NYC Day 3 & 4. This is a long one! I wondered whether to split this into two separate blog posts because I did so many things both days but I decided against and now I’m unsure. Anyway, I’m surprised I’m not absolutely exhausted by now, I have done so many different things and I am not stopping yet. Day 3. Again, up early and out grabbing some breakfast and coffee before another day of exploring. This morning’s breakfast I decided to check out the famous NYC bagels and they did not disappoint. I stuck to something fairly simple and what I know, so a simple toasted cinnamon and raisin bagel with cream cheese did me perfect and it was so lush.

First stop was Radio City Music Hall. On my NY CityPass I managed to get free entry to loads of different attractions so I spent the night before checking out some more of what was on offer and putting a bit of a plan together for today. I did a tour of Radio City Music Hall and it was so mesmerising, so many amazing things that you don’t normally imagine or get to see and they were right in front of me. I was super fortunate on my tour to not only get to see some of the backstage areas like the rehearsal areas and dance studios, but also got to meet one of The Rockettes. I’m not really a starstruck person or anything but she was super interesting, she spoke about what they do, how they train, how many performances they do and how they perfect some of their signature moves which are shown as part of their performances at Radio City each Christmas. I had a really great time and again, was just loving being state side exploring.

Next stop was Top of the Rockefeller. This was something that I was super keen to do, particularly in the daytime as it gives one of the top views of the city, including the Empire State Building. Whilst I was waiting for my entrance time I had a quick look at St Patrick’s Cathedral and the surrounding areas. I went back at my time slot and queued up (for much longer this time!) to get through security and into the lift to the Top of the Rock. I stepped out of the lift and round the corner memorised by the view in front of me. It was exhilarating, I felt on top of the world. One of my favourite pictures of my whole trip is below, this was my view when I stepped onto the outside viewing area, I had the Empire State Building directly in front of me being the main character of my photo, as well as the entire Midtown and Downtown beyond, with you being able to just about see the Statue of Liberty in the distance. For me, this picture was New York. To the other side of the viewing area there were incredible views of Central Park, and what really fascinated me with this was the clear cut lines which made it fit so perfectly amongst the concrete jungle. it also really displayed the sheer scale of Manhattan. I sat up here looking out for a long time. I really didn’t want to leave the views and had taken so many photos with both my memory and phone.

Next stop (no rest here) was Madison Square Garden for another tour. This was I was super excited about. It was a group tour with the chance to see backstage and different parts of the arena, and I think this was one of the highlights as well (there were too many to count), but it was super fascinating to see and hear about all these different things. I think by this point I was getting tired, so I decided to do the Rise NY experience. It was right by my hotel and some light-hearted entertainment and filled some time, that didn’t require too much thinking or doing, before dinner and my final Broadway performance of the trip. It was actually a really good experience. it was very immersive and spent time focusing on the history of NYC right through to do and included a ride (I use the term loosely) at the end of it, but it was a really great concept that they used. Without too many spoilers, it was framed around New Years Eve in New York and it gave you a front seat view to the ball drop, and flying through the sky to see all of the celebrations and highlights of NYC. I did get a little goose bumpy and emotional towards the end, one thing I would love to do if I was to return to New York, would be to experience Christmas and New Year here. I think as well after seeing Radio City Hall earlier today and meeting one of The Rockettes, this cemented it a bit more me too.

Anyway, after Rise NY, it was time for some food. Tonight I went to Olive Garden for dinner. I knew it was a chain restaurant but it did not disappoint, although the food servings for one would typically be for at least 3 people in my eyes. I had salad and breadsticks first, which were divine, and then my main was a trio of Italian foods; Chicken Parmigiana, Lasagna Classico and Fettuccine Alfredo. it tasted incredible but there was just too much food for me. Well done Olive Garden on your tasty dishes though. After dinner I was off to see Wicked! This is one of my fave musicals, I have probably seen it around 4 times in the West End so knew it was a must on Broadway as well. I had an amazing seat for this performance, again, a pretty cheap steal as I just popped to the box office earlier in the day and asked if they had any spare seats. Winning. I am so glad I did too, the performance was incredible.

