Big Lights Will Inspire You

Happy Easter!!

Yesterday we took a bite out of the big apple, both literally and figuratively.

I started my morning with a giant organic apple (it is hard to get fruits and veggies in in a city with so many other options). The hubby and I then picked up bagels, coffee and some dried fruit:





We spent the earlier part of the morning checking out the Easter Parade (which is not a typical parade ... it is just people wandering around, some with crazy hats, and others dressed up to the nines, but mostly just people wandering around seeing and being seen). You can take pictures of strangers without anyone thinking it is weird. Fun stuff!! The hubby and I totally want to come back another time with our own crazy Easter hats.





Even the pets were dressed up!





We went for lunch to Serendipity 3 and had this:



JUST KIDDING :-)

But we did share this frozen hot chocolate - perfect for Easter:



And I ordered "A Summer Bries" - smoked turkey, sliced apples, melted brie and alfalfa sprouts, served on raisin pumpernickel. It was delish!



It was the perfect Easter day. The hubby and I strolled around Greenwich Village, SOHO, Union Square, etc.. The weather was HOT! The park by the University was so beautiful, with the flowers in full bloom.



People were out suntanning! It is SO nice in NY right now!



The hubby bought this cookie, and I had a bite or two:



Later on in the afternoon we went to PB & Co. to buy some PB. We split "The Elvis" - toasted PB and Banana Sandwich with BACON!!



Yes - it was good. Very good.

We love NYC. It is gorgeous, and so ALIVE.





We had our Easter dinner at an Afghani Restaurant. We shared a dumpling appetizer:



I had 1 piece of bread:



And rice and chicken for my meal. The rice was so flavourful, with carrots, raisins and spices:



Dessert was a mini Pinkberry :-) We are hooked! I had the Mango with coconut and granola:



We were so tired from walking yesterday that we needed a break. We went to the movies and saw "The Runaways." It was excellent.

This morning we were up bright and early. We grabbed coffees and muffins and headed to Chinatown.



We walked all around Chinatown, Little Italy, and the East Village. We had lunch at a noodle house in Chinatown:



For dessert I had a couple bites of this treat from Little Italy and a bite or two of the hubby's gelato:



In the afternoon we looked around the Financial District and went into Brooklyn, where we had a slice of pizza of course:





We spent this evening in East Village and the Lower East Side. SO beautiful. We had dinner at Prune, where we tried Anthony Bourdain's favourite dish - Roasted Marrow Bones with Parsley Salad:





Bone marrow. Yikes! I was scared to try it. I made the hubby try first. He said it was good, so I went for it. It was the RICHEST thing I have ever tried in my life. I put a spoonful on a little toasted bread, and sprinkled it with sea salt. It was so rich I could only eat about 2 or 3 bites. The waitress told us it is the richest food known to man! I believe it.

My main course was chicken in vinegar sauce with broccolini:





I had a Red Stripe Beer, and nibbled on some of the cracker like thing that was brought to our table:





The waitress brought dark chocolate with the bill. Perfect.



We have seen and done so much already since Friday, and we still have 3 more full days! Tomorrow (Tuesday) is the hubby's 29th B-Day, and we have something VERY special planned! You will have to wait until tomorrow to find out what we are doing!!

What is the strangest thing you have ever eaten?

Bone marrow takes the cake for me!

There's Nothing You Can't Do, Now You're in NY

These streets will make you feel brand new ...





Saturdays in NY (especially on a long weekend) are BUSY! We love it!

This morning we shared our first NY bagel (camera ate the picture). We had it with some cream cheese and coffee:



We did some went to Rockefeller Centre and wandered the streets as far as we could walk. We had pizza for lunch:



After lunch we went to see Wicked on Broadway. It was SPECTACULAR! I loved every minute of it. The stage was elaborate and beautiful, and the music was superb.

This afternoon we snacked a bit. We shared a hotdog from Papaya Dog:







It was pretty good, but the one we had yesterday was better.

We also shared a little bag of nuts:



And then tried Pinkberry!!!!





