Ed and I just got back from a trip to New York City. We went there for one reason: to see Rammstein‘s first US show in ten years. We managed to snag tickets to the show at Madison Square Garden, which sold out in about 20 minutes. Since we were going to NYC anyway, we decided to make a long weekend of it.
We arrived Thursday night, and after dropping off our luggage in our hotel room, we jumped on the subway and headed down to Little Italy. Forget any of those classy-looking restaurants: we headed directly for La Mela, a tradition for any of us visiting New York. They serve the food family style, and we were so stuffed we had to skip the meat course. It was, as always, delicious!
Friday included more good eating. After hearing about The Stanton Social on Food Network’s “The Best Thing I Ever Ate,” we decided to go there for an early dinner. After wandering the East Village for a bit, we sat down to one of the best meals I’ve ever had. French onion soup dumplings, grilled cheese sandwiches with jalapeno bacon, macaroni and cheese, and chicken and waffles. Yum!
Our entertainment that night came in the form of the Pee-wee Herman Show. It was delightful to see the old stage show and the Saturday morning show I grew up with come to life right in front of me. It was so much fun! “Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!” Oops, I must have said the word for the day: it was “fun.” “Aaaaahhhhhhhh!”
After a chilly Saturday afternoon wandering around the USS Intrepid, it was time for the Rammstein show. Our seats were in the back, but we still had a great view. After watching so much live concert footage, we knew it was going to be amazing. Being at a Rammstein show in person is a singular experience. They’ve got energy, passion, pyrotechnics, theatrics, and great music. (Check out a fan video of Ich tu dir weh.) What more can you ask for?
Ed and I closed out the weekend by returning to Madison Square Garden to see the New York Rangers take on the Washington Capitals. It was a fun night of hockey, even though their fans are a lot less screamy than Thrashers fans. Still, we got to see the Caps get slaughtered 7-0, so we left feeling pretty good.
In all, it was a great weekend. Now if we can just get Rammstein to come back to the US without it taking another ten years.
