New York. So... That Happened

I can feel myself slipping back into my old non-blogging ways--the lure of juicy season finales and the less thrilling pastime of homework have conspired to direct my attention far, far away from the blog world.  But I have vanquished those demons (or at least caught up on all of the most exciting episodes, oh my GOD, did you see The Vampire Diaries?!?  (Not that I watch that, because it's totally juvenile.)), and am back to tell you all about New York.

But first, an ever so slightly related aside--did you see the Betty White Saturday Night Live?  Because I did, and the part that made me laugh the hardest was when she was talking about Facebook and she mentioned how people use their profiles to share all of their vacation photos and in her day that was the highest form of punishment.  So, I don't know what you did wrong, but here in chronological order is six days worth of punishment.

I met my mom at LaGuardia on Tuesday and we headed to Chelsea to mooch off of the restaurant where my sister works while she finished her shift.  We gorged ourselves on various delicious Italian delights, drank far too much wine, and then headed back to our apartment in the Upper West Side to attempt to watch Lost.  I watched it again when I got home from my trip and it was literally like watching it for the first time.

The next day, Brittany had to work, but my mom and I mustered up all of our nerve and made our way to the train to attempt to figure it out on our own for the first time ever.  After a comedy of errors worthy of The Bard, we managed to make it uptown to The Cloisters, which was to become my all time favorite part of the trip (aside from hanging out with amazing loved ones, obvies!).  The Cloisters were built in the early 1900s, but they were cobbled together from bits of old European monasteries, cloisters, churches, palaces, etc ranging from around the 11th to the 15th centuries.  It was filled with priceless European art and statuary, and it truly felt like an oasis in the city (I would say even more so than Central Park) and like a little bit of European grandeur and history in America.  The architecture was breathtaking, and I was absolutely enamored with the Unicorn Tapestries.  I bought a mug depicting the tapestry pictured above and have dubbed my unicorn, The Right Most Honourable Sir Sparkles.

We eventually made our way to Brooklyn where we were treated to a heavenly four hour meal at The River Cafe, not to mention the dubious honor of being seated next to and accosted by the one and only Miss Liza Minnelli (the tiny blurry black-haired lady to the right of the flowers in the above photo).  We made good friends with our waiter which meant that on top of the delicious appetizer, entree and dessert that came with the prix fixe menu we also got a king's ransom worth of free cheese, dessert and drinks.  As to why Liza made a drunken attempt to scold us about some mysterious transgression, smacking my sister on the arm in the meantime, the world may never know.

Wednesday was a bit more relaxing as we spent a good portion of the day wandering through and camped out in various sections of Central Park.  The above statue is a memorial to the children of New York given in Frances Hodgson Burnett's name, but it's more famous in our family for being the statue that my sister copied from a magazine for an art contest when she was still in school.  She had no idea where the statue was until years later she saw it in a picture that a friend had taken while they were in New York and posted on Facebook.  Serendipity.  Or something.  The bottom is, of course, my adored Alice having a tea party with her Wonderland friends.  At first, I was irritated that I caught that little girl in my photo, but it's actually kind of charming, and she does bear rather a striking resemblance to Alice, doesn't she?  We also spent a couple of hours in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and I swear, one day I will make it back there and do more than just the Egyptian section.

Friday we made our way back down to Chelsea where we visited the Chelsea Market (sorry, but the Pike Place Market beats its little butt) and High Line Park.  I can definitely see where the High Line has tons of potential for awesomeness.  It's an old elevated railroad track in Chelsea that has been converted to a park just within the past year or so.  But right now all of the plants are still saplings and young growth, and the views of the warehouse district and noisy streets just can't compete with Central Park.  I do look forward to going back over the years and seeing how it develops, though.  We finished our tour of Chelsea with a stop at Billy's Bakery, and I'd highly recommend the chocolate cheesecake over the cupcakes if you ever pop in!

Up until Saturday, the weather in the city was an absolutely ideal sunny upper 70s kind of perfection.  Of course, the day we had planned to go out on the harbor cruise and see the Statue of Liberty, the winds whipped into a frenzy and the temperatures plummeted into the 40s and 50s.  Instead of the cruise, we opted to photograph Lady Liberty from Battery Park, then headed toward the financial district to see Wall Street and the New York Stock Exchange and did a quick tour of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.  After lunch, we went in search of cowboy boots to go with the Anthropologie dress I bought at the Chelsea Market to wear on Mother's Day.  Despite what Sex and the City would have you believe, New Yorkers appear to enjoy eating a hell of a lot more than shoe shopping as we canvassed block upon block without coming across a single shoe store.  We finally hit pay dirt on Broadway, and I found my dream pair at Steve Madden.  We had just enough energy to battle the wind and cold in order to make it to Sweet Revenge for yet another cupcake interlude (and oh my, they were HEAVENLY!), then headed back to the apartment for a marathon North & South viewing.

Eventually, our last full day in the city rolled around, and we started the day with a so-so brunch at Trestle on Tenth.  They'll feed you, but if you try to hang around until noon so you can order a bloody mary, you'll get the evil eye from the entire wait staff.  So, that was disappointing, but we just headed back to Brittany's restaurant and polished off a couple of bottles of wine and a cheese plate.  When I tell you that we ate everything in New York, it's really not hyperbole.  And I wish that I could tell you that I have a picture of the three of us together on Mother's Day, because we really did all look adorable and it really was a rare occurrence... alas... my photographer failed me.  But, despite the fact that there's no photographic record of the fact that any of us were there, we all greatly enjoyed Angela Lansbury and Catherine Zeta Jones in A Little Night Music.  It was a star-studded weekend.

Sadly, the next day mom and I departed after our morning ritual of Regis & Kelly and breakfast at The Muffin Cafe (inside joke here, but I totally tried to Google search that place with "Muffin Man New York", ha!).  It was a tearful goodbye all around, but I'm already making plans for my next trip to the Northeast later this year, and my lovely sissy will be taking Charleston by storm this summer.  I feel so lucky to have such an amazing family and to have the opportunity for such amazing travels.  It was a week in New York that I will always remember and treasure.

Comments

[Brittany]

I'm still completely bummed you aren't here still. And I'm living in Spanish Harlem instead of the Upper West Side... and I much preferred being on the OPPOSITE side of the restaurant service... but alas. Can't wait til I visit YOU. Is there enough food in Charleston for me? Or more importantly... wine? ;)

[Jenn]

Liza Minnelli assaulted your sister? Now THAT'S a vacation story!

[E.P.]

Wow. This post makes me want to go back to NYC immediately and check out everything you did!

I'm glad it was such an amazing time!

[Kate P]

What a fun tour--good food, art, and a brush with celebrity! And Central Park looks beautiful. I was there about ten years ago for a wedding; there's nothing like it anywhere else.

Welcome back!

[Jessica]

That sounds like a lot of fun! I love New York and your photos are amazing! And yes, the lure of season finales are distracting me too!! What ones are you the most excited about?

[discount coach]

Luckily to read your article,thank you! I would like to wish you a joyous everyday and express my hope for your happiness and good future.