We took the 5:27 (or close to that) train from Raritan. We got to Newark in an hour and right away I noticed all of the yellow-clad NJ Transit workers helping to get the concert-goers to The Rock. We just followed the crowd (basically you make a left out of the station, hang a left at the light and go up a few blocks - you can't miss it). The funniest site were the caravan of tow trucks outside, towing cars that were illegally parked. The city of Newak made some serious cash Thursday night from the tows, alone.
Upon entering the Rock, we were greeted by a very friendly security staff. There were people around directing traffic indoors as well. We got on the escalator and a few seconds later we noticed that Newark Mayor Corey Booker was coming up behind us. He stopped to chat with the high schoolers behind us and was really nice. You could tell he was having a great time. We hung around for a few minutes hoping to say hi to him, but he kept chatting with the girls and stopped to take picutres, and we needed a drink, so off we went.
The Pru Center (http://www.prucenter.com/) has two bars/lounges on the main concourse. We hit the Belvedere Ice Lounge first. Anyone can get into the lounge, there are two snack bars on each end with the bar in the middle. We scouted out a spot in the bar that wasn't that crowded. That should have been a major red flag right there. We waited about 20 minutes for a drink and did not even get acknowledged by the inept bartender. She knew we were there, went and served some guy about 3 feet from me and then proceeded to serve everyone there, never coming back to the folks by us. She also could not work the cash register and the women in front of us said their drinks were horrible. Taking all of that in, we decided to hit the road. We continued to walk around until we got to the Fire Lounge (no sponser for the Fire Lounge yet, but I'm sure there will eventually be some Corporate name attached to it). There we did get served relatively quickly, but found out that the bar was out of chardoney (not for me - I swear I was drinking a Corona!). So instead we got 2 dirty martinis and 2 coronas for $46. My advice - stay away from the mixed drinks in this place.
Getting food was not much better. While the kids working the stands were really nice, the kitchen could not get my cheeseburger out so I opted for the greasy chicken fingers and fries. Ick. Food runs about $9 for those culinary delights - the hotdog/fries combo is a little cheaper. There are beer stands throughout the concourse. They had a stand selling Blue Moon, but I took note that it did not come with an orange, so I skipped it. They had the "Rock & Bock" Rolling Rock and Amber Bock stand right outside section 5 so that is where I chose to get my $7 pint after dinner. I saw Heinekin and Amstel and some Miller light & Coors light around, but since it is Newark the beer of choice is Sludgeweiser and Sludgeweiser light. My favorite was the "Beers of Newark" stand. We thought there might be more of a choice there, but nope - Sludge and Sludge light. It is also clear that they are ripping us off for food/drink since we are a captive market. That is the one thing that pissed me off. At least at the Garden you can leave and find a dive bar in the city and not have to pay the outrageous concession prices.
Back to the concert -- Our seats were in section 6, Row 22 seats 1-4 (http://www.prucenter.com/resources/pdfs/Main_Concourse.pdf). If you check out the seating chart you'll see how our section was right in front of the Ice Lounge. That was cool - there are bathrooms in the lounge and it only took 2 seconds to get my $4 bottle of water so I didn't have to miss any of the show.
My Chemical Romance went on about 7:30. We say most of their set and they were really good. Bon Jovi came about 9 pm. They played for 2:20 doing a great mix of new and old songs Click here for the playlist: http://www.bonjovi.com/bonjovi/blog.php?uf_item_id=1-104280. The set was awesome too - it was the inside of the bar and then you looked out through the "windows" to a "lost highway". I did find it a little ironic that they should be playing in a bar given Richie's recent rehab stint, but that's just me.
They all came on stage individually with Richie second to last and then the big lead up to Jon. They opened with Lost Highway and the crowd was into it from the beginning. The guys doing the camera work for the big screen were great too. The acoustics at The Rock are really good too. You can see/hear it all by going here to see a YouTube video of "Have A Nice Day": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByDxVHLDS2I and here for "Raise Your Hands and Bad Medicine": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0-vtQYCJhs.
Jon and Co. closed the show about 11:20 with a great rendition of "Wanted". Some of you can only imagine the lyrics going through my head at that time "... I've Rocked the P-Burg Mall!". ha ha!!!
We had plenty of time to get out of The Rock - they had TV screens broadcasting the train scheduled and track info all over the arena. The streets were well lit as we walked back to the train and there were plenty of cops/NJ Transit workers around to answer any questions, as well as large displays with more train/track info. You'd have to be a moron to miss your train. We hopped on the 12:07 train home and were back in Raritan at 1:07.
All in all it was a good trip, but next time I'm going to eat first, grab a 6 pack for the train and get into Newark jut before the show/game starts. I'll also stay away from the Ice Bar before the event as well.
Cheers! Go State, beat the Buckeyes!
Note: photo from NJ.com
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