This summer, the Her Campus team had the opportunity to attend Her Conference 2017 in New York City. We planned the trip to New York between the months of April and May. Before I knew it, we already found a decent AirBnb apartment at the heart of downtown New York at a reasonable price. The most tedious part was having to find airplane tickets that would accommodate our stay for the weekend at Her Conference. Luckily, the trip does get better once we reached New York.
I met up with other members of Her Campus UIC: Daniela Reyes (President), Kimberly Camacho (Social Media), and Shirley Toy (Campus Correspondent, Editor-in-Chief, and Chapter Advisor) at O’Hare Airport. It was a fairly short flight from Chicago to New York. The car ride, from LGA to the AirBnb, was a flashback to when I visited downtown New York for the first time back in December. It was definitely a great experience in New York City, and I remember the hot summer days especially at the subway.
We arrived on Friday afternoon, and the night was free for us to explore. Once we were at the apartment, I met another member of Her Campus UIC: Estefanie Alvarez, a Computer Science major. The location of our AirBnb was convenient, and the sightseeing locations were within reach. Fortunately, Shirley was familiar with the city and helped us navigate the train system. As we browsed around the streets of New York, it was easy to pick up the unique vibe of the New Yorkers. It was near impossible not to take any pictures while walking around. Everything was photogenic, the entire cityscape was shinning brightly.
Times Square was our first destination, tourists stood by and watched street performers while others asked people to take group pictures for them. What immediately caught our attention was the building from which the New Year’s Eve ball would fall. As we walked, we were stopped by a street photographer who took a group photo of us and printed them for us right then and there. Afterwards, we stopped by a restaurant called “The Heartland Brewery and Chophouse” for dinner. We were starving, and it was a tremendous relief to finally sit down and have a meal.
Her Conference took place on July 22nd and 23rd. It was an extremely warm welcoming by the Her Campus team. Everyone was greeted and given a free tote bag with goodies inside for both days! It was a ton of awesome products. In which some of the items were hair products from Bed Head; mascara, eyeshadow, lipsticks from Maybelline; a coffee mug and plenty of healthy snacks. Breakfast and lunch were provided as well. We were given a notebook and an agenda with the scheduled workshops followed by the times. We were left free to choose whichever workshop we wanted to attend. The speakers for each workshop were all professional and experts in fields such as business, marketing, entrepreneurship, and social media. The keynote speakers were Lisa Sugar (POPSUGAR Founder & President), actress/writer and Producer Troian Bellisario, Amani Al-Khatahtbeh (Founder & Editor-in-Chief of MuslimGirl.com), acclaimed TV Journalist Gretchen Carlson and Actress Aja Naomi King.
Our last day in New York City was spent at the rooftop bars, restaurants, and gift shops. A rooftop bar I recommend would be Mr. Purple. It had a beautiful view of the New York City skyline. Daniela and I’s flight was delayed and canceled last minute due to the weather. We were scrambling to figure out our housing and financial situation at the last minute. For a hot minute, I was certain we were going to have to spend the night out on a rainy night. But, luckily, everything somehow worked out perfectly in the end. I was surprised, and I spent my birthday in New York at least.
I encourage all members or students to attend Her Conference, if possible. It is an amazing opportunity to meet other girls who share similar goals as you. For me personally, the whole trip was worthwhile because I got to hear from the industry professionals. Their careers were of my interest, and these professions are ones that I am considering. For some students, it can help you narrow down and discover your true passions or areas of interest. New York has so much to offer as well. You won’t regret attending Her Conference, trust me!