Weekend In New York
I'm amazed that I managed to get myself up early enough for the 8 am flight to La Guardia with Oscar and Chris, but I am so glad I did. After doughnuts and coffee in the President's Club, we boarded the flight and managed to get seats all near each other. Oscar immediately noticed the very Elissa-esque Marti who was seated across the aisle and one row in front of us. By the end of the flight, we learned that she is a professional body builder, that she is single and that she is having her period! They had exchanged numbers and we headed into the city to our home for the weekend, the Lombardy Hotel.
The Lombardy is owned by a friend of Danny's, and so we were given the star treatment--a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment suite for the price of a double room!! It was enormous--way bigger than we expected and totally done up. Turns out that we were the first guests to stay in that newly-refurbished suite. We were starving and so we immediately headed out in the rain in search of a bite. We knew that Mika and Danny would be having a huge lunch on their flight in so we didn't wait for them. After lunch we bought umbrellas and headed back to the hotel.
The five of us had a small champagne toast before heading out to see Dame Edna.
She was a riot--I laughed so much at her insults, her offbeat sense of humor and her sheer glitz. At one point, she pulled a couple onstage for some "marriage counselling." (Turns out that he is the manager of Def Leppard, Shania Twain and Red hot Chilli Peppers.) Dame Edna phoned his mother live from the stage, a la Graham Norton. The wife was so embarassed as Dame Edna told her mother-in-law that she was a busy-body, etc. It was hilarious! It was the first time for me to see her live, but Chris felt that she wasn't as funny as the time before.
After the show we all headed over to Joe Allens, restaurant where many of the Broadway theatre people go after the shows. I am not at all up on who's who on Broadway, but Chris, being the theatre expert extraordinaire that he is, spots celebs there all the time. He spotted one at the next table that night, but I can't remember who it was. Danny's ex-brother-in-law, Mody, joined us there for a while. After dinner, Oscar, Chris and I headed over to Barrymore's for martinis. Chris is definitely a celeb in there--everyone knew him and was delighted to see him in there, coming over for chats and hugs.
On Saturday morning it was even colder but the sun was shining. I woke up before the others and went off to Starbuck's for coffees and bagels. Clearly New York is gearing up for Christmas as Starbuck's is already serving their eggnog lattes and all the shops have their decorations up. The tree at Rockerfeller Plaza is in place, undecorated as of yet. A definite holiday atmosphere about town. Oscar had to head back to Houston in the afternoon so he did a run in Central Park then went to check out Ground Zero. It depresses me too much to go there so I opted out. Mika and Danny had made plans with Danny's friends and family for the afternoon and Chris wanted to catch a matinee, so I went with him.
No tickets were available for Mamma Mia but we lucked out with a pair of third row center orchestra seats for Reckless, starring Mary Louise Parker and Rosie Perez. After a delightful lunch at The Evergreen, where we were seated at a fabulous window table, we went off to the Biltmore for the show. Weird, zany and thought-provoking are the words that come to mind. This was my favorite show of the weekend but many of the theatre-goers were not as impressed. They just didn't get it. Post-show, we were treated to open discussion with the actors, which gave further insight to the play. A brisk walk back to the hotel, stopping for a wrap for Chris(and a free banana) along the way, before getting ready for the evening show.
Danny treated us all to a private car for the evening which took us to the Marquis Theatre at the Marriott for La Cage aux Folles. This show was funny and vibrant but not as splashy as I had expected. The set was phenomenal, as were the costumes and the dancing, but it lacked a little pizzazz. I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless.
Our car picked us up outside the entrance and whisked us off to the white-hot Asian restaurant, Tao.
There were limos lined up outside and dozens of people waiting for the chance to be allowed in to the restaurant/bar. (Tao is where Carrie and Big bumped into each other with different dates on the opening night of the restaurant in Sex And The City.) Danny's friend from the Lombardy knows the owner (who also owns Raymond Weill), and so he scored us a reservation at one of the best tables on the main floor. The manager kindly came over and introduced himself amid the buzz and the beat of the steamy house music. The place was hopping and the food was divine. We had several different appetizers and then all had different main courses. We ended the evening with some Buddha chocolates and a Grand Marnier. Perfect!!!
