Triple Crown at the Belmont: 2018 Triple Crown Day 1 New York City

The train from the Newark airport took us under the Hudson River to Pennsylvania Station in New York City. Pennsylvania Station is underneath Madison Square Garden and it is just a short walk from there north to Times Square where our hotel was located. The weather was great and the crowds were not that bad. Just as we got into Times Square, Tracy spotted her buddy - the Naked Cowboy. She and her sister had taken pictures with him just a few months before in New Orleans on Bourbon Street. He had been down there working Mardi Gras. I've seen the Naked Cowboy in Hollywood and Vegas and many times in NYC since my first trip to New York in 1999. Tracy and Kelly LOVE him!

We stayed at the Marriott Marquis on Times Square. I love this hotel and stay there pretty much every time I go to New York. The atrium goes almost to the top. I think only the revolving restaurant and bar is above the roof and the elevators zoom up and down the central bank of elevators. The elevators were renovated after my first stay in 1999. Now, you enter your floor number as you walk up to the elevators and the screen tells you what elevator will take you to your floor. You get in that elevator and you don't have to push any buttons. The doors shut and it takes you to your floor. Before, when the floor buttons were inside each elevator, it could take ten or twenty minutes to even get an elevator at rush times. This new system is MUCH better.

The Marquis has a fantastic restaurant on its lobby level overlooking Times Square.

Sea Otters Strolling through Times Square

After we got settled into our hotel room, I took the krewe through Times Square and north along Broadway to the southwest corner of Central Park at Columbus Circle. I was going to take them to Robert's in the Museum of Art and Design building, but Robert's was closed for a private event. Robert's has great food and drinks, but maybe even more importantly to me, a fantastic view of Central Park. Anyway, that didn't work out, so we started site-seeing around Columbus Circle. I'm pretty sure we all had drinks except for Tracy in those cups. We took this photo with the Columbus statue behind us because the angel on the pedestal is looking away as if shaking her head and saying 'its not even five o'clock yet'.

Columbus Circle Statue
"Look away."

We held up the world in front of the Trump International Hotel and Tower.

Globe in front of Trump International Hotel and Tower
"We got this."

After trying to find a restaurant for us all around the Columbus Circle area and finally giving up, I put everyone into a taxi and took them over to Inside Park at St. Bart's. It is a great outdoor restaurant on Park Avenue and part of St. Bartholomew's church. Unfortunately, taxi's can only take four people at a time so Chris volunteered to be our rescue pet in the back seat.

Taxi cab from Columbus Circle to Inside the Park
Noah, Kevin, Kelly, Tracy

Chris as the puppy.

Amazingly, we got a table!

Where's the puppy?

Kevin

Noah and Kevin

Kevin and Kelly

Chris and Tracy

Noah and Kelly

Your Body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit

After leaving Inside Park, we walked back to Times Square. Rockefeller Center is on the way so we got a couple of shots of Rockefeller and St. Patrick's Cathedral. If you get a chance, go inside St. Patrick's Cathedral. They usually have their doors open for worshipers and visitors alike. We did not go inside on this trip but I have in the past.

Tracy, Kelly, Kevin and Noah

Rockefeller Center

St. Patrick's Cathedral

Cayla joined us and we ended that first night in Times Square. See our Things To Do in New York City page if you want to book online. Booking things online like for the Top of the Rock in Rockefeller Center makes touring the city a whole lot easier.