Sunday, March 13, 2011

My Weekend in New York

A big thank you to all of you who shared with me about what your relationship is like with your grandparents! Since I didn't have a reliable internet connection I couldn't respond, but I want you to know it was wonderful to read your comments!

I had such a great time in New York this weekend! It was really important to me to see my grandfather and I feel so lucky that I got to see him now, before his health deteriorates further. Unfortunately, he isn't doing too well. When I saw him in August he was still able to carry on a conversation,  but now he has difficulty finding words and what he does says doesn't make much sense. His doctors think he might have had a series of small strokes, but it is hard to tell. I'm pretty sure he knew who I was though and so it was wonderful to hear him say "good morning, darling" every day.

We spent most of the weekend around Bayside, which is part of Queens.

image via http://www.weichert.com/NY/Queens/
We arrived into town on Thursday afternoon and went to my aunt's house to say hi and have a quick catch up. My aunt, a clinical social worker, had some clients to see that evening so we got out of her way and met up with my cousins for dinner. Well, technically we saw my mom's cousin and her two kids. So, that makes them my cousins once removed? second cousins? Either way, it was really fun! I hadn't seen them since August and it was good to catch up. They are in their first year of college and sophomore year of high school, respectively, and it was fun to hear about their lives. They even taught me a cool new phone trick - bumping! Sounds dirty, right? But, its not. It is the new way to exchange phone numbers. You can literally just bump two phones together! I'm still amazed by this. Which, of course makes me feel old.

On Friday, everyone hung out at my aunt's house and then in the afternoon we went shopping. You know what else makes me feel old? I found some stuff at  J. Jill and Cold Water Creek that I really liked. Yes. Apparently, I dress like a sixty year old lady.

I got a cardigan, a striped boat neck tee, and a simple black dress from J. Jill and a printed cardigan from Cold Water Creek.   



After shopping, my aunt had a big surprise. She made reservations for us to eat at Peter Luger - one of the oldest and most respected steakhouses in New York! I do love me some steak and after doing some quick googling and reading the rave reviews my mouth was watering! The place has a real old school vibe to it and the menu features only the classics. We ordered so much food and ate until we felt like we were in danger of having to be rolled out of the restaurant. Neill snapped this picture of me right before we started eating. You can see the steak for four in the middle of the table as well as the german potatoes we ordered. We also got onion rings, creamed spinach, and a tomato and onion salad. 


Yummo! My family loves to eat and we spent most of dinner joking about what fabulous appetites we all have :) We washed the steak down with big spoonfuls of shlag, or whip cream. Here is my mom with the sundae we split.


You can bet we all went to bed very full that night! On Saturday, after hanging out with my grandfather in the morning, my aunt took Neill and I into Manhattan to see Avenue Q. Before the show, we got a chance to walk around a bit in the craziness that is times square. I love Chicago, but I've got to admit - New York has us trumped on this. We just don't have anything that compares.



Avenue Q was hilarious! Neill and I don't go out to see shows very often (like basically never), but we both had so much fun that we decided to try and catch more performances in Chicago. After heading back into the city we ordered a spinach and meatball pizza, played catch phrase, and all hung out until it was time for bed. 

And that pretty much brings us back to the present. Sunday morning consisted of one last bagel with cream cheese and lox and saying lots of goodbyes. Now, I'm safe and sound back in Chicago and luxuriating in being able to sprawl out on my own bed.

What was your weekend like? Have you ever been to New York? What was your favorite part of the city? Or, do you have another favorite city?

7 comments:

  1. omg alisha this sounds soooo fun! i dont even eat steak but i've heard so much about peter luger, and that picture of you with the steak is so awesome! ny is amazing, so many crazy people and outfits and stimulation! the shopping, the food, the shows (such a treat!). wow, you have to go back for more! but in the end, chicago is so incredible and on a much chiller level, where you're not so utterly exhausted from just being around so many people after one day. glad you guys had fun!!

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  2. I've never been to NY, but to answer your question my favorite city is San Fransisco. I love its artsy and lively atmosphere : )

    It must be hard to see your grandfather's health worsen. I have no idea what that's like but I can only imagine it would be heartbreaking. How sweet of you to go visit him!

    Love the photos in this post!

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  3. I loooove New York but it's been like 6 years since I've been! My friend & I are hoping to go for our mutual birthday in May. I'm actually wanting to check out Brooklyn when I go this time. I feel like your blog entry is a sign I need to make this happen!! Your day looks like it was amazing. (And I want that black tank dress)

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  4. And I agree with April - San Fran is my FAVORITE city ever. It's incredible in every way.

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  5. It's my dream to visit New York City! So seeing your photos made me fall in love with the city even more. I must say that the food looks really, really good!

    The people here in Malaysia absolutely love to eat as well. Almost all of our activities that involve a large group of people usually get together around food. We love food!

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  6. Rebecca - I could definitely see where living in NY is a much much much different experience than visiting. I think all of the tourists would drive me absolutely insane!

    April - Thanks so much for the empathy! I really appreciate it. I've never been so SF, but I'd really like to go!

    Shelby - A mutual birthday trip to NY? That sounds like SO much fun! If you have time, I really recommend Avenue Q!

    Sarah - I hope you get to visit NY soon! There really is no other place like it (well, at least as far as I can tell). Do you live in Malaysia? I totally missed that when I read your blog!

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  7. i love new york and i love peter luger! grandfathers are the best. i completely understand how you feel about cherishing every last visit at this point in his life. from the little bit you've mentioned, it sounds like he's led a good one!

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Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts. Every comment brings a smile to my face!