New York, New York (Part III)

I descended down the stairs, leaving behind the bustling noises from pedestrians hurrying up and down Fifth Avenue. I pulled out my prepaid metro card, swiped it, and pushed through the turnstile. Now the real question was, how do I get where I need to go? I downloaded a subway map off the app store and began deducing which train I should board.

It was dirty, crowded, and uncomfortable. The train lurched forward and I held on to a pole for dear life as we sped south. I exited the train and got on a transfer. Don't ask me how I knew when to transfer or which train to get on, it just all seemed to work out. Luckily, the second train was clean and occupied by families.When we reached what I assumed to be the correct stop, I got off and walked up the stairs into the streets of the financial district in Lower Manhattan. As I wondered the streets, I accidentally stumbled upon Wall Street, and many interesting buildings. But as my phone was quickly dying, I attempted to resist these distractions and figure out where I was going.

After walking in many circles, asking for directions, and finally phoning a friend, I found my final destination: the 9/11 Memorial.

It was absolutely breathtaking! It was incredible to see where these two monumental buildings had once stood, as well as the efforts that were being made to reconstruct them. And in their exact places were two beautiful memorials. As the sun was setting, the fountains lit up and all was calm as passersby reminisced this awful destruction over 12 years ago.

The Survivor Tree

 

Soon after I left the memorial, my phone died as I searched for the correct subway to board. About four trains and an hour later, I finally made it back to midtown. It was a long day, so I stopped by a cafe to charge my phone and get a genuine New York coffee. It was the best vanilla late I have ever tasted! I will be sure to go back here when I visit again.

I finally met back up with my friends to go to the top of the Empire State Building. Unfortunately, it was too foggy and they weren't letting anyone up because you wouldn't be able to see the city below you. Disappointed, we instead went into all the shops along Fifth Avenue, took pictures outside the city library, and walked around Times Square.

But all too soon, our last night in New York came to an end as we sadly retreated to our hotel to pick up our bags and load them into the car. We drove away, stopping once to take one last look at the skyline. Right then, I promised myself I'd be back.

Stay tuned for the last installment of my New York blog series... Philadelphia!

New York, New York (Part 1)

All my life, I have dreamed of visiting New York, though I had accepted that it likely would never happen. But in the blink of an eye, I had made it to Walt Disney World, another place I thought I would never see in my life time. So what was stopping me?! In just a few hours, I made the decision and bought my plane ticket. Talk about impulsive.

We first visited Carlo’s Bakery in Hoboken, NJ, which is featured in TLC’s Cake Boss. My Reese’s cupcake was absolutely delicious, but the chocolate covered strawberries were my favorite! With a very sweet lunch in our stomachs, it was finally time to go through the Lincoln Tunnel and into NYC!

That is, until our car began steaming right as we were about to enter the tunnel. After sitting stationary in the far right lane for ten minutes and enduring irritated New York commuters, we pulled off and drove to the ferry dock to let the car cool off. Yes, I was frustrated, but I will always be grateful for this experience because of the beautiful view at the ferry dock! It was simply breathtaking. We hung out and took pictures for about 20 minutes before cautiously heading through the tunnel.

We quickly found a parking garage, locked our car up, and went down the elevator to the main floor. I was awestruck – my first view within the big apple was the New York Times building. One day, I thought, I will be working there! We roamed around, soon finding ourselves in the heart of Times Square. We had finally made it! I felt like a child in a candy store, thriving off of the bustling and overwhelming atmosphere – this had to be a dream, right?

As the skies began to grow darker, the lights grew brighter, and we still didn’t have a place to sleep that night. We hurried to The Paramount, just off of Broadway. I am not even exaggerating when I tell you it was a twenty second walk from the heart of Times Square! After dropping our stuff off, it was time to explore!

I was on the phone when I exited our hotel and stood in front of the building, waiting for the rest of the group. That’s when the screaming began, and all I wanted to do was tell these girls to be quiet. That is, until I noticed why they were going into an absolute frenzy. Right across the narrow two lane street was none other than Orlando Bloom. Less than 30 yards away from me. What?!? I noticed some New York natives walking by like no one was there. Were they blind? Orlando Bloom! Haha, I attempted to suppress the touristy fan girl within me and joined my friends.

Earlier that day, a scalper approached us selling tickets to a comedy show. Naturally, I declined, but the rest of the group was up for adventure! So that night, we got ready and headed to the show. Though I almost fell asleep at one point from exhaustion, I was definitely entertained by the hilarious, and often vulgar, comedians. Unfortunately, we soon found out that there was a drink limit and you had to buy at least two drinks during the show – that’s where they get you! But my virgin daiquiri was delicious so I won’t complain! After the show, we made our way towards our hotel and into the square.

And I thought Times Square was beautiful in the daylight. It was ten times better after midnight with the advertisements illuminating the entire area, and even more people shuffling from store to store.  Soon, we found ourselves a couple blocks away on Fifth Avenue. The shopping temptation was overwhelming, so naturally I indulged in a little Forever 21 and H&M! But as the time approached one or two in the morning, we decided to call it a night.

How could anything top the thrill that I had just experienced?  I could only hope that the next day would impress.

To be continued...