We decided earlier this week that we were going to make an impromptu drive to NYC for a night to go see the one and only Allen Stone play at the Apple store! So, armed with google maps and our new, no-nonsense Jeep, we left yesterday for Brooklyn. To our great surprise, we navigated there without a hitch, and were blown away by the approaching skyline and the mass sprawl that is the boroughs. We were only able to snag one shot - pardon the photo quality, I kinda took this while driving ;)
Thankfully, we had found a pet-friendly hotel in Brooklyn close to a Metro station, so Lady was able to accompany us on our voyage :) We tromped around the neighborhood, admired all the brownstones, and after a quick lunch, took the R line into Manhattan. We found our way to the Chelsea neighborhood so that we could get wrist bands for the show. Despite having been to New York a couple times, I had never been to an area that felt like people LIVED there. Not touristy or bright and loud, but full of people actually going about their daily lives - grocery shoppers, kids going to school, suits carrying briefcases. It was refreshing.
We grabbed bands at the Apple store, and then just started walking. Before we knew it, we had gone about a dozen city blocks and were at Times Square. Still hustling and bustling, like always...
After a few miles of walking, we decided to subway it back to Chelsea and grab a bite to eat before the show. We found an awesome restaurant called Pad Thai Noodle Lounge, where we feasted on crab rangoon and curry to our heart's delight. Then we hurried the one block to Apple, where we met our dear friend Rachel, who joined us for the show!
We waited and waited (and waited), but of course it was worth the wait - Allen never disappoints. If you haven't heard of Allen Stone, do yourself a favor and look him up! Straight from Chewelah, this 23-yr old guy has enough soul to blast a room apart, and is probably one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. He was also recently on Conan. No big deal. Out of respect for the no-photography request, I only took a pre-show shot, but seriously...this kid and his band bring some SOUND.
One killer show later, we gave him a few big hugs from the Pacific Northwest, bid dear Rachel farewell and headed back to our hotel. The next morning we decided "well, we made it to Brooklyn, how hard could it be to drive to the Bronx?" So we loaded into the mighty Jeep and away we went! I tried to find a map to do the ensuing chaos justice, but this is the closest I could find....
Let's just say I have NO idea how anybody did this before smart phones. We drove from the lower yellow section, east thru the sherbet orange section, then north and west into the tan section. I still couldn't tell you how, but 45 minutes later, we arrived! We found ourselves in a Little Italy, tried the wares at Morrone Pastry Shop & Cafe (yum!) and then picked up Rach, who guided us to some good ol' mexican at La Estrella. Shortly after, we took the prettiest Parkway all the way back to Hamden. Only an hour away :)
I don't know why, but despite being just a day and a half, this was a really great trip. Maybe it had something to do with the reason we went, or the people with whom we spent our time. And maybe it's because we didn't pack it full of sights and tourist stops. It felt like we weren't tourists, in fact, but could actually enjoy the City and just let it breathe around us. Can't wait for our next visit :)
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