The first trip of 2019 was one I’d been dreaming about since I was a teenager – New York City!

You’d think I’d have been able to manage it sooner, considering how close it is to Toronto. But it just never happened for me. Now here I was, headed to the Big Apple with my partner and a couple of our close friends to fulfill sixteen-year-old-me’s dreams.

We only stayed for four days, but we ended up walking everywhere and seeing a lot of the city. So I’m going to share with you some of the highlight experiences of our trip to New York City!

Times Square

I always thought Times Square was going to be the most ridiculously packed, over-rated tourist attraction. And okay, it kind of is. But it’s also absolutely beautiful. Brandon and I walked back every single night we were there just to look at all the lights lighting up the sky.

It was actually so stunning to see. A photo doesn’t properly capture the vibes of the square – the lights, the energy. Call me super touristy, but if I end up back in NYC, I’d go back to Times Square every night all over again.

9/11 Memorial

Visiting Ground Zero was the most impactful experience of this NY trip.

Seeing all of the names on the memorial, and the amount of people there to pay their respects nearly 20 years later was indescribable. We didn’t make it to the 9/11 Museum, but the memorial pools were very impactful.

Avenue Q Off-Broadway

We almost didn’t end up seeing a show in New York (which almost defeats the purpose in my opinion – you have to see some kind of show if you visit NYC). But chance had it that our flight got delayed by a day due to a windstorm, so we had an extra day in the city.

Brandon and I took full advantage of the extra time and bought tickets to see Avenue Q – and it was so much fun!

The Friends Apartment

This was sort of a big guilty pleasure for me. As a preteen, I loved F.R.I.E.N.D.S. and needed to visit the apartment building where the gang lives.

Sure, it’s only the outside shots used to establish the setting between scenes, but every fan knows the iconic apartment at Grove and Bedford. I appreciate my friends indulging me and walking all the way out to snap a pic of this building!

Night Wandering

Honestly, Brandon and I had a great time just walking around the city after dark and spotting all of the bright neon lights on buildings like Radio City Music Hall, or NBC Studios, or seeing the leftover Christmas lights up around Rockefeller Center (we visited NYC in February, so a lot of wintery decorations were still around the city).

Museum of Modern Art

I wanted to hit at least one museum in New York, and there were so many options. But out of the Museum of Natural History, the Met, or MoMA – it wasn’t a hard decision for me to choose the contemporary art museum.

I loved seeing all of the Picasso pieces on display, but my favourite was of course Van Gogh’s Starry Night. So cool to get to see it in person!

Skating at Rockefeller Center

My absolute favourite part of our New York trip was deciding to go skating at Rockefeller Center. Brandon and I had just had a delicious pizza dinner and then seen Avenue Q. On the walk back to the hotel, we passed Rockefeller and even though we had to be up at 5:00 AM to catch our flight, we thought it would be the perfect end to a perfect evening together.

So we rented our skates and spent until midnight sliding around the rink (some of us more gracefully than others). It was the most romantic moment.

New York definitely lived up to the hype I’d built up in my head. I already can’t wait to go back and see even more of the city. It was the first time I’d travelled somewhere new and it felt like home after only a couple of hours.