Hello and welcome to the adventures in New York City…
What can I say, this trip was everything I hoped for and more.
This one was a bit of a spontaneous idea, in so much as we didn’t have any burning desire to go to NYC this year, but an adventure is always a good idea.
My friend, and travel agent of 23 years posts lots of special offers and deals on her social media accounts, and this trip caught my eye.
Virgin Upper Class flights to NYC, 4 nights in a 4 star hotel off of Times Square, then premium economy flights home, all for £1200 a person. Well it seemed too good an opportunity to miss.
We were super excited to try Virgin Upper Class.
Having gone business class to India in November we wanted to see what Upper Class was like.
Virgin combined their First class and business class and came up with Upper Class.
…or so they say, but to be honest with you, they combined the two and came up with Business class. Because there was literally no difference between them and BA business, in fact BA had better goodie bags.
That said Virgin’s Upper Class lounge was sensational! Far far better than BA Business class lounge.
I wasn’t disappointed with the flight, it was still complete luxury compared to economy (coach) and premium economy, but I was surprised by how samey to BA business class it was, bearing in mind people really slate BA.
It was a nerve wracking path to get to the point of flying off because of Chris’s broken shoulder.
Will we go/ won’t we go/ we are going/ we’ve gone.
The reason we didn’t want to cancel this trip was because we got an absolute bargain, so although we’d have got the money back, we wouldn’t have been able to buy a like for like version.
Unfortunately, Chris broke the shoulder bone skiing 3 weeks ago.
The holiday insurance company made a huge song and dance about getting him home from Bulgaria, we knew they wouldn’t support our NYC trip, and you’d be mad to go to America without health insurance. Plus we had to wait and see if the fracture clinic would allow him anyway.
The fracture clinic doctor gave him the go ahead the day before we left for NYC, and then Chris bought extra holiday coverage (including cover for his fracture) for this trip with a different company, even though we have an annual policy in place elsewhere.
And then to top it off the flight timings on the return flights didn’t suit a meeting Chris needed to get back for the next week, so we had to buy extra flights home, earlier than the planned ones.
All in all, this trip has been a bit of a pickle. But even with the costs of the extra flights, and extra insurance, it’s still a bargain.
We priced up coming home Upper class on Virgin…$22,000 for the two of us!! Errrr no thanks.
I’m very grateful and thankful to have these amazing adventures, and I’m so glad I get to have them with Chris.
The holiday itself was incredible!! The best trip we’ve ever had to NYC. It is one of our favourite places on earth.
We didn’t make too many plans before we left home. We booked something for the Friday and Saturday lunch times, but left the Sunday free for roaming the city.
*I tend to change my stoma bag just before we board the plane. It lasts until we reach our destination and some.
And I travel in the softest stretchiest clothes I own.
One of the pre booked activities was afternoon tea at The Plaza Hotel (from Home Alone 2 Lost in New York, Sex and the City et al fame) A little pricey but it’s so iconic we thought it was worth the splurge.
Well, I wouldn’t rush back that’s for sure. It was peculiar. Not awful, not bad ~ just weird sandwiches & scones… both in flavours and textures. So that was $320 well spent
The waiter asked how was it, but I felt “challenging” probably wasn’t the right answer, so I just did that polite English thing where I just made noises rather than formed words, and squirmed in my seat.
One of the sandwiches was cheese and strawberry jam, so that was a bit of a surprise. And the scones were chocolate (unacceptable on an afternoon tea) and cheese and chive (completely unacceptable when the toppings provided were lemon curd, cherry jam and whipped cream) (obviously for an English palate the cream should only ever be clotted but I’ll accept whipped if I must) :)
And a very strange thing was taking place next to us because the man on the next table along was helping himself to crockery from the spare crockery trolley next to him. I’ve never seen anything like it before. I wasn’t sure if it’s just a jet lag hallucination or actually happening.
He filled his coat pockets with two cups and two saucers and a side plate. I have no idea if he actually left with them secreted in his pockets, because we left before them. But I found it extremely distasteful either way.
The look on his face was incredibly disturbing, he was literally the cat that got the cream, so smug and giddy with excitement.
It’s incredible and insane all at once.
If I saw someone stealing food, I’d look away, because it’s none of my business, but to see someone wealthy, either stealing, or pretending to steal is vile.
To those in need stealing food, I support you and care. For those stealing for shits and giggles ~ seek help, it’s really not a good look on you.
New York always has surprises waiting for you, that’s for sure.
I didn’t know if I liked this dress once I put it on. I bought it ages ago, but never got round to wearing it. And I’m really trying to be more careful about buying clothes and not wearing them, then selling them on Vinted for pennies. So I decided to wear the damn dress.
