Soul (food) searching in Harlem

I hope you all had as lovely an Independence day weekend as I did... 

After two weeks of spending time with family and friends, I am finally back in the city, and it feels wonderful (maybe not the heat, but certainly being back). 

This past week I had the privilege of seeing the city with fresh eyes thanks to the visit of a friend of mine. Since I never really visit the touristy parts of town while I'm here, it's nice to have an excuse ;). 

Thus, Saturday night found me in the heart of Harlem, right off of Malcolm X Boulevard. We went with one place in mind, Sylvia's Restaurant, which was highly recommended by people who should know.

125th street station tile art

So before I describe the experience, just imagine this playing in the background... because I'm cheesy like that and it's totally what was playing in my head as soon as I got above ground. 

Are you listening to it? Ok.... 

Urban Adventures: Yorkville

Hey there lovely readers :)

I hope you are all staying as warm and dry as I currently am. This morning was a completely different story. Just a testament to how much I love you all... but seriously, it was so FREAKIN COLD today and y'all should be grateful.... just saying... ;)

Due to popular demand, my adventuring today took me to Yorkville. As I hate to go exploring (or do anything, for that matter) by myself, I took my friend Mary, a.k.a. The 45 Queen along with me all the way up to 86th street. BTdubbs, if any of you ever feel like joining me as I explore, hit me up! I'm always looking for new adventuring buddies... :)

Sidenote: I'm currently listening to Ed Sheeran's new album and having a hard time waiting until Christmas to get it (because I'm one broke college student at the moment...). I've decided that Ed Sheeran is one of my newest favorite artists. He's basically a singing Ron Weasley... so what's not to love?Specifically, this song is a nice soundtrack to my post about today's adventure. You're welcome.

Anyways... We basically had no plan for today. I had not done any research about the area and neither had Mary. At first I was hating myself for not having a game plan in this miserable cold, but as you will soon read, we stumbled across things that we could never have planned. I love my city for that very reason. Here's the basic trajectory of our walk. We wandered just a little bit...

Our first major discovery after finding each other at the 86th street station (on the 4/5) was The Church of the Holy Trinity (#1). As I almost went to school for architecture, I'm a sucker for gems like this. These are the times that I envy the majority of NYC churchgoers (basically everyone that isn't Presbyterian like me) for the incredibly ornate buildings in which they are able to worship. Just look at this...

GAH. SO beautiful... 

From here we walked down 88th street, towards the water. Walking through this neighborhood, we came to the conclusion that it is best fit for established families (i.e. with no small children), and retirees. There were quite a few sports parks, but other than that, the only things we found in abundance were medical clinics and hair salons. We did, however, find a plethora of stunning views of the East River: 

And then what do you think we stumble upon next, but the mayor of New York's mansion. It is quite a sight, let me tell you... Mary and I thought at first that it was a cool random historical house right in the middle of the park (#2). But upon further inspection, we found a plaque clearly identifying the resident of the house. I walked around several times before I realized the level of security was not going to allow for a decent picture of the mansion. Basically, it's a gorgeous yellow colonial, and from what we could see from the one ground-level window we could access, deBlasio has an extensive library and a grand piano.

The park itself, in my opinion, prettier than central. It has a river-side walkway right over FDR drive, and it's a lot less crowded. The wind was worse near the water, hence, why I look like a babushka in the second picture (I should have brought a hat and gloves, but seeing as the only hat I own makes me look the the Swedish chef, I preferred to deal with the cold...).

