NYC

One of my favorite places to visit is New York City. I’m sure most of you have been there or at least plan to, but I also understand that not everybody has that opportunity. Maybe you’ve only seen things from TV shows or movies, or maybe you just passed by the city on the way to another destination, or maybe you had the pleasure of exploring the city in all its glory, the latter which I highly recommend everyone does at some point in their life.

The skyline full of tall skyscrapers, the city lights, honking cars, taxis around every corner, it is regularly known as the city that never sleeps and that sure is true. With a population of about eight million people and considered to be one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse cities in the world, NYC is full of excitement and wonder, and yet something about this crazy place gives me a sense of comfort.

It’s about a two and a half hour drive from my hometown(Downingtown, PA) which is actually shorter than the three hour drive to State College. How often do I go there? Not as often as I’m probably giving the impression, but I’ve been there a good amount of times. My sister lives in Jersey City which is just on the other side of the Hudson River and is about a 20 min PATH train ride to New York City. I’ve visited her a few times and every time I’ve been able to explore many parts of the city. This post will be about my two most recent trips to NYC and will highlight the different experiences I had during the different seasons: Summer and Winter of 2019.

Summer 2019

This was one was one of my favorite and most memorable trips not only because I was able to spend a whole week in New York City, but also because I was able to spend the week with one of my best friends and we were able to explore the city together on our own. We were really lucky my sister lives in Jersey City so we had the opportunity to explore NYC. The train station was literally right under her apartment so it was a quick walk and a 20 min ride to the center of it all. I’d like to think we became masters at riding the PATH train and the metro within that week, but we definitely couldn’t have done it without the help of Google Maps. Did we still get lost a few times? Yes. Nevertheless, it was still fun trying to find our way around even though we would frustratingly sometimes end up on the wrong side of the metro station. What did we do in NYC? Well I’m going to address everything and what I recommend if you ever decide to plan a trip to New York.

The High Line

I’ve actually walked the High Line on two separate occasions. It’s definitely something I would recommend doing while you explore because it’s quite fascinating what they’ve done to this old elevated railroad. It is a bit of a walk but it has a gorgeous scenery of modern skyscrapers, classic buildings and scenic streets, along with gardens that add a sense of beauty and comfort. Of course, it is a tourist attraction so there’s usually a good amount of people walking it and may get pretty crowded depending on when you go, but the good thing about it is that the cost is free!

Broadway

On the other hand, probably one of the most expensive attractions in New York is probably the Broadway shows. But I, without a doubt, highly recommend seeing a Broadway show at least once in your life. We went to see Wicked and I’ll just say it was AMAZING! We probably got the cheapest seats we could find which I think was about $100(!), but it’s totally worth it. There’s so many different shows, obviously, so I’d definitely pick one that attracts you the most since you’ll be spending quite a bit on those tickets, but I can assure you that the acting, singing, costumes, and set design were absolutely phenomenal.

Washington Square Park

I don’t even know where to start with this one. We probably came back to this park at least three times throughout the week, and let me tell you, it was never boring. First, the food in New York City in general is great and there’s so much variety. Around Washington Square Park, I can point you to this really good ramen place right on the corner, and if you’ve never had real ramen(and I do not mean packaged ramen from the grocery store) you are truly missing out. Nearby, there’s also a small bubble tea place and a really cute place with delicious gelato(strawberry and raspberry are my favorite). All of which I’m definitely craving while writing this.

You probably know what Washington Square Park looks like, it’s a pretty popular tourist attraction and makes an appearance on a multitude of TV shows and movies displaying the recognizable large fountain and arch modeled after the Arc de Triomphe in Paris(which I’ve actually been to and will address in a future post). The fountain is the perfect sitting place especially in the summer months of hot weather, where you can actually go into the fountain, which I found interesting. I could’ve sat there for hours with a bubble tea or ice cream to just people watch and I did do that at one point.

There was always a lot going on and a few people out of the ordinary. I could note the guy sitting on the bench surrounded by birds, or another man dressed as Elvis playing music on a boombox while riding a motorcycle. Even more interesting was seeing a man walking around the square “farting” around people. Yeah, you read that right. It was only after the second time my friend and I caught on to the joke and just watched him try to get a reaction out of people. He even noticed us watching and came up to me and my friend to tell us about his Instagram page and how he does this around tourist attractions and posts people’s reactions.

Shopping

Shopping in New York City probably isn’t the best thing because everything is usually super expensive and they do have a higher sales tax. However, there are so many places where you can shop, walk around, and just admire the buildings. SoHo is a famous shopping neighborhood consisting of luxury brands, designer boutiques, and cobblestone streets. Not the ideal place for me to go shopping, but a great experience to just walk around and take in the city life. Another place to go shopping is Chelsea Market. It’s a shopping mall and a food hall with a large variety of different cultures. My friend and I kept seeing this one stand serving some sort of tomato bread, but we had no idea what it was called and didn’t see anything like it on the menu! Eventually we just asked them what it was and it was delicious.

Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge was a bit of a hike from where we were. It was a little confusing getting there because once we thought we were getting used to the subway stations, it was a little different way to get there. We decided to take the subway to Brooklyn and walk back across the bridge to Lower Manhattan. The entrance to get onto the Brooklyn Bridge was also confusing. We found some other girls that were lost trying to get onto the bridge also, but eventually we found it and that was the start of our long walk back. It gets pretty crowded so it was difficult to get good pictures, but again, the scenery was beautiful. You could see all of the skyscrapers and there was a great view of the Manhattan Bridge.

Winter 2019

The winter holiday is my favorite time of the year. It’s just so cozy and comforting. Hot chocolate, buying gifts, ice skating, and of course being snuggled up with a blanket to watch holiday movies are just some of my favorite things to do in the winter. This past winter, I went to New York City for a couple of days and saw a few things exclusive to the holiday season.

Holiday Markets

The holiday markets are so fun to go to during the winter season! The cute little shops of handcrafted items and artwork, the yummy hot chocolate and macaroon stands, and so much more! As any other attraction in NYC, they get super crowded, but they are a really great experience. It’s similar to the pop-up holiday markets in Philly if you’re familiar with that. It truly emulates the holiday season with the lights, cute little shops, ice skating and the Rockefeller tree.

Radio City Music Hall

Lastly, this final attraction I’ll talk about was also very exciting during the holiday season: The Radio City Music Hall Rockettes in their Christmas Spectacular show. I personally really liked the show and it’s just astounding to see all of the effort and talent put into these shows to create a fun time for everyone. It truly put me in the holiday spirit and it’s something that I’ll always remember.

 

I hope you enjoyed visiting New York City with me! Where would you like to go next? Continue throughout the US or out of the country?