Well, here I am in my now-familiar spot on Bus #1, heading back towards our friendly home of Scarborough. I won’t publish this until I get home, but I thought I’d write it while it’s still fresh.
We started our day with a small series of mishaps, beginning with a flat tire on bus 2, and an illness that resulted in a flight home for Ms. Todd and a student. We’re all pulling for a quick recovery. Of course, the fact that I accidentally booked their flight for next Thursday didn’t speed things up – but the folks at Continental were very nice.
Interesting note on the breakfast – this morning, what I thought was pancakes with sausage, made myself a sandwich, and had half-eaten it when I was informed they were actually eggs in pancake form. Mr. Wistow actually put syrup on his eggs, so at least I wasn’t alone.
When we were finally on the road, it was off to Yankee Stadium. I was as excited as a kid in a candy store, something that was commented on more than once. I was thrilled to touch the grass, sit in the dugout and just being there was awesome. I’m a bit of a ball fan.
On to Harlem, where many of us decided to sample the White Castle, much to our mutual regret. One of the food highlights for me was a jerk chicken patty, and I was proud to eat with Hannah, Kyra, Andrew L and Michael H, who joined me for a truly local neighbourhood meal, where a lot of others went to McDonalds.
We then rushed like mad to Sony Wonder, as Ms Paul had gone briefly AWOL delaying us a bit. Luckily, we got there with seconds to spare, and had some time to play. It was a neat place, but I was unhappy that the chaperones weren’t given cards to play too. I think the kids enjoyed it. They had an HD video on Monarch Butterflies that was rather cool as well.
Following this we had a bit of free time on 5th avenue, where the frogs came into play. FAO Schwartz had some rather large frogs on clearance, and 3 of your homes are going to be blessed with their presence. Easy to count because they were tough to miss.
Dinner at Mars 2112 followed, which was excellent food and a rather interesting environment to say the least. One of the complaints of the trip was the state the kids left our dining area in. Future trips will be having some etiquette lessons before we go for any further group dinners.
After this we headed to 34th St, and the world famous Macy’s. If it sounds like all we did was shop, that’s not true…we did a few other things too.
The last activity of the day was the lineup….I mean, the trip up the Empire State Building. Amazing when we got there, but we had very little time due to the fact that it was incredibly crowded. The view was spectacular, and difficult to capture with the automatic camera I had, but I did try.
Back at the hotel, packing seemed to be an adventure for everyone. Some of the rooms were in pretty good shape, and some looked like the Governor of New Jersey was going to have to declare them a disaster zone.
I also think you’re going to be getting some pretty bleary eyed children back tonight – I don’t think a lot of sleep was gotten by anyone last night – except the bus drivers, of course.
I must compliment the students overall on their behaviour. They were an excellent group, particularly when it came to meeting times and places. We were rarely delayed, and then only by a minute or two. They stayed within their boundaries, and stayed in their groups. I was particularly proud during the Met, a place with a required high standard of behaviour.
So, we’re nearing the end of our most excellent grad trip to New York City. It has been students, the staff, Lydia and Tim, our amazing tour guides and our excellent bus drivers. Everyone has been working hard to keep things enjoyable, and bring everyone back safe and sound.
I hope you’ve enjoyed the blog, and I look forward to seeing you at Graduation on Tuesday.
Favourite moments of the trip from the staff
Mr Morose
The Met, and Yankee Stadium. Sitting in the dugout I’ve seen on television so many times was a real thrill.
Mr. Carroll
First of all I would just like to say that the NYC trip was amazing. It’s sad to see it come to an end. Our guides and bus drivers were the best. There were many unforgettable moments this week but getting to see Ground Zero and shopping in Times Square are my favourite moments.
Lydia
Hmm…favourite moments. This has been such a whirlwind of a week with so many amazing things happening that I don’t even know where to begin. For now I’ll stick to a few but if you ask me tomorrow, the day after or next week what my highlights were I’d have something new to add each time as I reflect back on this trip.
I loved seeing everyone’s faces light up as they saw the lights of Times Square for the first time. Watching students gaze in wonder at the massive crowds crossing at each street corner, interrupted only by the thousands of yellow taxi cabs speeding by every minute.
I love that I learn something on every single trip I make as a tour guide. This week I learned that bus #1 is full of singers and performers whose talents rival those of Celine Dion (circa Titanic). I also learned that when you have a really great team of teachers to work with, even if things don’t always go according to plan, you can not only smile but also laugh and even still have an awesome trip. I even learned that Tim secretly sleepwalks at night. These really are educational trips. :o)
Madame Froese
Where do I begin? The sights…incredible! The smells…equally so! Despite the little bumps in the road, NYC was FANtastique! We managed to get a great intro to New York on this tour. Our guide was very informative and witty! I’d say that my most memorable moments were shopping in China Town, listening to live music and watching a crowd of dancers in Times Square and “Walking on Broadway”!
Mrs. Hern
Oh,the buzz of the Big Apple!! It makes one appreciate little Guildwood, etc. This trip was great-even though it was at 90 miles an hour!! Definitely the highlight of every day was the shopping! I gave boys tips on what to buy for their female friends and family and trained them in the art of bartering. We could start a purse store with the merchandise we got. It was great to see the kids faces as they ran up to me telling me how they got their items for what they thought was a bargain, only to be shocked when someone else got the same thing cheaper. Everyone enjoyed different sights and excursions but most of all they had a blast together (and very little sleep). I really enjoyed this highlight of their Grade 8 year with them.
Teacher comments from bus #2 will be coming soon…I don’t know how I’ll get ahold of Tim, but I’ll try.
Thanks for your kind words at the dropoff. The trip was a pleasure, and an educational experience for me as much as it was for the kids.
No comments:
Post a Comment