Despite getting to bed a little before 2am I was up and ready to go by 8am. I had a plan and I was sticking to it. The hotel was unable to offer me late checkout, so I checked out and left my bags with the bellhop for the day. I then hopped the hotel shuttle back to the P4 parking area (just as complicated returning as it was departing), we left the hotel out the back and then drove past the hotel to get on the road to the airport. Once at P4 I caught the AirTrain to the rail terminal. I bought my $26 round-trip ticket for NYC and boarded a train right as the doors were closing.
After a short 4 stop ride...about 30 minutes...I arrived at NY Penn Station which is under Madison Square Garden. I had looked the previous evening and found that the New York City Fire Museum was open, so that was the one thing I wanted to do for the day. I started walking south toward the museum and stopped along the way.
The museum is located in the old Engine 30 firehouse which was built in 1904. There are two floors of exhibits and an event space on the 3rd floor. It's very reasonably priced at $8 for the visit!
After Macy's I went to Rockefeller Plaza to see the tree and found some lunch since it was almost 2pm. All of the sit-down restaurants were packed so I made my way to a Five Guys a few blocks away and had a very tasty, and (comparatively a) very quickly prepared burger and fries. After sitting for maybe 10 minutes at Five Guys, the first time I had sat down all day, I decided I had walked enough (roughly 22,000 steps) so I bee-lined for Penn Station.
I caught the 3:15 train back to Newark and arrived right around 4 at the rail terminal. I hopped back on the AirTrain to the P4 parking area, caught the shuttle to the hotel to get my bags and made my way to the airport.
We landed almost an hour late due to some holding over the Arabian Sea and then a long sweeping turn over the middle of India before heading in to the Mumbai airport. Our flight path took us over and near some pretty dangerous countries.
We also hit some turbulence about an hour from landing as we passed through a tropical cyclone weather system. I landed in Mumbai around 10pm India time (11:30am Eastern). The airport is huge and has a very decorative arrival hall. I made my way to customs and was through in less than 30 minutes. I gathered my luggage and found my way to the exit. There is an area just outside the exit where all of the drivers wait with signs. The roof over the area is probably 5-6 stories tall and the area stretches for almost half a football field.
I found my hotel shuttle driver and walked with him to the garage. We left the garage and into the rain which according to all the locals is incredibly rare...some have said it hasn't rained in December for 40 years. I arrived at the hotel around 11pm India time and the two colleagues I am here with (who arrived a week ago) were waiting at the front door for me. After some security checks (looking in the engine compartment, x-raying my luggage and walking through a metal detector) I was in the hotel lobby. I checked in and headed up to my room to settle in and get some sleep.
Tomorrow I will meet my colleagues for breakfast and then head to the office for what is sure to be a very long day.
After a short 4 stop ride...about 30 minutes...I arrived at NY Penn Station which is under Madison Square Garden. I had looked the previous evening and found that the New York City Fire Museum was open, so that was the one thing I wanted to do for the day. I started walking south toward the museum and stopped along the way.
The Flatiron Building
The Washington Square Arch
The New York City Fire Museum
The museum is located in the old Engine 30 firehouse which was built in 1904. There are two floors of exhibits and an event space on the 3rd floor. It's very reasonably priced at $8 for the visit!
An 1882 Horse Drawn Ladder Truck from Gleason & Bailey in Seneca Falls, NY. One of several antique apparatus.
They had several ornate leather shields. Some that were huge (my hand is in the photo to show the scale).
And several ornate leather helmets.
They also have a collection of parade belts.
While I was at the museum there was also a special event.
After spending almost 2 hours at the museum I began walking back towards Penn Station. I made my way past the station to Macy's to see the Christmas windows. Each of these is animated and contained tons of neat little touches that you'd miss if you didn't stop to watch for awhile.
After Macy's I went to Rockefeller Plaza to see the tree and found some lunch since it was almost 2pm. All of the sit-down restaurants were packed so I made my way to a Five Guys a few blocks away and had a very tasty, and (comparatively a) very quickly prepared burger and fries. After sitting for maybe 10 minutes at Five Guys, the first time I had sat down all day, I decided I had walked enough (roughly 22,000 steps) so I bee-lined for Penn Station.
I caught the 3:15 train back to Newark and arrived right around 4 at the rail terminal. I hopped back on the AirTrain to the P4 parking area, caught the shuttle to the hotel to get my bags and made my way to the airport.
The view from the AirTrain, an automated monorail style train that has 4-6 separate compartments for people.
I arrived at the airport around 5:30pm Eastern for my 8:40pm flight. I made my way to the United SkyClub to grab a bite to eat and pass the time. Their club is on the 2nd floor of the terminal and quite large. I had some bread and cheese and a few small brownies. Around 8pm I headed to my gate and boarded the flight shortly thereafter.
We landed almost an hour late due to some holding over the Arabian Sea and then a long sweeping turn over the middle of India before heading in to the Mumbai airport. Our flight path took us over and near some pretty dangerous countries.
We also hit some turbulence about an hour from landing as we passed through a tropical cyclone weather system. I landed in Mumbai around 10pm India time (11:30am Eastern). The airport is huge and has a very decorative arrival hall. I made my way to customs and was through in less than 30 minutes. I gathered my luggage and found my way to the exit. There is an area just outside the exit where all of the drivers wait with signs. The roof over the area is probably 5-6 stories tall and the area stretches for almost half a football field.
I found my hotel shuttle driver and walked with him to the garage. We left the garage and into the rain which according to all the locals is incredibly rare...some have said it hasn't rained in December for 40 years. I arrived at the hotel around 11pm India time and the two colleagues I am here with (who arrived a week ago) were waiting at the front door for me. After some security checks (looking in the engine compartment, x-raying my luggage and walking through a metal detector) I was in the hotel lobby. I checked in and headed up to my room to settle in and get some sleep.
Tomorrow I will meet my colleagues for breakfast and then head to the office for what is sure to be a very long day.
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