66 things I’ve done (& wanna do) in New York
This week marks my 6 month anniversary as a New York resident. (what?! Did I really do this?) If you’ve been reading along, you know that it hasn’t been easy. But, it’s never boring and that’s something.
Since the beginning, I’ve felt under self-created pressure to have the “New York experience”. I’m not quite sure what that is, but I think it has something to do with the excited look people get in their eyes when I say that I live in the city of dreams. That idealized vision of New York life bares little comparison to my day-to-day which is mostly about work. During the freezing winter months I spent a lot of time existing in what I now know is the sacred NY trifecta of work, Seamless and Netflix.
Now that Spring has finally arrived, I’m planning some new adventures and thought I’d share some of my ambitions with you. I’m gonna cheat and include a couple of my favourite things from the last few months too.
I gotta say that as an introvert, I also spent a large amount of time at home, in my sweats doing absolutely nothing. & as a girl on a budget (this is an expensive city!), I’ve focused on cheap/free activities. If you’re visiting NY, these are some of the things I’d recommend you do.
DONE LIST:
Move house & dealt with the crazy broker/real estate market. (I did this twice, because I’m a crazy person!)
Get a job.
Join a yoga studio.
Learn to navigate the city without getting lost.
Nested. Made my apartment home. Discovered a love of flat pack furniture.
Learn how to properly say where I live. When I first got here, addresses seemed like weird hieroglyphics featuring a series of letters and numbers, with no actual words.
Do laundry in one of those laundromat places. (The novelty or this has certainly worn off!)
Secretly cry on the subway - classic New York move.
Experience a magic Christmas in New York. Highlights include:
wandering the winter markets with my small tub of chickpea curry for dinner,
have carolers burst through the door of Starbucks dripping with joy (and snow)
leaving Penn Station on Christmas Eve, to visit family I never get to see.
my first real christmas tree.
Experience a real American Thanksgiving - in Atlantic city, feat. many different varieties of pie and the Turkey Trot.
Experienced enough snow to get thoroughly sick of it. DONE.
Knit a scarf.
Meet some of my internet friends in person. So far: Michelle, Monica, Jenny, Kylie, Nikki, Hillary, Dave, & a bunch of others I’m sure I’ve forgotten.
Emailing random people, inviting them for coffee and making friends.
Quit Facebook. This has nothing to do with New York, but has made me a happier human.
Washington Square Park is one of my favourite places in the city. Best moment so far: over-hearing a conversation about baby spas. Or having lunch and listening to jazz. Or lying on the lawn and closing my eyes.
Went to an Oscars party.
Visited Times Square. Ugh.
Went to Macy’s during the sales - meh!
Walked The High Line. Lovely. Gonna do it again soon.
Attend a political fundraiser. I was at Marianne Williamson’s New York fundraiser last week. (& also Bill de Blasio’s election party.)
See Danielle LaPorte speak. Done at V-Day. She was pretty magic.
Attend events which allow me to meet random interesting people:
-V-Day
-Desire Map book club,
-Cheshire Parlour,
-Lean for Social Good conference
-Smart, Pretty Awkward blog party
-co-worked hosted by Nikki
Go to Happy Hour. (Drinking in the afternoon felt strange)
Have a classic boozy New York brunch. (again, 11am is an odd hour for drinking).
See a TV show/film be shot. (Accidentally bumped into The Carrie Diaries being filmed.)
Eat at Katz. (I sat at the table made famous by When Harry Met Sally.)
Order a weirdly named cocktail. Lovely Girl at this bar has been my favorite.
Do a photo a day project on Instagram. In progress. Loving this project.
Attend a book launch.
Visit Baltimore. To be honest, Baltimore wasn’t on the ‘must see’ list, but I’ve good friends there that I wanted to visit. PLUS, House of Cards was filmed on their block and that’s pretty impressive.
Visit the MOMA.
Visit that other art gallery that everybody talks about. aka The Met.
Find a local farmer’s market where I can chat to growers about vegetables. (tbh, I usually just buy over-priced pies.)
Visit someplace in Upstate NY. I took a rushed trip to Cold Spring in need of greenery last year. Strongest memory: the diner with a yelling waitress.
Go to Strand books. Love it. Always come out financially poorer, but mentally inspired.
Have a cupcake at Magnolia Bakery. Made famous by SATC. It was pretty meh.
Visit 911 memorial
Visit St Patrick’s Cathedral
Go up the Empire State.
Visit Chelsea Market. Loved it. I’m going back for lobster rolls.
Go to Smorgsboard.
Go thrifting/flea markets - done, but more to do.
Got hooked on coffee.
St Patrick’s Day Parade - I missed the main one since it was a Monday and I was in work, but the Brooklyn version was weird/fun.
Visit to Queens.
Work from New York Public Library. Loved it.
Saw Sarah Silverman speak. Funny girl.
Watch the Sunday morning political shows. Unimpressive.
Took a trip to Ireland
Experience the infamous NY dating scene. Bleurgh.
TO DO LIST:
Visit Coney Island.
Visit the Guggenheim.
Visit Ellis Island & look up my ancestors.
Go to World Domination Summit in Portland.
Take Alexandra’s Write Yourself into Motion class.
Visit the Museum of Sex.
Try a ‘dine in the dark’ restaurant.
Try one of those restaurant/cinemas that serve dinner at your seat during the film.
Try Trapeze
Try Soulcycle
Go to silent reading party.
Visit the West Coast.
Visit Las Vegas.
Visit Boston.
Visit DC.
Go to the ballet.
Go to an opera (I’ve never been).
Have an entirely raw meal.
Take the free ferry to Staten Island.
Go see a Broadway show (or 2)
Go to Shakespeare in the park
Be in the audience for filming of a late night show.
Hire bikes and cycle along the Hudson River (and/or Central Park).
Go to an outdoor movie.
Visit the Cherry Blossoms in Brooklyn Botanic Gardens.
See Niagara falls. (not sure I’ll get there on this trip)
Read the New York Times in Bryant park.
Visit Grumpys, the cafe made famous by Girls.
Walk/Run Brooklyn Bridge.
Do the Sex and the City tour.
