One of my favorite things is being a local tourist… Given I live in NYC it’s easy to see why.! There’s just so much to do and see. Although NYC is not the only great place to be a local tourist, in fact I believe if you seek it, you can find something amazingly beautiful in each and every place in the world. In fact, I’d be willing to bet that right where you’re currently standing, within just miles of you there’s something that someone in the world is dying to experience. So my two words of advice for the day are to BE a local tourist.! No matter where you live, figure out what makes it unique and experience it, bask in it, take it all in, and don’t be ashamed to enjoy something thats so obtainable.
Our weekend with Zach and Jen was just that.! A little too short but really sweet.! I was tour guide Barbie for a few days. It was Jen’s very first time in NY and she had a small list of must do’s that luckily we were able to squeeze in.! Thursday night we started with the most famous pizza in NYC.! Grimaldi’s.!!! Grimaldi’s is where the original NY pizza was invented. Or so they say… It’s located at the Brooklyn Bridge Pier and you can expect a line 99.9% of the time. Our wait wasn’t too bad, the food came fast and we ate and ate and ate until we couldn’t eat any more. Two pies there between four people is MORE than enough.! Live and learn.
The next day we ventured to through the city to Central Park before heading to Coney Island!
Coney Island is just a 45 minute subway ride on the NQR line from Manhattan. Every Friday night at 9PM they have a firework display on the beach. This was the first time I’d ever been to Coney Island and I loved it… Almost as much as Kylan.!
On our way to get tickets for the Ferris Wheel after eating funnel cakes and Thai food that’s when I spotted the strong man carnival game.!!! Ever since I was a young girl at Lagoon and Six Flags I had always wanted to win one of the big prizes. I never had the muscles or the aim to get the job done. I knew now was my chance.!!! I quickly pulled 5$ from my wallet and gave it to the lady and pushed Kylan into the center of the game. Thank goodness he really is as strong as he looks because HE WON.!!! He rang the bell 3 times.!!! FINALLY I was allowed to pick whatever prize I wanted, naturally I picked the doughnut pillow and cat ears.! Meow.! Group vote was that we couldn’t pass up the original Wonder wheel and Cyclone roller coaster. After all that sugar and getting thrown upside down we called it a night. Jen and Zach had to head to catch their flight the next morning.
After all of that running around in the city I decided it was time to relax in the great outdoors. Since we didn’t even have a full day we decided to take the Subway up to The Bronx Botanical Gardens. The botanical Gardens are located just a few stops past Yankees Stadium on the 4,5 line. They were featuring the Frida Kahlo art, garden, life exhibit that showcased plants from all over the world. It was amazing to see so many different plant species in one location. The Rockefeller Rose Garden was my personal favorite, I can’t wait to go back to see the orchid exhibits.
We had more fun this weekend than I thought was possible. Take my advice, get out in your own cities and be local tourists, no need to pay for expensive flights and fancy dinners just get out and explore and let me know what you find.! There’s this wonderful thing called google where you can actually type in fun things to do in “_________” and it will give you tips on where to go and when. You’ll be suprised what’s just around the corner.