New York, New York (pt. 3)

Our last full day in NYC started out with a little drama and a LOT of rain. Luckily the crisis was mainly averted and Mike, Jen and I headed out to brunch! This was one of the little things I was most excited for, delicious food with mimosas included. I'm in. On top of that, it was extra special because Mike's family and his best friend Lizz were here for a visit! There was so much love at our breakfast table.

Mike and Lizz

Jen and I plus breakfast mimosas. Mmm

So after we enjoyed breakfast Jen and I decided to spend the rainy day at the MoMA while Mike and his gang went off for their own adventures for the day.

Andy Warhol.

Typography exhibit!

Van Gosh's Starry Night.
Just as beautiful, but much smaller, than I had imagined.

Picasso.

Monet's Water Lillies.

After walking around the MoMA (and running on very little sleep) we were getting quite tired and the pouring rain outside didn't make it much better. So we decided to do a little shopping and grab a pretzel...which was probably the most disappointing thing we experienced in New York haha. But! We did have a lot of laughs trying to eat and hold our umbrellas and take photos at Rockefeller Center.

After checking out NBC Studios and Rockefeller Plaza we decided to get some dinner and happened upon the most authentic little Italian restaurant. I'm pretty sure everyone that came in that place was related to one another and the food definitely had that home-cooked meal appeal, perfect for a rainy Sunday evening. Afterwards we headed to Magnolia Bakery for some dessert. It was such a perfect way to end the night.

Vanilla with vanilla frosting.

Red velvet with buttercream.

We couldn't help but joke that we matched our cupcakes.

Even the packaging was lovely.

Our walk back to the subway to head to Mike's Brooklyn apartment lead us through Times Square one last time. Even through the drizzle the lights were breathtaking and I was glad we got to see it at night again before we left.

New York, New York (pt. 2)

Miss Liberty in all her glory.

Saturday was definitely our most packed day here in New York. Mike didn't have to work which was great because he could spend the entire day with us! We decided to head down to the South Street Seaport for the day and it was such a good decision, us mid-westerners couldn't help but compare it to the Chicago Pier though!

South Street Seaport

They got the memo about the nautical theme.

Harbored ships

We decided to grab lunch at a brewery right on the street. I love local craft brews and a simple burger sounded great. I've got to hand it to you Heartland Brewery, we were not disappointed.

Summertime Apricot Ale.

Farmer Jon's Oatmeal Stout.

Turkey burger and fries.

From there we decided to walk along the water to get to the Staten Island ferry. Because Jen and I were only there a short amount of time we weren't able to get tickets to head over to Ellis Island and this was a simple (and free!) way to get as close to the Statue of Liberty as possible.

Governor's Island Ferry entry.

The Statue of Liberty
Just as inspirational as ever.

Our last part of the journey took us to Ground Zero and the new 9/11 tribute museum. This was something we knew we wanted to stop and see, despite the construction and there not being a whole lot to look at. I was actually in New York just a few months after 9/11 occurred and was able to see the walls and walls of flowers, photos, and everything memorial-wise that you can imagine. I know I was quite young but it was a very emotional visit and it being back there again definitely stirred up some feelings for me.

The current memorial installed.

Thank you to all those who risked their lives that day. God Bless.

From their we headed to SoHo (didn't I say it was a long day!) for window-shopping and dinner before heading back to Mike's apt. and getting ready for a night on the town. I don't think I have laughed that hard in a long long time. Let's just say there was a lot of dancing, running in the rain, 4 a.m. pizza, and as the four of us crawled into bed as the sun was rising we all agreed we had a great night.

Two days down, two to go!

Central Park

Alice in Wonderland statue close-up.

Central Park deserves it's own entry in my opinion. It was one of the places we stayed the longest and there was something about being there, I can't quite explain.

However, I'm not going to lie...the first thing we did upon entering was try and relive all the on-screen moments that had been filmed here over time. I may have also burst into song a few times...

How romantic...we really hoped to see someone pop the question out on one of these little rowboats.

There were two things I knew I must see while in Central Park; Strawberry Fields, and Alice in Wonderland. The Imagine tribute was beautiful although I couldn't help by be saddened that there were so many people walking on it or attempting to take photos with it. When I saw the names of the countries listed on the stone carving underneath "Imagine all the people living life in peace..." I couldn't help but tear up a bit.

Strawberry Fields forever.

Performers in one of the courtyard areas. These guys were amazing at street dancing and gymnastics.

It took so long for us to find the Alice in Wonderland statue! We finally broke down and asked a few police officers to direct us haha, it was worth it though (Anyone who knows me very well knows how much I love Alice in Wonderland). We were able to snap a few photos in between all the kids climbing and playing on it, which there is most definitely allowed and encouraged!

Quotes from the original story lined the bottom of the statue.

A mad, Mad Hatter.

We could not have asked for a more gorgeous day for a stroll in the park.

New York, New York (pt. 1)

Now I am well aware that these posts are FAR over-due. However, as a way to share my NY trip with those who haven't gotten a chance to see photos and hear some fun stories, I am posting about it months later. Also I really do enjoy having this blog as a chance to look back on all my adventures so...without further ado...

We have arrived!

Jen and Elyse take on the Big Apple! Our trip there was pretty uneventful, we enjoyed pizza and gelato during our layover and arrived in LaGuardia around 11 pm, just in time for the city to really get going. We met Mike in Times Square and headed back to his apartment in Brooklyn for a good night's sleep before all our big plans for the weekend got underway.

You would not believe how badly I wanted one of those hotdogs at midnight.

Look who we found!

We slept in a little bit in the morning, Mike headed out for his last day interning with Glamour magazine a few hours before we left the apartment. We spent most of the day wandering around Manhattan taking it all in. Mike was able to give us a little tour of Glamour in the Conde Naste building which was very cool to see.

Afterwards we mainly stuck to Times Square area and Central Park. Trust me, Jen and I are very visual people and this was like sensory overload!

Hello Broadway!

What a great idea, every city should have these in my opinion.

Pinning up our wishes for the New Year!

Crepes for lunch. Delicious.

Even the baked goods were larger than life. Amazing.

Once Mike was off work we met up with him and headed to the lower east side for dinner and drinks with our friend Brian and two old friends of mine who both lived in NY for the summer, Britney and Angela. The restaurant was definitely a new experience but the food was great and how can you not love all these lights!

"Where Chili Peppers and Christmas Lights meet"

PS. The bar we went to, Death and Co. was awesome in my opinion. If you want someplace unique to check out if you're ever in the area give this one a try.