Beyond Rose

Big city, tall buildings, bright city lights, street art, melting pot, monuments.. what isn’t there to love in New York City? I’ve always dreamt of visiting the east side of America. New York is known for its own distinctive vibe that would never be considered an environment similar to Washington state, Hawaii, Texas or Florida. The atmosphere felt.. busy (even during this COVID pandemic).

Within the three days I’ve visited, I encountered many fantastic sites at a low expense. Below, I will go into greater detail towards activities I am more fond of. A summarized itinerary will be provided. So if you’d like to skip the deets and get to the generic site list and numerical outlook continue to read on and skip to the bottom.

People involved on the trip: Myself, my boyfriend, brother and sister-in-law.

Ironically, this idea became surreal once we Facetime’d to look up flights and ended up having the same dinner. The unplanned and unexpected mac & cheese dinner. 
Synchronicity?! 100% 

On November 6, 2021, we caught a flight from SEATAC airport departing 7:30 AM PST arriving in NEWARK airport about 4-5 PM EST. We had only 3 days to explore, no itinerary was set before departure. Although, we were mindful of the must-sees (such as Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Empire State Building and more). Each person on this trip completed a bit of their own research. Once we all got together and grasped how much we wanted to see, a plan was created.

We strategically devised a schedule according to:

• busy/peak times
• preference of daylight or night
• convenience/proximity
• and order of importance

The first day was a cool experience because the MMA fight took place in NY. We did not watch the fight at the venue (because it would be too last-minute and at a high expense); but, it was fun to see commercial scenes (hot spots of New York) that were soon-to-be viewed in person!

An obvious group fave destination was Chinatown. Chinatown was established when the Chinese immigrants migrated to NY in the mid 1800’s. The first morning, we agreed to have breakfast and explore in Chinatown. Once we had a taste, we went there each day until we left NY. (‘:
Wonton Noodle Garden, a popular restaurant, has a house made hot chili oil- it a great kick of spice and delicious flavor paired with their appetizers and entrees. 
Mei Lai Wah specializes in sweet pork buns.. definitely a must visit for as low as $1.50 per bun. The price and convenience was incredible, so we ordered more to-go and paired it with wine at the next destination, Central Park.

As previously and briefly mentioned, the One World Observatory was visited. The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere! It was a thrill to grab a drink and enjoy the 42 mile-out view. The tour had an innovative tool (being the electronic iPad device). With this device, you can work at your own pace and learn about the history and great facts for over 30 sites surrounding. This pushed the group to visit more sites with history/background knowledge.

For example, another restaurant visited was Katz Delicatessen, known for their legendary pastrami and has been open for over 100+ years.

Overall, the trip consists a great balance of exercise and food. Walking (total of 32 miles and 57 flight of stairs) and food (let’s not forget about desserts). 

Additional Details | Sites, Food, Generic Data (listed):

Sites:

• Oculus
• Manhatten Bridge & Brooklyn Bridge
• Wall Street – The Bull
• Dumbo
• Times Square
• St Patrick’s Church
• Rockefeller / NBC Studios
• NY Library
• City hall park
• Twin towers 9/11 memorial + Survivor Tree
• Statue of Liberty
• Central Park

Food:

• ICONYC Brewery
• Top Quality (Mexican food)
• Lavera (pizza) *also a group favorite – rainbow sauce 😍
• Joe’s Pizza
• Timeout Market
• Empanada Mama
• St Patrick Irish Bar / near times Sq
• 230 Fifth Rooftop / view of Empire State Building
• Pocha (located in Korean Town)
• Bao Sugar
• Soft Swerve (froyo, ube + fruity pebbles)
• Cha cha matcha (matcha lemonade + matcha pumpkin spice iced latte)
• Malthouse

Each person spent around $600 (this includes, flight, food, alcohol, overnight stay, and sites). 

The trick with being in a big city with limited time and a competitive restaurant industry.. is to buy smaller portions (shared portions) versus splurging on one meal, that way, you have more to try!

Flights – $132.80 PP
Hostel – $164 PP (all four of us shared one dorm)
Airport shuttle bus (Seattle parking lot to airport) $73.11 (tip $6) TOTAL