We decided to spend our first Thanksgiving in the States since 2011 at one of the most publicized holiday events nationwide: The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Knowing that the time involved in actually getting to and then watching the parade would essentially take all day, we agreed to postpone the traditional holiday feast until Black Friday and allowed ourselves the freedom to spend our Thanksgiving however we wanted without the need to hurry back to a thawing turkey and pile of taters.
Also knowing that: 1. We were traveling to Manhattan; and 2. It was Thanksgiving Day; and 3. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is sort of a big deal; we anticipated the crowds. And, Oh!, there were crowds!
We couldn’t really get anywhere near the road along which the parade was marching. Instead, we climbed onto the fencing along the perimeter of Bryant Park and hung out over the swarm of people below to catch glimpses of the balloons as they slowly floated past. The weather wasn’t entirely forgiving; with frigid temperatures and an icy drizzle, our fingertips and noses were bright red and numb in no time.
After a few of the floats had passed, we began walking through Bryant Park, admiring the many shops, stopping to watch the ice skaters and finding new spots to catch more glimpses of the parade. To warm our hands and bellies, we each got some hot apple cider and headed back to the subway station.
The station we chose was Grand Central and it was a zoo! Apparently Thanksgiving is a huge day for travel. The floor of Grand Central was hidden by an ocean of travelers. Since the crowds were mostly for trains out of the city and not for the local subways, Ivan and I stuck around for a few minutes to snag some pictures of the chaos.
On Friday we opted to avoid the insanity of Manhattan (Black Friday shopping and all) by staying at home to have a delicious Thanksgiving meal.
One response to “Thanksgiving in Manhattan”
[…] Day came and went with us wandering happily around Manhattan, catching glimpses of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and ending with games and drinks at home with friends, family and the happy pups. (This is our last […]