After Hurricane Sandy; Dad & Mom’s Birthday.
At about 9pm, just minutes before Hurricane Sandy hit the city, they cut off our power and water supply. We were caught off guard as we thought our apartment was part of the safe zone but apparently not. Even our mobile phones did not have any service – which means no 3G too!
My lightweight umbrella that I bought in Japan withstanding the rough winds.
We slept through the night and was up quite early to assess the damage on the streets – actually we were quite bored at home doing nothing – hence the early morning walk.
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Streets of New York
On the streets were fallen branches, leaves and trash – the typical remains of a passing storm/hurricane.
Leaves & branches were everywhere but these are nothing compared to the flooded areas in the city (we dare not visit those for safety reasons).
Newspaper boxes flew a few feet away from its original position.
Uprooted Trees
Knocked down street signs.
Rubbish was everywhere.
People started to walk uptown where they have power and water – anything below 39th Street in Manhattan were left without the two important daily necessities.
Traffic enforcers were out to direct traffic to all the streets without power.
A Cold & Quiet Day
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The Hyatt Hotel
We thought of checking out the Hyatt Hotel to see if the restaurants were opened and if there are any free WiFi in the lobby… and of course with the intent to using their public toilets too if possible. It was a good visit, the Hyatt Hotel is on 42nd street and they had all that we had hoped for.
A dedicated “SANDY” network for public use.
The lobby was full of people camping out & using the internet connection to reach the outside world.
Hanna enjoying the simple joys in life – electricity, water & internet. She was still in shocked that this could happen in NYC. She told us that Hurricane Irene was nothing compared to this.
Dad was noticeably happier too! Time to check out the news, Viber & Whatsapp people back in Manila.
Camping out.
Wherever you see a power socket, it is most likely taken. People were out charging their electronic equipment.
After all things done, we headed back home to convince mom to get out of bed and come out to walk.
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Dad’s Birthday
Coincidentally, it was also Dad’s birthday the day after Sandy. Most of our planned activities to include our dining reservations were cancelled as the restaurants were forced to shut down due to the bad weather – but we can’t just stay home and do nothing..
So later that day, we went uptown again to 5th Avenue to recce the area and see if any establishments have braved the storm and stayed open for the day.
The crane that everyone was worried about.
Almost all of the shops were closed as expected but there were a lot of people like us – walking around, just having a nosey.
Saks Fifth Avenue
Sand bags lined up shop’s front doors.
Abercrombie & Fitch
Bergdorf Goodman
I was admiring Bergdorf’s facade gift wrapping gimmick last week but after Sandy, the ribbons blew and went to wrap something else…
… the corner lamp post. lol!
We finally found food at The Plaza Food Hall, but it seems like it’s no secret to everyone. Not all stalls were opened and the ones that were had a lot of people queuing for simple food.
Tartinery was one that was quite popular.
Hot tartines, salads, soups & beverages.
There were only 2 people serving everyone.
The Barista
Hanna was tired, hungry and bored in line.
Dad came to find us to give moral support.
Hanna began to use the iPad menu to search for Sandy updates.
After an hour of wait we finally got the nourishment that we needed. A very humble celebration of Dad’s birthday.
Artichoke Salad
Mozza Tartine
Butternut Squash Soup
Dad & Mom
After our light snack, Hanna came back with updates on the power & water. Apparently we are now looking at 3-4 days without power & water supply.
And so our adventure continues…
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