I've been in a New York state of mind.
Thanks to time off from my job, I've been able to spend a good bit of time in NY over the last couple of weeks. One weekend visit was for a friend's wedding--congrats Bekah & Alex! A second weekend was spent celebrating my 23rd birthday with a family girls' trip to the City. And after that, I made my annual summer trip home to the Upstate to visit family, friends, and South Jeff Basketball Camp.
I had so much fun hanging out in the City with Ma, Gram, and Casey. We weren't there for long so, naturally, Mom packed our itinerary full to make the most of our time:
FRIDAY
Visit Mom's office in Manhattan
Museum of Modern Art
WNBA Game at Madison Square Garden: New York Libery vs. Indiana Fever
SATURDAY
Walking Tour of Central Park
The Little Mermaid on Broadway
Shopping
Our first stop was Mom's Manhattan office to meet her colleagues. One of them told us to "enjoy the free entertainment...there's crazy people on the streets." Too true. On the City streets, there is always something to look at, something to watch, something to make you wonder.
We were pleased to find out that the Museum of Modern Art has free admission on Fridays. But unfortunately, everyone else knows that too. MoMA was super crowded! We had fun anyway. There were lots of things to take in and get the creative juices flowing. We all left the museum feeling inspired, like we could create some great piece of art on our own...which will probably never happen. The WNBA game Friday night had me feeling like I was back in my element. The game started off slow, but I didn't care because I was getting to watch Tamika Catchings play. She is my absolute favorite! The second half was a lot more exciting than the first, and the game went into OT. The Fever ended up winning by 1. And I saw my old buddy Allan Houston at the concession stand. Surely he remembered the time he and I met in the CofC weight room when the Knicks were in town for preseason training?!? Okay, probably not. But I pretended we knew each other anyway, and said hello.
Saturday morning, we got up bright and early to head to Central Park. But after hopping on the express train by accident, we didn't make it there in time for the guided walking tour we were hoping for. We had all been to the park multiple times before, but wanted to see something new. Having missed the tour, we did our usual self-guided tour. This time, though, we did stumble upon some sights we hadn't seen before. The Conservatory Garden was especially beautiful on the sunny day we were enjoying.
That afternoon, we saw The Little Mermaid on broadway at the Fontanne. I know, I know...a Disney show! Little reputation among broadway snobs. But it was terrific! The spectacle was awesome, the music was great, and it's a beloved story. We had so much fun. Afterwards, we did some shopping in the rain. I was SO excited to shop at H&M and Zara, neither of which I have at home.
We ate at some really cool restaurants in Manhattan, all of which I would recommend. Celebrating my relatively new Southern-ness, we had lunch at Virgil's on Friday (http://www.virgilsbbq.com/). Saturday's lunch was authentic Italian at Terraza Toscana (http://www.terrazzatoscana.com/). And for dinner we had paninis, sangria, and chocolate at Ayza (http://www.ayzanyc.com/), a hip "Wine & Chocolate Bar" with a Warm Chocolate Molten Cake that is out of this world! Big thanks to Mom and Gram for treating me to a really fun weekend, ushering in my 23rd year!!
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