Adventures in nyc.

My first holiday, travel blog post. I do hope you enjoy this post (especially as it will be a hugely wordy post), the first of many, I hope. I decided upon seeing a great travel deal to book a family holiday to the United States, more specifically the city that never sleeps, New York city.

Boarding Passes Finally!

Although initially it was a bit of a faff, with all the Covid restrictions especially around testing before and after flights. Requiring a fit to fly test which is costly if not planned for. We eventually made it, and it was an experience navigating Heathrow airport, when it was so busy, as a group of first timers. Of course we successfully managed to check in, receive our boarding passes and navigate security. We flew with British Airways, which was a satisfactory experience, especially with complimentary food and drink, including a mini bar.

Upon touching down in JFK Airport, we managed to navigate a surprisingly friendly border and customs officers. We initially thought about getting the public transport to our hotel, yet we arrived in the city, at 6:30pm. So we got cash out, and was shown to a reputable classic NY yellow taxi cab stand. After a long and quite dangerous 25 min drive, we arrived at our hotel, The Carvi Hotel. The front desk and check in went smoothly, and we was quickly shown to our ensuite room, on the 7th floor, which also housed the entrance to the rooftop terrace. The hotel overall was very small, with no bar, or kitchen, yet the location in Manhattan was very well placed. I also very much enjoyed just sitting out on the terrace, during the evenings, and seeing the lights, the city noises and also feeling quite small, surrounded by the skyscrapers, even being on the 7th storey level.

Carvi Hotel Roof Terrace at night.

Although we planned our 3 full days in NYC before we left, Of course nothing of the planned happened exactly how we wanted it too. We walked from our hotel, down to Grand Central station, so we could purchase our metro cards, and also see the beautiful station. It was also a weird experience as a English family, seeing US army men, patrolling with guns on show, as well as when we was out and about seeing NYPD officers. To be clear, we know of the gun laws, and that it’s legal, but of course being from a different country, it was an experience for us.

The first full day, we spent exploring the city from 6:30am – 7pm. We did a tour bus around Manhattan, we visited times square, escape virtuality, grand central, Bryant park, to name a few. We also popped in McDonald’s, Starbucks and a CVS pharmacy. Our first taster of virtual reality was super fun, and the staff were great and friendly. All I want to do know is buy an Oculus Rift. (One Day I Hope). It must be known though, that it’s a very New York thing to not have many if any public restrooms. The only ones we found was at Bryant park, and in Madame Tussauds. Aside from that we made our way back to the hotel. I also embarked on a lone boat trip, to get a little closer to the statue of liberty, while my mum and brother waited on shore, by the pier for myself to return, with slightly better pictures of the statue.

Day and Night NYC.

A big part of this trip was to also finally visit the 9/11 memorial and museum. It is still hard for me to word it, and I was asked like ‘why would I bother visiting?’ or ‘It didn’t affect you’. But I remember being 7 years old, watching the attack on the tv. I remember it, and the subsequent law changes to many countries, to help prevent further terror attacks, affected many countries. It was just important for me personally to go and pay my respects.

9/11 Memorial.

I am also a huge impractical jokers fan, and although we didn’t manage to go on the Staten island ferry, we did go around a few places they have filmed in the past seasons, which did make me happy. Now jokers is a tv show, I will watch on repeat, it always cheers me up, and makes me laugh even after numerous viewings.

I also got to bring along one of my fave designs in my suitcase, so it got a little tour around NYC too. I enjoyed modelling it on the hotel roof terrace, and you too could purchase one from the online store: www.rebeccaklxo.teemill.com

My Attitude Tee Dress Design, Available Now.

We also found the subway system, surprisingly easy to navigate, unlike the London Underground tube station. I honestly don’t know how, maybe cause the lines are like separate and there is a few station cross overs, but not as many line crossovers as in London. I also had so much joy when I finally found a subway cart to ourselves, for a few stops, until it got very busy.

Overall it is a very lovely city, and way too much to do to fit in a 3 day holiday. I will of course return again in the future. Even after my most frustrating experience trying to get cash out at an ATM machine. So I recommend just taking cash and not using a currency card.

If you enjoyed this let me know, and any other travel suggestions in the comments. Of course now the travel bug has bit me, and I can’t wait for future adventures with my family. I’ve included a few images here, but you can view most my content via my Instagram link.

~RebeccaKLxo