On the road with Manilow-New York City

What's better than seeing Barry LIVE at Madison Square Garden?New York...the Garden...and Manilow. What could be better? It was another of those "on the road" with Manilow experiences that I will never forget.

I took the train from Boston to New York into Penn Station. I love taking the train because it's something we can't do in Texas. Everyone in our state has a vehicle (aka truck) and are not the least bit interested in mass transportation. Trains are soothing forms of transportation to me and I always enjoy riding and watching the beautiful New England scenery along the way.

I was meeting Mandy in New York (she was flying in) later that day, so I decided to walk from the train station to our hotel on Broadway, navigating the melting ice and snow with a rolling suitcase. It was one of those quaint older hotels that had been renovated. The lobby was small but the rooms were huge and we had an amazing view of the city. We just happen to score this deal on a discount hotel site a few weeks before.

When Mandy arrived, we took a stroll to Madison Square Garden to look for Manilow signage. To our surprise, we couldn't find any, but we did come upon something even more special. It was a painting of words on the brick wall inside the entrance to the Garden that said, "The Best Seat in the House" We both looked at each other in amazement--how perfect was that? Of course, we had to snap a picture to commemorate it!

After dinner we got to the venue early to do some merchandise shopping and find our seats which unfortunately, were not on the floor. We had once again made a last minute decision to attend so were forced to take seats in the stands off to the side of the stage. Of course, we could see the "celebrity arrivals" from a distance and watched the fans as they circled the wagons to grab a picture or a handshake.

As a sidenote: It's always been interesting to me how people are so fascinated with celebrities. When you think about it, they are just people like you and me. Would I want an autograph? Probably not. Would I even approach them for one? Absolutely not. Would I ask for a picture with them? Not really. I've been around quite a few in my lifetime and I've never intruded on their personal space. I have never even approached Barry, his band, or his backup singers for a picture although I have had plenty of opportunities.

When the show began, the sound was completely off. We were having a hard time hearing Barry and the background music was overpowering. We wondered if it was the huge venue and the fact that it required different acoustics than the Hilton theater. But after about 10 minutes, they fixed the problem and we were enjoying the show.

About halfway through, Barry starting talking about his friend Dave Koz's new album and the song he sang on it. It wasn't long before we were treated to his beautiful saxophone and Barry singing Moon River along with him. We were ecstatic to be able to see the two of them together, especially after watching the Farewell DVD and Dave's wonderful Brooklyn Blues rendition. After Moon River, we were treated to the same song that night. Hearing Dave Koz live and seeing how much fun he and Barry had together on the stage was the highlight of this trip for me.

After the show we walked around for a bit and grabbed some coffee and dessert. The next day, Mandy headed for the airport and I for the train back to Boston. But the memories of the show were still fresh in our minds and the memories of sharing this once in a lifetime experience would be with us forever.

See you on the road again shortly....in Philadelphia!

Texas Fan