New York State of Mind

I can't believe that I let almost six months elapse since my last blog post. Time flies when you're...no, that's no excuse. I win the award for most inconsistent blogger ;(

It was a fantastic summer. NYC came to full bloom as did the rooftop bars, outdoor boot camps and less-crowded subways (due to the most gorgeous NON-HUMID summer!). I spent my birthday in Laguna with family and friends -- it was so wonderful to see my Aussie sissy.

Laguna is really my happy place. I turn off and breathe a bit deeper there. I took a moment to commemorate the end of a phenomenal year and prepare for the next.

I was soon reminded, upon my return to NY, that I do have a local happy place -- the park. That's why I live uptown. It's just a few short steps to another world full of hidden paths and benches. My friend has another viewpoint of the park -- from her building's rooftop:

It's good to have friends in high places ;)

I've been dog sitting on the side to get my fill and my friend sneakily snapped this photo (holding my furry client Leo in his doggy bag). He gets me every time.

I finally walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. She's pretty fabulous. We went to BK's famous food festival called Smorgasburg (not going to tempt you with my food pics today but it's a MUST when you're here in the summer).

Our walk over the bridge was in early September and was nearing the 9/11 anniversary. Standing on the bridge and taking in the city's new skyline was a bit sad. The freedom tower is a nice looking building, but nothing will match the beauty and distinguishing presence of those two towers. Ever.
As the date neared, I was more aware of my surroundings on my daily commute. This firehouse is close to my apartment and I always smile and nod at these heroes.

My company, Marsh & McLennan, lost 358 people that day. It's surreal to be back in NY and employed by a company that was so heavily impacted. They had a beautiful memorial and it was extremely comforting to share that day with my colleagues.

NYC, as I mentioned, is overflowing with rooftop bars in the summer. This was my favorite view from the Dream Hotel in Soho:

It was wonderful to come home for a few days in September for the holidays -- especially for some much anticipated girl time with my women ;)

NYC in the fall is when the visitors start to appear. First, Wendy and Don came to visit their son and I had to get in on the action. I highly recommend the Viceroy rooftop bar for drinks.

We enjoyed Sunday brunch of course! SO much fun. I saw Pippin with a friend later that day. If you love Bob Fosse, please see this musical. It's one of my faves and the revival is INSANE!!

Just recently, my parents came to visit me. It was such a special trip as my dad hadn't been here in eight years, so there were some sights to see. Of course, having my sister here would've been the icing on top, but as she's currently planning a trip to Thailand/Cambodia from her current residence in Sydney, well, ya know how it goes...

Except for one day of rain, the weather was sunny and perfectly brisk. It was so great having them see my NY digs since FaceTime can't do it justice. We walked the High Line and enjoyed Chelsea Market before heading to Eataly for a scrumptious charcuterie board. I ordered the riccota with fresh figs, almonds and honey. No words.

My parents saw "Beautiful" on Broadway the prior evening, so I thought we'd shake it up a bit and see an off Broadway show on this night. In comes Joy Behar and her one-woman show. We had front row tickets in a tiny West Village theater and although it was hilarious and entertaining, I was cracking up watching my parents convulse from hysterical laughter. Joy even picked on my dad several times, which was obviously my goal when purchasing front row tickets. It just felt really good to laugh that hard  -- oh and I was the youngest person in the theater by far. Good times.

The next day included a bagel and a schmear at 72nd St. Bagel (when in Rome) and a stroll through my happy place, which in Fall, outweighs any and all previously mentioned happy places. I mean, cmon!

Me and my shadow:

We stopped by the Todd English Food Hall at the Plaza - another must see when you're here. Prepare your taste buds and your tums. That really applies to your entire visit to this foodie city. The next stop was Rock Center to see the new tree that had arrived the previous day.

On our way to Bryant Park's Winter Village, we walked by my office. I love working in midtown. The energy is palpable and I'm not sorry to say that my elbows have been getting quite a workout. It gets crowded, and that sometimes requires a little nudging of the tourists walking slowly as they stare down at their map. A girl's gotta get to work!

I also love to picture my aunt Ernie walking the same streets as me in her stilettos  - back then women didn't wear flats and carry their heels in their purse. I'll never understand how they did it. Bryant Park is gorgeous right now - ice skating rink, cozy restaurants with outdoor seating/heaters and tons of little shopping booths. And with the NY Public Library and midtown skyscrapers as the backdrop, it's really a site to take in.

We then shared a delicious dinner with my dad's friend of over 50 years (Sam, and his lovely girlfriend Karen) at an awesome place near me called Polpette. It was so delish that we returned the following night. GO THERE when you visit NY.

