hear it in our room. I think if our room was closer to the air conditioning (main machine) I could hear it in our room. The bathroom was fine. Nice normal size. Only three towels and a few little ones. I prefer four big towels. No turn down service, but for the price we paid, you cannot expect that.

Now it sounds like we have only negative things about this hotel, but we sure have positive comments as well. The first conctact over the phone was very good. The lady was very friendly and helped us out to change the reservation. The price dropped a few weeks before our stay. We also booked on points, so those two reservations had to be together for staying in the same room, during our stay. She did organized it and we were thankful for her help. Check in went well and quickly. We were getting coupons for free bottles of water. You have to show your room key at the entrance to the elevators in the evening/night (except after 12pm, because when we arrived there was no one there). The doorman has a good memory, because after two nights he did know us already and we didn’t have to show our room key anymore. The rooms looks cozy, with the brown, sand and white colors. The location is perfect. Close to Times Square and a short walk to Central Park, Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center.

The check out was not friendly at all. The people behind the desk were very busy to have a conversation with each other. He didn’t ask how our stay was. Not even wishing us happy holidays. For a hotel that wants her costumers to give a ten as rating, they have a lot to do. We came not further than a eight! I will recommend this hotel to other people, but with some do’s and don’ts.

Tip:
If you are looking for a good restaurant near the hotel, go to Thalia. Great food and atmosphere and it’s located 2 minutes from the hotel (next block).