Last Weekend in NYC!

OH NO!

Our time is officially up in New England!!

For our last "fun weekend" (before our packing weekend) Jason and I wanted to go out with a bang in NYC...

We decided we had to go to a hip, famous restaurant before leaving...  

We were deciding between Cipriani's and Balthazar...

Obviously we chose Balthazar and crossed our fingers that we would get in!

Based on advice from Uncle Mark and Aunt Mary, we didn't make reservations...

they told us to just show up and wait...

Surprisingly we made it right in!

I think because there was only 2 of us...

We were there early so decided on yummy pastries...

And of course cheese!  The restaurant was beautiful and very authentic!  Brought back memories of our honeymoon in Paris!

No celebrity sightings though! :(

After brunch, we made our way to our "farewell to New York" activity...

A sailboat cruise!

Yes, we are that fancy!

Here is the boat, a beautiful old clipper called Shearwater...

It was a beautiful day and it allowed us views of Manhattan that we had not yet seen...

Then brought us right out to the Statue of Liberty!

It was incredible!

I highly recommend the sailboat cruise over the Circle Line...

It was very intimate, and was one of the most relaxing days we have spent in NYC!

Goodbye New York!

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I can't believe how much we have seen in New England!

These past 3 months went by so fast and we have seen more than we ever expected and

I am so happy I have this blog to look back on all the wonderful things we got to experience...

Although most of the things we got to do I will never forget.

Jason and I continue saying to each other that this was the best decision we have ever made to take this leap and travel this country.  It shines a whole new light on our lives and we have appreciated ever minute!

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Before signing off in New England, I had to take a few pictures of our

"weekday life" in Stamford!

Here is our apartment with Dwight and Stanley out on the porch!

Our view of the hospital garage!  Yes we were that close to work!

Here you can see the hospital and the windows into the gym..

Which is where we worked!

It was a pretty nice commute, I have to say!

-Packing up to go-

We literally had a bed, a futon and a kitchen table for 3 months.

It was like indoor camping!

However, we barely noticed since we were out enjoying the sights every minute we could!

Ok, here is my last "Current Location" from New England!

Next stop, CALIFORNIA!

Current Location:

Stamford, CT

New York City, and then some NEWS!

With only weeks left to spend in New England, Jason and I are trying to make the most of every weekend we have left...

Aunt Mary and Uncle Mark were nice enough to invite us to dinner to one of their favorite places (aka, not a tourist trap!)

So Jason and I decided to get into NYC early and catch some of what we were calling "second tier" sights, meaning not the most important, but still things we wanted to see while we had the chance...

Our first stop was Little Italy, which is right in-between SOHO and Chinatown...

It was very beautiful and looked just like a street you would see in Rome or Florence...

We stopped and had a light lunch...

and then of course some EXCELLENT cannolis from a street vendor! YUM!

We then walked over to Wall Street, luckily it was Saturday so it was not busy...

Here is the Stock Exchange...

And then the bull!

For the life of us we could not get a picture from the front, but apparently grabbing the bulls balls is good luck!  I just had to do it ;)

We then made our way to the South Street Seaport...

We were so impressed how NYC has transformed every available surface into livable space!

Here is an old pier that was transformed into a beautiful park overlooking Brooklyn!

Time to make our way up to See Aunt Mary and Uncle Mark, but we wanted to make a quick stop at the Jackie O Reservoir...

It was BEAUTIFUL!

And don't make fun of me but I had to start jogging on the path like the other locals!

I felt just like Charlotte from SATC!

We then made our was East to meet them at an Argentina Place called Liberator...

It was so nice to see them again, and at one of their "places" made it even more fun!

Let me just tell you, Argentina food is basically Sangria and MEAT!

But it was so good!

After dinner we made our way to another one of their hang outs which was a mexican bar across the street.  As soon as we walked it all we heard was "Hi Mark! Hi Mary!" from basically everyone in the bar!  It was very fun to see how they live in NYC and them seem to have a great time, very often!

Thank you Aunt Mary and Uncle Mark!  We loved seeing you guys!

Only a few more weekends left!

Oh yeah, I don't think I have posted about where we are going next!

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We had a good time in the midwest...

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We had the best time in New England...

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But what was it that Dorothy says while clicking these shoes together?

There's no place like home!!

We were given a FANTASTIC offer to return to of all places Santa Clara, CA

We have signed a 6 month contract which takes us well over the holidays so we can be close to family and friends!

