Here's HannesThere's a nice, small playground on the east side of Central Park, on 96th Street. They have eight swings, three slides, a sandbox and a lot of other neat things to play with. And a lot of kids. And almost as many nannies.
Hannes was there last week.
Anyway, Hannes was a little shy at first, at the playground. He held my hand as we walked around to see what they had to offer. "Dad, what did girl say?" Hannes would ask when somebody said "excuse me" on her way to rescue a little girl in trouble,
Then he saw the slide. The first time, Jessica lifted him up, and it took him minutes to get down. Five minutes later, Hannes would sprint up the stairs, stand up on top of the slide and yell, "Here comes Hannnnneeees!" and then came down feet, first, on his stomach.
Traveling with a two-and-a-half-year-old is different from traveling alone or traveling as a couple. Five years ago Jessica and I walked around Manhattan, saw all the sights and shopped like there was no limit on our credit cards. This time around, we spent one day in Central Park, watching squirrels and chipmunks, looking for the carousel and eating ice cream. The next day, we took the 3-train up to the Bronx Zoo.
And we loved almost every minute of it. Having the cutest kid in the world with you on the New York subway helps a a lot. Everybody's really nice. Except ... you know who you are.
