New York City 2014: Sunday

Sunday was our last day in New York.  We started the day by packing up and heading to the 9/11 Memorial.

I was very impressed with the memorial.  It really is beautiful.

One thing I was really impressed with was how much history they tied into the memorial.  They put so much together so beautifully. It wasn't just a beautiful fountain -- the memorial really preserved the stories of that day.

After leaving the 9/11 memorial, we went to Wall Street, ate some street food, and ate at Serendipity. 

Clayton was in heaven with the desserts at Serendipity.

We shared these among the six of us, don't worry!

Serendipity put a sweet ending on the trip.  We headed to our hotel, picked up our bags, and flew home.  Clayton came home the next day, because he used a free flight voucher.

All in all, our trip was a great success!  We were so glad to have friends to travel with -- it definitely made for a lot more fun!

New York City 2014: Saturday

Saturday

Saturday morning, we woke up and headed to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Oh. my. gosh!

I loved the Met!

I knew we were only going to have a little bit of time here, so I made my time count.  I went straight to the impressionist artists, because they are my favorite.

We only saw a small fraction of artwork that the museum has, but it truly is amazing.  I could have spent a lot more time here!

After the Met, we took a walk through Central Park.  I can see how great this park must be in the Spring/Summer/Fall.  I was also so envious with how many runners there were!  I would love to be a part of that running community!

Next, we headed to the Carnegie Deli for lunch.  Dana & Steve had some friends who came in town to visit them, and this is where we met them.  If you love big, meaty, sandwiches, this is your place.  I think I should have just saved all of my stomach space for the cheesecake.  Yum!

This actually isn't the sandwich Clayton and I ordered, but it shows you the size.  Whoa.

We headed back to Chinatown & did a little bit of window shopping.  Those type of places aren't really my scene, but it was still fun.

Then we headed back to Times Square, went to Rockefeller Center (surprisingly small!), ate dinner at an overpriced/not very good restaurant, and then won tickets to see Newsies!  Newsies was a great show!  I loved the movie growing up, and the play was just as great!  The theater for this show was by far the worst theater, and the seats were crummy, but the show itself was great.

Clayton says this was his favorite of the three shows.  I love the songs and thought that the acting was terrific.  He has been listening to this soundtrack since we got home -- and we've been home for over a month!  :)

New York City 2014: Friday

FYI, these fancy photos are from Weston's camera...not mine.  You will be able to tell the difference between the two cameras. :) I have got to save up for a better camera.  It is right up on the top of my wants list, along with a new bike.  Too bad they're both pricey!

Friday

On Friday, Laurie and Weston joined us. 

 
We started the day by going to the Statue of Liberty.  I was very surprised at how large the statue is.  It always seemed so small on TV, but in person it is quite a statue! 

Since it is on an island, and it was very cold outside, that part of the trip was not my favorite, because I was so cold, but I did enjoy seeing it!  Obviously, Clayton had no problem with the cold. :)

After the Statue of Liberty, we went to lunch at Grimaldi's pizza.  Each couple ordered a pizza (way too much pizza, if you ask me!) and enjoyed the warmth as we ate. 



I love pizza, and I loved Grimaldi's!  Mark and Libby recommended a different pizza place that we'll have to try the next time we go to New York.  After Grimaldi's, we were all so tired that we decided to go to our hotel and take a nap.  What was supposed to be a 30 minute nap turned into a (much needed) 3 hour nap.

After our nap, we were supposed to go to the Museum of Modern Art, but didn't have a lot of time, so we grabbed a quick dinner and headed to Aladdin.  Aladdin had just opened for the first time (ever) the previous Wednesday. 

The show itself wasn't my favorite, but the theater for Aladdin was by far my favorite -- it had a lot of character.  I also LOVED the costumes in this show.  They were gorgeous.  In one of the scenes, they are tap dancing in glittering costumes -- it was just amazing.

New York City 2014: Wednesday-Thursday

At the beginning of the month, Clayton and I took a trip to New York City.  We went with Dana & Steve and their good friends, Laurie & Weston.

Wednesday

We got there Wednesday night and trekked our way from the airport down to Chinatown where our hotel was.  This was my first time riding a subway, and I thought it was awesome.  I know that sounds so dumb, but I felt so independent hopping on the subway and being able to go wherever I wanted.  It was freezing cold, and I was still in my flats from work, but it gave us a good taste for how the weather would be for the next four days.

Thursday

Thursday morning, we got up and discovered that our hotel had the best continental breakfast.  We stocked up and headed out to go see some miscellaneous sights.  We hadn't really planned the day, so we just went. 



We started the day by going to Washington Square Park, seeing the Flatiron building, and eating lunch at Shake Shack.


I can see why there are so many of these around the city.  Combine yum and cheap, and you've got yourself a business!  I'm not a big burger person, but these hit the spot.

After Shake Shack, we went down to Times Square and walked around.  Times Square is definitely different than suburban Utah.

While we were down there, we got asked to go to a taping of the Late Show with David Letterman.  






After this, we went to try to win tickets to Wicked.  We lucked out and Steve won 2 tickets.  We decided to switch seats half way through so that we could sit up front for part of the show and back for part of the show.   Doing it that way was really unique.  We were able to see the set and scenery as a whole, but also see all the actors up close.

I was really cold for the majority of this show, which also affected the experience (are you noticing a trend here?), but I loved the show.  I had heard the music, and knew the basics of the story, but not the ending.

After the show, we grabbed some hot cocoa and headed back to our hotel!

MINNESOTA

MINNESOTA BUCKET LIST

We are going to Minnesota in ten days.

A small part of me is nervous because that means I have about 2.5 weeks of working time to get ready for the school year.  Most of me is beyond excited.

First off, my whole family will be in town.  Secondly, I love Minnesota.  So, I decided to make a Minnesota bucket list.  I don't expect to accomplish ALL of these things, but hopefully a good chunk of them.

1.) Learn to get up on one ski (I'm the only one in the family who hasn't done [or tried] this, and I want to change that).