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Today was the day for Central Park and we decided to hire bikes and see the park by cycling. Sienna can't ride yet so her bike was attached to Wess' bike.
Now I know that you never forget how to ride a bike....but....you apparently do forget just how uncomfortable they are after riding them all day!!! OMG did our butts hurt by the time we walked them back to the hire shop! They were a really good way to see the park though and while our butts and legs were tired our feet had a bit of a rest. Central Park is totally huge. We rode around and around, in and out and managed to see most of the sights we were looking for. One way roads meant we had to double back a bit here and there and with lots of bike free internal paths we did some walking at times too.
Our first stop was the statue of Balto who is a sled dog which the girls 'know' thanks to a series of movies about him. Talari was very excited to see the statue as the Balto films were her favourites for a while and the true story behind them is quite amazing.
We then found Alice in Wonderland and the girls posed among the mushrooms. The lake here is very pretty and you can hire little, remote control sail boats to use. We cycled on and visited some other 'must sees' such as Turtle Pond which is quite full of turtles and Belvedere Castle which gave some good views across the park. We stopped at some pretty bridges, lakes, fountains and grass areas to rest, have ice cream and give our bums some relief.
One of the best things we did was chain the bikes up for a bit and explore in an area of the park that had walking trails, bridges, streams and hidden grottos. We followed the girls who climbed fallen logs and scampered around the paths trying to hide. We even saw a chipmunk!! It was hard to remember that we were slap bang in the middle of one of the biggest, busiest cities in the world. We simply couldn't see a single building or person and we couldn't hear the traffic at all. We could have spent more time exploring other areas like this if we had another day. The girls particularly enjoyed it. It gave them that small moment of being out of the crowds which have definitely dominated our trip so far.
We finished by visiting Strawberry Fields which is a small area dedicated to John Lennon and listened to a busker play and sing some related tunes before returning our bikes and beginning the slow trek home. Sienna was particularly exhausted and struggled to keep up so we put a secret plan into action which we knew would give her the boost she needed to make it home. While Wess and Sienna wandered around supposedly looking for a place to eat, Talari and I returned to the American Girl doll store. We had decided to buy Sienna one as her birthday present and Talari wanted it to be a surprise. By the time we made our choices and headed out of the store, Sienna and Wess were about a block away sitting on a stool snacking on chips. Wess told her that TJ and I were also looking for food. Talari and I walked around the corner and Sisi stood up, hands on hips and said, "There you are......" by which time she had spotted the bag. Well, her eyes nearly popped right out of her head and she ran over to me and jumped into the air grabbing me with her arms and legs and squeezing me so tight while saying thankyou. She then ran to Wess and jumped on him also and then TJ. She was that excited I thought she might burst. Talari explained which doll she had chosen and the outfit as well and then we headed off toward our hotel and somewhere to eat nearby. As predicted, Sienna was much more upbeat and simply couldn't wait to get home to meet her new friend. All in all, a great day. Tiring but most enjoyable.
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