Early next morning after doing some cleaning in the apartment Sanyukta showered and got dressed. She was surprised to see Randhir busy making oatmeal in the kitchen. "Thought I might help you a bit, anyway I have to get used to cooking for myself now." He said with a smile. They sat down for breakfast, enjoying the warm porridge sprinkled with raisins, nuts and honey. They also added the bananas, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries left over from the previous day. Even when Randhir tried to stop her Sanyukta did the washing up and made him tidy up their room. "Who does chores on their honeymoon, Sanyukta?" Randhir whined. "This is a home Randhir, not a hotel where the staff will tidy up after us!" She said, and he wisely decided against arguing with her.

"We are having Rajma chawal for dinner tonight; I have already soaked the rajma. We have been eating all our meals outside Randhir, I miss my cooking!" She declared. "Ok, meri maa, ab chalo, we have to get there before 8 in the morning!" He reminded her, leading the way to the elevator. It was a brief walk to the subway station nearest to them on 116 St Columbia University. Before they got to New York Randhir had explained to her that the subway was the most efficient and fastest way to get around New York, linking nearly all the important attractions and other places.

They got off at 50th St and walked toward Rockefeller Center (30 Rock), home to NBC. Randhir was right; it was smart to get there early to beat the crowd. They ascended the 67 floors in an all glass elevator in just 43 seconds to get to the Top Of The Rock observation deck where they saw a giant sculpture made of Swarovski crystal geode, called the Radiance Wall. One of the sights that caught their attention was a huge crystal chandelier that was actually an inverted model of the building. Another was an iconic photograph dating back to 1932, depicting 11 men relaxing and having lunch on a construction girder on the top of the Rockefeller Center building.

Located in Midtown Manhattan, the building offered a 360 degree view of the city from its three indoor and outdoor viewing decks. Sanyukta was excited to take in the panorama, the city looked vibrant in the morning because they were blessed with clear skies and superb visibility. They had a bird's eye view of Central Park and the Empire State Building and numerous other skyscrapers like the Chrysler Building and One World Trade Center. The vista gave them an idea of how big New York actually was. They had been up the Empire State Building in the evening when the illuminated view of the city looked very different from this morning view.

After they came down Randhir led her to Lenny's where he ordered a couple of really filling sausage, egg and cheese sandwiches. "This is too heavy Randhir, I am not sure I can finish it!" Sanyukta pointed out. "You have to finish it; food options are not too exciting at our next stop." He explained. They took the subway to 7 Ave and a short walk later they had reached Pier 86 in West Manhattan on the Hudson River, where the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum was located. Set up in 1982 on a retired aircraft carrier the USS Intrepid, it was home to some very interesting display of aircraft, a submarine called Growler and a museum for the space shuttle Enterprise. Again because they got there close to the opening time there was no rush and they got inside quickly.

They had chosen this over the 9/11 Memorial Museum on Randhir's request, because he was a transportation and aviation buff. Sanyukta remembered how as a boy he would spend hours poring over model trains, gliders and aircraft while Vidushi and Sanyukta would while their time away chatting or playing with Vidushi's numerous toys that had been bought abroad. They started with the hangar deck exhibits before going to the flight deck to see restored aircraft and the Space Shuttle Pavilion. Randhir pointed out to Sanyukta some noteworthy planes such as the F-16 Fighting Falcon from Operation Desert Storm and the Lockheed A-12 Blackbird, the world's fastest military jet and spy plane. 

Other interesting aircraft included the Concorde - fastest commercial plane, the MIG-21 in green cameo, the MIG-17 in blue sky camouflage, the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, a key aircraft in the Vietnam war and the McDonnell F3H-2N Demon, one of three on display in the world. Sanyukta smiled to see Randhir's eyes shine like that of a kid in a candy store as he saw the Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter, the Grumman F 11F Tiger flown by the Blue Angels and the Soyuz TMA-6 space capsule in the Shuttle Pavilion. He grinned to think of how she had agreed to accompany him on this museum visit even when she was neither interested nor knowledgeable about aircraft. 

"As the sun goes up in the sky the glare gets really bad and it is very hot on the flight deck!" He explained why he had chosen the morning slot for visiting the Intrepid. They walked the short distance across to Pier 83 to board their 2 pm cruise around Manhattan. They were expected to get there at least half an hour early to be able to get ideal seats for viewing the sights. Once inside they chose to sit on the port side of the air conditioned indoor seating, where they would be comfortable and could also avoid getting sunburn. It was a lengthy 2.5 hour ride that covered the whole island, passing within 100 feet of the Statue of Liberty.  Food and drink was available on board, and Randhir bought them something to drink when they began the cruise. They were not quite hungry after the heavy sandwich they had eaten earlier.

A knowledgeable guide gave interesting information about the sights throughout the cruise, which was fine for first timers like Sanyukta, although Randhir got bored because had been on the cruise before. It covered all five boroughs of the city – Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Staten Island and the Bronx with all three NYC rivers, major bridges, the complete Manhattan skyline, the Brooklyn waterfront, the Harlem Heights waterfront and the green patch of Upper Manhattan. They also passed the famous Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Williamsburg Bridge, the Empire State Building, One World Trade Center, Gracie Mansion followed by the United Nations Building, Harlem Yankee Stadium, Columbia University, George Washington Bridge, The Little Red Lighthouse, Grant's Tomb and Riverside Church before returning to the Pier.

When they got off the boat it was nearly evening and they decided to have a light meal. They took the subway, getting off at the W 50/ 7 Av where they stopped by for burritos and Margaritas at the Chipotle Mexican Grill on 48th Street. After a brief walk they had reached the famous Time Square, nicknamed "The Crossroads of the World" representing people of nearly all ethnic origins and nationalities walking through it during most of the day. The streets that made up Time Square were filled with video screens, LED signs, and flashing lights making it immensely popular with tourists. 

 Randhir usually avoided this place because it was a crowded tourist trap, they only came here as Sanyukta wanted to see it. Signs like the Time Square Studios, Disney Store, The Hard Rock Cafe and Planet Hollywood dominated among others. "We could have easily been in Vegas!" Sanyukta remarked. They walked around till she asked to head back and it took them under half an hour to get home by subway. "I can get us some good take-out food, you must be too tired to cook! Besides we already had Mexican earlier." He offered. "No Randhir, I want ghar ka khaana now. By the time dinner is ready we will be hungry." She said.

" We could have opted for some Thai instead of Mexican, ab phir sey rajma chawal hi khana padega. We are on our honeymoon, aur tum bedroom mein nahi vaha kitchen mein busy rahogi! He started pulled her leg. "Shut up Randhir, if you annoy me prepare to sleep by yourself tonight, then don't say junior is giving you a sleepless night without me!" She muttered as they let themselves into the apartment and stopped dead at the sight before them. The living room lights were switched on. A handsome middle aged man stood facing them, still in his business suit, looking like he had just let himself in a while ago. "Dad!" Randhir remarked, too stunned to say anything else while Sanyukta's heart was in her mouth and she froze.