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You Are Never Too Old To Set Another Goal Or To Dream A New Dream - C.S. Lewis
My first trip to NYC, I was a senior in high school, and I noticed the ground was sparkly in times square. I knew immediately I would live here one day to pursue my dreams, but what I did not expect, was that I would not love it as much as everyone else.
Mike and I gave NYC a solid two year try, and in the attempt, I auditioned and pursued my dream of Broadway harder than ever. I went to workshops and lessons, I built my network, and beefed up my rep book, but never found anything I was doing to be satisfying. I was so surprised to find that working at Disney had actually been more satisfying, and useful of all my gifts God had given me, and I missed it every single day.
The funny thing about dreams; they can change, and you may notice the ground sparkles a little brighter somewhere else, and that’s ok! Point is, follow your dreams, friends. Life is far too short to not enjoy every moment of it.
Of course because we knew we were leaving the city, Mike and I adventured and explored NYC the final month before our lease was up, getting our final bucket list items completed. Mike had his last day at school, and I finished up babysitting, at NY Kids Club, and with Kleinfeld, where it was only fitting that on one of my last days there, we had a Mermaid event going on in the store.
Bye Kleinfeld, time to say yes to new adventures!
As everyone knows, NYC is a hub for a variety of delicious food, which of course we felt the need to explore before leaving including...
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| Vanessa's Dumplings in Chinatown |
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| Salted caramel frosting smashed between two Snickerdoodle cookies from Empire Cake (DELICIOUS!!) |
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| An amazing pork Arepa from the street fair |
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| Deep Fried Cookie DO from Smorgasbord (everyone needs to try these in their lifetime) |
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| Hand cut fries and a Cubano from Smorgasbord, and some extra visitors! |
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| Ichiran Ramen (aka the best Japanese Ramen you'll find in NYC) |
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| Tonkotsu Fries from LES Kitchen |
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| Rainbow and Galaxy Bagels from the Bagel Store |
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| A chicken parm slider on garlic knots from Hold My Knots at Gansevoort Market |
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| And (I cannot believe we forgot to take a picture of this, but I was too excited about the lunch box) Mac and Cheese Pancakes from Moms Kitchen (best brunch near Times Square) |
During our time in NYC, we were always in search of a little Disney magic, and I would say we were highly successful. The obvious Disney in NYC being the Disney Store in Times Square, which was one of our favorite touristy areas (and not just because it is the only store with a bathroom in that area, ha), but also, they sometimes have Little Mermaid photo spots set up and it makes my heart so happy!
And there are other Disney favorites in NYC that are a little less obvious, like the Mickey wall, located near Houston Street in Greenwich Village area.
Then there is the super-less obvious, like the Bronx Zoo (which has free admission on Wednesdays), which has nothing to do with Disney, but the atmosphere reminds you so much of Animal Kingdom and Disney that it is a must visit. We had an absolute blast at the zoo, and did not spend a dime! I would absolutely put this on your list of things to do if you have the time while you are in the city.
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| the bears were so active when we were there, it was amazing to watch! |
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| This reminded me a ton of the zoo I grew up with in Toledo! |
Of course, if you are looking for Disney in NYC, anytime you see fireworks, you will immediately think of Disney. Brooklyn must have known we were leaving, because on Mike's last day of school, there was a concert and fireworks in Prospect Park, and it was absolutely magical.
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| All of Brooklyn was there! |
If you are on the hunt for Disney in NYC, there will be times you won't find it quite as easily, so you will just have to make your own Disney magic....
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like making your own homemade Mickey pretzels..
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Or celebrating 1 year since your engagement, by recreating your Disney proposal at the waterfall where it happened...
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| full video here! |
With Broadway being the reason we moved to the city in the first place, it was only fitting we finished our final week in NYC with cramming in as many Broadway shows as possible. With it being the week after the Tony Awards, it was a little tricky to get tickets, however, I did find myself with one of the coolest souvenirs from my favorite child I babysat- A Tony Award Playbill.
First show on the list was Frozen at the St. James-
I really, really wanted to love this show, but to be honest, it really did not meet my high expectations. Caissie Levy (Elsa) has been one of my favorite performers for a very long time, and she was exceptional, but I just wanted the show to have a little more magic, but I did receive my own personal flurry (more like blizzard) at the end of the show, and our guests seemed to really enjoy the show.
Next up was Carousel at the Imperial:
This show was so visually beautiful, and Jesse Mueller (Julie) who is not usually my favorite performer, totally won me over. Classic theater like this is what I grew up on, and although the storyline is a little dated and dull, it was fun to get to show Mike a golden classic.
Our final Broadway show was one I had been pretty personally connected to for a while, between families I had babysat for that were involved in the production process, and a wonderful individual I went to college with performing as standby for almost all of the female roles in the show, so I was so excited to see Mean Girls at The August Wilson Theater-
This show was so great! I had not expected to absolutely fall in love with this show as much as I did. I would literally advise anyone who remembers this film from their teen years to absolutely go see the show!
And that was it! From there, it was time to pack up all of our belongings, say goodbye to our empty apartment, sneak on the roof one last time, and say goodbye to NYC!
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| Bye Prospect Park |
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| Bye NYC |
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| Bye Russo's (first meal and now last meal we had in Brooklyn) |
Bye Apartment!
And just like that...we are homeless....
For a bit anyways....
Mike and I will be living in upstate New York til the Wedding (20-ish days left!), where we then head to Hawaii immediately following for our honeymoon. After we return in August, we will be venturing to Orlando for a quick trip til we leave at the end of August to begin our next adventure....
As you notice, there is a bit of a theme in this blog post. If you always find yourself looking for Disney in other places, you might stop to think, maybe I should just go to the source of what I am looking for, instead of trying to find what doesn't naturally exist. With that being said, Mike and I are incredibly excited to be returning to the mouse at the end of August, especially as we start our journey into married life together, we will once again move across the globe to.....
Dim Sumbody say Hong Kong?!
We are very, very excited to be journeying back to Hong Kong together, where I will be contracted at Hong Kong Disneyland for a special Halloween contract, with some new BOO-tiful friends!! Lets just say I know the Pumpkin King will be happy.
We are so excited for this journey to begin, even if it is only through the Fall for now, we are just so glad to know where we will be for the next little while. We are not sure what is to follow just yet, but we have enough on our plates for the time being to keep us very happy. Til then, be sure to subscribe to keep up with us and see all the wedding photos to come!
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