New York

This post will be a lot longer than my previous ones have been. We had twelve amazing days in New York and I just couldn't decide how to divide all these pics into different posts. So here they are all together in one marathon post.

These are our highlights and my favorites. It was my fourth time in the city and I still didn't get enough. I'm starting to realize that I never will.

Our home for ten nights

We stayed again through airbnb in Brooklyn in a lovely home. The hosts lived upstairs and we had a two floor basement with our own door downstairs. The place was pretty perfect for us five to come home to every night after exploring the city. The subway was located just behind the corner and with only few stops we reached the coolest hoods in Brooklyn in Williamsburg where we hang out most nights. 

Beautiful blossoms

 My last days in Canada had been cold and snowy so I was more than happy to see that spring had arrived in New York already before us. The weather got hotter everyday, reaching almost 30 degrees on our final days and it didn't rain once. New York might be a concrete jungle but it is also filled with beautiful blossoming trees. Central park was our number one hanging out spot in Manhattan mostly because of the beautiful cherry trees and the relaxed atmosphere.

Sightseeing

The tickets to see a Yankees game were pretty much the only thing we had decided to do beforehand. Other than that we just decided the plan for the next day with last beers of the night or in the breakfast table first in the morning. We had so many days that there was no reason to rush so we didn't. My personal favorites were the Yankees game because of the great atmosphere and the Central Park zoo because of the penguins of Madagascar.

Time Square

Chinatown

The street where Carrie from Sex and the City lived. 

Yankees game

Top of the Rock

Flatiron building

9/11 memorial

Central Park zoo 

Brooklyn Bridge

Battery Park (trying to get a look at the Statue of Liberty)

Eating & Drinking

For me a holiday is a success when you can try delicious foods and drinks one after another without feeling bad about it. We fixed our own breakfast almost everyday and usually grabbed some lunch from the food trucks in Manhattan. Best dinner places for our taste and price range were in Brooklyn. Also Williamsburg was full of small cool bars where we ended most of our days.

First but not last ice creams

Calzone in Little Italy

Delicious brunch

Brunch drinks

Food Market in Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Brooklyn Brewery Tour

Shopping

When you travel to New York you have high expectations about the shopping experience. We spend few afternoons looking through mainstream stores in Soho and other parts of Manhattan and did some decent findings too. But my absolute favorite kind of shopping experience was the Brooklyn flea market on Sunday morning. I didn't even buy anything for myself but loved looking through the antiques and second hand clothes.

The guys found themselves some cool jackets.

Yes, these are real pieces of the American flag. 

Brooklyn 

Like I mentioned before this was already my fourth time visiting NY. I love Manhattan and there is so much to see there but still I can't believe I never crossed the bridge before to see what's in Brooklyn. It was a perfect decision to get a place to crash from there this time. Brooklyn was a perfect place to escape the rush of Manhattan every night. Somedays we didn't even go to Manhattan since there was so much to see around us.

One thing we all wanted to experience was a rooftop bar with a nice view of the city. We had googled a nice bar in Manhattan and decided to check it out. This had been one of the least expensive options so I was sure we can just walk in and enjoy the view. This was not the case at all. We did find the place but when the bouncer saw us he looked at us from head to toe and shook his head. It turned the brand new sneakers the guys were wearing were not fancy enough for the place and we left without a view pretty disappointed.

Once again Brooklyn turned out to be the place for us. We googled rooftops from there and found this cool and hip bar at the top of a hotel with a view that you can see in the picture below. They had no dress code and even the drinks were reasonably priced. The picture does not do justice to the view that was breathtaking. We <3 Brooklyn

Holiday mood

All five of us had deserved this break from everything and at least for me NY delivered just what I needed. After all the exams and stress in Canada I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than with some of my best friends in NY. We didn't stress too much about seeing everything on our list. It was more important to stop for a cold beer every once in a while and relax.

Central Park chilling

We love good beer ( and sometimes each other too)

There is no place like home and I'm happy to be back. But I definitely could have stayed just a little bit longer, few days, few weeks, few months? Thanks again New York, it seems like you will never disappoint me.