New York- Christmas Edition!

There is nothing better then a spontaneous trip.

Especially when it is to NY during CHRISTMAS!!

We always say we need to go somewhere when we hang out

with Jesse and Kristen.

We try making dates work, and then nothing happens

because one of us have something going on.

I joked about going the week before Christmas thinking there

would be no way, but when we both had empty calendars we

said YOLO!

This is Amman.

A few days before our arrival, I saw a lady post about a car driver

she just used and how amazing he was.

I messaged her and she actually responded!!

I text him right then and there and scheduled our ride

to and from the airport.

He was the NICEST guy!

Sure beat a scuzzy taxi or random uber.

He is local so of course we asked him for the best of the best

places to go and eat at!

 

We dumped our bags at the hotel and walked to

get some New York pizza!

A recommendation from Amman, and it hit the spot!

Also our first glimpse of all the amazing holiday decorations!

It was drizzly, but weirdly not super cold.

Checking out Time Square on our walk 

to see the Rockefeller Christmas tree!

Amman told us to go since it was late, not many

people would be there so it would be a perfect picture opportunity.

There she is!!

You see it on the television and in pictures, but in real life...

I just couldn't believe it!

This Santa was  talking to people and told us to hurry

as the lights turn off at midnight.

Well, right when we got in front of the tree that is what happended.

Whomp, whomp.

But I got a picture with Santa in front of the dark tree instead, lol.

Kristen saw on instagram a business that does city Christmas tours.

It seemed great as it would hit the spots we wanted to see anyways,

plus give us a good idea of where everything was so we could go back

to it later if we wanted.

It was called My Christmas in New York and I highly recommend it!!

We hopped on a bus first thing in the morning where we went to our first stop.

Which was where we were the night before, Rockefeller Center!

Why does this lighting make me look 100 years old 

and have no eyebrows ???

Our tour guide holding the umbrella.

She was a spunky one!

She was nice, yet basically told us to not act like dumb tourists.

Especially as we walked past the Today Show window.

She gave strict instructions to not stop and do NOT take pictures.

I understood the assignment, ha!

I did it very discreetly.

How could I not?

I watched this show every morning when I had little

babies at home! They were my life line to the outside world!

Hi Hoda and Savannah!

Do we look cold?

It definitely chilled up over night!

St. Patrick's Cathedral is STUNNING!!!

The beginning of the dazzling 5th Avenue stores!

I swooned hard.  

Gorgeous buildings with their decorations.

Welcome to the Plaza Hotel!

"I knew it was you, I could

smell you getting off the elevator". 

We definitely could NOT go in there.

Strictly for guests only, I can see why.

Our tour guide said we could try, but good luck.

She said Bergdorf Goodman has a massive team that only works on

Christmas window displays, and that they were already

working on the next season!!

They take it very seriously.

To me, their windows seemed the least Christmas-y.

The famous Louis Vuitton suitcase building!

Just INSANE!!

Cartier

You better believe I started watching Gossip Girl on the flight home
after seeing the Lotte Palace hotel!

The original wood escalator. 

Our last stop was getting to cut

the 2 hour line at this popular restaurant known for its 

Christmas decorations. 

Lillie's Victorian. 

This place was out of this world with its decor!

We couldn't believe it!!

I was turning in circles trying to see everything going on inside.
I've never seen anything like it!

Well, besides Turtle Creek Lanes house. 

I hope she has been here, they can be besties!

Nothing like Christmas brunch on crack!

We did a little more site seeing.

Flatiron building covered in scafuliting.

Our first subway ride.

We may or may not have gone the opposite direction at first.

Props to the city people who do this day in and out!

Mad respect to them. I'll take my car any day!

 I have a secret.

I am a little obsessed with 9/11.

It boggles my mind that this actually happend. 

I have watched every documentary over and over.

These people who lost their lives,

Their families who never have been the same since.

It sounds so insensitive to say I am just as intrigued 24 years later

as I was the day it happened, but I am!

Casey and I went to New York 19 years ago and visited ground zero.

It was fenced off and basically a construction zone in a deep pit.

 

It literally took my breath away to walk around the corner from the subway

to see this beauty from the ashes. 

I walked up and instantly recognized the name Sharon Moore, 

probably from a documentary I had watched.

You could feel the peace in the memorials.

The museum has been on my bucket list for a long time!

We easily walked around looking at things for a couple of hours.

It was surreal seeing the artifacts in person.

Popped into the Oculus mall across the street.

Lots of swanky shopping in here.

Our dogs were barking at the point,

but we had heard how amazing the Dyker Heights lights were.

We suffer from FOMO, so off we trekked to the nearest

subway to Brooklyn!

It was a bit of a walk to the the neighborhoods, but 

man oh man was it worth it!!

Dyker Heights is famous for its lavish and extravagant Christmas light displays.

It drawers hundreds of thousands of visitors annually. 

It is in the suburbs and you felt out of the city for sure.

It was spectacular and I loved every second of it!

We picked a few streets to walk up and down and there

was something to see left and right!

I think it's fun to imagine yourself living in these houses

and what your life might be like.

I love that the home owners were capitalizing on the crowds and selling

hot chocolate and goodies in their yards!

We even got tamales that beat out ours from home!

Who knew New Yorkers could make such good mexican food.

As if we hadn't done enough, we stopped in for a night

cap at Serendipity!

We will look past the dollar signs for these frozen hot chocolates.

They know they could get $100 a pop for these bad boys.

THEY ARE SO GOOD!

Basically crawling at this point to get back to home base.

We were stuffed, exhausted, and half frozen.

It's funny how the subways can either be beyond sketchy, or

beyond charming.

The subway tile art was catching my eye!