This is a very delayed post, but I will recap the fun I had in NYC nonetheless.

Since planning my trip to Montreal, I had intentions to travel to New York, but nothing was set in stone. However, once I arrived, Porters' Airlines had a sale and I was able to get a flight from New York to Toronto for $75 Cad where my final flight out would be. I knew it wouldn't be hard to find a way to NYC from Montreal and I ended up training with Amtrac after finding out of a sweet deal ($63!) during a divine appointment in residence.

During this trip, my friends and I bought the NYC city pass as it was all of our first times in this city that never sleeps. It's a great deal if you do hit up all the places on this pass, but be sure to figure out your itinerary ahead of time as to not waste any time the day of and plan for indoor attractions in case unplanned situations arises (we had to move around our plans during the week due to unexpected fatigue and rain showers). However, I don't recommend getting this pass because even though it sounds like a good deal, we found out that 2/3 museums' admission was by donation and we could've saved money if we knew ahead of time (the pass factors in the recommended admission prices for the museums when you can pay less then that). Also, we were burnt out one day so we didn't end up going to the Top of the Rock/ Guggenheim Museum.

In terms or transportation, we bought the one week unlimited subway and bus pass for $29 which is a steal. You can easily buy it at any subway station once you arrive in NYC. There are also deals for shorter and longer stays as well.

Day 1

We had a friend that was interning in Brooklyn so we took the day to check her crib out and take photos with the Brooklyn Bridge. As this was a mini reunion of us since meeting in Korea, we just took it easy and caught up on lovely memories. We did line up over an hour to get into Grimaldi's pizzeria which is located under the famous bridge. It was a long and almost wet wait, but the pizza was so worth it! Simple flavours made to perfection. Simplicity at its best.
  
Day 2 

It didn't feel like I was in the overrated and hyped up "New York" until I stepped foot in Manhatten's Time Square today. I now understand why HK is called the New York of Asia, because the saying works perfectly vice versa as well. Tall buildings, giant signs, bright lights, mobs of tourists, and great street eats makes this city what it is known for. To be honest, I didn't like this area as it was too touristy for me and I wasn't interested in any of the stores as most of them were your typical chain stores or souvenir shops. Our wonderful friend who hosted us introduced us to Shake Shack, similar to the In & Out fresh fast food burger & milk shake joint of the American West coast. I thought it was better in my opinion having tried their veggie burger with a portabella mushroom cheese-infused patty.

We headed to SOHO after, a district of off-the-runway designer boutiques, vintage/rebuy designer shops, local boutiques, chain shopping stores, street table sellers and cafes. It's a great shopping area that caters to all budgets and I love the versatility and abundance of selection in this area. I didn't buy very much as to save the tax from stores Edmonton has, but jewelry shopping from the street sellers brought smiles to my face. I love jewelry if you didn't know that =) We also got make overs in Benefit. We got lured in having had answered a riddle outside their  door, but we couldn't say no to free make overs by a lovely professional who knew her products extremely well. I never knew how good Benefit was until today and I ended up getting an eye brightener  (OOlala Lift) for under your eye which works wonders!

Also, the popular cupcake store Georgetown Cupcakes from DC, Washington just opened here too, so be sure to find it when your in SOHO. 
 
That night as we headed downtown for dinner, we cut through Grand Central Terminal and snapped a photo as it was a popular subway station. Next, we headed to a El Rio Grande,  a Tex Mex restaurant where I had my most delicious mexican cravings satisfied! Guacamole was made fresh in front of us and my favorite has got to be the steak nachos (chunks of steaks on top of a cheesy nacho!!). My friend's mom works here so we were blessed to be treated, but I highly recommend going here.

Day 3

Started the day at the Wicked broadway theater in Time Square before it opened so that we could buy discounted student tickets. Tickets for the day of were all sold out, but we were lucky to get enough for the next day (one student ID allows you to buy two tickets, $66.25 each). Also, Wicked is highly popular, but for every other broadway show, there are student rush tickets which are even cheaper (tickets sold on the day of or for the next day to students if there are any left and I believe its only one/student).

