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| Rachel and Lauren |
Let me introduce you to my travel buddies: Rachel and Lauren. I met Lauren on Jan 13, 2014. How do I know that? Facebook, of course! It's a story I must tell. I met Lauren at FHE after Rachel convinced her to come. Rachel says she knew Lauren and I would hit it off immediately. I don't remember exactly what happened, but I remember her making snarky comments throughout the night which made me laugh....and I knew fate had brought us together. I sent her a creepy facebook message about how I am excited to be her new friend whether she wants to be friends or not. She responded saying that she was quite excited. It was a magical beginning. We hung out a handful of times before my impulsive behavior kicked in.
I was checking emails and saw an email from Playbill.com (yes, I subscribe to it, even though I'm not in NYC) stating that Idina Menzel was going to Broadway in an original new musical. I thought to myself, "cool. I'll go this fall." A few minutes later, I thought, "How do I know she'll still be there in the fall? What if she gets a better offer to do a movie or something else?" I tried to calm myself, and then I thought "If Aladdin (which I have been planning on seeing since I heard they were planning on making it to a Broadway show) has opened finally, I will to NYC now." Lo and behold, they were both in previews. I thought...who do I want to go to NYC with...and Rachel and Lauren popped into my head. I found out when Rachel's spring break was, and texted them. They both said yes. It was amazing.
We arrived in NYC about a month later for a long weekend. I convinced them to go get cronuts the first morning we were there, because it was supposed to be the warmest we were going to be there. (Winter in NYC is a lot colder than winter in Houston). The we made friends with the guy in front of us, Tommy, who is from NYC. He was super fun and ate with us before going to bring a girl a cronut too.
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| With our new bestie, Tommy |
After the cronut, we did the 9/11 memorial and the gift shop. It took all our will power not to buy something. Rachel wanted a really expensive purse and I wanted an expensive scarf. It was just soooo pretty!!! The 9/11 memorial was quite moving and lovely. I would recommend it to anyone. We wandered to Battery Park and Wall Street before meeting up with Ben. Woohoo!
We walked across the Brooklyn Bridge and it was beautiful! It was also really windy. Who knew? Still, the sun was out, so I was able to take off my coat and enjoy some much needed warmth! I think the best part was when Ben asked Lauren if she could tell him any of my crazy adventures and secrets, and Lauren was like "No. I don't really know that much about her" lol. We made it to the other side and wandered down to Grimaldi's for lunch. After waiting in line for an hour, I find out that there is a Grimaldi's very close to where I live in Texas. #jaded While we were waiting for our order, two older ladies (who we met in line previously) offered us their extra pizza slices. We were ravenous and said yes. #worthit It was an epic lunch followed by some ice cream on the windy dock. As we metro-ed back to Manhattan, Ben explained to me how to navigate and read the signs. They are quite unclear when you're unfamiliar with them. Seriously, there should be a website explaining how to read them. It was the best gift anyone could have given...the knowledge of how to get from Point A to Point B. He dropped us off at The Met and took a couple of Gossip Girl photos for us. (now that's a good friend)
Sadly, after he left, we talked and decided there wasn't enough time to wander around the Met and not feel very rushed. Instead, we went to the hotel to prep for a night on the town. We walked to Time Square before our showing of Aladdin. Can I just say, when we tried to book tickets for Aladdin, it was showing to be sold out. I was heartbroken, until I went to a new site and found a handful of scattered tickets throughout the theatre. I tried to buy three, but when I clicked to purchase them, it said the tickets were already sold. Luckily, third time is a charm, and we got seats....just not all together. NBD.
Wow. Wow. Wow. I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was such a high energy show, with the razzle and dazzle expected from a Disney show. The costumes are so bright and vibrant. The dancing felt a little more Bollywood than anything, but it's still amazing. The genie was by far my favorite. I have never EVER seen an audience have an intense standing ovation during the middle of a show like I saw with "Friend Like Me". It was brilliant.