Anyway, we were walking along and a man stopped us to say how beautiful my dress was, and how lovely I looked in it. Just a complete random stranger had the power to boost my confidence and make me feel good. Chris was a bit put out, not because of what the man said, but because he’d been saying it all morning and I wasn’t taking the compliment. Hahahahaha.
It was so sweet of the stranger. It really made my day.
I love clothes, but I want to be more conscious about buying them.
Obviously one of the best things about NYC is the abundance of shopping. And very luckily one of my very favourite things to do is shopping, but I must do it with thought and care.
There’s a shop I love the bags from. But they have no online sales presence and the queues are very long to actually even get in the stores.
I tried Goyard’s concession shop in Bergdorfs, but they only stock the black colour way on all the bags. And I wanted either grey or green.
So off we went to their store a few blocks from Bergdorfs.
…And began to queue, in the rain for 45 minutes. A ridiculous thing to do? Yes! Worthwhile? Also yes! They hold more stock than the London store, so although it is dearer to buy from them in the US at least you know you will get what you’re looking for.
Chris bought me the bag I wanted. And I’m absolutely overjoyed with it.
He also took me to Tiffany’s, it’s a little tradition we have when we come here. On my first visit to New York I was held at immigration, taken to a room and questioned for some time because my fingerprints were flagged up. It was a terrible experience. One I’d like never to repeat.
Fun fact, apparently I have a very similar fingerprint pattern to a known criminal.
It’s only when a more comprehensive check is done it’s clear I’m not a male, nor a Mexican drug lord. ;)
Anyway, on that visit Chris took me to Tiffany to calm me down/ cheer me up. Which worked a treat, so I guess being questioned over and over again was worth it in the long run.
So knowing we were going to New York I put a list together of things I’d like to get.
In 2021 Chris bought me a pair of dangly pearl earrings from Tiffany. And I managed to loose one when I took my face mask off about 3 weeks later.
He managed to get a replacement pair. Which left me with an earring spare. So I had that made into a pendant.
I really really wanted the bracelet to go with the set. And Tiffany is one of the few places that are cheaper in America than here.
I am a very happy bunny. ;)
There is so much to see and do in NYC, you could never tire of visiting. Much like London, you can’t ever complete it.
Be prepared to walk far, I mean really far. Even if you take cabs to places, you will still walk far.
There is so much to see, so many iconic buildings from movies and TV.
It feels familiar even if you’ve never been before.
The second thing we had pre planned was going to see the Harlem Globetrotters. I had first seen them on Blue Peter in 1980, and my 7 year old brain had gotten confused, I thought they were famous because they were the tallest basketball players in the world, I believed this to be the case until last year.
They’re not, they are an exhibition team. And in fact they now have women and a man who has dwarfism on the team too.
It was a dream come true to see them. It was brilliant, utterly cartoonish and silly. But highly entertaining and fun.
We watched them At Madison Square Garden, which has just become my favourite ever venue to see anything in the world.
I panic in big crowds, especially when leaving venues. It’s always difficult to find your driver or get on an overcrowded train. I hate the chaotic madness of it.
But coming out of a venue in the middle of a city is heaven. We just simply walked out and went shopping. No crush, no chaos. It was blissful.
We headed for Macy’s, which is always a treat because they carry an abundance of Ralph Lauren and Michael Kors in petite sizes for the shorties…hello, it’s me!!
Macy’s is a cross between Debenhams & Selfridges, it’s amazing how much stock they have.
One day I’d like to spend the day in the ball gown department trying them all on. Although there are so many it might actually take a full week.
I shopped till I dropped. I bought 9 pairs of trousers, 3 dresses, 6 tops.
It’s my favourite shopping place for stocking up. Spring/summer 2024 I’m ready for you. I am very very happy, I can’t wait to wear it all. I bought consciously, I know I will get the wear out of each piece.
I love this city
I’m thinking of just travelling the glode trying French toast everywhere. I think it would be a great way to spend a life. :)
I think I’ve already started on this plan. Although I think it’s just food in general. We ate a lot in 4 days.
One of my other peccadilloes is my love of American pharmacies. Why? Well, again it’s the abundance!!
In the UK you can buy a maximum of 16 paracetamol in one transaction. Apparently it’s to prevent suicidal tendencies being easy to achieve. But I would have thought that anyone feeling that way would simply shop in multiple places.
But in America you can buy them in 1000 tablet tubs! And nurofen.
I stocked up on all of it, and bought 1000 stool softeners too because, well, because I could, and I need them quite a lot to help with constipation.
