new york.

ok so i got back from new york last monday.

let me just say,

it was literally one of the best trips i've ever been on!

it was seriously so much fun.

i did not want to leave.

(this is a REAALLY long post by the way)

here's how my trip went:

thursday:

we left phoenix in the afternoon.

i sat next to some french new yorker.

his accent was cool.

2 hours into the trip, maple came to my seat & got me.

his dad had an open seat so his mom sat there & i sat in her seat.

maple & i talked for a bit then watched juno.

then about 2 hours later,

we landed in jfk.

it was 11pm.

it was sprinkling.

we deplaned & then went looking for a taxi.

our taxi driver was a crazy driver.

we got dropped off at our hotel & got settled in.

then we headed out to the city to get some food!

we ended up at this restaurant in time square called roxy.

we both ordered sandwiches that were so HUGE! i repeat HUGE.

it was overwhelming.

they could have fed 20 people.

it was still sprinkling & my juicy pants were too long so they were soaked.

it was not fun.

then we saw a walgreens close to our hotel & had to go there to get maple a bed.

our hotel room only had 2 beds.. one for his parents & one for me! haha

we got him an air mattress. (poor maple!)

the walgreens was crazy.. it was 3 stories!!

so then we all went to bed.

friday:

we got up kinda early.. not too early but early for us since we are 2 hours behind.

we got ready & headed out to see the rockette's show at radio city.

we stopped at this stand at the corner & got breakfast new york style.. quick!

my plain bagel with cream cheese was delicious!

the rockette show was so much fun.

it really got us in the christmas spirit.

if you ever have the chance, you should see it.

it was really neat.

then we walked around the city.

we walked to rockefeller center & down 5th ave where all the high end shopping is.

when we were walking, this black guy yells at maple (talking about me) and said:

guy: DAAAAAAAAANG (but not dang.)

man, you hit the JACKPOT!!!

don't you F that up! (not F.. the actual F word!)

don't you be cheatin' on her!

haha it was hilarious!

it was pretty flattering i must say.

we ended up walking to central park & we went to the brand new apple store.

oh my! that was awesome.

it is made out of all glass.

freakin sick right!

then we went into the toy store fao schwartz & looked around.

after that, we walked into the plaza hotel.

that hotel is awesome.

um so i had the smart idea of wearing heels.

not good. with all the walking around we did,

i was dying.

luckily i have a great bf who was my "shock absorber" & even tried to carry me which i refused.

we went back to times square to try and get tickets to a broadway show and to get lunch.

we of course had to eat pizza.

it was delicious.
then maple, his mom & i went into the m&m store & the hershey store.
it was amazing!!!
i've never seen so much candy in my life.

then we met up with maple's dad & we all went to our hotel & relaxed.

maple's dad had bought us some french pastery so we ate that & napped.

then we got ready & went to out to eat at the hard rock cafe & then finian's rainbow.

i was smart & wore my boots this time.

i had no idea was this play was but maple's mom really wanted to see it so we did.

it was actually really good.

i enjoyed it.

after like 2 hours of the play,

we headed over to the empire state building & went to the top.

that was pretty nerve racking since i HATE heights but it was amazing.

it was freeeeezing at the observation deck so we didn't stay out there too long.

(in the lobby)

(from the observation deck!)

after empire, we looked at the macy's windows & we decided to get dessert.. cheesecake of course.

we ended up at roxy again because it was one of the only places open.

cheesecake was delicious!

then we went back to our hotel & watched movies that were on tv & fell asleep.

saturday:
we woke up kinda late but that's because we stayed up super late.
we all got ready & headed out.
we bought tickets for a bus tour so we decided to ride around new york city.
we got off at the world trade center stop.
you couldn't see any of the rubble or anything.
they are actually building new towers so it was all construction.
there were a lot of people standing around yelling about their conspiracy theories.
it was quite interesting.
it was a lot different then when i went there RIGHT after 9/11.
when i went, you could still see the ashes & rubble.
they were still cleaning up too.
well, maple was obsessed with eating chipotle in nyc.
however, we didn't find one close by.
so we got back on our bus & took it to south street seaport.
we were starving so we just got off there & ate at this pub.
it was ok.
after our bellies were full, we got back on our bus & went back to the hotel.