At this point we were both pretty hungry. I had run out the door without so much as coffee that morning, and feeling a headache coming on as a result, I had to act quickly. This is where a quick Yelp search led us to the best bagel shop I have ever been to in my entire life in the city. Yes, it was that good. H&H Midtown Bagels East (#3). I had raisin-walnut cream cheese on an egg bagel, and Mary had vegi spread on an everything, but really, there are no bad choices here... And the line is out the door well into the afternoon for a good reason. (Budget: $10, est. expense: $6.50)

Mary, being a graffiti blogger wanted to check out a couple murals roughly 20 blocks uptown, and as I never pass up the opportunity to see one of the few forms of art I appreciate, grabbed a cab with her (ain't no way we were walking 20 more blocks at that point), and boy were we in for a treat (#4). Here are just a few of the many murals we found... also, isn't she pretty? :) 

Oh also, we found a really cool bridge/tunnel on our way back to the subway station, and inside, found some really neat/potentially dangerous icicles. There you go: solid proof of how cold it was.

And now I am safely back home drinking hot chocolate and eating more than a healthy amount of cheese on flat bread (when you haven't gone grocery shopping in 3 weeks, crazy food combos start to not be so crazy...). I am already looking forward to my next neighborhood review, and I have quite a few coffeehouse reviews that should have been posted a long time ago. Next up: Hell's Kitchen! 

~Keep it classy~

-H

P.S. for those of you with a burning desire to know what we both look like, here is a par-frozen pic:

Urban Adventures: Kips Bay

Hey there everyone!

I hope you are all having a fantastic week. The knowledge that Thanksgiving is just around the corner is really the only thing keeping me going through these next few weeks. Thanksgiving has always surpassed Christmas as my favorite holiday because I get to spend it with my enormous, loud, crazy, and flamboyant, Cuban-Venezuelan-Dutch family. As the family has grown, it is not uncommon for over 30 of us to all stay in a 3-bedroom house (hard to imagine, I know...). Unfortunately, I won't get to fly home to them this year, but I'm still looking forward to seeing the Macy's parade and making dinner with some of my school friends.

Tonight I was a bit restless... I had finished all the homework I could (i.e. all the homework I felt like doing) and there is only so much Netflix I can stomach in one semester, so I put on my walking boots, called up a friend, and headed to Midtown. A close inspection of both our wallets narrowed down our options considerably, so we decided to pick a direction, and just start walking.

I am always pleased when I am proved wrong about a neighborhood. I had heard from several people that the Murray Hill/Kips Bay area was a major bar-crawl scene and to avoid it after 11pm. What I found instead, was an refined and fascinating neighborhood complete with mysterious edifices and breathtaking views of Brooklyn. This was the general course of our walk:

There are dozens of gorgeous brownstones in the area... I dream of moving into one after I graduate. The streets are quiet just like the Financial District and are lined with oaks. It's as if someone cut and pasted a little bit of Brooklyn Heights in Manhattan. 

Then we came upon what looked like an enormous, abandoned manor (#1 on the map). The building takes up almost the entire block and is covered with ivy. Graffiti scars the entrance and the courtyard is completely overgrown. The iron gates at the front were chained closed, so we didn't try to go in (and I've watched a bit too much American Horror Story to make that kind of a rookie mistake...). I still have no idea what this is, but we got scared when we heard voices coming from inside... I seriously feel bad for whoever could be living in that place because it is clearly not fit to be lived in.

Walking down 29th street, we stumbled upon an urban farm complete with patches of grass (because we New Yorkers forget what it feels like from time to time) and a magnificent view of Brooklyn from across the East River. (#2) It was a breezy night, and I could smell the ocean from the garden balcony, which always brings life to my soul. This would be a perfect place to come study, have a picnic, or otherwise while away your time with a book. It's nicer than the high line, and infinitely less crowded. Plus, Chelsea is practically the new midtown these days...

Our meandering then lead us to the U.N., which wasn't immediately identifiable because they had taken all the flags down... I had a picture somewhere but the U.N. is not nearly as impressive a building without its flags. I recommend going to see it on any other day though! (#3). Here we crossed the street into Tudor City. Does anyone know why it is called Tudor City (besides the obvious appearance of the buildings, I mean...)? Fun fact: did you know that it is considered the first neighborhood of residential skyscrapers in the world? You learn something new every day...

