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NYC, day 2 & 3: Lazy days in Big Apple

After my first day in New York and the adventurous (and exhausting!) bridge-experience from the last day, I planned to take it easy the next day. 

In the morning I visited the High Line, a park which was created on an old railroad spur that is no longer used. Up there you can take a wonderful walk - a green oasis surrounded by skyscrapers and a great view of the statue of liberty. I regretted not to have brought my jogging shoes and to do like the people from New York City, just to take a little joggingtour and enjoy the view! Wouldn't this be perfect up there? 

On the High Line

What a view! 
Well... I thought Mrs Liberty has to be in this blog too. Great view from the High Line and a great alternative to the always crowded Staten Island Ferry! 

Very near to the High Line there is Chelsea Market, a big market hall with great shops and cool cafés. Here I could have easily spent half a day.

Flower Shop at Chelsea Market

The weather this day was muuuch better than the day before and my shoes dry again, so I once again crossed the Brooklyn Bridge (this time without fear of getting blown from the bridge by the wind). 
On the other side, I walked through the wonderful Brooklyn Bridge Park where I found my perfect place to sit and observe the skyline of Manhattan. Isn’t that just the perfect place to be?

I just couldn't get enough of this skyline!!
If you ask me about my happy place in New York City: Here it is! Brooklyn Bridge Park


Next, I wanted to visit Williamsburg, a district that is known as an upcoming hipster quarter. I admit that I’ve never been good in estimating distances, so I decided to go there by foot. It didn’t look soooo far away on the map. Well… To be honest, it was… But it was worth it! I saw some interesting neighbourhoods far away from all the tourist attractions (I guess I looked like a lost tourist, but I liked it!) and after a one-hour-walk and with a little help of my friend the GPS I reached Williamsburg and was rewarded with cozy little cafés, restaurants and hip shops – exactly the things that I love so much while travelling. It’s a really cozy, quite but vibrant neighbourhood and was the perfect balance to busy Manhattan. And yes, for my way back I took the metro… :-) 

On day 3 of my journey, I didn't have much time left for exploring the city, so I took a long walk in the beautiful central park, before I headed to the bus terminal and drove off to Boston. 

 What a fascinating contrast, the relaxing, green park and the impressive skyscrapers in the back, don't you think? 

 Again, New York didn’t disappoint me. It was a great adventure and I could have easily spent 2 more weeks there without getting bored – there is still soo much to see. But this is a good reason to go back soon, right? 😊

As a quick summary, here are my top tips for a visit in NYC:

WHAT TO DO:

- High Line: A wonderful park that was built on a railway line no longer used. Perfect for  joggingtours in the early morning, walks or just to relax from the busy downtown life. There, you also have a very good view of the Statue of Liberty (a very good alternative to the very touristy ferry tour!). Make sure you visit the Chelsea Market afterwards for a coffee or a little shopping tour (--> Link)

- Visit Williamsburg, a very nice neighborhood in Brooklyn. Spend an afternoon by going shopping in great vintage stores, drinking coffee in one of the cute little cafés (good luck by choosing the best one, I'm sure you want to try them all!!) or having brunch at "Café Mogador" (book in advance!). The easiest way to get there is to take the metro to Bedford Avenue. Enjoooy!!

 - I really loved the Brooklyn Bridge Park on opposite side of the river. Visit it by crossing the Brooklyn Bridge and enjoy a fantastic view of Manhattan's skyline once up there. I'm sure you'll be as impressed as I am! (--> Link)

 - Not an insider tip but a good one anyway: Don't forget to visit the Central Park! 


WHERE TO SLEEP:

- I reeeally love nice hotels. That's why I recommend you the hotel I visited during my first trip to NYC. I immediately fell in love with. It's called Hudson Hotel (--> Link), is located just some minutes away from Central Park or Broadway and designed by the famous designer Philippe Starck. Apart from beautiful designed rooms, it also offers a rooftop terrace, a park and an English garden. Not the cheapest one of course (well... NYC isn't cheap in general!!), but if you want to do something good for yourself and to enjoy the city in style, you'll definitely love this hotel!!


OTHER USEFUL TIPS: 

- If you want to see a Broadway musical, try out he "Tkts"-booth located directly on Times Square (-->Link). If you're spontaneous enough, you can snag tickets that are much cheaper that the normal ones! Which of course will make you thinking about visiting more than one musical! :-) Try it out! It's really worth it! 


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