Our New York/Vermont Trip Report

We (John and Terry) stood in the middle of the street in Hamilton, Ohio on November 9th at 3:30 a.m. waiting for Amtrak. Indeed, it is a strange feeling catching a train in the middle of the street, in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere. Once on board it was time to wedge ourselves into the 4'x7' room, set up our beds and catch a few winks before breakfast call. Unfortunately, the train's heat table was broken so breakfast was cold cereal and orange juice. We're sure glad we paid for first class tickets! However, the scenery was very beautiful, traveling through the New River Gorge with the leaves changing to their fiery autumn colors. By lunch time, the heat table still was not fixed and someone had accidentally left the plug out of the main water storage tank. Thus, the rest of the meals for the day would be microwaved and served in the passenger's rooms. Is it any wonder why Amtrak is losing money?

We arrived in Washington D.C. to change trains. We used most of the layover time to walk to the Capitol building. The rest of the time was spent in Amtrak's lounge, an experience worth the extra cost of a first class ticket. It is a beautifully decorated area, restricted to first class ticket holders, complete with TV, free soft drinks, newspapers and private restrooms. This lounge can only be appreciated if you have ever killed time in Washington D.C.'s or New York City's train station, filled with pan handlers, pick pockets, thieves, weirdoes, noise, filthy restrooms, etc. We caught the train to NYC and then took a cab to our downtown Manhattan hotel. The room was nice, but you had to let the hot water faucet run for at least 15 minutes before hot water finally got to the 12th floor.

The next day we were off to explore Manhattan. The city seemed safe and relatively clean, but people and cars rushed everywhere like water from a fire hose. Our first big stop was the Ed Sullivan Theater to try to get stand by tickets for the next day's show. Fortunately, we were among the 35 couples who won the stand by ticket lottery. Thus, if tomorrow's show had enough no-shows, we would be able to get in. We stopped in Manny's Music Store and gazed on the endless display of autographed publicity photos of celebrity musicians who had visited. As a souvenir, we purchased some guitar picks with "Manny's" printed on them. We stopped by Radio City Music Hall, but they were all sold out of tickets for their shows To end the afternoon, we visited Trump Tower, Times Square, Central Park and F.A.O. Schwartz - the largest toy store in the world.

As evening was drawing near, we happened to be walking by the Ed Sullivan Theater and saw a large crowd gathering in the alley next to the theater. Upon further inspection, we saw they were watching a group of Russian acrobats warming up for the Letterman Show. We joined the crowd and were rewarded by catching glimpses of Martin Short, John Travolta and Cybill Shepard as they got into their limos at the end of their appearance. We watched in awe during the acrobats performance and also saw David Letterman emerge into the alley to shake their hands and commend them on their performance. The performance completed, Letterman returned to the theater, the acrobats entered their limos and the crowd dispersed. We decided to wait and see if David Letterman would eventually emerge from the studio into one of the waiting limos. After about a half an hour, we saw Paul Shaffer and his band leave. After an hour and 12 minutes, Terry left to get a permanent marker to have for David Letterman to sign her New York sweat shirt. She had been gone for about five minutes when David Letterman emerged from the theater, entered his car and drove away. When Terry returned, I shared the bad news with her and we vowed to return the next evening. As a consolation, we headed to the Hard Rock Cafe for a hot meal. We sat in the Nirvana booth complete with Kurt Cobain's leather jacket. Furthermore, this Hard Rock had the most incredible set of guitars! They had Bo Diddley's rectangular guitar, along with those from Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Pete Townsen, Jimmy Page, Bob Dillion and Eddie Van Halen. This definitely raised John's spirits.

We started the day by taking a tour bus to Battery Park to catch the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. Don't let the tour bus companies sell you ferry boat tickets since they'll charge $2.00 more than the National Park Service. The boat ride out to the island was pleasant and provided great views of the Statue of liberty and the New York skyline.We decided to climb the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty and John wondered if he was in good enough shape to do it to ascend almost 400 steps. No problem! The line usually moved for about five steps and then stopped for a minute or two. Once you get close to her crown you begin to climb a tight spiral staircase. John got an intensely dirty look from the lady behind him when he purposely moved back and forth, causing the staircase to rock ever so slightly. The view from the top was sensational, but the crowds behind you forced you to only spend a minute or two at windows. It was pretty difficult descending the spiral staircase and it took quite a toll on the muscles directly above John's knees. We took the ferry to Ellis Island and checked out the walls of names of those who had immigrated to the U.S. over the years. Spending only 15 minutes at the island, we caught the same ferry and headed back to the mainland. We next strolled the sidewalks of Wall Street and waited in line for over 30 minutes for a self guided tour of the New York Stock Exchange. We also made a quick stop at the World Trade Center.