I think I'm going to end up living in Tudor City (#4), and I'll be a rich old hag that walks her chihuahua every day in her fine furs (that's not true... I'll end up blowing my life savings on a plane ticket to somewhere random and never coming back. ;) )  Anyway, where was I? Oh yes... While it may be the most inconvenient place to live as far as commuting by subway, the architectural craftsmanship of these buildings (inside and out) almost make up for it.

So thus ended our walk... I hope you enjoyed the pictures as much as I did taking them (risked my life on the last one... facing away from the traffic while in the middle of the road is not a mistake I'll be making again). All in all, I really loved the neighborhood, but I am still curious as to what that one building is... when I find out, I'll let you all know!

Goodnight!

-H

P.S. There's a poll on the left column of my blog. Go ahead and vote on which neighborhood you would like for me to visit next!

Havoc on Wall Street

Hey there Lovelies! 

This is a couple days old, I know, but I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to grill some rebel-without-a-cause, climate-obsessed, tantrum-throwing, hippie-liberals. 

I'm sure you all heard about the "Flood Wall Street" protest that occupied the streets of the FiDi, completely and utterly uninvited. I am fundamentally against such wild and nonsensical protests. Not because I don't believe that people aren't entitled to their own (wrong) opinions, but because, well, when has protesting ever accomplished anything?

Let me start by saying how much I appreciate the NYPD for doing all that they did this Monday. Even though I was quite pissed at how long it took for me to get to and from school (because I had to keep convincing the officers that I did in fact live and go to school here, and just because I was a college student, did not mean that I was ready to jump on the protest bandwagon).
Anyway, so these reds decided that the best way to promote climate change was to come through, make a ruckus, and leave trash in our otherwise clean-ish streets. Please, someone tell me how they screwed up being effective on the most basic level.... 

Not only was it noisy, it disrupted everybody's work day. So, instead of working hard themselves in order to make a living and stop having a reason to complain about income inequality, they not only threw a giant protest through the streets of the Financial District, they got in the way of the masses of hard-working Americans (your fellow 99%, people! Just these aren't sitting around complaining, they're actually working for their living instead of depending on others' tax money) on their way to work. 

If that isn't enough, they decided that those responsible for the climate change were...... the 1%? What, did they run out of party themes and thus decide to create a nonsensical mash-up? This is an intellectual embarrassment. But it just serves as more proof that people will blame "the rich" for so much as a stubbed toe. 

Here, however, is the one highlight, the one positive outcome of this congregation of sheeple: The House of Reagan, ladies and gentlemen. I'm so proud (I'm serious, not being sarcastic for once) of these boys representing our school in such a way. I know there have been arguments flying back and forth about whether this interaction with the protesters was as productive and tactful as it could have been, and I have to say, in such a setting, it was. Here's why: When you get a massive congregation of "supporters" for such a protest, I GUARANTEE you that at least 85% are there just for the experience (i.e. just to get an adrenaline rush). Do they support these views? Maybe.... Do they fully understand what they are advocating? Abso-hella-lutely not. They are literally just their to say that they were there. They are not looking for an intellectual discussion, their only purpose is to get right up in your face and have a "reason" for it. Thus, even though I wish we could sit down with each and every one of these people to have a discussion on their views, in these situations, the only opposition they are going to pay attention to, is opposition of the same form (fighting fire with fire). Therefore I am proud to say these boys go to my school, and I kinda wish I could have been out there with them. 

Since none of my posts are complete without visuals..... here are some pics I snapped making my way to and from school. 

The cops in front of my school... I practically had to wear my student ID on my forehead. 

Blocking off the NYSE

Thank God it's all over... the FiDi has returned to its clean, quiet, normal, self. Sleep awaits.... I will see you lovelies later :) 

xoxo

-H

San Gennaro and the Broken Laptop

Hey there lovelies ;)

I have a new-found respect for all those before me who successfully completed college without a laptop, because that is what I have been doing for the past 3 weeks. A word of caution for all those in the market for a new laptop: DO NOT buy an HP from Sams club. Their repair fulfillment company does crap work at best, and they are not above sending laptops back worse than how they were sent in. Hence, my silence since Labor Day.