Next we headed to Chinatown which is very close to SOHO. Chinatown itself is a tourist attraction because of the amount of tourists that are in this area. As a result, Chinatown (and little Italy close by) sells a lot of knock offs, souvenirs, and novelties to attract tourists to the area. 

We also had reserved spots (reserve online the day before (free admission)) to check out the National September 11 Memorial. Ground zero is now remade to recognize all those victims who lost their lives due to the terrorist attack. The memorial is still in the making, but everything was finished minus the museum. Its a peaceful and pleasant place to spend time in and I would recommend having a picnic here if it is allowed.

Day 4

Slept in due to the buildup of fatigue and headed to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMa), consisting of six floors of exhibits and art ranging from Picasso to modern sculptures. We spent three hours here, but if you really enjoy art and have the patience to look at everything with detail,  you can spend a whole day here (one of my friends took six hours).  I've seen a lot of art museums, but this one really tops all the other one. Its very interesting and worth the admission price of $14 for student (though our city pass covered it).


We went to Bryant Park (celebrities usually perform here and fashion week is hosted here as well) after and ate at a restaurant (Bryant Park Grill, go figures right?) located here which was quite fancy. We were blessed to be treated again due to connections through my friend's mom and it was delicious and fine dining at its best. I love how the food was plated and it was nice to be able to dress up with the girls and enjoy our meal before our long awaited Broadway show. 

Verdict: Wicked is not overrated, it is A M A Z I N G. You have to watch it at least once. Priceless.

Day 5 

Our day started so early today because we caught the earliest ferry at 8:30am to explore Liberty and Ellis Island as part of our city pass. To be honest, other than a photo at Liberty Island, there isn't much to do here. What's neat is that they're building an elevator to the top of the Statue of Liberty so that you can see the view from up there. As for Ellis Island, this is where I had my history lesson from my American friends. It's an island where foreigners had to be situated in before immigrating to the states as they would get their health checked, identity confirmed, and other things done legally before landing in the states officially. Though, it doesn't take much time to explore the building and my two friends and I had more of a bonding time over some insightful conversations here more than anything.

Went to Greenwich, a hipster/artsy area known for their cafes and boutiques for lunch. We stumbled upon The Path Cafe and were filled with their hearty brunch and lunch menus. Their paninis are exceptional and large in size and the atmosphere was small, but cozy. At night, they have musicians come and play music for their customers too.

To appeal to me, my friends and I headed to Fashion Institute of Technology and we got to check out their present collection of garments on display. It's free to the public, but it wasn't as interesting as the Barbie exhibit put on my the graduating class of 2012. Barbie was dressed in outfits made from recyclable materials and was presented in a fun and playful environment with a huge pop of pink.

Last exploration for the day was Korea Way, aka Korea Town where we walked down memory lane and explored eateries and shops that was too familiar to us. 

Day 6

Today was our museum day and to finish off what was on our city pass as there was rain showers for most of the day. We started with the American Museum of Natural History which showcased everything from dinosaur fossils, to tribal sculptures, space knowledge, and artifacts from different countries and cultures. It was really neat and a very kid friendly environment as you will sight many families here. Note: Eat before coming here or expect to pay for overpriced and average American food here that is not worth it like we did. This museum was very engaging and very educational despite the ridiculous food prices.

The last museum we hit up  after walking through the infamous Central Park was the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art. This museum was very themed in cultural and geographical regions. There were tombs and historic mummies from the Egyptian era to Asian art pieces and European structures that focused on the body.

After our last Korean dinner in Flushing, an area heavily populated by all kinds of Asians and where you would find possibly every Asian franchise and Asian place you miss from Asia to end off our NYC reunion, we hit up the Empire State building to get one last look of the city. The view was beautiful with all the buildings lighted up and it was a great way to wrap up our trip.


Overall, NYC was a very sweet and satisfying trip. Next time I would definitely hit more local places up and take things slower.