New York City Day 3

Thursday was more of a relaxed day... not as much running around as the day before.

We started off with visiting the Rockefeller Center and doing a bit of shopping. The Anthropologie there is HUGE. They had these cute little bowls I wanted to buy (and they were on sale for $1.50) but I couldn't have really carried them home via airplane. I was bummed. And just a little tidbit... I thought the ice skating rink was going to be ginormous... but it's actually really small.  

We also saw Hoda filming her segment.

We then went to lunch at 'wichcraft. I ordered a pastrami sandwich with whole grain mustard. No big deal, right? I can handle whole grain mustard. Eating this sandwich was one of the most painful eating experiences I've had in my whole life. The mustard was packed with horseradish. My mouth wasn't on fire- but my nose sure was. It was so awful- my eyes even started to water. I usually pride myself on my ability to be able to handle spicy foods- but this was crazy spicy. It burned in my nose. It was the oddest thing.

Right by J.Crew (part of the Rockefeller Center) is St. Patrick's Cathedral. We were just in time for an afternoon mass- it was quite interesting. Very different from my usual church service. It felt more showy- like a performance or something. The way they take the sacrament is also different. Everyone walks up to the front and partakes of the sacrament. Same with their version of tithing. A few men carry around baskets with sticks attached and push them into the pews. No one really sings the hymns either- except for the lady at the front (who sang in an operatic style) and the homeless man with much conviction behind us. We also saw the confessionals. I am still confused about the repentance process within the Catholic church... does one have to confess ALL of their sins to the priest or just the big ones (infidelity, etc...). Does the priest help them through the repentance process (like an LDS bishop) or is just confessing good enough? I'm glad I went to the afternoon mass- it was very interesting and made me more appreciative of the way the LDS church functions- it seems more private and personal within the LDS church. The  Cathedral was gorgeous inside. Very ornate.

After mass, we went to the American Girl Store. If I was ten years younger- I would have been in heaven. The bathrooms were hilarious- they had "doll-holders" in the stalls. They even have hair salons for the dolls!

We then went to Serendipity 3 for frozzzzen hot chocolate. It was very yummy.

After our yummy dessert, we went back to the hotel and rested until our dinner reservations at Kefi (greek food) on the Upper West Side. The decor was so lovely and the food was SO GOOD. They bring out this yummy bread with insanely delicious olive oil to dip it in. We got the greek meatballs for an appetizer and shared the lemon roasted potatoes during dinner. My mom and I both ordered the Lamb Shank with Orzo (which was so tender it fell off the bone). And my sister ordered orzo with shrimp and feta, which was very yummy. This was probably one of our favorite meals of the entire trip. It was probably $60 for all three of us (no drinks), but we did get an appetizer and shared a side during dinner (which we really didn't end up needing- our actual dinner was plenty of food).

After dinner- we went to the LION KING on broadway! It was AMAZING! I don't know how else to describe it. The puppetry was the coolest thing ever.

And we went back to the hotel and fell asleep. It was a good day.

New York City Day 2

Remember when I described out disgusting hotel? Thankfully, day two of our visit to New York included a hotel switcheroo- and boy- were we excited! Since it was January, the hotel wasn't outrageously expensive (good thing we didn't visit during June!). By the time we got the hotel situation fixed out (which included the hailing of our very first cab!) it was about 11 and we were hungry.

So...we went to Chelsea Market for lunch. What a fun place. It's below the food network studios in an old Nabisco cookie factory. It's just awesome there. We went to Friedman's for lunch. I had the best fish taco of my life.

 After lunch we went downtown to see Ground Zero. I thought it was going to be different... but it was basically just a construction site with tons of noises and traffic (not much different from the rest of the city). Maybe once the memorial is finished it'll have a different feel.

Right across the street from where the towers stood is St. Paul's Cathedral. It's quite cool to see this little church amongst massive buildings. It's the oddest thing. But cool. And George Washington sat in Trinity Church. Even cooler.

After that- I was bound and determined (as with everything else on my list) to get to Battery Park- the very southern tip of Manhattan. I knew which way was south- but we couldn't really figure out how to get there. As we were walking- we stumbled about Trinity Church. My mom lit a candle! And I sat in a really old chair. It's a pretty building- very different from my usual Sunday church building. Alexander Hamilton is buried on the grounds of Trinity Church, but sadly- I couldn't find his gravestone (it was probably covered by snow).

After that- we did indeed find Battery Park and saw the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I definitely want to go on a tour of Ellis Island someday (as my great grandparents went through Ellis Island when they came over from Germany in the 20's)- but we just didn't have time. It was nice to see it- even if it was from a distance.