Day 4! I’m still not over how this is the penultimate day of my trip. I feel like the time has gone way too fast. I did however book the last flight out of NY coming home so I could try and curb the jet lag as much as possible on return to the UK, knowing I was heading straight back to work. this did mean that I had a little while longer to explore. First stop today (after coffee) was Battery Park and Liberty Island. I came here on my trip to NY back in 2014, but even still it still felt so different, especially coming back solo. One of my fave pics of my boat trip over to Liberty Island is below, you can see so much of the city line with Lady Liberty the highlight at the front. I took some close up snaps of the Statue too and was super eager to book a tour to go higher up (it could have been a very impulsive, and expensive decision). However, I had to decide against purely as there was so much more I wanted to see and do before heading out of the city tomorrow (you’ll hear about my last day in a separate post). So after having a wander round, reading up a bit about it, remembering the scene from ‘Spiderman: No Way Home’, and grabbing a drink, I headed back on the boat back to shore. I was contemplating doing Staten and Ellis Islands as well but I had been to them before and they weren’t entirely my thing, so figured I’d utilise my time wisely and continue my journey exploring Manhattan.

I had, but this time, done most of my ‘Must Do’s’ at this end of Manhattan, so headed back up to Midtown to Grand Central Station. I came here last time but I think it is a must do on every trip for anyone. it is so stunning and the art inside is just mesmerising. Again, I think back to some films where scenes are filmed here, or use the concept on Grand Central Station and just imagine it happening around me. I stood on the stairs and just watched for about 10mins (I like just watching) and the sheer number of people crossing the station, walking up and down and around, etc. was fascinating. Surely one of the busiest stations in the world. I took some photos (how could you not), and had a wander round and familiarised myself with where I had to go to get the train tomorrow as well (more on that then) so I wasn’t rushing around in the morning, before heading to my next stop on my adventure!

I knew I had to do some shopping whilst I was here. I was eyeing up some trainers before I left the UK which were only available in the US so had to try and get them whilst I was here, as well as some other bits requested by friends and family. I started at Macy’s. One of the biggest department stores in the world. I got so lost as I was wandering around trying to find different bits and pieces. First up was there signature selection where all the Macy’s branded items were, as it was coming up to Christmas I knew I had to get my Christmas obsessed friend some decorations for her tree, so I had a look around and picked a couple I thought she might like before FaceTiming here just to confirm, and that was this stop down. Next stop was some of the surrounding shops (mainly the trainer ones) to find some goodies for me. I found a few pairs I really liked so got them, and also grabbed some for a friend as well that were super cheap compared to the UK (at this point I was really glad I packed light as I was definitely bringing home more than anticipated). Finally, Bloomingdales. My mum loves the original ‘Little Brown Bag’ from there and got one on her last trip to NY but saw that there was loads of new ones, so I had to pick her up one and got her the matching coin purse too. I picked up a couple of bits for her friend and some others there too and then dropped it all back to my hotel before heading back out again.

By this point, I was so glad I got a 7-day MetroCard with unlimited travel because I was going back and forth a bit. I headed back up towards Central Park as my next stop. I start to wander around Central Park and realised pretty swiftly that after an hour or so of walking, I hadn’t got very far and really did need to make a bit of a plan before I carried on any further. I didn’t really want to see anything in particular as I had been to Central Park on my previous trip, I I wanted to go to the Zoo but had to tell myself that I really didn’t have enough time so walked up towards one of the lakes and hangout there people watching for a bit before coming out a little while after on the opposite(ish) side and heading for coffee (because one a day isn’t enough). It was such a beautiful day and I was so lucky with the weather for my entire trip so I walked back to my accommodation, taking in all the views en route and stopping if I wanted to, and when walking back, noticed Madame Tussauds and also knew that it was included in my NY CityPass so stopped in for some more lighthearted entertainment. This took a little bit of a time away from feeling like my feet were going to fall off before heading to dinner for a much needed sit down and fizzy beverage.

My last stop of the day was the Empire State Building. This was the only viewing platform I booked for nighttime and I am so glad I did. The city that never sleeps sure does look pretty at night. After dinner I wandered over and joined the queue to get through security (quickest yet) and there was so many cool things to look at and read before you even got to the lifts! It was like a whole experience. I eventually made it to the lifts and headed up to the top, and when I stepped outside I couldn’t believe my eyes. It’s like my mouth dropped and my eyes felt a little watery. It looked stunning. You could see lights for miles and with he 360° views it was one of my absolute highlights of the trip. You could see Times Square and it was completely lit up and you could even hear the atmosphere from so high up. I didn’t want to come down but because I booked one of the later slots, I only had about an hour or so up here before it was closing and had to make my way to ground level. I walked back after and just took in all of the nighttime around me, taking photos whenever possible and just admiring what was around me. When I got back to Times Square where I was staying all of the lights and music and billboards just filled me with joy and I knew I wasn’t ready for this trip to end, but it had to tomorrow, so I’ll see you then for my last day and final blog post of this trip pending tomorrow.