I get constipation whenever I fly, I always try and keep hydrated but I must always fail because it always happens. It happened on this trip too. but with my trusty softners I’m in a good place.
*(always read the label and do not exceed the dose).
Obviously I don’t take more than necessary, but I do like to have a good stock of medicine in my house.
Breakfasts - fantastic!
Late supper at a pizza place that is famous for its wares - fabulous!
Ben recommended The Harold for breakfast. And our friends recommended Joe’s for pizza. It was hard to know where to fit it in during the trip. But we managed. ;)
And then we start all over again with the French toast tour…
Chris chose the Skylight Diner, as it was close to our visit to Hudson Yard and The Edge viewing platform, it has a fabulous selection of food, and great reviews.
What more could you want? …As it turns out, maple syrup in a giant jug. :)
Heaven, absolute heaven.
The Edge is fantastic, definitely worth a look. We’ve done all the other viewing towers, so this one just made sense.
We had the most perfect weather too. Cold, crisp with blue skies. Couldn’t have been more perfect.
There is a glass floor for the more adventurous amongst us. Sadly I’m not one of them. I am a big coward.
I tried and failed a number of times to get on it, before I actually managed it.
I felt like I walked on serenely and calmly, but having watched the video back, I actually walked on to it like a Parisian mime artist pretending to hit a wall, plus I walked like I’d shit myself, which isn’t possible, but it certainly looked like it.
I am not one of life’s brave heroes. Why do you think I decided to tour the world eating rather than doing scary stuff?!
From there we went to the shopping center below, which is a really good one. I bought a pair of sunglasses in H&M, because although I took 3 pairs with me I didn’t take any out for the day.
Then we decided to walk the High Line. Which is free, so that’s always a good thing. It’s a disused railway line that spans part of the city. It has great views and interesting places to stop and explore.
Visiting NYC can be as cheap or as expensive as you choose. You could easily walk around looking at free things, like Central Park, architecture, the High Line and more.
It doesn’t have to be fancy, it’s wonderful to just be there drinking it all in. I’d really recommend going.
Some personal highlights;
Visiting the SABYASACHI department in Bergdorfs. I fell in love with this brand in Mumbai in November. It’s a magical store there. Truly memorising stuff for a magpie like me. The dresses are sensational, and the jewellery, although out of my price range, is spectacular to just look at.
I loved getting dolled up for our afternoon tea even if I didn’t entirely enjoy the experience.
I’ve never taken my fancy clothes and boots with me to NYC before.
I loved visiting the American Girl doll store because it’s one of the most bonkers places I’ve ever been.
There is nothing you can’t buy for these dolls…there’s even a beauty salon…for dolls…to get them “dolled up”…apologies for that one, that was a painful pun even for me. ;)
We loved the food…it was incredible for the most part…
The jet lag wasn’t too bad when we got there which was great.
And we were very lucky to discover a way to come back home with minimal jet lag here.
Chris having to cut the holiday short was actually serendipitous!
We were meant to be on the 10pm flight from JFK to London. The flight would have been overnight.
But Chris had a meeting he couldn’t miss, so he bought extra tickets for the 10am from JFK to London.
Which landed in the UK at 8.50pm.
We stayed awake all the way home, which only took 5 and half hours because of wind direction and the plane was virtually empty, so by the time we picked up our luggage and found the driver, and got home, it was bedtime.
It couldn’t have worked out more beautifully because we feel pretty good. Which is a first. Jet lag is something I fear a lot because I get really ill with it.
But not this time! I’m so glad we had to cut the trip short to find out how to get round being lagged.
Plus our original flight home got delayed, so that’s even more reason to celebrate buying the extra flights. :)
If you ever wonder why I think the sun shines out Chris’s arse, and put him so high up on a pedestal that no other mere mortal could ever reach, he really is the best of people.
Firstly he adores me and spoils me, and I very much enjoy that, but also he’s just the kindest, most genuinely sweet person, he was given a free upgrade to business class on the way home.
Unfortunately the computer glitched and didn't upgrade me too.
So he offered to buy my upgraded seat, but again, the computer said no.
So he refused his upgrade and sat with me in our premium seats.
He is the best human I've ever met.
…And if the roles had been reversed I'd be waving to him from business class the whole way home in a heartbeat.
They say opposites attract. He is so good and I am not.
Thank you for stopping by. I appreciate you taking the time to read my blogs.
Keep well. Much love xx
Can’t wait for more adventures. Because if there’s one thing I know all too well, this could all end tomorrow, so I hope to enjoy every single second until the ride stops.