We then took the subway up to Flatiron to try The City Bakery's famous hot chocolate and pretzel croissant. And boy- did it live up to the hype. I got the milk hot chocolate (my mom ordered dark- I thought the milk was better- and I normally prefer dark chocolate flavored things) and we shared a pretzel croissant. The hot chocolate is so thick and creamy. It sort of has the consistency of melted ice cream- it's that thick. I like my hot chocolate nice and rich- so I loved it. My mom doesn't like super rich desserts- so it wasn't her favorite. But... if you like chocolate and heavy cream- please try this hot chocolate. It is so good. And what is a pretzel croissant? I have no idea. Except for the fact that I ate it and it was seriously delicious. I wish we could've gone back a second time. After we finished up our insanely thick hot chocolate, we tried figuring out how to get back to Midtown (where our hotel was). My mom's 3G network on her iPhone wasn't really cooperating (there's this app called HopStop)- so we had no idea how to get back on the subway (it was our first day in nyc, afterall). We took a cab instead. The driver was the only one who was remotely friendly. He asked us if we're from the city and we said no. He said he figured that because we apparently have "soft voices." Oh- and a tip on cab driving- let them know the cross streets. For instance- I would tell the driver we wanted to go to 790 Eighth Avenue. But what I really should of told him (in addition to 8th Ave) was 49th and 48th (the cross streets). I knew I read that somewhere when I was doing research for this trip- but I forgot.

It was dark and we were hungry for dinner (even after our pre-dinner snack of heaven). We decided on Schnipper's from the list I brought. It didn't disappoint. They're known for their hamburgers and sloppy joes (see on Throwdown with Bobby Flay). I ordered macaroni and cheese (I just couldn't pass it up) and a hot dog with sauerkraut (gotta represent my German heritage). You're probably thinking fish tacos, a croissant, hot chocolate, and now macaroni and cheese AND a hot dog? Yes. I ate it. I ate it all. And I don't regret it. Half the reason you (or I)  come to New York City is to eat and I was determined to do so. And with all the walking- I actually lost a few pounds. Hot dogs and weight loss. I don't think I'd mind living in New York.

After dinner, we had some time to kill before picking up my sister from the airport so we went to the Empire State Building. It was SO cold. My face has never been colder in my whole life. The cold temperature, the wind, and the height just added up to some extreme burning on my face. I can't even begin to describe the feeling- it was like needles on my cheeks. It was worth it, though. We zipped right through all the ropes that people actually wait 3 HOURS (during the busy season) in just to get to the 86th floor. I don't think waiting 3 hours is worth it- but we got through without waiting a minute- it was perfect. And beware of the tourist traps in the ESB. We could have EASILY spent 200 dollars- which would have been a joke.

We then picked up my sister from the airport and fell asleep EXHAUSTED. But it was fun.

New York City Day 1

I haven't cooked anything in the past few weeks because I went to New York City for my senior trip and then (yesterday) the doctor told me I had strep throat. So I've been lounging around doing nothing for the past couple of days and it has gotten pretty boring. Anyways... to the point of this post- I went to New York City last week and it was so much fun. It was my first time and I can't wait to go back.

We (my mom and I) left last Tuesday at 6:30 am and arrived at Newark around noon.

Car service to our dumpy hotel. The ride was scary- we almost got hit by a big truck!

Lunch at Shake Shack - and boy, was it delicious. The sauce they put on their burgers is mmm good.

Famous Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies at Levain Bakery - the cookie was really good- but HUGE! I didn't realize how big they were until after we paid $8 for only 2 cookies!

 

We ventured through Central Park and were consequently hooked into paying $45 bucks to be driven around in this little carriage thing hooked up to a bike. The biker was from the Congo and so we really couldn't understand what he was saying.

 

We tried to get lottery tickets for Wicked, but we showed up an hour too late. I was really bummed. Instead, we splurged for tickets really close to the stage and it was definitely worth it. Wicked was amazing- the girl who played Galinda was hilarious!

 

Dinner at Le Pain Quotidien. It was yummy- but it certainly didn't blow my mind. The pesto on my mom's open faced sandwich was really really tasty and fresh, though.

 

Ventured back to the hotel through the snow and took a shower in a gross, old and teeny weeny hotel bathroom. Seriously people, this hotel was SO small. It had a double and twin bed and nothing else. The closet wasn't even wide enough for a hanger.

 

So that's it for Day numero uno for New York City.

Here are some of my observations of New York City (in the short week I visited):

 

Everyone was very nice and helpful except for the lady behind me in the bathroom line at Wicked. I was trying to take off my scarf and I think I  yanked it a little too hard so it flipped her in the face (I think). I immediately recognized what I had done, so I turned around and asked if I accidentally whacked her in the face and that I was really sorry. With a snotty looking face she turned to me and said "m-hmm." She was so rude.

 

It seems like everyone smokes here. I held my breath a lot when we were walking.

 

Times Square is ridiculous on the weekend (even in January).

 

It is definetly not an affordable city. There are just so many costs to think of- tipping sure adds up.

 

I like the Upper West Side- it's more residential and a lot less crowded.

 

I didn't think it was a scary place to be at all. I ventured down to the East Village by myself and I wasn't really scared.

 

The Subways are fine and not scary either- though some of them smelt like pee (the stations- not the actual trains).

 

Taxi drivers are so scary and extremely honk-happy- which is annoying.

 

There is a lot of poo in Central Park and on the sidewalks on the Upper West Side.

 

Speaking of dogs- there are a lot of them. No one has kids- they have dogs- I only saw one pregnant woman that whole time. I think my mom was saying that she read an article that said the abortion rate is 42% in NYC  :(

 

About the only free things in NYC (that I know of?): t.v. tickets, churches, & central park. Yep, I think that's about it. Oh, and the Staten Island Ferry- which we didn't have time for.