NEW YORK, BABY

First, my boyfriend and I were planning a trip to Ireland, Dublin but for some reason we just decided to change our plans - we would be going to NYC!

At JFK airport we had to wait quite a long time for the passport check but the actual moment when we stood at the counter went by really fast. I was waiting for questions like “business or pleasure” but the officer didn’t ask a thing.

After getting our luggage we decided to take the Air Train instead of taxi. Note: it’s good to save the 1-time subway cards for later use when you return from the city to the airport. The next day we bought a-one-week subway card.

The weather was almost too hot at times - around 30C every day! The city was also full of tourists, as you can imagine. I guess August is a common holiday season for European tourists. Subway stations are like saunas but the subway and shopping centers are almost too cold because of the air conditioning so you might need to carry a cardigan and/or a scarf with you. I found useful epecially my tube scarf which I used for covering my shoulders in a direct sunlight.

Our hotel was nice and after check-in we were resting the evening and got to sleep early. After all the flight was around 8 hours and jet lag is making you so tired. Our hotel was located in Queens in the area that at first sight looked a bit scary but later on we got used to it so it was okay, even though we didn't dare to walk outside during night. :)

Day 01: Sunday

On the first day we decided to visit the WTC memorial place and Oculus. It was such a sad moment to see all the names written on the memorial place, especially a lady’s name written and besides her name “and her unborn child”.

After spending some time at the memorial place we also walked to see Wall Street and other close by monuments. We also visited the huge shopping center Century 21, which we first discovered to be chaotic – but later on we knew where our favorite things are located so it was easier to navigate in this huge shopping center. It sells brand clothes on such a good discount.

Shopping and walking in the sunshine made us tired and we needed to have a little rest so we went to a café and I was asking the waiter’s opinion on one drink and told him that I don’t drink coffee; he said “me neither” and then he asked if I wanted to have for free an ice tea which was made by accident (a mistaken order). So I took it and it was nice. :)
In the evening we wanted to eat dinner in Chinatown. It was raining a lot as we entered the restaurant. We were exhausted from the jet lag thinking of what time it would be in Finland at that moment. We just ate the dinner, half asleep. After our dinner we wanted to have some take-away bubble tea in a close-by cafe.

Later in the evening when we were heading back to our hotel for some reason we took another subway train which took us to another subway station and we had to walk a longer route to our hotel with our shopping bags.. in the rain..

Day 02: Monday 

The second travel day, which was Monday we decided to go walking in the center for example to see the Empire State building, then by accident we saw Macy’s department store and decided to enter for a little shopping. We wanted to see High Line and walked it through in the heat. We took some nice photos and noticed the Whitney museum was right there so we entered even though we were not aware of what is on there. We watched beautiful pictures on all floors but we were quite tired because of jet lag, the heat and all the walking so we went upstairs and took some nice photos outside. There is a nice view from the pent floor.

Day 03: Tuesday

Central park was very peaceful on that day. We did the right thing by going there early in the morning. It was actually a little chilly outside. We could see quite many joggers, dog walkers, moms with babies. We enjoyed this relaxing atmosphere in the park.

I feel we had the chance to visit all the must see places that we wanted to see but when going to Central Park we didn't plan it much, we thought we just randomly walk there and enjoy the peaceful park life. However, afterwards I realized there were two statues that I would have wanted to see: Alice in Wonderland and Balto the dog because when I was a child I really liked the animated film of Balto the sled dog who helped deliver vaccines to Nome, Alaska 1925.

After relaxing time in the park we went to see the Times Square, which was crowded as always, but it was nice anyway to see all the lights and ad screens that I have seen on TV. We even saw a street performer ”the naked Cowboy”, who my boyfriend had seen on Times Square 10 years ago when he visited New York.

Even though we walked a lot during the day and we were so tired we decided to visit Roosevelt Island and Queensborobridge in the evening. We both liked the place. It was so peaceful because there were only a few other people, and not so many tourists. We took a lot of photos and walked around the area.

It was interesting to see there an abandoned hospital which was on one side all covered with plants.

We were hungry after walking so we went to a Japanese restaurant to eat delicious sushi and as a dessert we took Mochi red bean ice cream. omnom.

It was so refreshing to eat sushi. Knowing there are so many amazing restaurants in NYC, but somehow when you are the most hAngry and you need to find a place to eat fast, there aren’t many good restaurants on sight. So we ate quite a few hamburgers and pizzas. But I have to say that the pizza in Little Italy was really delicious. I also liked ShakeShack burgers and fries. For some lunch we did have salad though. :) 

Day 04: Wednesday

We traveled on the Staten Island ferry and took some photos of Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. The weather was super-hot. When we arrived on the island we randomly walked and decided to go back. Obviously some other tourists just take the ferry and go in the lobby and wait for the return ferry. That’s what we should have done too. x) We were so early among the first people waiting in line to go inside the ferry. Everybody is waiting to get the best photo spots on the upper deck of the ferry. It was unbelievable. After the gates were open some people ran like crazy. xD Of course we also walked fast but we didn’t at least run at full speed. After the island visit we stayed a while at the harbor eating some ice cream. While sitting back on the park bench eating ice cream we noticed there was a Korean War memorial place. 

I don’t have any pictures of the later night so I guess we didn't do any sightseeing but we went shopping!

Day 05: Thursday

On Thursday morning we went to see the Grand Central Train Station to take some photos and then we went to Bryant Park for a cup of take-away coffee. 

After lunch we needed to get ready for the Broadway musical Phantom of the Opera, which I’m a huge fan of. It was great, what can I say. *sigh* I started being a fan of Phantom in high school about ten years ago!

After seeing Phantom we ate good burgers and fries in ShakeShack which was located nearby. It was funny that in that restaurant the waiter asked my name just like in Starbucks. I wouldn't even bother to spell my real name because it's not "international" so I just said "Alex" and in Starbucks when the waitress asked my name I was thinking of a name "Cindy" and she wrote "Sindey", which is quite close. :)

"The Phantom of the Opera is there - inside your mind"

Day 06: Friday

We visited Brooklyn on such a hot day again. :) We visited the Brooklyn Botanic garden which was so nice and peaceful. There were only a few tourists among us, yay! We liked the Japanese garden a lot because the hot weather in August dried almost all other flowers so the Japanese style garden was still green.

After visiting the Botanic garden in that heat we were exhausted. We decided to rest in some nearby park for a minute:  we ate some snacks there and gathered energy for crossing the Brooklyn Bridge, which was actually surprisingly pleasant to walk in shade not in direct sunlight. The Brooklyn Bridge was one of my favorite places. :) After crossing the bridge we wanted to go to eat a delicious pizza in Little Italy, the first pizza place in New York City! After eating we decided to do some final shopping in Century 21 and get ready for the incoming journey back home.

Day 07: Saturday

It’s time to go home today. But before that we decided to visit CBS studios and Rockefeller center and it was good that by accident St. Patrick’s Cathedral was there close-by which I had wanted to see earlier but forgot about it. It was very beautiful.  

When we returned to our hotel we noticed our closest subway doesn’t go so we had to walk again the longer route. After getting our luggage at the hotel we decided not to take a taxi but to walk to the other subway station with our luggage. Even though the heat was so tiring we would after all have a long flight ahead so it was good to have some exercise before that. We were very early at the airport so everything went smoothly.

In the end New York was great! I loved exploring the city, however the hectic environment & constant traffic sounds made me feel tired. The weather in mid August (2016) was very hot so maybe it would be better time to visit NYC in late spring or early autumn!
Thanks for reading this (long) travel story! Next story: Vietnam in 2017.