Since my last post I have:

1. Traveled upstate for a school retreat (and thoroughly enjoyed my little taste of nature)
2. Finished reading my first piece of Russian literature (not all Tolstoy novels are tomes)
3. Found a $100 bill on the sidewalk (New York moment... waaaatttt)
4. Started making plans for my next international trip during Spring break (*top secret location*)
5. Celebrated the Festival of San Gennaro on the streets of Little Italy (and was overwhelmed by a crowd for the first time in my life as a New Yorker)

1. What can I say about Fall Retreat? hmmm.... how about my house totally OWNED the drama competition and is now perched in 1st place overall (for the first time in house history). Prayers are appreciated for the upcoming reading test (fingers crossed!). I don't know if I posted about last year's fall retreat, but all I can say is that it was beyond cold. As in, we had to double-up in twin-sized bunks to stay warm, and I woke up with my hair par-frozen, COLD. Packing all of our heavy winter gear for this year's retreat, however, we arrived to sunny, 80-degree weather. We spent most of the weekend on the lawn sunbathing or by the pool. Needless to say, I had one "summer" outfit, and that was the only thing I wore all weekend.... not complaining, though!

LeTower of TenBoom

2. I didn't think I'd be a fan of Russian lit.... my roommate last year took an entire class on it, and all I can really remember from her experience is that she would periodically die on the couch from the sheer amount of reading she had to complete. This year's Interregnum theme, however, is Mortality. What better author to explore the theme than a long-winded old Russian guy? The assigned book was "The Death of Ivan Ilych." A short, pleasant introduction to Russian literature as a whole, in my opinion. It was short, witty, and completely relatable for something written almost 150 years ago. I recommend this one!

3. Yeah... so that happened... don't ask me how, but it was right by the Stock Exchange (i.e. they won't miss it one bit). And if you are reading this and just lost a $100 bill from your wallet.............. sucks to suck.

4. (*Evil grin from across the internet*) You won't know about this one for a while.... just know that it is on par with my London trip, except that this one hits a little closer to home for me. PLUS I will have my brand-SPANKING new DSLR, so you, my readers, are in for quite a photographic treat.

5. I don't normally feel the need to go out and do something at 10pm at night (I know, as a New Yorker I should embrace it). But honestly, as a college student, sleep is a rare commodity. So in a bout of self-pity and boredom I found myself in my jeans, slouchy sweater, and a pair of boots that have seen better days, in the middle of a bustling street in Little Italy during the Festival of San Gennaro. Every other booth was selling pizza, pasta, cannolis, and cigars. The entire street was strung with lights and decorations. It was quite a thing of beauty. The festival itself was amazing, but -and I never thought I'd say this being the extreme extrovert that I am- the crowd was utterly overwhelming. So I grabbed some Lamb and a giant Cannoli and left back to my apartment around 1 in the morning thankful for the experience and the quiet streets of the FiDi.

And they call it Bella Notte....

It is currently too late for me to be up on a Sunday night... I am cringing thinking of all the reading I have to do in the morning. So I will leave you all with this.

Buonanotte!

xoxo

-H

P.S. A piece of eyecandy for my lovely readers... a smokin' McLaren right outside my building... I look forward to the day when (not if , mind...) I will be able to afford this baby.

Lazy Wednesday Morning Update

Among the many things I love about this city is the simple fact that no matter how long it has been since you lived there last, it has no qualms about taking you back in to its fast-paced, honest-to-a-fault, go-hard-or-go-home family. I realize that makes little to no sense, but that is the thought that woke me up on this beautiful Wednesday morning. I have no classes today which made everything just a little bit better too. 