I got the coconut yogurt topped with pineapple, chocolate chips, caramel, almonds, and some cinnamon chip things. Mmmmmm. Nom. Nom. Nom.

We saw the Empire State Building and did some shopping on 5th Ave.

We had a late dinner at a Korean restaurant called Shilla. I ordered the Kimchi Chi Gae (Kimchi soup). They bring out a bunch of little side dishes:









The spoon came wrapped in paper :-)



Happy Easter everyone!! I might take a day or two off from blogging and then re-cap Monday or Tuesday.

What are you doing on Easter Sunday? Do you have to work Monday?

In New York

oncrete jungle where dreams are made of ...

I am in love. New York is the place for me. It is everything I imagined and more, and we have only just had a taste.



This morning the hubby and I were up at 4 am, and in the air by 5:50. We stopped in Minneapolis where I had some oatmeal and a green tea for breakfast:





We landed in Jersey and had to take a $75 dollar taxi ride to our hotel in Times Square. I was seriously scared for my life in the taxi. The people drive like MANIACS here!! Everyone honks constantly and they cut each other off, and almost drive into other cars and just hope for the best. Seriously, it is insane. Even my hubby (who is a pretty confident driver - although what man isn't?) said he would NEVER drive in Manhattan. Not unless he had a death wish.

We checked into our hotel, dropped off our bags and immediately went walking. We wandered all over Times Square, Downtown, and Central Park. The park is beautiful!



The weather is absolute PERFECTION.
We could not have come at a better time.

For "lunch" the hubby and I shared a pretzel and then a while later we shared a hot dog:





We went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) and saw some breathtaking artwork by the worlds most famous including Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Matisse ... you get the idea. We also saw some ancient sculptures and sarcophagi.

We made our first trip to Whole Foods!!! We could only buy what we could carry, but it was seriously the coolest grocery store I have ever been in. We got some fruit for tomorrow, as well as a few nut butter squeeze packs and an Annie's Deluxe Mac and Cheese.

I had my first Z-Bar to hold me over until dinner:



Dinner was recommended to us by our concierge. We went to an Italian Restaurant called Tramonti. It was just-like-my-Momma-would-have-made-if-she-was-Italian-and-not-Ukrainian :-) The food was fresh and delicious.

I started with a Caprese salad:


(The restaurant was very dim, so the pictures are not great)

I ordered the Lasagna Bolognese:



I enjoyed it with a glass of Cabernet.

The hubby had the butternut squash ravioli:



We wandered some more after dinner, but are now ready for bed after a very long day!! We can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring!!



Can I stay here forever?

Empire State of Mind

even hours from now I will be heading to the airport for my flight to NYC!!!!!!!

Today was a great April 1st. It was a beautiful day, and my last day of work for 10 days.

On to eats ...

Normally only have about 1 cream egg per year, around Easter time - But this little egg was calling my name over the past few days, and I knew just what to do with it.



Can you guess what I did?



Booooooom.



Don't judge.

Those oats were made with coffee too. I go all out folks.
I only used half the egg (tossed the rest) because I thought it would be chocolate overload. It wasn't.

At work we had some special treats for Easter. I had an orange, a handful of grapes, and a little cinnamon bun. I went out with co-workers for lunch, and had a 1/2 order of Cajun chicken penne.

Since we have no food in our house (didn't want to buy groceries since we are going away), the hubby and I went to Korea House for dinner.


(Assorted veggies, kimchi, potato).

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Kimchi. It is one of my most favourite foods.


(Bee Bim Bop)

Not much for fruits/ veggies today, and I honestly don't foresee a lot in my future over the next week. I will be loading up on Green Monsters when I get home!!

Okay, it is 10:30 and I have to be up at 4:00. G'night!

Do you have tomorrow off? What will you be doing on Good Friday? What will you be eating? Anything special? Anything off-limits?

Everyone does a little something different. I don't usually do anything special on Good Friday, other than enjoy the day off. On Easter I usually eat turkey, but not this year!

The next time you hear from me I will be in Manhattan blogging from my hotel room.