New York trip {day 4/ going upstate!}

On that Monday, which was Labor Day, we checked out of the hostel and took the train upstate to go to my former host family. I hate saying that they are my host family because they are so much more than that. When I talk about them I just say they are my family, because that is what they are to me. Everytime I visit it just feels like home- the cat that still remembers me, my pictures in the house, my old room, driving on those streets, knowing exactly where to go, knowing people in that area... how could it not?
At my farewell party 3 years ago there were no people my age- it was basically just the mom's of the kids friends. And now when I go to the kids soccer games they are still there and they still remember me, which warms my heart every time. It was such a special year we had there and it felt SO natural to be there with Miriam, it was like no time had passed at all.

I don't really want to post a lot of pictures of the kids as I don't think they should be online-  but man it's scary how big they got. How annoyingly grown up they are, not falling for kids stuff anymore. Thank god I am not their nanny anymore, it was definitely easier before they knew all the swear words!

So we spent the whole week with them, played baseball, went to the movies, ate at our favorite places, went shopping in our favorite mall, went swimming, cuddled with the cats, made too many pancakes, had too much ice cream and candy... and planned our trip to Vegas!

All about that crazy adventure tomorrow!

New York trip {a very lazy day 3}

So it was Sunday and it definitely felt like it.
We got a super lazy start because we hung out with the boys on the roof top the night before- I think for a couple more years I definitely will enjoy hostels and the people you meet. Not just the snoring ones, but the amazingly fascinating ones with stories that make you want to travel so much more.

Alright. We started to make our way downtown to go the Highline but with food. Luckily Whole Foods was more or less on the way so we indulged and bought amazzzzing food. Sometimes I wish we had that store here in the UK but that would definitely ruin me.
Because we really felt like getting pampered we ended up getting a mani and pedicure (I might have almost fallen asleep during it, so good!). I love to do these things as I don't really do it when I am here in Scotland (or Germany), so it's really a treat for me.
Afterwards we were walking through the city somewhere around Madison Square Garden and we saw a sign for a psychic and a 10$ offer.
That Sunday was definately a weird one so we went to her apartment. Of course that 10$ offer was not on the cool stuff so we ended up paying 25$ each for a palm reading about our future. Jeeez that was cool. There is something goosebumpy about a stranger telling you stuff about yourself, that's for sure. She made some comments about stuff she could not have known, which was super cool. You don't really have to convince me though, she could have been a total rip off and I would have enjoyed it anyway. So yeah, career and love life all sorted out.

After this super enlightening experience we made our way to Shake Shack, because I have heard amazing things about their burgers. It was a nice and warm day so we headed to the one outside near the Flatiron Building. The line was preeetty long but the wait was actually alright. And it's so pretty with all the fairy lights! The burger was so so good and worth the wait!

New York trip {day 2}

On Saturday we slept in and then headed downtown for an early lunch/late breakfast. I will talk more about the places we ate in another post, but our food was so good and the restaurant itself was really hip aswell (The Smith, near Columbus Circle). And they had a photobooth in their bathroom!

Then we went to the World Trade Center site and visited the memorial. It is for free, they do ask for donations however. You can reserve tickets in advance online for a certain time slot. We didn't do that but the line was not too bad. They have so much security there, comparable to airport security.
To be honest I didn't really like the memorial site that much. I do like the two waterfalls where the towers used to be, but everything else... mh. Don't know. We also saw loads of people taking happy smiling pictures in front of the memorial pools and we kept thinking- what your message here? Yay you are standing where so many people died?

Anyway. It was super super hot there so we left and wandered of in to the super crowded Century 21.  We let some woman put make up on us, let the A/C cool us down and then decided to head over to Brooklyn Bridge.

Oh and I bought this super cool Iphone case

So as we walked over the Brooklyn Bridge the sun went down and we had those magic minutes with amazing light. A lot of other people had the same idea as us, as well as one guy who proposed to his girlfriend. I think everyone hated them a little bit because they were so stinkin cute... but anyway. On the other side we sat down at the waterfront and took some pretty cool pictures.

This skyline is one of my favorite things in the whole world... how can you not love it?

New York trip {day1}

Miriam and I landed Thursday night at JFK, thank god immediately found each other. Took the shuttle to our hostel and fell asleep veery happy.

Breakfast in Central Park, of course bagels and my favorite drink from Dunkin Donuts (Large Iced Caramel Latte with skim milk, no sugar and no whip cream. okay sometimes whip cream).

We strolled through Central Park, said hi the Met, sat on the stairs like Blair Waldorf and relaxed in the sun. It was soooo hot!

 

After that we went shopping in Soho until we couldn't walk anymore. Had dinner, went home and changed. 

After all the recommendations we went to 230 Fifth, that rooftop bar.

It was super crowded and waitresses kept pushing us around but the view is simply amazing. After a hundred attempts to get the perfect picture we just let it be and let some guys buy us a drink. Oh well