We flew in on a red eye for a long weekend, which wasn't nearly enough time. After dropping off our bags and eating breakfast, we headed to the
Met to see some art. I'm not sure zero sleep and museums mix well, but we tried. The museum itself was very beautiful.
The view of Manhattan and Central Park from the roof garden was beautiful. There was an installation by Jeff Koons. If you look very hard, you might be able to see the reflection of Joel and I in this piece, Sacred Heart.
After the Met, we headed back to our hotel for a much-needed nap. Then it was off to see
Xanadu, which was great. It definitely exceeded my expectations, which were admittedly low. Joel and his best friend in high school were obsessed with
the movie, which I can't really say I enjoyed that much. The musical was very funny though and quite different from the movie. I would definitely recommend it.
We concluded the day with a delicious meal at
Toloache and headed to bed. At that point, I was about to fall asleep whether I wanted to or not, those red eye flights are brutal!
The next morning we rented bikes and toured Central Park. This was one of my favorite parts of the trip, although after that I can tell I'm very out of shape! Here I am taking a quick break.
This was the only day it rained while we were there, thankfully. We managed to find shelter under a bridge just in time to miss the downpour. It was strange to see rain in summer--it's pretty dry in the bay area at this time of year.
Joel waiting out the storm.This was a jam-packed day. After a quick shower, we headed out to the Bronx to catch a Yankees game. Joel wanted to see the stadium before it's torn down at the end of this season. We were in the nose bleed section and getting to our seats was a little precarious. Thankfully, this is one of the last stadiums where the beer vendors will come to you. Joel appreciated that!
We left at about the 6th inning, so we could catch a quick dinner and then meet some of Joel's friends from college. They're all involved in theater in some way, so it was interesting hearing their stories. Joel was a theater major, but he gave up on acting pretty quickly after college. He still works in the entertainment industry though, which is more that I can say for myself as a former art major!
The next day was one of my favorite days--friends, shopping, crazy kitsch, and great food--that is my idea of a great day. We headed out to Brooklyn to meet some friends from Chicago for brunch. They moved to New York about a year before we moved to San Francisco. It was fun catching up and meeting their son, who was so cute!
After brunch we did a little
shopping (I got the cutest jacket and bag!) and then walked to the Brooklyn promenade, where I took the first picture above. This was the only time I saw the Statue of Liberty, which looked about an inch tall from there.
After parting ways with our friends, we headed to Coney Island. We were really torn about whether we wanted to go there or not, but I'm glad we did in the end. I'm not the biggest fan of boardwalks and amusement parks, but it was worth seeing.
At one point there were three amusement parks at Coney Island, but Astroland is the only one left. From what I read beforehand, there is an ongoing battle between developers and those who want to preserve what's left. Who knows if it will be there next time.
This photo of the boardwalk mistakenly gives you the idea that it wasn't crowded. Ha!
Wonder Wheel! I loved all the vintage signs that I saw. We didn't go on any rides, but we did see a
freak show (Joel's idea). We saw a sword swallower, lobster boy, electra-girl, and then we left. It was interesting.
We capped off the day with dinner at
Otto, which was delicious. The pizza and wine were great, and we ordered way too much food. My favorite thing though was the favada bruschetta, which was a warm garlicky white bean puree on thick slices of bread. Much better than it sounds, I need to figure out how to make that!
Our last day in New York was spent tooling around Greenwich Village and Soho. I managed to get some yarn shopping in, of course. We stopped at
Purl Soho,
The Point Knitting Cafe and on the way back to our hotel,
School Products. My favorite was The Point, and I think that was Joel's too, because he could sit down at a table and relax! I picked up a little yarn and a couple pattern books, nothing too crazy.
All in all, it was a great whirlwind trip. The tree-lined streets, architecture and hot summer weather reminded me a lot of Chicago, but on a bigger scale. It was the perfect trip, and I can't wait to go back.
Actual knitting content is coming soon, I promise!
White Peach, Raspberry-Peach, Strawberry-Blackbery, and Strawberry