(on the lovely bus)

on our way back, we stopped at a bakery & tried a black & white cookie.
later on, maple's parents went to a broadway show while he & i went on a date.
we decided (weeks ago) that we wanted to go to serendipity & kinda reinact the movie.
so walk to serendipity which is like a mile from our hotel.
we put our name on the list & they tell us to come back in an hour.
okay. so we decide to go to bloomingdale's (like from serendipity movie)
bloomingdale's was closed so we just looked at it.

we still have plenty of time to kill so we walked around trying to find a chase bank for me.
luckily in nyc, there is one on every corner.
then we were walking back to serenpidity & we spotted this cool looking candy store.
it was open so we just had to go in.
this candy store was awesome.
it was 3 levels of deliciousness.
we walked out with $30 of candy but it was worth it!

(i didn't take these pics! it was too crowded in the store!)

then we walked back to serendipity.
we still had to wait forever.
so like an hour after we were told to come back, we finally got sat!

we were kinda hungry so we both ordered chicken noodle soup.
while we were waiting for our food,
maple barely hit his glass & his drink spilled all over the table.
it was bad.
but the funny thing is, his glass completely broke.
it was weird.
the service at serendipity was awful.
they didn't even get maple a new drink.
we had to ask twice.
our soup hit the spot since we were cold but we had to order the frozen hot chocolate that they are famous for.
it was literally delicious.
my taste buds were having a field day.

after that, we went back to the hotel & called it a night.
it was the best date ever.
it was a fun way to celebrate our long "3 weeks" of officially dating each other.

sunday:
maple's mom & dad got up early & brought us back tim horton donuts.
umm.. i had no idea what tim hortons was.
i guess it's this awesome donut place in canada.
anyway, they have some in the usa so his family was happy.
to be honest, i thought the donuts were so good & better.. yes, i said better than krispy kreme/dunkin donuts. hmmm. they were so yummy. i could go for some right now.
yeah so we scarfed those down & then went on our bus tour thing again.

(empire state during the day!)
we decided to check our canal st & then go to little italy.
in little italy, we ate lunch at this place called lombardi's.
we ordered pizza of course.
it was literally to die for!
i loved it.

after lunch, we went into a bakery to get cannolis because maple hasn't ever tried one.
then we were walking back to canal st.
haha another funny story:
so maple & i were walking & we have all these people yelling things they are selling.
this one guy said to us, we've got engagement rings for you guys.
i looked at the guy & said.. that's my brother!!!
 haha he was like oh im so sorry! haha
it was hilarious. maple & i were laughing hysterically.
then we got to our bus stop & had to wait forever in the cold for the dang bus.
we finally get to our bus stop & go into the abc store & then the nhl store.
next we get to our hotel & relax for a little bit.

then maple, me & his mom went to macy's.
we decided to check it out because it's supposed to be gigantic.
well... it was & it was overwhelming.
it was 9 stories & a square block.
we just went up all the 9 floors & then walked around a little bit.
we were just being dorks & taking random pics.

in macy's, they have these wooden escalators that were made by the scandinavians in the early 1900's i believe. it was cool because it made me wonder if some of my ancestors helped make them.

after macy's, we went to tim horton's again & got some hot chocolate & some donuts for maple & i.
awhh tim horton's is delicious.
we met up with maple's dad & we all walked to central park for a carriage ride.
on the way there, maple saw this "love" thing on a street corner so we wanted our picture with it.

so cute, right?!
ok so we finally got to the carriage ride.
that was so fun.

after our fun ride, we made our way to the mahattan temple!
that was so neat.
it was weird seeing one of the temples be attached to other buildings but it was still really awesome.
people say that you can't wear the noise of the city in the temple.
i find that hard to believe but i think that's amazing!

it was lovely to see the temple!! i can't wait to go inside some day.

we were starving after the temple & the places we wanted to go were closed.
therefore, we ate at roxy once again.
they gave us our usual table & everything.
i ordered french toast.
it was yummy.
then we went back to the hotel & ate our cannolis & packed our bags.

monday:
we woke up bright & early & left the city that never sleeps.
i was devastated to leave.
i did not want to go.
but it was an amazing trip to say the least!
i'll never forget the fun memories that were created.