On Sunday morning Chris and I braved the cold and the early morning to catch the early flight back home to Houston. I had the pleasure of meeting the adorable Miss Poovey and the naughty Sherriff Taylor chez Chris after dropping him off at home. A truly wonderful weekend had by all.
The Lombardy is owned by a friend of Danny's, and so we were given the star treatment--a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment suite for the price of a double room!! It was enormous--way bigger than we expected and totally done up. Turns out that we were the first guests to stay in that newly-refurbished suite. We were starving and so we immediately headed out in the rain in search of a bite. We knew that Mika and Danny would be having a huge lunch on their flight in so we didn't wait for them. After lunch we bought umbrellas and headed back to the hotel.
The five of us had a small champagne toast before heading out to see Dame Edna.
She was a riot--I laughed so much at her insults, her offbeat sense of humor and her sheer glitz. At one point, she pulled a couple onstage for some "marriage counselling." (Turns out that he is the manager of Def Leppard, Shania Twain and Red hot Chilli Peppers.) Dame Edna phoned his mother live from the stage, a la Graham Norton. The wife was so embarassed as Dame Edna told her mother-in-law that she was a busy-body, etc. It was hilarious! It was the first time for me to see her live, but Chris felt that she wasn't as funny as the time before.
After the show we all headed over to Joe Allens, restaurant where many of the Broadway theatre people go after the shows. I am not at all up on who's who on Broadway, but Chris, being the theatre expert extraordinaire that he is, spots celebs there all the time. He spotted one at the next table that night, but I can't remember who it was. Danny's ex-brother-in-law, Mody, joined us there for a while. After dinner, Oscar, Chris and I headed over to Barrymore's for martinis. Chris is definitely a celeb in there--everyone knew him and was delighted to see him in there, coming over for chats and hugs.
On Saturday morning it was even colder but the sun was shining. I woke up before the others and went off to Starbuck's for coffees and bagels. Clearly New York is gearing up for Christmas as Starbuck's is already serving their eggnog lattes and all the shops have their decorations up. The tree at Rockerfeller Plaza is in place, undecorated as of yet. A definite holiday atmosphere about town. Oscar had to head back to Houston in the afternoon so he did a run in Central Park then went to check out Ground Zero. It depresses me too much to go there so I opted out. Mika and Danny had made plans with Danny's friends and family for the afternoon and Chris wanted to catch a matinee, so I went with him.
No tickets were available for Mamma Mia but we lucked out with a pair of third row center orchestra seats for Reckless, starring Mary Louise Parker and Rosie Perez. After a delightful lunch at The Evergreen, where we were seated at a fabulous window table, we went off to the Biltmore for the show. Weird, zany and thought-provoking are the words that come to mind. This was my favorite show of the weekend but many of the theatre-goers were not as impressed. They just didn't get it. Post-show, we were treated to open discussion with the actors, which gave further insight to the play. A brisk walk back to the hotel, stopping for a wrap for Chris(and a free banana) along the way, before getting ready for the evening show.
Danny treated us all to a private car for the evening which took us to the Marquis Theatre at the Marriott for La Cage aux Folles. This show was funny and vibrant but not as splashy as I had expected. The set was phenomenal, as were the costumes and the dancing, but it lacked a little pizzazz. I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless.
Our car picked us up outside the entrance and whisked us off to the white-hot Asian restaurant, Tao.
There were limos lined up outside and dozens of people waiting for the chance to be allowed in to the restaurant/bar. (Tao is where Carrie and Big bumped into each other with different dates on the opening night of the restaurant in Sex And The City.) Danny's friend from the Lombardy knows the owner (who also owns Raymond Weill), and so he scored us a reservation at one of the best tables on the main floor. The manager kindly came over and introduced himself amid the buzz and the beat of the steamy house music. The place was hopping and the food was divine. We had several different appetizers and then all had different main courses. We ended the evening with some Buddha chocolates and a Grand Marnier. Perfect!!!
On Sunday morning Chris and I braved the cold and the early morning to catch the early flight back home to Houston. I had the pleasure of meeting the adorable Miss Poovey and the naughty Sherriff Taylor chez Chris after dropping him off at home. A truly wonderful weekend had by all.
posted by Debs at 8:43 AM
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