When my New York trip was cut short I managed to rearrange our schedule to fit in possibly the most important things on my list. This would be my second time in the big apple and I was hoping to get the tourist experience. My first time in NYC was two years ago and we did nothing touristy. Instead, that time we ate at the best local restaurants recommended by a friend who lived there and ubered around.

This time, I made sure I fit in my top 6 things:

#1: Visit Central Park – This was a must do for me. When I touched down in NYC, I figured I packed too warm… So most of the time I wore shorts (my sleeping shorts that could pass off as lounge shorts). We spent a good 2 hours strolling through a part of Central Park and then headed back home to change.

#2: Visit a museum – We decided that we didn’t have much time to get through all the museums and instead just chose one that we both had interest in; The MoMa. It was magnificent. I can see why it’s a tourist trap though as every floor had a gift shop. How many gift shops do you need?

#3: Visit the Empire State Building – This was a disappointment for me. Perhaps it was my fault since I thought it would be a great idea to go during sunset; apparently everyone else thought that was a good idea too. So we waited, and waited… for over an hour and by then the sun had set and it was dark; too dark for photos. Might I add it was super windy and crowded.

#4: Go to a Broadway Show – We got tickets to Phantom of the Opera when they had a ticket sale. Possibly one of the best shows i’ve watched in my lifetime (I’m 27 right now). I watched it growing up on TV, but to watch it live was an experience out of this world. We were lucky we had the original cast as they get subs during the weekend. It also happened to be the same day that the New York Times Square crash happened. Pray for the victims of the crash as it was such a scary incident. I thank God that we decided not to do Times Square the moment the crash happened and instead went to the MoMa. Who knows what would have happened if we were there during the incident.

#5: Visit one of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants – We checked out Cosme and it was great. Although I think we overindulged and ordered one too many dishes. This was my last night in town so we tried to make the best of it.

#6: Shake-Shack – Cheap burgers and amazing fries. I ended up getting it twice (once when i first landed and once again when I left).

Aside from accomplishing my top 6 things to do in NYC we went to various coffee shops, had brunch somewhere on the upper west side. Visited some random shops and then I was on my way back to Vancouver.

Goodbye NYC and until next time <3