A glance at our watches told us it was time to head for the Ed Sullivan Theater. Stand by audiences had to be in line by 4:30 p.m. if they wanted to attend the 5:30 p.m. show. We caught our tour bus, but it soon became apparent that we would not get to the theater in time. Abandoning the bus, we caught a cab which got us to the theater by 4:30 p.m. Terry stopped in at "Hello Deli" and bought a "Big Ass Hoagie" from Rupert G. We talked to him about his "stunt" appearances on the Letterman Show and he said he really enjoyed doing them. Terry asked if he would have his picture taken with her and he happily agreed. Now it was time to get in line as stand byes for the show. The audience services director had us line up in the order we received our stand by tickets. We found out no one had got in on the stand by audience the day before, but this was probably due to the big name guests. She also gave us free Snickers candy bars to eat while waiting. As 5:30 p.m. drew near, they started admitting members of the stand by audience. YES! As luck would have it though, they stopped taking people just as we got to the front of the line. Terry begged the doorman to let in just one more couple, but he politely refused. THEN LO AND BEHOLD, they needed one more couple and we were it! SUCCESS! People wait up to nine months to get Letterman tickets and some even plan their vacations around it, but we were lucky enough to GET IN ON STAND BY! We were seated in the balcony and at the end of the row. A gentleman came out and told jokes before the show. He then said he would tell us when he needed lots of applause and for us to be very enthusiastic. The band played a warm up song and then it was time for David Letterman. The show was great, but the guests were not cream of the crop (which is why we probably got in on stand by). Danny Aiello from Dellaventure was the big name guest along with Helena Bonham Carter from the movie "Wings of the Dove". Dave also pulled a man (Lee Holt) out of Joe G's pizza next door and had him come up on stage. He tapped Lee doing various things which the video crew spliced together . It was basically a political ad for Lee Holt saying he was running against Major Gullioni for election of the city's new mayor. As it turned out, it was election day and Mayor Guillioni was trying to get reelected.

After the show, we scurried outside and into the alley to wait for David Letterman to emerge. Again, we saw Paul Shaffer and the band leave. We were determined to wait it out even though the temperature was in the low 40s and the wind was really whipping through the streets. We waited and waited and waited. The time of his previous evening's appearance (8:12 p.m.) came and went and we grew discouraged. By 8:30 p.m. John was very, very cold and Terry was ready to call it quits. Just then the side alley door opened and out walked a video crew. Moments later David Letterman walked out in a suit and tie and the crew began filming him doing various things. During a break in the filming, Terry walked right up to Dave and asked him to autograph her t-shirt. Dave was very accommodating! Terry began to pull up her sweater so Dave could sign the t-shirt underneath. Someone commented they didn't want a repeat of the Drew Barrymore incident and a crew member helped Terry keep the t-shirt down as she lifted her sweater. Dave happily signed the back of her t-shirt. He also autographed John's "Late Night" t-shirt on the top of the "Late Show" dumpster. Next, each of us got our pictures taken with him. Dave asked John where he was from and he replied "Dayton, Ohio". Dave commented NCR (a world wide Dayton based computer company) was having some problems there. Wow! What a sharp, well read guy! Dave Letterman is definitely not one of your stuck up, mean show biz types. He was very cordial the whole time. As a small crowd began to gather, Dave returned to the theater. Satisfied, we headed for the Hard Rock Cafe for another hot meal. We returned to our hotel and watched the Letterman show we had been an audience to that day.

Today was "Broadway Show" day. We went to the TKS booth to try to buy discounted show tickets. Now a good Broadway show will cost you $70 a ticket. The TKS booth sells left over tickets on the day of the show for half price until they are all sold out. We waited in line for approximately 20 minutes while a band entertained us. We really wanted to see "The King and I" and hoped the tickets would not sell out before we got to the ticket window. We were lucky enough to get half price matinee tickets for "The King and I" at the Neil Simon theater and only paid $35 a ticket. Cool! Having some time to kill, we went to the Empire State building and paid to take the elevator up to the top. The views were incredible and gave you a real appreciation for how crowded New York City really is. It's also pretty humorous to see the dozens of cabs on each and every street. We took a second elevator to get to the very top of the building, but the views were not any better and the viewing areas are enclosed in glass. Soon, it was time to head to the Neil Simon Theater for the play. We walked to the Neil Simon Theater and found our seats. Even though we had purchased "left over" tickets, we were seated in the seventh row! The performance was first rate and we felt we more than got our moneys worth. The production had spent a fortune on costumes and scenery. Although we had seen the movie before, the live performance really glowed. After the show, we waited outside the stage doors and got autographs of the lead performers on the show program we had purchased. At this point, we really felt we had absorbed "The Manhattan Experience". It was now time to pick up a rental car and head for the Von Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont for a couple of days of relaxation. This was a welcomed thought since the pushing, showing, rushing crowds of New York was beginning to take its toll. Again we walked past the Ed Sullivan Theater. Again there was a huge crowd gathered in the alley outside. John couldn't resist the temptation to adventure so we again joined the crowd. This time Major Gullioni would be the prime attraction. He had just been re-elected mayor of New York and David Letterman wanted to do a special appearance with him. John and his camera wedged their way into the press photography section (much to their annoyance) and waited for the mayor to make his appearance. One of the press photographers asked John to get out of the way and he reluctantly backed up a couple of steps. Soon Mayor Gullioni bounded out of the theater and got on board a large red, white and blue "Re-elected Mayor Guillioni" truck. As the video crew's cameras were rolling, the mayor waved cheerfully to us, said "thank you" a million times and spoke to the press. The big truck drove off down the street with the mayor still waving to the crowd. This was our symbolic wave "good-bye" from the glorious city of New York. With that, we walked back to our motel, retrieved our bags, hailed a cab and headed to the rental car building.

