Ten Places I Want to Visit with my Son in NYC

My oldest child turns 18 this July. I’ve been in denial long enough, but it’s time to face the music and accept the fact that he’s growing up.  My husband wanted to do something really special for him, something memorable. We gave him a few options, white water rafting with his dad, a zip line tour, speeding in a race car around a racetrack, all ideas that would seem appealing for an adventurous 18- year old. Or so we thought. Right?

Turns out, after years on the road, he’s been bitten by the travel bug- he really is my son isn’t he? What does he want to do? He wants to go to New York City! Not to see the Statue of Liberty or Ellis Island but to see the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine,  the largest cathedral in the world because he’s fascinated with architecture. So he and I will take off  in a couple months, destination, New York City.

He doesn’t care where else we go or what we do, so I’ve taken it upon myself to come up with a list of well known attractions that he may also choose to visit while we’re in town.

10. The New York Public Library Main Branch, the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building- My son will love this National Historic Landmark, not only because he loves books, but also because of the architecture and because it was also seen in one of his favorite movies, Spider-Man.

9. We visited the Stature of Liberty and Ellis Island the year after the September 11th that many of us will never forget. The kids scanned the skyline for evidence of where the Twin Towers once stood and asked us to take them to see Ground Zero. We couldn’t quite bring ourselves to go at that time but this time around I’d like to see the memorial and possibly tour the Ground Zero Museum Workshop Tour.  

8. We’d both like to stroll through Central Park, specifically to see Cleopatra’s Needle, an obelisk discovered in Egypt that was gifted to the United States.   

7. Ever since we read From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, the  Metropolitan Museum of Art has beckoned. In fact, I think that may be just the book to listen to on the long drive from Alabama to New York.

6. If we’re going to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, we may as well visit the notable Guggenheim Museum. Though my son is most interested in gothic architecture at the moment, what serious architecture student would turn down the opportunity to view a Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece?     

5. We’ll be taking the metro into the city so we may as well stick around and tour Grand Central Terminal.

4. Times Square is certainly not to be missed and will probably be a great place to grab a bite to eat.

3. After watching A Night at the Museum, who could resist a trip to The Museum of Natural History?  Too bad 18 and 39- year olds aren’t welcome for the sleepovers.

2. My son may not be fond of heights, but a glimpse of the Empire State Building, a true modern marvel should be on everyone’s list, right?

1. I’ve already told you the reason we wanted to visit NYC was to see the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, but did you know that New York City has a total of 18 cathedrals? Yep. 18. And my son wants to visit every last one.     

Now, do you have any tips on how I could manage to find myself inside the Cash Cab while we’re flitting from one attraction to the next?   

This post is linked to Oh, Amanda’s…