My summer was so crazy that it didn't even feel like summer. Usually those three months are filled with lazy afternoons basking in the sun and reading to my heart's content. On the contrary, when I wasn't traveling clear across the continent, I was working three jobs just so that being a broke college student, I could have something to eat over the semester. I began THIS book in early May, and I have yet to reach the half-way mark (to give you an idea of how insanely busy I was).

I am currently writing this from my surprisingly quiet apartment (same one as last year). There is a beautiful clear-blue sky outside, therefore, this post is likely to be short... when there is sunshine in the city, you have no excuse to miss it. 

In other news, my house took home second in The Great Race this year! If you don't know what that is, click HERE. I was on the running team as usual, and after four grueling hours running through the city on probably the hottest day of the year, we made it to the finish line in one piece. Here's a picture of the house with all the new freshies!

If you have no idea what on earth I'm talking about when I say "house," here's a little explanation: My school is kinda like Hogwarts in the sense that when you enroll for the first time, you are "sorted" into one of ten houses named after famous Christians in history. It's not like Greek life because you don't have a choice not to be in a house, but also because the house is more like a combination of a sorority, an academic house, and a family. House life is one of the many reasons I chose this school over so many others... 

I have a feeling this is going to be a really great year. I'm hoping among many other things that I can effectively balance school and work, that I can do well academically, and on top of that, that I have time to enjoy this incredible city. 

One last thing, if you haven't already, please subscribe to my blog! Doing so means you automatically get notified when I post anything new, which means you visit my blog often, which makes me very, very happy. It's a win-win situation ;) 

One last pic that I took as I was landing in LGA: 

xoxo
-H

World at Large

I'm writing this from an empty apartment listening to Lana Del Rey's "Born to Die" on my Xx's Pandora radio station. I still have not formed a solid opinion of her and her music. It is all hauntingly beautiful and yet still morbidly depressing. Not the best thing to be listening to when you are alone in your apartment. I think I'll stick to The Lumineers and Florence and the Machine...

I am now roughly half-way through the first semester of my Sophomore year. If I could boil everything up till this point down to one phrase it would be "severe lack of sleep." This time last year I was told by a very wise senior to hold on to the spare time that comes with being a freshman as long as possible. I didn't believe him until now. I have gotten to a point where I literally need to make myself relax because I get stressed and start panicking when I'm not doing homework. Welcome to the rest of my college career.

Watching the freshman this year has been proof of just how much I have changed in one year. I doubt my extended family will recognize me when I come to visit this Thanksgiving. The city has been a major factor in this change. I no longer see it through rose colored glasses. Don't get me wrong, I still love New York and I will probably never leave. There is just something about this city that makes me love life, feel alive, and gives me hope for humanity. I just no longer feel the pressure to do and see everything at every spare minute.

Sophomore year has literally made me feel old. All I do these days when I have a spare minute is sleep and eat. Last night, I went to bed at 9:30 and it was glorious. I (and anyone with sense) avoid Times Square as it is an accurate representation of everything that is wrong with the world. In fact, I rarely even leave my neighborhood (the Financial District... I moved, for anyone who doesn't know) for weeks at a time, which is ok, since I can see the ocean from my apartment window (something I've always wanted to be able to say). All this to say, I still love my life here, I've just developed a different perspective.

The view from my new apartment... better than last year, right?

Today was the first day of fall break for my school. This is a long-needed break for myself and the rest of my class. For some reason, everybody (upperclassman) agrees that Sophomore year is the crappiest of the four years. Basically, I've decided it is because:

1. We are all getting into the higher-level core classes that we don't want to take, and are not at all part of our major
2. We have all the responsibility of upperclassmen without any of the benefits
3. We all get irrationally annoyed with the stupid, idealistic freshman, regardless of the fact that we were in that situation just a year prior (God forbid we looked that idiotic)

The view of the Freedom tower from my neighborhood

Midterms loom before me in the next few weeks. And then, late November will see me enjoying stifling humidity with my entire family for the first time in two years.

