My Trip to NYC!

Hi friends!

I am in better spirits today and ready to get my blog on!

I had the best time in New York. I have been 5 times now and each trip just gets better and better. I flew in early Saturday morning, November 6. And I mean EARLY. I woke up at 4:15, showered, finished packing and left the house at 5:30 to make my 7:30 flight. I live really far from the airport now that I'm in Alpharetta!

So I arrived on the first day at 9:30 am and went to Meg's apartment in Murray Hill. It is gorgeous and huge! It is on the 25th floor and has incredible views of the East River and the Empire State Building. We had brunch at Cafe Z, went shopping, went to a party on the Upper West Side and then ate dinner at the very swanky Gotham Bar and Grill. Then we met some of her husband's co-workers at Plunge, the bar at the top of the Gansevoort Hotel. Next we went to another place on the Lower East Side called... I don't remember what it's called and Googling isn't helping. Meg, can you chime in?

Sunday we slept in and had lunch at Dos Caminos. Such yummy Mexican food! Then Meg and I walked all over the lower half of the island pretty much for 6 hours. We did some more shopping, had coffee, cookies and went to Mario Batali's Eataly and Chelsea Market. That's where I spotted my very favorite actress, Kate Winslet. It was incredible.

I couldn't decide what I wanted for dinner, Cafe Mogador which is a Moroccan place, or a lobster roll from Luke's in the East Village. So we did both! I had the best hummus and chicken cous cous from Cafe Mogador, then I got a lobster roll to go from Luke's! I only had one bite of my lobster roll that night, then I ate the rest for breakfast on Monday morning!

Monday I felt like a real city girl as I walked 26 blocks from Meg's apartment to Kimberly's apartment in the East Village. And it was raining. And I was walking south on a one-way street where the traffic was going north. So there was no hope of getting a cab. But it was great. I love Kimberly's apartment, it is perfect for her and her pooch Monroe! The rooftop pool and deck had more of a Miami vibe than Manhattan! Then Kimberly took me to the Nielsen New York office which was great. I got to meet a lot of people that I work with on the phone and haven't had a chance to meet in person.

Then the VP of our division took us to Il Cantinori for lunch! I had the best bruschetta I've ever had. It wasn't your traditional bruschetta with marinara sauce, it had gorgonzola, thinly sliced pears and honey on top! Fantastic. I also had a delicious veal fettuccine dish. So yummy.

Then Kimberly and I went to Saks in Midtown and did a little shopping and had a glass of prosecco! Then it was off to 30 Rock to meet Meg and Tara for the Late Night with Jimmy Fallon taping! We had a great time. Scarlett Johansson was the guest and she was really funny. She was beautiful too. When I got back home I saw the four of us in the audience at the very end of the show. Jimmy ran through the audience giving everyone high fives and luckily they ended the show right on us! Then we had dinner at Fig and Olive and called it an early night. I was exhausted.

I flew home on Tuesday and landed in Atlanta around 1:30. I did a little more shopping for some birthday gifts and then since I had some time to kill before bunko I did some apartment hunting. And it was a productive trip.

I am moving into my new apartment in Brookhaven on Dec. 18! It is perfect for me... it is a one-bedroom end unit on the top floor. There are multiple pools and gyms and they offer free aerobics, yoga and pilates classes 4 times a week! Such a great deal.

I'll be starting the new year off with a bang!