Sunday started with church and brunch with Dena! I haven't seen Dena since our reunion trip to Chicago in 2009. It was so good to see her. I wish I had more time to catch up with her. She is as fierce and fabulous as ever. We went to a french bakery, and of course, my eyes were bigger than my stomach. What else is new? As she walked us back to the metro stop, Lauren asked if we could go to a pharmacy and get an ankle wrap, because her ankle was hurting. We got back to the hotel room for her to rest a bit. She said she could still walk, but we decided to have a slow evening to not hurt it more so it would be better in the morning. Spoiler alert: it was not better in the morning.
We went to see If/Then...the show we had all been waiting for. Ladies and Gentlemen, it did NOT disappoint. The summary is a bit confusing, so I wasn't sure what to expect when we got there. All I knew was that it was a play about choices. The best part is that the show starts with Idina on a balcony, talking on the phone...first line "hey. it's me" and the audience goes wild. She is amazing live. Wow. Wow. Wow. Goosebumps. The show starts at the same point and shows how one decision can impact your entire life. It starts in a park where she is meeting two friends and the one decision of who she will spend the day with has a ripple effect and the play showing both possible lives she could have based on that one decision. It was one of those plays that makes you reflect on the decisions of your life, and how you got to where you are. It was so powerful that I probably spent the last 20 mins of the show in tears.
After the play we went to get some cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery and spend the rest of the night, resting Lauren's ankle and having much needed girl talk time. #girlsnight #bonding
Monday morning started with Lauren telling us that she didn't think she could walk. With the idea of "leave no man behind", we decided to change our plans a bit. We decided we should do an early dinner and see another Broadway show. Suggestions were thrown around, and the decision ended up being: Newsies. Lauren stayed in the hotel as Rachel and I faced the cold winter air. We went to Mecca...the New York Public Library. Sooooooooo pretty. Please note: Rachel and Lauren are English majors, and I'm just a huge nerd/book lover. It was magnificent! We took a free guided tour, which also allows you to get discounts in the gift shop.
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| I saw this and laughed. |
After the Library, we wandered through The Met. It was pretty cool. However, the best part was when we saw our friend Tommy again! What a crazy coincidence. I loved it. After The Met, we went to pick up little Lauren. We took a taxi up to our dinner location of choice, the classic Serendipity's. Frozen Hot Chocolate. Check! Eating lots of food and spending lots of money on said food. Check! Then it was time for Newsies. Ever since I saw Elijah Kelley singing and dancing in Hairspray (the movie), I realized how dancing singing men are absolutely brilliant. This was more proof of that theory. It is a musical full of dancing men who sing, and I was in love. The choreography blew. me. away. I did have a fav newsie...Specs. Everyone loves a guy in glasses. We were on a musical high as we walked back to the hotel that night. It truly was a great sacrifice we made going to another Broadway show for Lauren. ;)
Our last day in NYC had us checking out Chinatown, stumbling upon an epic Sample Sale, and meandering through NYC towards Levain Bakery, all while Lauren waited in the lobby as a cripple. It really was a great trip! Lauren pointed out that Rachel and I say the same things, at the same time. #twins I have found great travel buddies.
While we were there, I was writing my
previous blog post, which is a disclaimer of all my travel crazies. Since it was my first time traveling with them, I realized the little crazies I have that people who have traveled with me before don't notice anymore because we already have the ying-yang/give-take travel routine down. I started making notes of things that popped into my head throughout the trip. I was sharing it with them as I wrote it. On Tuesday, Rachel asks me, "are you hungry? because you said earlier that you act different when you're hungry, and you seem a little off." I *was* hungry! lol. See, the disclaimer was already effective.
Now I know what everyone is wondering. Is Lauren's ankle okay? It turns out she has an os peroneum fracture. Oops. We broke her. Nevertheless, she is still my friend, and we are all looking at another possible travel adventure later this year together.
