New York State of Mind

I went to New York for a long weekend and had such a great time. If I were to blog about everything I did, you'd be reading all day, so I'll just hit a few highlights for now.

1. A new friendship. I stayed with my friend Diana. I know her because she is dating one of my closest friends, but Diana and I had never actually spent any time together just the two of us before this trip. So I was a little nervous - not that we wouldn't get along, just that we might not have that much in common or would run out of things to say or something. But as it turns out, I think we are kindred spirits in many ways. We had a great time hanging out, and I feel like now we have the beginnings of a fun and true friendship of our own!

2. An old friendship renewed. I met up with a friend of mine from high school who I haven't seen in several years. We were pretty close friends in high school, but just lost touch and I don't think I'd really talked to him in at least 3-4 years. But I'd kept track of him enough to know he was in NYC, so I got in touch and we met for lunch. I was nervous that it would be awkward or we wouldn't have anything to say to each other after all these years, but it was wonderful. We caught up on each other's lives, we talked about art and music and books and theater. And oddly enough, we've been going through similar existential ponderings lately, so we talked about life and dreams and how they change. I love it when things turn out even better than you hope.

3. Mad shopping. Diana is a great shopping partner and boy did we shop. And we found some great deals. For example, I got some super-cute black/grey tweed shoes from Ann Taylor for just $15. And a cute black linen skirt at H&M for $10! I love New York. I love shopping. I love having a fun girlfriend to shop with. YAY!

4. Fabulous art and music. Of course, being in NYC requires experiencing some high culture. We went to the New York Philharmonic and heard some terrific music. The highlight was a Brahms violin concerto that was truly transcendent. We also hit the MoMA for a little dose of great art. I sometimes struggle with modern art, but I loved the MoMA. It makes such a difference to see art in person. I saw some famous works (like Starry Night, for example!) but also lots of unfamiliar things that I really liked. What a great way to spend an afternoon.

5. Delicious food! Brunch at La Bonne Soupe; dinner at the hip, swanky Tribeca restaurant Landmarc; adventures in a whole new cuisine with Indonesian food at Borobudur on the Lower East Side; cupcakes at Magnolia, made famous by Sex and the City. So much good food, so little time!

And now that I've been to New York and know how easy it is to get there by train (love the train!!), I'm sure I'll be back soon for more adventures.