So as of September 1st, 2012

Our family will be making our way back to

CALIFORNIA!

It's time to go home!

Current Location:

Stamford, CT

Fenway

I don't think this post really needs much of an introduction...

Let's just say my baseball obsessed husband was grinning from ear to ear the entire weekend... 

We arrived in Boston and explored the city a bit (which included some shopping for me) before heading towards the park...

First thing we noticed was that Boston basically just closes the streets surrounding Fenway and it turns into one big party on game days!

We were smart and decided to get to Fenway about two hours before the game and were pleasantly surprised to find out that there really was not that much security here, and you could basically walk right down to the field level and sit ON THE FIELD!

The views were incredible!

We were RIGHT on the field!

We even got excited when we dropped our water bottle and had to wipe off the dirt!

THAT was how close we were!

Jason was so sweet, I have not seen him so awed in a long time...

He kept saying how this was his favorite ball park, and the best he has ever seen.

Slowly but surely the partiers outside made their way in, 

and we were pushed further and further back towards our "original" seats...

All the way back here!

The heat and humidity were oppressive!  

When I say it felt like we were in a sauna, I am literally

 -NOT EXAGGERATING-

Combine that with seats that I don't think I could fit into if I was 20 lbs heavier, 

and packed with thousands of Red Sox fans!

I was buying $5 frozen lemonades to use as ice packs...

seriously.

It really was a fun experience.  I promise!

The Sox were ahead against the Twins until the 9th inning when they let them score 3 runs to win!

Sorry Red Sox!

It was definitely a weekend that we will never forget, and Jason can check another ballpark off his list!

Current Location:

Stamford, CT

July in New England...

Go, Go, Go!!

That has been our motto since we got to New England in June.

We just don't want to miss anything during our short 3 month stay!

However, by this time after 

NYC a few times, 

the Hamptons, 

Nantucket, 

Martha's Vineyard,

Cape Cod, 

Boston, 

Connecticut, 

and Upstate New York...

we needed a break!!

Aahh, thats nice... 

We decided to spend our day at the beach in Westport, CT, which is a very affluent part of Connecticut (as almost all the areas where we lived were)

Can you believe it cost $50 for a day pass to this beach!

Honestly, it was a bit of a rip off...

Oh well, much needed r and r.

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OK

Break time is over!

Now, things were a little different the next weekend in July...

We decided to take a little trip to our Nation's Capital to see the sights.

We obviously were not thinking clearly about leaving on a Friday night, going over the George Washington Bridge through the Bronx.  See how clear this picture was?  

Yea, we were STOPPED!  For HOURS!

But we did have a nice view of the skyline!

Positive thinking!

And once we got to the New Jersey Turnpike, we were welcomed with a heart!

See?  So pretty...

Now, we got to our "bed and breakfast" (notice the quotes) very late on Friday night and met our "host" (more quotes)...

All we could think was... Bates Motel??

Notice the boarded up windows, peeling paint.  And I'm sorry to say it but the owners had some kind of head injury... seriously....

Let's just say I was not happy...

We will leave it at that...

yep...

We decided to forgo our second night here obviously!

Washington DC was much nicer than our place of lodging however, and it was a beautiful day!

Here was the Capital Building...

The Washington Monument...

Lincoln's Memorial...

and the man himself...

Another disappointing part of the trip was all the construction on the reflecting pool!  If you can't tell, it's empty!  We were bummed.

And finally, the White House.

By this time it was not even noon, we were exhausted from sleeping with one eye open all night, were a little overwhelmed with all the crowds and decided that it was time to go into an air conditioned museum with a little side trip first...

Yea, that clock says 11:45 am.  Don't judge!  Jason had one too!

The museum I didn't want to miss was the American History Museum.

Jason found Archie Bunker's Chair and Fonzi's leather jacket right off the bat...

My favorite part was the First Lady's gowns...

Here is Michelle Obama's.

And then of course Dorothy's Ruby Slippers!

You can't go to D.C. and not see these!

Jason dragged me to the Natural History Museum to see the dinosaurs.

He was just as excited as all the other 8 year old boys there...

But it did give me a chance to see the Hope Diamond.

This is as close as I got and I had to push a few people out of the way!

I think New York is rubbing off on me!!

Once again, it was a great adventure and something we will never forget

(although with a few extra bumps in the road!)

More to Come!

Current Location:

Stamford, CT