New York Day Four

My last day in NYC started with a beautiful stroll through Central Park with my aunt. We got our Starbucks (an Awake tea for me) and walked first through Strawberry Fields, passing by the Imagine mosaic. There was someone incorrectly singing “Let It Be” and tourists in Beatles shirts taking pictures with it.

My aunt and I then just wandered through the park chatting about high school, college, summer, family and friends. It was really nice to be able to catch up while walking through such a beautiful park. I could spend hours exploring all the paths and gardens in Central Park.

Due to our very filling dinner the night before, we did not eat breakfast that morning in anticipation of lunch at the “mysterious location.” After dressing up, my aunt and I walked a dozen blocks to the restaurant . . . Jean-Georges at Trump Tower.

I had never eaten at such a fancy restaurant with different waiters for bread, drinks, and the meals. Our plates were set down and taken away at the same time by two waiters. It was like a well-oiled machine. We decided to choose the prix fixe menu for our lunch. My appetizer was fried calamari with an aerated chili sauce and my aunt got the tuna tartare. Both were delicious!

For the entrée I got the fresh rigatoni with lamb meatballs and smoked tomato sauce, and my aunt got the golden sea bass. Yummy!

There were only two desserts so we got one of each. The first one was the Jean-Georges molten chocolate cake with homemade vanilla ice cream. The second one was a strawberry shortcake with crème fraîche and strawberry tea. Both were amazing, but I like the chocolate one more.

Overall, Jean-Georges had some of the best food that I have ever eaten. I would love to go again and try more of their food! It was also another opportunity to talk with my aunt about anything that came to mind.

Soon after lunch, Mom picked me up to head back to Boston. We got out of the city before rush hour but hit it in Hartford. Before that, however, we stopped at the Connecticut welcome rest area and it was surprisingly beautiful. I certainly felt welcomed there.

When we got home, it marked the last road trip until Dad and I drive back down to Florida in a month. But I still have exciting things in the meantime with bike tours, movies, afternoon tea, Washington, D.C. and more. Thanks for reading and check back again soon!

Day Three of Road Trip Extravaganza

For the last part of the road trip extravaganza, Mom and I (once again) woke up at 6 am to drive for seven hours. We checked out of the Dupont Circle Hotel and drove to I-95 North. We stopped at a Starbucks for breakfast and a bathroom break. I got a Grande Awake tea with a warmed blueberry scone and Mom got a Venti iced latte with a protein box.

We then continued driving whilst listening to Stuff You Missed in History Class. I love this podcast because I am able to learn about interesting topics in a fun way. We listed to an array of subjects from the founder of the Moulin Rouge to the 1918 Spanish Influenza.

We got to Delaware pretty quickly and Mom and I were so excited to being so close to our end destination!

Please ignore the messy windshield!

We have a lot of family in New Jersey, so Mom and I decided to stop and have lunch with my grandparents. The four of us went to the Cheesecake Factory at Bridgewater Commons. I ordered the California Cheesesteak sandwich without the mushrooms. It was better than I had expected with the sandwich on a toasted French baguette, and the peppers and onions still had some crunch.

After this food break, Mom and I were back on the road through New Jersey and onto New York.

While I was driving, Mom took some cool pictures of the bridge and the faint NYC skyline. I will have more pictures later this week when Mom and I actually go to NYC.

Then we entered Connecticut, where we had lived for two years so Mom took some pictures of the signs of cities where we had lived and places that we loved.

In Connecticut, we saw the first sign for Boston . . . Huzzah! So close!!

Finally after three days of driving, Mom and I entered the state of Massachusetts and got home to Mom’s apartment.

It was nice to get back to where I could unpack and relax. It was also nice to be able to sleep in this morning and not have to get into a car for eight hours. Instead of going out (we were exhausted) Mom and I stayed in, picked up Italian food from Pavarotti’s (I got shrimp scampi . . . YUM!) and watched Food Network. All in all, last night was a relaxing evening after a busy three days.

Check back tomorrow for what Mom and I do in Boston for Memorial Day. As always, thanks for reading!