What do beautiful German men, fireworks, the best looking Polaroids you’ve ever seen, an open bar and three bathrooms all have in common? I gazed on them all at the stroke of midnight marking the first day of 2007. Did I mention I was on a boat?

For the past two years a couple of my friends have been adamant about spending the night of New Year’s Eve on the freezing cold water around Manhattan…and every year I outsmart them and rally everyone to seek warmer, less windy climates. I’m very clever. This year, however, with the whole global warming phenomenon, I realized that now is as good a time as any, and I threw on my new black dress, black heels and pearls for this late-December cruise.

I was out the door after a toast at the apartment. I didn’t know what to expect…and what better way to enter the New Year than with all little bit of surprise? Thankfully it was a pleasant surprise. Beautiful, foreign men as far as the eye can see—I love visitors! I’m guessing that since you can order the tickets online ahead of time many people coming into the country from out of town stuck to two scenic destinations: Times Square or the water. Taking off from Pier 83 at West 42nd Street and the Hudson River, the Circle Line boarded around 9 p.m. and was off the dock by 10 p.m. sharp.

I found the dance floor and a selection of beer upstairs, while the downstairs liquor bar kept seafarers in party mode. Hors d’oeuvres were passed by friendly staff as smiles and “Happy New Year’s!” were thrown around in every language possible, and I was having a great time. I started to hear popping and made a mad dash for the roof of the boat. There I saw a grand display of fireworks right over Lady Liberty and downtown Manhattan behind her. It was beautiful and made me love my city even more.

My friends were so right. This was a great idea. I wasn’t squished in a bar or surrounded by yuppie New York wannabes. I was on a boat with fresh air, great men who loved me and my own light show. My New Year’s resolution? Let friends do the planning next time around.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, January 4th, 2007 at 2:05 pm and is filed under Events, Personal, Friends, Cocktails, New York City. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.