I was driving home from Boston, MA with my sister when we saw this sign: “Mystic Next Exit”. Change of plans!
We knew nothing about the place, but got intrigued by the name. Turned out it was a cute little town, a historical seaport, and if I could use just one word to describe it, it would be “peaceful.”
This is the Mystic River Bascule Bridge that allows boat traffic to go through. It opens every hour or so, but we did not know and missed it. 
It started to rain soon, so we headed home.
I’ve heard people say about New York: “To truly appreciate this city you have to live here for some time, then leave, and then come back again.” I don’t know if we are ever going back, but I miss it dearly already.
I lived in so many places, cities, states, countries. And even though every change of coordinates makes me sad, I’m thankful that I had these opportunities.
Today I’ll share some photos from the helicopter ride, which was our birthday gift for my sister. Just looking at these brings a big smile to my face. We were so happy, it was so awesome and surreal that we lost ability to talk. Just smiled and watched. And I photographed.
The tour starts in this room. You fill out some papers, and go through quick instructions. They ask you how much each of you weigh so they can balance the helicopter properly.
There is just one very cool seat, the seat of a second pilot, and we were hoping to put my sister in there. It was her birthday after all. But they put the author of this blog in front instead, and I won’t lie, I did not mind 
Ellis Island, the main immigration portal for many years welcomed millions of newcomers. Maybe your great-grandparents were one of them? A bridge to New Jersey connects the island with mainland.
…New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There’s nothing you can’t do…
Flying over Hudson river, looking on Upper West Side. The gray ship in lower right corner is Intrepid.
Looking south. Manhattan is on the left, New Jersey is on the right. Empire State building is the tallest building on the very left.
…These streets will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you…
South Manhattan, Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges on the right. The orange boat on the right is the Staten Island ferry.
And I’ll finish with this song I was quoting, I love it.
This creepy rock really does look like a head. This is how the Chimney Rock State Park website explains its formation:
A long time ago a huge sheet of rock slid down the mountainside and broke into many pieces, one of which came to rest on this ledge. The facial features of the boulder are due to differential weathering of Gneiss. More resistant parts of the rock form the eyebrow, nose, chin and ear, while softer layers have eroded out, shaping the eye and the mouth.
Thinking of doing business in Charleston, SC? Do hats! Seriously, the sun is so intense there that it burns, and hat shops attract far more unprepared tourists than other gift shops (from my observation). I don’t have any pictures relevant to what I just said, so instead I’ll just share some more photos of quiet and cozy streets. 
La Dame de Fer, or Iron Woman, one of the most visited monuments in the world. I bet it offers spectacular views of Paris, but we could not make it. Standing in a line to get up for several hours wasn’t exactly in our plans. Also, being born in USSR we are allergic to crowds and lines. So we skipped it. Now we have one more reason to come back to this wonderful city.