Once we headed the Ford Cirrus down the road, the hurried streets of New York City gave way to rolling hills and patient drivers. We were headed to Vermont for a two night's stay at the Von Trapp family Lodge. Terry has always been infatuated with the movie "The Sound of Music" and was looking forward to meeting with Elisabeth Von Trapp, the granddaughter to Maria Von Trapp. Terry had corresponded with her via email and had acquired an invite to stop in and see Elisabeth and her husband when we got to Stowe. Elisabeth had also sent a document explaining what had happened with the family from the time of their escape from Austria until the present. After reading this, Terry created a list of additional questions to ask when we stopped by her shop. Elisabeth was also kicking off a musical career of her own and we had hoped for an invite to her performance at the lodge.

Easing into the quite town of Stowe, we stopped at a gas station to get directions to the Von Trapp shop. After driving around for over half an hour, we finally stumbled upon it. Elisabeth and her husband Eddie were very friendly and spent an hour talking with us and sharing the details of their family business. Elisabeth was winding down from creating Austrian-style clothing (she made all the dresses for the waitresses in the Von Trapp Lodge) and gearing up her music career. She currently has two CDs available and you can purchase them by emailing Elisabeth. Soon it was time for Elisabeth to leave and prepare for her evening performances at the lodge. We drove the sharply winding roads into the mountains and arrived at the lodge well after dark. The photograph here cannot give you a true appreciation of the lodge. It is a huge Austrian-style lodge with guest rooms on multiple floors, entertainment and conference rooms. It rests on over 2000 wooded acres which overlooks the valley below. There are two pools (one indoor), a fitness room, sauna, dining room and lounge. The rooms themselves are marvelous. They are large with custom made drapes, flower stencil paintings on the wall, beautiful wood furniture (dresser, table and TV cabinet/dresser), TV, king size bed with down comforter, private porch with two Adirondak chairs and a spacious bathroom. Rates are typically around $200, but off season rates were only $120. A bargain! We quickly headed down to a room on the lowest level where Elisabeth was performing for a large tour group. She sang a mixture of her own songs with a few from "The Sound of Music". Her beautiful voice and the sweet tones of her guitar absolutely enchanted her audience! In between songs she shared various anecdotes with the group including a few about her grandmother. After the performance, we went to the lounge together to talk. Terry finished asking all her questions about the post-Austria Von Trapps while John asked where see hoped her musical career would lead. The visit was all too brief and we returned to the hall to watch her second performance. The evening concluded with a final good-bye to Maria, a photograph of her and her guitar, and a newly purchased (and autographed) CD in our pocket.

The next day was spent taking in all the sights and sounds of the lodge. We saw a movie of the real Maria Von Trapp visiting Austria shortly before her death. She told of how much the movie was like the true events and even provided a few new insights. We cooled off in the pool and then baked in the sauna. We also visited the graves of the Von Trapps which is located next to the lodge. Exploring behind the lodge, we found the outdoor pool, shuffle board courts and cross country skiing trails. One of the trails lead to the top of the hill where the Von Trapps had built a small chapel. In the evening, we ate dinner in the lodge dining room and greedily eyed the dessert cart. We returned to our room and quickly were asleep.

In the morning, we ate a breakfast buffet in the lodge dining room and headed back to New York. It rained for the first time during our trip and we felt lucky to be in the car driving at the time. Returning to New York City was like smelling a cabbage fart in an elevator. You really didn't want to be in this nasty environment, but it was the only way to get where you were going. We returned the rental car, but not before some dunce rear-ended us. Fortunately, the damage was very minimal. We then took a cab to the train station and endured a five hour wait. Amtrak was not much better on the way back. They had reduced the dining car to only one person who in turn only opened up half the tables for seating. It took quite a while for everyone to get there meals. The service was poor and the car stewardess spent most of her time apologizing for not having or running out of things. Furthermore, the best scenery passed us by during the night and the train was over an hour behind schedule. We hoped off the train in Hamilton with Terry's parents giving us a ride home.