New York City at Christmastime!

On Friday, December 20th, I traveled from CVG to LGA for a weekend in New York City!

It was my first time visiting Ben since he moved there last April, and we had an absolute blast.

Friday

• Ben met me at Grand Central Station. Each time I see him, I swear I could hug him for hours (in a not creepy way). 
• It was incredibly warm in NYC and remained so nearly the entire weekend. This was mostly nice but took away from that Christmassy feel.
• Wheeling along my luggage, we went to the Christmas market in Bryant Park followed by lunch. Ben turned out to be the worst luggage wheeler EVER. He was always tripping over it and running into things. 
  
• That night, Ben, his boyfriend, and I went to the Standard in the Meatpacking District for cocktails. It was the glitziest bar I've ever been to, and the views were swoon worthy. 
  
• Afterwards, we enjoyed tapas and drinks at several different restaurants, ending up at one with hookah and a belly dancer. 
  

Saturday

• Ben and I shopped until we dropped (almost quite literally) in Soho. I found a gorgeous coat at Zara and a really neat piece of art on the street.
  
• We basked in the glory of Rockefeller Plaza and were jostled beyond belief by the masses of people.
  
• By the time dinner rolled around, we were utterly exhausted. Every restaurant we went into had a two hour wait! 
• Finally, we found a restaurant that was almost completely empty. The hostess sighed, "We're all booked up for the night, but you can sit at our communal table." Bloggers, please see the below photo (okay, okay...in all fairness, those tables did fill up within fifteen minutes or so but at first, Ben and I were positive that the hostess was just being a snob).
  
• That night, Ben, his boyfriend, and I watched Bridesmaids and feasted on Oreos and milk. It was perfect.

Sunday

• Ben and I bought standing room tickets for Kinky Boots! For only $27, we had one of the best views in the entire theatre! There happened to be a radiator with one of those coverings over it so we even had a place to sit down when we needed to! Of course, the play was so much fun, we wanted to be up and dancing along most of the time. Kinky Boots was my favorite part of the entire weekend.
• We waited in line at Levain Bakery and then enjoyed our cookies and milk in Central Park. Talk about heaven!
  
• Ben and I met up with his boyfriend in the East Village (I think...maybe it was West? Who knows) for dinner. We ended up at a German restaurant singing Christmas carols!

Monday

• Back to Soho we went for more shopping and lunch with a friend!
• The weather was miserable- it was pouring rain and the temperatures were starting to drop. The shops and sidewalks were beyond crowded, and I'll admit, I really missed Cincinnati and its lack of crowdedness.
• I got a gorgeous manicure and ended up with sparkly gold nails!
• Ben and I had the most decadent hot chocolate at Mariebelle's. It was nearly as thick as brownie batter!
  
• It was no small feat getting to LaGuardia Airport that evening. But more to come on that later.

You've worn me out for quite a while, NYC! I'll see you in about a year (or two)...whenever I get my energy back!