Anniversary Weekend in Miami: Day 2

Saturday morning, we woke up well rested and 

left the room in search of a gym.

Boy, did we find one. This 

hotel gym, (which I was assuming would only have

a few machines and a couple free weights) was CRAZY.

This is what I expected:

And this is what we got!

Andddddd other people were working out in it!

It was the craziest thing I have ever seen.

Once I finished my workout - in the fully loaded

gym - we ran out in search of coffee and breakfast.

I loaded myself up with 4 shots of espresso and we

headed out to Villa Vizcaya.

After visiting - I dubbed this place the

Biltmore of Miami. 

Though much smaller, Vizcaya is no less impressive.

I couldn't get a great pic of the whole place so I found one
for you online!

The following were taken by yours truly!

After a long day of exploring, we headed into the

city for dinner :)

A coworker of Ricky's told us about this great

place called STK.

It was, maybe, the best food we have ever eaten and 

the service was great!

View from the table

It was such a fun restaurant and a great end to 

a great day!

Mummy Dearest, may I please go to the Science Center?

A few Saturdays ago a friend invited me to join her at the Orlando Science Center for Science Night Live.

The main reason for going was to hear Dr. Heather Gill-Frerking speak about the Mummies of the World Exhibition. 

But mummies weren’t the only reason we were excited for a night in the science center!

We were also drawn in by the 12 drinks for $10 punch-card and the 21 and up sign.

Outfit for the evening

The science center was our play ground, with no kids in sight! 

We traveled all six floors, playing with toys, looking through microscopes, taking pictures, looking at planets through telescopes, gazing at laser light shows, and drinking all the beer and wine the bar stands would give us.

Pink Floyd Laser Show

When the clock struck 10, it was time to file into the auditorium to hear the stories of mummies from Europe, Egypt, and South America. 

It was fascinating, and the pictures were interesting, but sadly Heather did not bring any real life mummies with her.

As soon as it had begun, it was finished, so we sauntered out into the night and headed home.

Apparently the science center has a different event every month. If you are in town, you should check it out! I know I will!

P.S. I have so many more pictures and videos that I never post, but if you want to see them you should check me out on Snapchat!

The Great Trip: Final Days

Saturday morning we headed out early for breakfast. We decided on trying out French Roast, in Chelsea. I had eggs benedict and the world’s cutest coffee.

Menu.

After breakfast we took a taxi to Times Square where we did our very first super touristy thing – we bought a tour bus ticket. 

The tour was called The Ride. 

It was interesting, but I don’t think I will ever do it again. 

My favorite thing about it was I got to sit down, but the bad thing was that it was super warm so I almost fell asleep – and actually my mom did fall asleep… It was an hour tour, and it was fun, but I didn’t feel like I learned anything super memorable. I really wanted to learn all about the gang wars, the mafia, and the celebrities…

After the tour we stopped for cheesecake at Junior’s (a MUST if you are in NYC) and then we walked a few blocks to get to our main destination for the day – a Broadway show!

We (I) decided to see Chicago! Ricky was dreading it, but I was forcing him anyway. As we glanced at the program, we noticed that Brandi (YES BRANDI) would be playing the role of Roxie.

SHE WAS FANTASTIC FOR THAT ROLE! 

She was hilarious, her voice was amazing, and her dancing was spot on. After the show, even Ricky said he enjoyed the performance and he wouldn’t mind on seeing another show! 

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

Later that night we met up with the newlyweds at a burlesque show. Since we were all new to burlesque, we weren’t quite sure what to expect but we were excited!

The show was in a slightly scary area, but it meant a $$cheaper$$/raunchier show. It was only $20 to get in, and we were allowed to stay as long, and for as many shows, as we wanted. The show was fantastic! I was quite impressed with the dances, and some, though raunchy, were quite hilarious. Krystal and I drank French Martinis, while Dana and Ricky sipped on beers. This show was definitely something I won’t ever forget!

After the show, we walked until we ran into food. Food in the form of Katz’s and it was ooooo sooooo good. It was here that I had the best Ruebin of my LIFE. “I’ll have what she’s having”

Spotted this gem on the way home.

The next morning we headed out for brunch and shopping. 

We ate at a restaurant called Penelope’s and it was my favorite meal of the trip!

After brunch we set out for some shopping (YES I FINALLY FOUND SHOPPING) on the upper east side before we headed to the MET. 

I tried my hardest not to be rude and take pictures,
 so this is the only one I got!
I just love the yellow couch!

The MET was awesome, but I wished that we had seen it on a regular week day. It was crazyyyy. The tourists were insane, and the annoying thing was that people were allowed to take pictures… This meant there was a line to see EVERYTHING.

After spending a few hours at the MET, we headed to see the Rangers play!

Seeing the Rangers play Tampa was, in the beginning, amazing. I have never seen fans like Ranger fans, I have never seen so many jerseys and so much pride.

But that all was killed by the fact that Tampa won against NYC 2-0. 

It was a longgggg treck back to the car. I was not looking forward to riding all the way back to Orlando with Ricky (the saddest ranger fan) in the car next to me.

Thankfully he quickly got over his sadness, which was good because it took us a day and a half to finallyyyy get home!

The Great Trip Part III - Salem to NYC

On Wednesday morning, we woke up and headed towards Newport Rhode Island. The plan was to find some lobster, do the Cliff Walk, and invade Taylor Swift’s house!

We arrived in Newport by lunch time and decided to stop for a bite to eat before doing the Cliff Walk. We ate at a restaurant called BrickAlley Pub. Ricky and I really wanted to try lobster, but all they had was lobster rolls so I ended up getting the Cajun chicken sandwich and he ordered the cheeseburger with bacon. 

It was a great meal but we really wished we could have tried lobster!!!

Once we were done with lunch we drove around until we found the Cliff Walk. The houses were insane! I’ve decided one day I would like to have a baby mansion as a summer home in Rhode Island or Maine.

After walking for about an hour we decided it was time to head back to the car so we could make our way towards our FINAL DESTINATION in NYC.

Driving through NYC for the most part was pleasant, 

except for a small patch in Manhattan where I thought we were going to die ;)

We were the last to get to the apartment, but thankfully we still got a good room! 

Here are a few pictures of where we stayed! It was actually pretty damn nice!

We were only two blocks from the Empire State Building!

After chatting with family and unpacking our bags, Ricky and I headed out into the city to meet an old friend from high school.

Ricky and I met up with my friend Gaby and 

her boyfriend for Vietnamese food (my favorite!!).

It was just like old times for Gaby and me, and thankfully the boys hit it off!

Halfway through the meal, I feel a tap on my shoulder. 

I turn around to see that another one of my friends (Daniella – Gaby’s sister) had come to visit!!!

After dinner we headed out for drinks and desert. 

Gaby offered up the idea of cupcakes and wine, and I held on to that plan for dear life!

We ended up going to a little place called Sweet Revenge.

Here they had a list of cupcakes, cookies, and cakes that they would pair with beer, wine, or champagne.

This was one of my favorite stops in NYC.

I had the Cranberry Oatmeal Pecan cake which was paired with the Petalo Moscato. 

Ricky had a cupcake paired with a beer 

(I can’t remember what he or anyone else had – but I tried everything and it was all very good).

After hours of stories, gossip, and laughter, we bid farewell to Gaby, Daniella, and Grant and headed in the direction of home. 

We decided to take the long way home so that we could take in more of the city at night.

Everything was beautiful and I honestly felt extremely safe. 

Once we got back to the apartment we said goodnight and hit the hay.