Our Trip To Manhattan Part 2 - Chris First Helicopter Lesson

Chris and I loved NYC so much that we just had to go back. I really needed a break from work and Chris had some vacation days so we took off for the long weekend.

NEW YORK CITY Round 2

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This time we stayed at The Row NYC. I told myself I wouldn't stay in the Times Square area again because it's so busy and touristy but we couldn't pass up the good deal on Hotwire for this hotel. Luckly, the subway station was 5 steps from the hotel door so we could avoid the massive crowds. 

This hotel was super cool. Our room was all white with one accent wall in green wall paper.

We arrived at our hotel after a 3 hour flight and 40 minute drive. As we approached our hotel we were trying to decide what to eat; we were starving! When we turned around, Shake Shack was there in bright shiny lights right across the street, just waiting for us. Shake Shake makes the perfect dirty 'ol greasy burgers. So tasty! And their fries and milk shakes are UNREAL!

I was told recently that Five Guys is better - we will have to do a taste test next vacation. In the meantime, what's your favorite burger joint? Let us know in the comments.

Attached to the hotel was the City Kitchen which was sort of like a small cafeteria with 6 or 7 restaurants in it. One of them being Dough, which serves the most amazing, fluffy, delicious doughnuts EVER.

Food is a major part of every trip it seems, and since we're on the topic, I'll show you the rest of the places we dined at. 

We had lunch at Friedman's, which has tasty fries and sandwiches.

We headed in to Brooklyn one night to check out Buttermilk Channel, apparently one of Beyonce and Jay-z's favorite local spots.

Chris and I love desserts and treats. We checked out Milk and picked up some cookies and "Crack Pie" which was a little unreal.

We met up with friends Marcel and Lisa and checked out Bareburger in Queens. My burger had onion rings on it. ONION RINGS! Three of them. And french fries. They were on the burger. Enough said. Also, rosemary limeade. OMG.

I must mention before I move on that Lisa and Marcel have the BEST apartment. Super modern, giant windows, tons of natural light, and a stunning view of Manhattan. You can see it here.

We had brunch with our buddy Dat. He took us to this great little place in china town called Two Hands. We had another tasty meal in a super cool atmosphere.

We had the intentions of completing the rest of the things we had on our list from our last trip. Of course, plans change (sometimes we fly by the seat of our pants) and we didn't complete everything we wanted to. One thing we wanted however was to hang out in Central Park (so cliché, I know) so we took a long stroll through and took in the fresh fall air. 

We took in a few fashion events, including the opening of Nautica's pop up shop where we Chris had some great lobster rolls and chowder. We also took a visit to Boden press day where I got some nice takeaway's, including a beautiful cashmere sweater. The following night we popped down to the Timberland + GQ event where we met a few new friends and took some silly pics. 

While we were in the Chelsea area we checked out a few shops. One in particular that stood out to me was called Story. Their signage wall was pretty cool, inspired by this geode street art project. 

A must see while in New York is the 9/11 memorial. Seeing the two memorials sitting where the twin towers once were has an almost surreal quality. Names of victims are inscribed in the bronze surrounding the permitter of the monument.

On Saturday we rented a car and drove out to New Jersey so Chris could take his introductory helicopter flight with Core Helicopters. We went up in an R44 over Manhattan for 45 minutes. We flew as low as 700 ft above the city and the view was spectacular (even in my Gravol induced high). We flew over central park, orbited around the Empire State Building a few times, and flew over Yankee Stadium. Things got a little rocky when Chris took the wheel stick cyclic.

Did I mention the doors were off? I had a camera in my right hand, another around my neck, and my left hand had a death grip on the metal bar behind Chris' seat! Talk about white knuckling it!

If there are any type of "extreme toys" around, Chris will be on them! Core had a Segway, so he took that out for a quick spin. 

Meanwhile... I'm feeling like:

On our way home we got stuck in Newark overnight due to weight issues with the flight, but we didn't let that ruin our vacation. We still have stuff we want to do in NYC, so we'll have to go back again! But for now we're satisfied with our short little getaway.