Our Five Year Wedding Anniversary in New York

Forgive me for backtracking a bit, but I wanted to post about some awesome times we had over the Holiday break.

On December 21st of '07, Walmir and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary, and we celebrated in style! I had never been to New York and one of my dreams was to go there and see The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway. So, what did my amazing husband set up? Exactly that. I was so excited! (Walmir served his mission there and had seen about 6 Broadway plays, so he wasn't drooling or suffering from heart palpitations like I was) Anyhow, we left on the 19th of December and spent 6 days in the Big Apple. We were lucky with lodging and were able to stay at Walmir's cousin's apartment in the Upper West Side, just a block away from the famous Cafe Lalo, while she spent the holidays in Europe.

I was pretty awestruck from the moment we got off the plane. There is just something amazing about the city. Over the few days we were there, we went sight-seeing, ate fabulous food, visited the Natural Museum of History, ice-skated in Rockefeller Center, attended the Manhattan LDS temple and saw two Broadway plays (The Phantom and The Little Mermaid). It was all simply divine. I'll admit, though, that I was freeeeeeeeezing! We had to wait about and hour and a half to ice-skate and I literally thought I was going to be frozen in the same position for the remainder of the trip. (I know some of you guys up north consider the 20's fresh, but down here in Florida, those kinds of temperatures are likely to keep everyone holed up inside)

I want to briefly mention seeing Phantom. It was such a surreal experience for me. Walking through Times Square to the Majestic Theater all dressed up and with excitement all tumbling around in my stomach along with my handsome date, I thought I was on Cloud 9. The show itself was amazing! The singing, the set, the acting - superb! I'm pretty sure I cried throughout the entire thing. Afterwards, Walmir took me to this place called Juniors which had the most amazing cheesecake I have ever tasted. The night was unforgettable.

Our last day there, which was a Sunday, we took the subway to Queens to visit a couple of areas Walmir served in during his mission. It was really touching for me to see Walmir talk with members he loved and worked with on his mission. I know it was a wonderful experience for him to see the growth of so many of his converts. That night, we had dinner with Kathy and Freddy, an awesome convert couple, and spent time talking about Wally on his mission. It was a great time.

So, all in all, the trip was marvelous! I've posted some pictures of our trip below. We hope you enjoy!

On our way to see the Statue of Liberty!

In front of the Majestic Theater where we saw The Phantom of the Opera!

Me in front of the Natural Museum of History. The three dinosaur exhibits were awesome!

Walmir really wanted to see the bull, the symbol of the New York Stock Exchange. And of course, you gotta grab the bull by the balls. Or wait...is it horns...?

Eating the most a-mazing cheesecake ever at Juniors in Manhattan.

On Times Square.

Underneath a huge christmas tree in Bryant Park. I love this picture.

Just following directions. :0) Getting ready to see The Little Mermaid on broadway.