This post has been hard, partially because I hate myself for waiting so long to post again... I planned to write a big, long post about how moving back to the city was (it was just like seeing the love of my life for the first time in years) but honestly, I was too caught up in it to care about writing. Mostly though, it was hard admitting to myself that I am a Sophomore, I have changed, and I only have two more years of this before I have to decide what direction my life is going to take. Do I stay in the city? Do I move away to another part of the country (or world)? I don't know, it is up to God. I just hope He gives me a little bit of a head's up before He does anything drastic.

Until next time...

-MB

This is a picture I took of my neighborhood from the Stanton Island Ferry.... I love my city.

Apology and a (good) explanation

Hello? Are you all still there? Don't blame you if you aren't....

You are probably wondering where I have been for the past 5 (ouch...) months. I definitely owe you an apology, an explanation, and an update.

... I think I'll start with the explanation....

Over the summer I had a grand vision for my life in NYC. I imagined myself balancing school, domestic life, blogging, and a part-time job seamlessly, with time for fun and adventure on the side (not to mention a little sleep now and then). I reached the city, and BAM. My plans and expectations were whipped away by the frigid winter wind, and drowned in the Hudson. You know that popular meme describing High school, bemoaning everyones lack of time? It goes a little like this:

SLEEP - SOCIAL LIFE - GOOD GRADES

Pick two, welcome to high school.

Well, it's a little like that, except its "Pick one, welcome to the King's College."

When I visited Kings for the first time on one of their visit weekends (called "inviso") I stayed with some freshman girls in their apartment. One of them took the time to give me a talk that I should have taken to heart a little sooner.

"They make it look like you will have time to go to Broadway shows every weekend, and party, and see the sights, and still have enough time to get an A in every class. DON'T BUY IT. College, let alone Kings, is very hard work, and there will be some days when you don't even leave your apartment for all the work. The sooner you accept that, the easier life here will be for you."

She was so right. Half-way through last semester I came to the realization that there are only so many hours in the day, and something had to go. Unfortunately for you, my readers, I had to let go of my blog (I told myself I'd pick it back up when I learned to balance everything, and apparently, that took 5 months). I'm not going to make any more promises to blog, because I honestly can't keep them. I will post as often as I can, but I can't guarantee a quota.

My sacrifice did pay off, however.... I made the Dean's List! Last semester was a huge learning curve. I failed and succeeded in dramatic ways, I made lifelong friends, I learned that it's ok not to have it all together all the time, I learned that there is no reason not to be happy all the time, and I don't think I could have done it all in a city any less unique and incredible. So I apologize that I couldn't have taken you all on my journey, but I hope you all will understand.

So what have I done in the past 5 months? Well Let's see...

Since I didn't go home for Thanksgiving break, I was able to get a front-row view of the Macy's Parade! Here are a few pictures:

 

The parade was amazing, but what made it truly unforgettable, was the fact that my friend Sadie spent Thanksgiving week exploring the city with me.



More recently, I had the privilege of being part of the live audience for SNL! Jennifer Lawrence was hosting, and The Lumineers were the musical guest. I, and a group of 8 other girls from my house (sorority) camped out for a 30 hour period on the sidewalk in mid-January for a chance at these tickets... I pulled my first all-nighter (in 15 degree weather, may I add). I made friends with a couple of homeless people - you should try it sometime, they all have really interesting stories (hi Mommy! I know you are reading this...). Also, if you are going to explore Times square, I recommend you do it at 3am... It is much more pleasant without the crowd (seriously people, Times square on a Saturday night is what I imagine hell to be like...). Anyway, we got the tickets at 7am, and our group (thank the Lord!) was the last one to be admitted... (I'm really sorry for the people who were in line after us..... maybe....). So this is how I ended up taking pictures with the entire cast of SNL and breathing the same air as Jennifer Lawrence. Yeah, my life is pretty awesome.

So these are all the stories I will share for now. Can't promise you when I will post next, but I can promise that every time I do, I will include stories from the past five months.

Love you all!

-H