new york day 3

this day was a random one for us, but it was really fun having no specific plan and just walking about the city. 

starting out in the upper west side, we hit up zabar's for breakfast (i'm telling you, we were there on the daily) and from there subwayed it to soho to walk the day away.  we got lost in the streets browsing vintage and second-hand shops & we accidentally ended up at the the beautiful washington square park, which was on my list of things to find anyways! there was even a pianist, which made it feel even more magical. after resting a bit (& drinking something warm & charging our phones!) at teavana we met up with my brother ben (which i recently nicknamed him: ben in the big apple) & he tour-guided us around the financial district. the buildings are so intricate and insanely gorgeous in this area,  i kept finding myself looking up, in awe of my surroundings. after seeing a few of the sights around there, like the "charging bull" & the NYSE, we subwayed it to right across the brooklyn bridge to eat at grimaldi's. service there took forever, like an hour plus for our pizza to come out & it really wasn't even all that great, but my mom & ben had eaten there before and wanted to go back. i still scarfed down two slices like it was nothing though, don't doubt. but since we were on the other side of the water, i wanted to snap a few night shots of manhattan. the wind was slapping me in the face and my eyes were watering like crazy, plus i had to be glove-less to balance my camera on a ledge in order not to shake, but i think i got some decent shots and the live view was unreal. we were "under the brooklyn bridge" and it felt amazing. 

hope you enjoy my photos!!

starting out the day with a selfie

"hammerboy" street art by banksy- upper west side

  washington square park

pretty rose petals for NYE on a sidewalk in soho

teavana pit stop; we had peach tranquility & youthberry. yum!

live music in the subway

walking around the financial district

   

"double check" statue by john seward johnson II - financial district 

 the "charging bull," so many people were crowding around to get a photo with this!

 NYSE

  view of manhattan from "under the brooklyn bridge"

the brooklyn bridge

thanks for reading!

more new york posts coming soon, hope you're not sick of them yet ;)

new york day two

for new york day two, after checking out taza's guide, we decided to venture toward chelsea to walk the highline, find chelsea market and dine at artichoke basille's. (my friend molly recommended artichoke as well & it really was amazing!) but first, breakfast. zabar's was one short block away from us & was our go-to. they have anything you could want! it is a huge corner lot with a food store to pick up or sit on a stool & people watch bagels, danishes, lunch paninis, coffee or fresh juice while a different huge section is like a grocery store, but with fresh items, like olives, cheeses, meats, coffees, etc. this place was amazing and we ate there every morning. we stuck to the same thing almost daily, which was an everything bagel, chocolate croissant, coffee and OJ and if i lived near there i swear i would be a regular! it reaaalllyyyy crowded in there (hello, claustrophobia!) but somehow we managed to pounce right in time to grab a spot three spots each time. it was also reaaalllyyyy toasty in there! you're so bundled up from the cold outside that a few minutes after sitting down you feel the need to undress and peel off layers just to be comfortable. i always laughed to myself at the pile of coats, sweaters and bags we had next to us or under of chairs for the duration of the trip.

later on in the evening, after walking what seemed like the entire highline & chelsea market, we decided to treat ourselves to massages, which was amazing and relaxing. and after our 60-minute massages, we met up with my brother ben who lives near times square and he showed us around rockefeller center to see some of the holiday sights.

here are some photos from new york day two, if you would like to see:

this is my serious grub face

it was also reeeaaallllyyy bright!

zabars - W. 80th & N. Broadway

on the highline

all bundled up

street art

we popped into death ave. for a cup of warm liquid and to map our next move

 artists & fleas at chelsea market

the indoor marketplace is huge! lots to try and see...

beautifully decorated

we found it! & loved it!

we ordered the 17th street special, where are got to try 3 different slices

view of times square from h&m

giant christmas tree at rockefeller center

life-size christmas lights at rockefeller center

radio city

 & this is where day 2 ends.

i will try to post day 3 tomorrow, since it's my day off. 
thanks for reading!

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!

christmas came & went

here are a few snippets from my christmas day with my family if you would like to see.

my brother, two cousins, aunt and uncle came in town and we all gathered at my grandmother's house to have a nice meal and hang out. 

christmas meal table setting

i received an amazing new lens from dek for the holidays & my brother ben was playing around with it and yielded this photo

my grandmother's decaf coffee christmas cup with a pretty little lip stain

 new zara blanket scarf from my sister, mirelle

  peanut wanted in the photoshoot

i love it!

traditional photo in the kitchen

this sums up our relationship

 peanut was worn out!

thanks for reading :)

also i will be sharing tons of photos and stories from my trip to new york, so stay tuned!!