Day 3: Natural History Museum

Day 3: Natural History Museum

Before breakfast, I use the hotel's free laundry facility and clean some items. Somehow the dryer isn't working, which delays our schedule. We now have to hurry to get to the metro and then go to 82nd Street. Shortly after 10 AM, we arrive at the Natural History Museum. With our pre-reserved tickets, entry is quick. Now we start systematically viewing all the exhibits on the 5 floors. We skip the special exhibitions that require an additional fee. It is a very impressive museum with many fantastic exhibits like animals from various countries, habitats, etc. The exhibit on minerals is particularly impressive. The stones are displayed by composition and occurrence. Overall, we spend 4 hours in the museum, wandering more through the rooms towards the end. If you have time, you can spend several days here and gather plenty of information.
Afterward, we treat ourselves to a cake and hot drink at a small bakery nearby.
Rejuvenated, we walk through Central Park following in the footsteps of Kevin Alone in New York. The sun is shining and beautifully reflecting in the small lakes. We quickly cover the 2 kilometers and find ourselves on 5th Avenue, the shopping street with expensive boutiques like Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, etc. We also pay a visit to Victoria's Secret, a lingerie shop. The increase in prices is noticeably felt here.
The kids are eager to visit the Lego store.
Now we walk to Times Square, hoping that the musical tickets are discounted enough for a visit to Aladdin. Unfortunately, despite a 40% discount, the tickets at $114 are even more expensive than in Germany. Our strength is gradually waning as we search for a restaurant. Eventually, we end up in a diner. Now we just need to take the metro back to our accommodation.
Fortunately, we are using our apartment and saving money by cooking for ourselves.
Today, we spend $123 at the restaurant, with René and me only consuming the free water and David just having an appetizer. At the bakery, it's $42 for the 4 cakes and hot drinks. Tips have also risen, with at least 18-25% adding up to a substantial amount.