This past weekend, my friends and I decided to kick off Thanksgiving break with a trip to New York City. It was one of my close friends’ 21st birthdays and she decided that we should ring in her personal new year in the Big Apple.
Our trip started with packing up and leaving campus early Saturday morning. Everyone seemed to have already left for break as the streets of Storrs were empty. We loaded up two cars with our things for NYC along with our things for break as we were going to our respective houses right after our little trip. Seven of us drove from Storrs to New Haven to catch a 12:38 p.m. train. We arrived at the station at about 12:34 p.m. and sprinted to find our track. Luckily, we made it with quite literally no time to spare and the birthday celebration commenced.
After a good two-hour train ride, we finally arrived at Grand Central. This was my first time in this station and I immediately felt the hustle and bustle of the city. The place was filled with people commuting to work and traveling for the holidays, and then there was us. Seven girls with debatably too many bags for a simple one-night trip. We walked outside and instantly got a whiff of the street hot dogs and heard the saxophone of a musician on the street. In an attempt to save money, we decided to walk everywhere, so our 20-minute walk to the AirBnB began.
Our group honestly didn’t know what to expect with our new living situation and were pleasantly surprised with the place we were staying. Located on the sixth floor of a large complex, the room had three full beds, a bathroom, and a kitchen. It was exactly what we needed to get us through the next 20 hours. Personally, I do not have too much experience with NYC. Born and raised in Massachusetts, my friends and family always did our city outings in Boston so I was excited to explore.
We started by getting snacks and groceries to last the night. It was then time to embark on the walk to Times Square. Of course, hot dogs were a necessity and a cute little place right in Times Square had exactly what we were looking for. We ate, took pictures, people watched, and even got a spontaneous salsa dance performance from a street performer. Eventually, it was time for dinner so our group headed back to the AirBnB to change.
New York City on a Saturday night is busy, as expected, however, we did not make a dinner reservation. We went from place to place and the waits were too long. That was until we saw a rustic-looking place called Bella Union. The sole reason we were interested is because a friend in our group is named Bella so we just had to call and coincidentally, they had an opening for us. The music and food were very good and the service was super quick. The decorations made the atmosphere really cool so we were happy with how dinner plans turned out. 10/10 recommend.
It was finally time for the part that we were most excited and anxious for. Going out. At UConn, we are all very familiar with Huskies and the multiple frats so coming to this new place was a little daunting, considering we did not know what to expect. The dirty frat shoes and ripped jeans were traded for some classier outfits and we headed out the door to a bar that was .3 miles away from us. Easy enough. After a way too-expensive cover fee, we made it inside. The culture shock was immediate as there was a woman monitoring the bathroom and it was expected that a person would tip her for allowing paper towel usage. The vibe was not what we were expecting with EDM music instead of classic pop and rap and a crowd a tad older and drinks a bit more pricey than we were used to. Once it turned midnight, we cheersed to our friend for her birthday and decided it was time to head out, less than an hour after arriving.
The bar was a bit of a bust but the night was not over. Three girls approached us as we were walking home from the bar and asked us where we were going. After agreeing that we were not used to the going-out vibe, we all decided to get pizza together. I am unsure what the place was called but like a lot of NYC pizza, I 10/10 recommend it. Eventually, we said bye to our friends and headed back to the AirBnB.
The night concluded with laughs and talks like an old-school, middle-school sleepover. Even though we all live together on campus, being together in the AirBnb gave us a whole new, fresh feel. Personally, I was asleep by about 2 a.m., an earlier night than anyone was expecting but a good one nonetheless. The next morning, we recapped the events of the night, as one does, and decided bagels were an immediate need. We packed up and checked out, and headed to Bluestone Cafe for coffee and Zucker’s Bagels for delicious sandwiches. The final 10/10 from the trip.
After a quick walk through Grand Central, a two-hour train ride to New Haven, and another two-and-a-half-hour car ride home, I finally walked through the door of my house. It was a tiring weekend but we had a blast. As I write this from my cozy bed in my suburban town, I have decided that the fast life is not for me, but New York City will continue to be a place I enjoy visiting, especially when it is to celebrate a friend.