05/08/2016 # Otw New York

After a very pleasant train journey to Frankfurt and a comfortable overnight stay at the Hilton Garden Inn, just a 10-minute walk from the check-in counter, the tension started to build. Singapore Airlines had notified us by SMS the previous evening that the flight would be delayed by about an hour and a half. But we didn't fully trust the peace and quiet, so early riser Maike went to the counter in the early morning twilight to get confirmation once again. Instead of 8:40 a.m., the plane was actually going to depart at 10:10 a.m. That was still within reason, as we had booked the helicopter sightseeing tour in New York in the afternoon with plenty of time to spare, and it also gave us the opportunity to take care of a few things after a relaxed breakfast.

The flight on the A380 was as comfortable as expected, especially since luck was on our side once again. It turned out that the woman who initially occupied the vacant seat in our row was supposed to sit separately from her husband. However, the friendly cabin crew found a solution for the couple in the almost full plane, and we had the row all to ourselves. It was great to be able to stretch out during the almost 8-hour flight without hesitation. Of course, we pretended not to notice the partly envious looks from the people around us :-)

The only disappointment was the food. We were used to better from the Singaporeans. Well, it has been 15 years since then, after all..

At around 1:00 p.m., we once again entered uncharted territory. Despite being slightly deterred by various reports, we expected a longer immigration process. We were pleasantly surprised that, despite longer queues at the immigration and later at the customs counter, we were already sitting in the smoking area outside the airport after just over half an hour. Well organized, all in all.

New York - here we are!

We decided to take public transportation to the hotel. It's called something else here, but it works the same way :-) Once you've figured out how to get from the airport's Airtrain to the MTA network, it's quite simple. It took a while with the trial-and-error method, but eventually we arrived safely and relatively on time at the St. James Hotel in the heart of Manhattan. Quickly checked in, took a short shower, and then we headed downtown on the subway. The helicopter flight was booked for 5:30 p.m., and as requested, we arrived half an hour early at the heliport. It felt like they were waiting just for us, because they took us straight to the counter where we had to drop off our backpack and camera tripod and instead were equipped with life jackets. After a short wait with a video safety briefing, we went straight to the airfield. There was time for a photo for the family album (which could be purchased later for $25) and then we were in the air. It's incredible how quickly 15 minutes can fly by. But the view was already fantastic, as the entire skyline was at our feet. Thanks to the headsets, we couldn't hear the noise from the rotors, so it was a smooth ride. We went around Governors Island and Ellis Island, past the Statue of Liberty, and then along the west side of Manhattan up the Hudson River to Central Park and back from there. It's quite an expensive experience, but we don't do it every day :-)

The evening ended at the Irish pub next to the hotel with a classic giant burger and light beer. The day had already become quite long, but we could say that we had finally arrived.