Friday, December 12, 2014

Christmas in New York

Rainy, cold, crowded, walking, exciting, fun, delicious, beautiful, nostalgic, smaller, loving. 
Those are all words I would describe our weekend in New York. 
It was so much fun! 
 I see the city from the air and I get a little emotional. 
No matter that I've lived in Texas for 35 years, it's still home. I got goose bumps. 



 We arrived Thursday evening and our son met us at our hotel. 
I have missed him.
We were hungry so we set out on a walking tour trying to find something to eat.



We came across a cute little restaurant. It looked like a movie set and was reportedly John Gotti's favorite. 
The food was fantastic.
After dinner we stopped for coffee and a pastry. 
I didn't care about the coffee so I had an eclair. 
This shop has the prettiest pastries I've ever seen.



The name of the shop is Ferrara Bakery and Cafe. It has been in business since 1892 and has been owned and operated by five generations of the same family. 
It is worth the trip down to Little Italy! 
Around the corner is a darling Christmas shop.


We felt right at home.  

The next morning we headed out to see the girl.


 I always get a little emotional looking at her. 
I haven't been out the the monument since I was four.
Back in the old days you could climb the spiral stairs to the crown. My family and I were headed up until I got a panic attack and started freaking out. My poor mother had to take me back down. To this day I get panicky at ascending spiral climbs.



The 3-4 hour tour includes Ellis Island. 



The views of the new World Trade Center were amazing!




After lunch we went to the 911 memorial site.



We were exhausted so we headed to Brooklyn to see my son's apartment. It was fun to see where he is living. We took a walk around his neighborhood. 
A quick photo uploaded to Facebook during dinner showed all the other moms that all the fellow transplants are fairing well.



On Saturday we headed to see my son's work and do some shopping for winter clothes. 



At some point it started drizzling and it rained the rest of the day. But we (I) was determined and continued midtown to see the tree at Rockefeller Center.



It was much smaller than I remember but it was gorgeous. 
The store window displays were amazing.



On Sunday we met up with my niece. 
She also just moved to New York last winter.
We ate brunch at Cafe Lalo which was used in the movie,"You've Got Mail."
It is adorable.



Elizabeth took us to flea market. There were some great booths. GreenFlea has been around for 25 years and is one of the best know flea markets in New York City. I found a few cute things that I'll show in another post.

It was time to head to the Queen Plaza subway station to ride the Nostalgia Trains.







It was one of my favorite things about the trip. So fun. 
My dad commuted to NYC every day so this was very nostalgic for me. 
We made a quick stop to Times Square.



It wouldn't be a trip to New York without visiting China Town. 
We had Dim sum at Jing Fong that night for dinner.



Monday morning we walked from the hotel to the Washington Square Arch.



We walked along Houston Street and did some shopping.

I had to go back to Ferraras one more time for a last little bite of New York cheesecake. 
I'm thinking of having some shipped to myself. :)



We said our good-byes for now. Chris will be home in two weeks for Christmas.  




There is so much more to do and see. 
Hopefully, I'll be back to New York in the spring!
Katie  
Linking with,
Between Naps on the Porch 
A Stroll Thru Life  
Savvy Southern Style  
French Country Cottage 


  

  

4 comments :

  1. Sounds like you had a great visit, Katie, and that the dreary weather didn't stop you. It must be something to come back "home" after all these years. Glad you had such a great visit with your son! I loved your story about "the girl." And you taught me a few things - I've never been to the flea market, nor have I seen the Nostalgia Trains. The tree this year at Rock Center looked smaller to me, too, but I've only seen it with it's scaffolding on. Hopefully if you go back in spring, you'll have fabulous weather!

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  2. Hi Katie! Oh my goodness, what a tour. Your photos are wonderful and I loved hearing all the details of what you saw (and ate!). Sounds like a magical time!

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  3. What a wonderful trip down memory lane for you, Katie! It sounds like such fun and I'm sure the highlight was your visit with your son who lives so far away. Thanks for sharing your wonderful photos and commentary of the landmarks in NYC!

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  4. Nice pictures! We were in NYC for Christmas about 10 years ago and there was a blizzard! It was great to see it all lit up and the store displays. Now I want to go back again. Ferrara's is the best!

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