Day 5: Roosevelt Island

Day 5: Roosevelt Island

Today is the day to do all the things we didn’t get to in the past few days. First, we take the subway to Lexington Ave and walk the remaining distance to the cable car station. The ride is covered by our metro card, with no additional cost. We pay $34 per person for one week, David hasn’t paid anything yet, and we can use the subway without limits. After a short wait, we board the gondola to Roosevelt Island. An island on the East River. Today the weather isn’t on our side; it keeps raining, and it’s cold. This also limits the view from the gondola. After 10 minutes, we reach the island and walk to Franklin D. Roosevelt Park. From there, we can see the UN Headquarters building. Afterwards, we take the subway to the Flatiron Building, a triangular historic building from 1902. We take a quick photo before moving on as it starts to rain harder. Our next stop is Little Italy and Chinatown. Both neighborhoods are adjacent to each other and host many restaurants, souvenir shops, and stores. In one shop, they sell Christmas decorations year-round.
Somehow, we lack the motivation to walk further. The weather always plays a big role in sightseeing. I’m cold, so we decide to head back to our accommodation after stopping at the Ghostbusters House. We relax for two hours and then decide to head out again. I read about fried Oreos and we want to try them. So, we take the subway several stops north and walk a few blocks to a small shop. It has the best reviews and looks adventurous. It resembles more of a cluttered room than a snack bar. After a short wait, we receive 12 fried Oreos for $7. In the park across the street, we enjoy the treats. They remind me of sweet pastries with a chocolate center. Unfortunately, American sweets are usually just sweet without flavor. That’s not the case here. They are truly delicious, and three pieces are more than enough. Later, we learn that the East Village was originally called Little Germany. Many German immigrants lived here with their families. A shipping disaster in 1904 that claimed the lives of over 1000 German-Americans led to the decline of the German neighborhood in New York.
Now we head back and get off again at the Brooklyn Bridge. It’s dark now, and we walk halfway across the bridge to take pictures of the skyline at night. Unfortunately, it’s slightly foggy, so we can’t see the tall buildings.
We walk the last few meters. We quickly make dinner now. The kids want to play a game of billiards. The hotel has a free pool table. One game should suffice, then it’s off to bed.