2006 Nov - Bye Bye NY

It is gradually sinking in that we do not have our New York apartment anymore. Since 2001 we have been living in a beautiful apartment overlooking Central Park (we moved in two days before September 11). We feel sad and we will surely miss it. We will miss being in New York not only because of the apartment and its prime location, but also because both of us leave behind part of our youth, the years of hard work and high aspirations, the years when we dreamed but probably dared not hope that one day we would live like this. Since we had this apartment we also happened to enjoy more of what makes New York special - the shows, the fine dining, the colorful streets, and - especially since we started taking David out - the magnificent Central Park.

Last, but probably most important, we are sad to leave behind dear friends who made everything we mentioned above a lot more enjoyable, especially when we could do them together (not just when we talked about it afterwards or offered or received tickets to this play or to that baseball game). There are friends we could rely on through ups and downs and we will always keep in touch (get a few rooms ready for us when we come back to visit! ).

We are moving forward to bigger things - a bigger house with a large family, so don't feel sorry for us. We dream that one day we'll be able to come back to live in New York (especially if our kids can make it into one of the great New York universities, like Queens College, for example) and we also dream that our friends will find the time to visit with us in our new home when it will finally be built in some neck of the woods (literally!) in North Carolina.

You might have noticed that the talk so far has been from Meirav and Radu's point of view; well, David is too young to remember something from three months ago and Maya has never traveled outside of Florida. After a few last pictures from New York you'll be able to see below what David and Maya have been through during the last six weeks.

The playground on top of the 63rd Street YMCA.

Good bye J-E-T-S! Good bye Mets, Nets, Yankees, Giants, Rangers, Islanders, and Knicks. See ya on TV!

Good bye colorful Central Park during the fall.

David will miss the many playgrounds and probably won't play a game here, under Umpire Rock.

The doormen always treated us kindly.

Every time we entered the building it felt like entering a luxurious hotel's lobby.

A few last shots of the park.

The corner with Broadway and a foggy view of Jersey accross the Hudson.

We spent five days in New York to get our things packed and shipped to storage and it was erie to see our apartment empty.

Sad, sad, sad...

...but forever beautiful...

I can sleep anyway I want.

No, I don't look like David. I'm delicate!

No, I don't look like David. I'm delicate

What's cooking?

Are you taking a picture of me?

Hi there!

Hrmr

Aye

Eee

I'm making music for my sister.

Did you get that?

Shake hands, sis!

I am so happy!

Did I wake you up yet?

Still sleeping?

She's still sleeping.

What should I do now?

Maybe I should just let her sleep.

During the first two months I mostly sleep.

My brother keeps on trying to wake me up.

Good. Play with the remote - that's all you guys want to do.

Or do whatever it is that you're doing now. Just let me sleep.

I can push this.

I can push both of these.

Meanwhile, a snail on the trail...

This is how I do it!

This _is_ progress.

I sleep in the living room during the day.

The fence protects me from "mister".

Are we in the right place, daddy?

Is this where they hold the 'crying out loud' competition?

Please let me whehehehin!

One way or another...

...I'm bailing out.

Let Maya win.

The happy (and full) winner. This is Maya's first big smile (November 5th, 2006).

And what is here?

My first ladylike pics.

Or just about.

Now that my folks went to New York, I can spend some time with Yael.

So all these boxes came from New York?

Let me take a break.

Which one did you say has my things?

So now you don't sleep all the time anymore?

And you can see what I do?

Hang on.

Check this out, sista'!

Allright, I let go. I feel generous today.

This is my buddy Rubber Divil.

I can't stop from laughing at all the things I can do now.

I can time it so that my eyes are closed when the camera's flash turns on.

I can do it with precision over and over again.

I can climb up there if I want to.

Before.

During.

After.

We are chillin' out with mommy.

I can see much better now.

But I'm still sleepy.

But not all the time.

Let me get that.

My girlfriend Shayel and I went to the Safari park.

We understand each other so well.

Let us show you what we saw.

We saw rhinos.

We saw all sorts of other birds and animals before the rhinos.

But we really liked the rhinos.

And the giraffes. Shayel is in the car to the right.

The giraffes are really tall.

They're tall and they have long necks.

These folks are short and I don't really see whether they have a neck.

Even these two storks are better looking.