Brock hit some goals at work and was placed in a drawing to win a trip to the Super Bowl. He was one of twenty other people from around the country who hit these goals and thus eligible for the drawing. Lucky us...Brock was the name drawn!
We were actually on our way home from a his work's Christmas party when we got the phone call that we would be going to the SUPER BOWL! The package included flights to NY, hotel stay in Time Square, tickets to the game, transportation, and a big sports package. It was seriously so exciting to be going on a paid trip!
We were a little disappointed to be going somewhere cold for the game but super stoked to be getting a free trip to explore NEW YORK CITY and attend the SUPER BOWL! No complaints!!!
When we got to New York we knew we were staying in Time Square but we had no IDEA that we were staying in the middle of Time Square and where all of the Super Bowl tailgating would be.
After our driver dropped us off at our hotel...we realized he dropped us off at the wrong hotel. By the time we realized the mistake our driver was LONG gone. SO in a sea of people we walked a mile down the NY Streets (luckily he had left us on the right street) with all of our luggage and belongings. I was a little nervous and embarrassed. There was a ton a people and the closer we got to our hotel the more people there were. Once we got to our hotel we realized what an awesome hotel we were going to be staying at!
Outside our hotel was the pretty much he heart of Super Bowl Boulevard. They had all of the ESPN booths set up out there for interviews and many activities going on for tailgating. They had probably 4-6 blocks of Time Square closed down to traffic so the sea of fans could hang out and tailgate. I have never been in a larger crowd of people-it was intense. The energy from both the Sea Hawk and Broncos fans was intense and just so fun. I felt so lucky to be able to experience all of that!
The first night we were there we just went to dinner (paid an arm & a leg) and walked the streets of Time Square. The lights and the energy was just incredible. It was so fun to see things I've always heard about or seen on T.V.
Saturday morning we headed out to see the city. We got on a double decker bus and went down town. We saw so much and learned so many interesting things. We saw the Empire State Building, Wall Street, Ground Zero, St. Paul's Church, Famous Shops, had a NY Hot Dog (disappointing) Brooklyn Bridge, Rockefeller Center, Battery Park, Piers, Nighttime lights, toured Brooklyn....uhhh...so much more! Crazy how much we did in a DAY!!! Dinner that night we ate at some local pizzeria that was so yummy!
Sunday mooring we woke up bright and early and headed to the pier to catch a ferry to tour and see the Statue of Liberty. The ferry took us long Manhattan and under the bridges and then we circled bad and went to the Statue of Liberty. It was cold but SO worth it!
After our ferry ride we rushed back (we walked everywhere) to get ready to catch our bus to the Super Bowl. They picked us up way early so we were at the stadium all day and the game didn't even start til 6. However we found plenty to do! It was such a fun atmosphere to be in and it was just so surreal.
Our seats were high but we didn't care it was still so fun! The weather was warm and the pre-game entertainment was amazing. Half-Time was really neat to watch too. That place was lit with all the special lighting and fireworks! The game itself was really fun and entertaining. I know people say that the game was boring because the Broncos sucked but the energy from the Seattle fans was amazing. It was a good and fun game...unless you were a Broncos fan?!
Monday we were up bright and early and on our way home. The whole trip was a whirlwind and we were EXHAUSTED! It was a once in a lifetime experience that we are so grateful that we got to experience!
*Because things were so rushed we missed A TON that we would have liked to do and see. We are already talking about "our next trip" there....I sure hope so!
*The food overall was disappointing. I wish we would have had more time to find out where the good eateries were at. It was all kind of a gamble this trip.
*People were surprisingly super nice! I always pictured New Yorkers to be really rude and gruff. But Everyone we met was really friendly, helpful and super nice.
*The city wasn't as dirty as I had pictured it. I imagined it to be mere like the Strip in Vegas. But it was really family friendly-from what we saw.
*The life style is so different. I don't think I could handle dealing with stacked garbage bags out on the street (they don't have dumpsters) and the streets kind of smelled. Also the constant buzz would be tiring. I do think it's neat that most people walk places but I'd sure miss my car! It was interesting for sure!
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Our Hotel at Time Square
46th & Broadway |
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| ESPN News Room |
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| Looking down Time Square towards the New Year's Ball Tower |
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| New Year's Ball |
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| Us and our "Photo Bomber" HAHAHA |
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| Lombardy (sp?) Trophy |
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| Super Bowl Boulevard |
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| Our view from our room. |
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| The guts of our hotel. The elevator(s) reminded me of the "Jetsons". |
Ground Zero
What a neat/solemn experience to walk the streets of the 9-11 Terrorist Attacks. We re-heard stories of the attacks which made it so surreal to be there. My mind was flooded with my memories and emotions from that day. It felt so intense to walk those streets and to see the vastness of the space where the buildings once stood. They have accomplished a lot but there is still a ton to do until all the projects are completed.
I felt emotional looking at the names of those who lost their lives. I felt so proud of our servicemen and women who sacrificed for strangers that day. I am very proud to be an American and for what we stand for-a Nation under God and Freedom. I'm OK if people disagree with that or hate us for that...it doesn't change what this country was founded on and it never will.
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| The new Freedom Tower |
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| Ground Zero |
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| Survivor Tree. The only tree that survived the 9-11 Terrorist Attacks. It was badly burned and snapped but survived despite it's wounds. They removed it and nursed it back to health. It's been back at Ground Zero since 2010. You can see the Freedom Tower through the bare branches. SO COOL! |
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| Dedication to the first responders from the Fire Department a block or so from the towers. |
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| Empire State |
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| Rockefeller Center |
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| This is for "Liz Lemon" |
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| We walked like 10+ blocks from our hotel to the pier to catch the last ferry to the Statue of Liberty. We got there and that particular ride was not offered until spring. UGH! So we turned and went back but not before I got a pic with the "statue". |
NYC & Brooklyn Night Tour
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| Empire State-Decked out in Sea Hawk colors |
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| Brooklyn Bridge |
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NYC-looking from Brooklyn
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Ferry Tour: between NY & NJ, around Manhattan, between NYC & Brooklyn and out to Statue of Liberty
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| Freedom Tower-on Hudson river b/n NY & NJ |
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| Rounding to the NYC/ Brooklyn side of Manhattan |
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| Brooklyn side of Manhattan-East River |
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Brooklyn Bridge
We learned some really neat history of this bridge. It was the first to connect NYC and Brooklyn and when it was completed people wouldn't use it. They were worried it wouldn't hold because it was built in water. So when the circus came to town, they decided to have 15-20 elephants cross it to prove it's strength. People decided it was safe to use once the elephants made it to the other side. |
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| Manhattan Bridge |
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| Liberty Island |
Super Bowl
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| View from our seats |
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| Security check...Brock had two pennies in his pocket!:) |
Our entire trip went very smoothly....until our flight out. NY got hit with a snow storm and the flights out of JFK were crazy delayed or cancelled. We got on our plane 20 minutes late and then sat for three hours and never moved. The kicked us off and boarded us on about and hour later. We sat for another 45-60 minutes before we were actually in the air. We were suppose to be home in the early afternoon but instead we got home around 9 at night. It was a mess but we were glad that it wasn't cancelled!
