A couple weeks ago I shared my NYC must see list. In case you forgot, here's my list:
Here's a recap of our trip in photos...
I arrived Friday night during sun down. Talk about a beautiful landing!
First we went to Rockefeller (#5!) which was RIGHT by our hotel. It looked so pretty and I can only imagine how neat it is in the winter with the big Christmas tree!
I also wanted to see Times Square (#1!) right away. It was just as crazy and hectic as I expected! I loved it though. There was so much going on, stores open late into the night, people everywhere....so much fun! Obviously I wouldn't want to spend an extended amount of time there, but it's a cool experience!
I also rode the Subway for the first time. Nick was making fun of me for being a total tourist and taking pictures down there. I don't care. :)
The photos above are from the Subway near our hotel. It was pretty nice. The subway in other areas of town are much more run down and a bit sketchy! Super cool architecture and design, though!
On our first night we had Italian for dinner (would you expect anything else?!) at Pasta Lovers Trattoria. It was a cute restaurant that was much bigger than we expected! Also super affordable and great food. We had to get dessert so we went to Serendipity 3 which has been on my "to try" list ever since seeing it on Food Network! The frozen hot chocolate definitely lived up to my expectations and the restaurant was super cute with tons of character!
Saturday we started out our day by checking out Grand Central Station. I've seen so many movie scenes take place there that I pretty much consider myself a famous actress now. Cool, right?! I also made Nick take a couples selfie to start out the day. He LOVES slefies. {sarcasm}
We ate our lunch (street food from a festival) in Bryant Park! I looked around for Tim Gunn even though it wans't fashion week but I couldn't find him.
After lunch we walked around and did some exploring. We found the super unique Flatiron apartment building where Luis from Million Dollar Listing lives! We also saw the Empire State building this day but I couldn't get a good picture since we were literally at the base of the building!
Next on our agenda was checking out the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island (#2!). On our way, we walked along the Hudson River in a beautiful area full of people riding bikes, roller blading, and walking their dogs. If I had to live in the city, I would have to be close to the river walk!
We had both agreed that we preferred to go to Ellis Island and seeing the Statue of Liberty from far away was good enough for us. Unfortunately tours to Ellis Island were closed for some reason so we weren't able to go to the island! We did see it from a distance, though.
Next we headed to see the 9/11 Memorial (#7!) and the new Freedom Tower.
Saturday night we got a little fancy...watch out!
We had dinner at Marcony Ristorante and it was pretty good. Definitely not my favorite Italian meal, but the service was great! We sat on the patio which was really nice!
After dinner we went to a rooftop bar in Hell's Kitchen called The Press Lounge. Not just any rooftop bar, though. This bar is on the intro to the Letterman Show and Drew Barrymore had her engagement party here. Big time, people. Big time! The lounge has an awesome view of the skyline, expensive drinks, and comfy lounge furniture. What else can you ask for?
Saturday night we went and got a midnight snack at Magnolia Bakery. We walked by the bakery several times since it was super close to our hotel and I was going to be mad if I left NYC without trying one of their cupcakes. We ended up trying Red Velvet and S'mores and they were both delicious. Their frosting is definitely my favorite part of their cupcakes!
Sunday we started off our day by doing some window shopping. We started out at FAO Schwartz to pick out a little souvenir for Carson. We spent SO much time in there, it's HUGE and super fun to look at everything!
Next we headed over to Central Park (#6!). It was everything I expected and more. I had NO idea it was seriously so HUGE. It's gorgeous and an amazing retreat from the craziness of the city. When we first got in there were tour groups everywhere but we got by them quickly and it was easy to find a nice serene area. If I lived in NYC I'd be frequenting the park for sure!
We walked through Central Park to the Met (#3!) and spent a while in there. It's also HUGE and easy to get lost in there. We had a map and still couldn't figure out where we were at times! They had a lot of neat displays and also a LOT of tour groups (so annoying). Funny enough, I think I was most enamored with the architecture of the building!
After the museum we headed back to our hotel to get ready for dinner. I think coral was my theme of the trip...
We went back to Times Square one more time. Their Toys-R-Us has a ferris wheel inside!
Once again, we had to get a midnight snack! This time I tried Crumbs after getting a referral from a friend who lives in the city. Crumbs was AMAZING! The cupcakes are ginormous and so flavorful! This time we got S'mores, Red Velvet, and Cookies'n'Cream!
So the only items I wasn't able to check off my "must see" list were the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island (which I half checked off since we did see them, just didn't tour them) and a Broadway show. I knew we wouldn't be seeing a show since we waited too long to buy tickets and I'm totally okay with that!
What's your favorite thing in NYC? I can't wait to go back!
