It was New Years Eve and I was not going to be spending it in Times Square.  We drove through the
area on the way to lunch and the area was already packed with people!

We spend much of the afternoon on the bus where we got to see a movie and TV inspired tour of the city.  We saw famous places from “Friends,” “Spiderman,” and “Big Daddy.”

After the tour, we split into groups to participate in an awesome NYC Scavenger Hunt.  Thankfully, my group opted out of fighting those crazy crowds in the freezing weather to get manicures and go on a quest for New York’s best cheescake.  It was Kosher too!  I was also able to get a skirt for Shabbos at Loehmann’s.  After dinner at the Aish center on the Upper West Side, I went back with
many of my friends to Passaic for a New Years party at the Aish house. We all got ready together and brought in 2010 with a bang!  It even snowed!  It was so special to celebrate with my new friends.

Congrats to those who stuck it out and celebrated in Times Square. You guys truly are rock stars!

-JB

I was so excited to go to trapeze school.  All I could think of in my mind was the tv episode of Sex and the City where Carrie went to trapeze school. It is a lot harder than it looks!

After signing my life away to participate in trapeze school, we were taught the basics of the craft on the ground.  I was one of the last people in our group to try it so I had watched people do it well, and people do it not-so-well.  No amount of time could have prepared me.  I ultimately did not complete the skill I was supposed to do, however the experience was absolutely amazing.

The boys who completed the skill were able to try to complete a catch with a staff member.  They all completed the task and it was great to watch them!  Good job guys, you made me proud!

After flying through they air, I was ready to go and get my shop on.  Many of us went to SoHo, Chinatown, and Canal Street to spend our free time.  We visited the Magnolia Bakery, Bloomingdales and just about every other store in the area!  Also, I was able to take a quick field trip to the Columbia campus to take some photos and visit Barnard where seven Jewish women founded my sorority, AEPhi, over 100 years ago!

Up Next,  New Years in Passaic

-JB

Today we went to Chelsea Piers to have a go at rock climbing and bowling.  After having lunch and watching kids do tricks on gymnastics equipment (very cool) we traveled down the pier to go bowling.  After a couple games, the girls left to have our turn on the wall.  Most of us made it to the top of the wall, the rock climbing wall staff was so supportive and helped us navigate our way to the top.  After posing for a group picture, the boys came which was our cue to leave.

Since we got to climb first, we got more free time in the city.  This day was absolutely the coldest day of the entire trip.  Some of the girls wanted to go to Kleinfelds from TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress” so we walked to the store and took pictures outside.  We wanted to see if we could get in, and we did!  Not only did they let us take pictures by the front desk, but we got to meet and take pictures with their consultants and take a tour of their boutique, see their dresses, and go into a fitting room.  Thank you Kleinfelds!

Next we went to Bryant Park where we checked out some of the shops that had been set up for the holiday season.  Did you know that Bryant Park is home to New York City’s only free skating rink?

After dinner we were treated to an improv comedy show.  I had never been to anything like this in my life!  We were able to create and input a whole show based on our audience participation.  Shout-outs to Joey and Michelle for helping create one of the best improv musical numbers in Aish history!

Up Next: Trapeze School!

-JB

After morning classes we loaded the bus again to Manhattan where we traded in our shoes (Ugg boots for many of us) for rented ice skates!  The girls from Canada taught us some figure skating tricks so we could impress our friends when we go back home.

After skating the trip divided up to see various spots of New York.  Some opted for Canal Street or Times Square.  I went with a group to Columbus Circle.  For many of my peers on the trip it was fun to see them on their first ride on a New York City subway.  After getting off the train and a quick coffee stop, we walked to the Plaza Hotel for a couple of quick pictures before reaching our destination… FAO Schwarz where we waited in line just to get inside.

We took pictures with the doorman, the large stuffed animals, custom-made Muppets and finally went upstairs to play on the Big piano.  After waiting in line for the group of eight-year-olds to finish up their turn on the famous toy, it was finally our turn!  We spent most of it taking pictures rather than actually trying to make music.

The adventure down Fifth Avenue continued.  We walked together in a trail of yellow coats, sequined hats, and Rivkie screaming her head off trying to make sure we didn’t leave a man behind.  We saw a decked-out Rockefeller Center, the New York Public Library, dancing snowflakes at Saks and managed to stop for another picture at Tiffany & Co.

After dinner at Kosher Delight we made our way to Times Square where we enjoyed an hour of unlimited game play at the ESPN Zone followed by a visit to the limited-time-only Charmin Bathrooms.  We arrived as they were closing, but after Rabbi Gluckin and Rivkie pleaded our case, we got to wait in line to go to the bathroom.  It was amazing!

At this point it was almost time to go back to Passaic and I was looking forward to my beauty rest.  If I learned anything today, it was that Times Square is a hot mess around New Years but some of my peers still planned on seeing the ball drop anyway. Oy!

Up Next: Bowling, Rock Climbing and Kleinfeld Bridal… oh my!

Keep reading to find out what happens when we visit the famous Kleinfeld Bridal Shop from TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress.”  - JB

What happens when you mix an early flight from Newport News, VA to LaGuardia, an easy trip on the New York Airport Shuttle and a frenzied

first experience at Port Authority? A very happy and relieved Julie to have arrived in Passaic.

After settling into my room I mingled with the other trip participants who came from all across the country.  Canada too!

After snacks, dinner, games, staff intros and a brief on the rules we loaded on to the bus to Manhattan.  We schmoozed in The Village at Cafe Wha? to get to know each other more and enjoy live music.  Some of my new friends and I made a quick field trip to Washington Square Park, the heart of The Village and NYU.  We saw the arch that replicates the Arc de Triomphe from Paris, France.  The structure provided a perfect view to catch my first glimpse of The Empire State Building.

Up Next: Find out what happens when tourists try to fit all of the 5th Avenue hot spots into a two hour window and try to navigate the NYC subway system in a large group!

-JB

As I sped through the Lincoln tunnel at breakneck speeds worried that i would be late to the pre trip staff meeting, I noticed that i was only 30 minutes behind schedule.  Only thirty minutes late? That’s pretty good compared to my previous track record.  So i slowed down just a bit, I needed to anyways because I had to send a text. Now I know that driving while intexticated is dangerous and illegal but this one was important.  So I slowed my car to a crawl of approximately 70 MPH, transferred my coffee to my left hand, and took over the wheel with my knees as my thumbs began to hack away at the qwerty keyboard on my windows moblie smart phone. “I will b about half hr late -chesky”. “Hurry up all the students r here -s.y.w.”. ‘No way’ i thought to myself as i applied heavy pressure to my gas pedal and spilled my coffee all over my pants, ‘It’s 3 hours before the program is supposed to start why is everyone there already?’. So after I finally arrived I quickly unloaded my stuff, introduced myself to the troops and it was then that i was informed that even though we are usually running late, this time we were running early, very early. ‘A modern day miracle’ I thought as we all filed in to start the opening session an hour ahead of schedule. We were dazzled by Rabbi Gluckin’s opening speech and we were brought to tears by the story of Joeys emotional scar but I finally came to the rescue with my award winning lucky horse shoe scar and brought the opening session to an entertaining finish. thus is the story that will go down in history as “the Metro Trip that was early”.

-Chesky a.K.a “HUGE”