dear new york,

you are beautiful, even though you are bone-chilling cold. 

you have an unmatched feel.

you were good to us.

i'll be back. 

this first set of photos is from day 1 of our 5-day adventure.
i traveled with my mom and sister on a sort-of-spontaneous trip "to ring in the new year in a different city." my mom's birthday is new year's day and she really wanted to go somewhere this year so my sister and i hopped on board for a girls' trip. we have been lucky to have traveled together so much throughout the years and we all have a pretty laid back style and a go-with-the-flow vibe. we had planned a few things/ places to go, especially restaurants but were very impromptu for the most part.

we found our apartment through air bnb, after contemplating many different cool neighborhoods we went with the upper west side, especially since one of my all-time favorites bloggers lives there! the vibe was amazing and it really felt like we were a part of the neighborhood for a few days; it looked like something straight out of sex & the city (one of my fav shows!!!).

hope you enjoy these photos & check back for more updates!

upper west side neighborhood; W. 80th & Broadway; view from our stoop

at the hummus kitchen for lunch after landing & dropping our bags lugging our 4 bags up a steep-ass flight of stairs at the apartment

walking into chinatown, freezing as hell!

chinatown explorations

la mela in little italy for dinner, cheers-ing with bellinis

attaboy for after-drinks

a hole-in-the-wall speakeasy that you wouldn't know was there unless someone told you. hidden in a used-to-be tailor where you knock softly on a giant metal door for one of the guys to come check you in or get your number (like he did with us) to text when a table became available. luckily there was a starbucks nearby where we hid out for 10 minutes before the guys texted us and we walked back to enjoy a dimmed, candlelit environment with a unique, made-especially-for-you cocktail. he asked "what are you in the mood for this evening?" with a fine scottish accent which was almost difficult to understand. ben ordered something whiskey-based and with a little spice. my mom and i were feeling grapefruit, since the aroma in the place smelled of zest and citrus and mirelle ordered "something fruity with pineapple." drinks were amazing and all different, there is no menu to even go by, so it really felt as it the bartender hand-crafted that for you and you only. the vibe was way cool and different. 

after after-drinks we took the subway to ben's apartment, near times square, where we accessed the rooftop of his place to get our first view of the city at night, which was breath-taking

 it was freezing up there, yes. but the view made it sooo worth it!

i will more of our trip throughout the week, so stay tuned!