Another day, another post about New York City, this one well overdue from my trip in August. It’s become almost routine, hopping on a plane every six months, mostly with difficulty because of weather, scheduling meetings with friends and working like crazy.
This time around I was coming off of working and traveling since April with limited breaks, so the thought of going to New York wasn’t as exciting as usual. My flight ended up being delayed by many hours and I didn’t get into the city until 8 pm when I was due to arrive by 4. Thankfully, the lovely folks at Ink48 set me up in a room with a city view and left a bottle of cava chilling.
I packed light, despite the fact that I would be gone for almost two weeks, and built in an extra day so I would have enough time to do something fun as well as work. The work itself was the same as always, including long hours and late meals with co-workers, including some delicious Thai that was worth the hour-long wait for a table and a post-show employee party in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn. Lots of rosé was consumed and tasty food eaten.
After work was over, I moved hotels to The Row NYC, a modern but budget-friendly hotel in Times Square. It even has its own food hall, featuring sushi, lobster rolls and Mexican food.
I hopped over to the Saturday Night Live The Exhibition that includes costumes, videos and mementos from the show’s run. It showcases the many famous faces that have shared the stage over the years. If you don’t get tickets to watch the show or its rehearsals, this is a pretty good option.
Before going, I always put out a call on Facebook to make time for as many people as possible. There was dinner and drinks with Frank, a friend who I used to work with at a bar in Atlanta and now works for CNN, who took me to a dive bar in the Financial District.
And Lauren, my beloved friend from my time in Australia that I cherish seeing every six months. I have plans to return, even if not for work! I met up with Jackie for tacos but missed our pal Katka. I caught up with my college roommate Rose, who I hadn’t seen in five years and has since gotten married (congrats!).
In a true case of serendipity, I saw my friend Mike from a trip to Mississippi who was in the city at the same time after a whirlwind trip around the world in the footsteps of Marco Polo! Then there was Kelsi, one of my coworkers from life in Sydney who just bought a house in Connecticut. My final friend I managed to see was Connie, a blog friend I finally met in real life after many years of missed connections.
Among my favorite eats this time around were a pastrami and egg bagel from Pick A Bagel, bomboloni from Sullivan Street Bakery, duck noodle soup from Zoob Zib, fish tacos from Tacombi at Fonda Nolita, pork and crab egg noodles at Pure Thai Cookhouse, the brussels sprouts salad from our work dinner and the shrimp roll at City Kitchen. In case you’re wondering, all I do in New York is eat.
Despite the fact that I don’t want to live in New York City, I love visiting every few months and catching up with friends. I’m already making plans for a visit in January but am still putting together the details.
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