Landmark sightseeing, vintage shopping, and delicious food make New York my favorite city of all time. There’s no shortage of things to do and places to see on a girl’s trip. This past weekend, my friends Ella and Bella went to the city with me. We were lucky enough to get tickets on a Mount Holyoke bus that left the Blanch stop at 7:00 AM and arrived back at 10:00 PM. Taking travel time into account, we were left with 9 hours in NYC. We decided to spend the day in SoHo for trendy shopping and impeccable food. The following is how we spent our afternoon…
SoHo is the stretch down Canal Street which sits between Sixth Avenue and Lafayette Street. After proudly navigating the subway, we stepped out of the Canal St. stop and headed straight to the Glossier showroom on Lafayette St.
There’s almost always a line outside of Glossier, so we arrived at 11:00AM as the doors were opening. We only had to wait for 5 minutes. A woman with perfect skin, wearing a rose colored jumpsuit opened those pink doors as if they were the gates to heaven. Inside the door is a glowing, velvet staircase which leads to a land of flower bouquets, mirror lined walls, flushed cheeks, glossy lips, and perfect selfie lighting. We spent at least an hour shopping and taking instagram pictures in every photo spot in the store. After placing our orders on iPads, we watched our plastic pink bags filled with bubble-wrapped pouches come down the- you guessed it- pink conveyor belt with the call of our names. We walked out feeling glossy, giddy, and ready for caffeination!
Next stop: Cha Cha Matcha! This flamingo-pink Instagram favorite features neon signs and green potted plants which make it feel like a tropical vacation in the middle of the 35° city. This cafe is so trendy that the pink napkins which read “I love you so matcha!” also say “free with purchase,” as instagrammers would come here simply to steal the freebees and snap pictures if they could. However, I assure you the matcha is not only beautiful but delicious. They serve everything from simple hot and iced matcha to trendy drinks like pumpkin spice matcha lattes and lavender matcha with CBD.
After getting warm and caffeinated, we proceeded with our shopping mission. We visited Reformation, which is known for their feminine, sustainable fashion. We stopped in Brandy Melville, Aritzia, Le Labo, and Mejuri Jewelry. While navigating the streets of SoHo on the search for vintage stores, we paused every so often to enjoy the colorful street art and to smell the roses at one of the many flower shops.
Next, we visited Bulletin, which is a curated women’s wholesale marketplace. Bulletin is like walking into the sinshine yellow and bubblegum pink Insta feed of a badass girly girl who’s completely aware that her femininity does not contradict her feminism. It’s political, sexy, fashionable, and practical. Bulletin sells everything from scented candles like “Adulting” which smells like “early nights and steady paychecks” and “Basic” which smells like “PSLs and cable knit sweaters” to female founded, ethically produced clothing brands. After Bulletin, we spent time in a few vintage stores. Then we were hungry, which meant next stop: Little Italy!
Eataly (which has locations in the Flatiron District and downtown near WTC) is my favorite Italian spot in the city. Because we were far away and on a time crunch, the girls and I took a chance on Emporio, which had good Yelp reviews, and – spoiler alert – it did not disappoint! Emporio is known for their wood-fired pizzas, homemade pasta, and non-traditional brunch. We ate in the bright, beautiful back dining space, where the ceiling is made entirely of glass. Bella ordered the Smoked Salmon Flatbread with ricotta and a poached egg, Ella had a Scamorza Scrambled Egg Sandwich on toasted brioche, and I got a housemade gluten-free margherita pizza.
We said farewell to the city over dessert. We wandered the streets of Little Italy in search for one of my family’s favorite NYC dessert spots. After failed navigation and many run-ins with street venders trying to sell us counterfeit handbags, we finally found Ferrara Bakery & Cafe. Ferrera’s serves over 200 house-made, hand-crafted Italian specialities from cannolis & lobster tails to gelato & tiramisu. We went a little crazy, each ordering mint mochas and dessert trios. Following our excessive dessert consumption, we rested in a hotel lobby on 49th street for a little while, before enduring the 3 hour bus ride home, but I won’t bore you with the details of that!
Lastly, if you want even more NYC girl’s trip content, Bella vlogged our entire day on her YouTube channel (which you should definitely subscribe to)! Here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lgNUmkdGug
XOXO,
Adele
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