Our last day together consisted of a taste bud overload brunch at Monument Lane in the West Village (note this place for your NY visit. It's THAT good). Wendy and Don's son Shane popped in for a squeeze on his way to his own brunch. Do you get the drift here? All we do is brunch here.
We spent the afternoon walking through the village and Soho, and yes, here's our Soho Selfie for your enjoyment..you're welcome.

What a fantastic visit -- it was cool showing them around and them simultaneously sharing their memories of growing up here with me. I was only showing them the newer sights and spots in the city. The rest was familiar ground as they are New Yawkers. You can take he girl (and guy) outta New York but...

As the cold weather slowly creeps in, I'm definitely gearing up to freeze my tush off. I bought my first pair of snow boots and a long puffy coat. That trip to Macy's was quite fun - trying on loads of winter coats while wearing winterish clothing -- a bit of a sweaty experience. Some concepts you don't think about after growing up in the desert. The subway has begun to get more uncomfortable as less people want to walk to work. The smiles are slowly turning to frowns. It gets dark outside at 3:30pm. The unfamiliar sounds escaping from the radiators as they attempt to heat the room (no one told me about that!). The necessary coat check upon entering any restaurant or event (and the necessary tip upon retrieving said coat). Just the little things I'm noticing ;)

Hope you're all well and warm - miss you!

xx j

And the Adventure Continues...NYC Baby!

So...I hit the road again, but this time have decided on a temporarily permanent spot to hang my hat. This has been a long time coming, and still cannot believe that it's real. Here we go...

NYC - Take Two!

As most of you know, my first adventure in NYC didn't quite take shape as I had imagined. Throughout the last few years, I've often pondered moving back to have my second go at this insane city, but the timing was never right. Enter my trip last fall...that incredible adventure allowed me to really shake things up and offered me a clean slate from which to begin anew. And let me just say - living here in my 30s is SO much more fun! 

I arrived on April 17th with the daunting task of finding a place to live. Funny (and miraculously) enough, I found my apartment on THE day I arrived. Yeah. Thanks to Wendy and her connections, I landed a gorgeous pre-war apartment on the UWS (83rd/Broadway). It felt like home immediately and is two blocks from Zabar's. Living the dream...

By the way, as I disembarked from my red eye flight in JFK on the day I arrived, Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" played in the terminal. Foreshadowing much? Also, as I left my building on a recent Sunday morning to grab coffee, my doorman and the handyman were conversing outside. We discussed the fact that I'm single and the doorman immediately said, "Oh Jackie! I have a great guy for you in apt 2B! He's a gem, tall and handsome." Yes, my doorman is doubling as my personal matchmaker. It's NYC people! This isn't abnormal here. Oh, not to leave out the handyman (a pudgy Puerto Rican man named Harry) - he said that the building should get all the single tenants together for a mixer. I can't make this stuff up.

Here's some pics from my first day at work - my close friend Danielle aka "Curly" (who referred me to Marsh & McLennan) took me for drinks on my first day to a rooftop bar in midtown. 

View from my desk

You can't see it here but we have unobstructed views of Lady Liberty as well. 

I live in between Central Park and Riverside Park. What a dream. Here's some views from both..

Manda's best friend Jess and me at Brooklyn's Smorgasburg (must do if in Brooklyn!)

A friend's office on Liberty Street overlooks the 9/11 memorial and newly-opened museum. She had me up to see it and here's our view:

That same friend took us for drinks to my new fave view of the park - the top of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in the Time Warner building. Must go when you visit.

I visited my longtime pal Tahlia and her kids in Westchester for Memorial Day. Big pool, BBQ, kids...I was a happy camper.

It's pretty awesome to walk or jog in the parks here while it's nice out. The Jackie O. reservoir has spectacular views when you need a distraction during your jog..

I love that our local TV commercials are for Broadway shows, and I walk by the Good Morning America set each morning, looking inside to glance at their guests for the day. I've been getting used to the differences of living here again - bringing a pair of flats (or heels) in my large bag for my commute to work, schlepping my gym clothes in that said bag, constantly navigating the sidewalks of people and contemplating the best way to zig or zag as one of my body parts is bumped or pushed. Ya know...the usual stuff.

All in all, I'm so elated to be back. The new job is all-encompassing and I've met incredible people. Based on the last few days, I can tell that my anti-frizz hair products will get prime shelf location this summer. But as I opted out of the subway today for the 2.2 mile walk home through Central Park, none of that mattered. I'm living in the greatest city in the world and a new adventure awaits. It's great to be back!!

xoxo Jack

Eat, Pray, Drink, Love

Ciao! Coming to you from London Town...I'm spending a few days here before I fly home on Sunday. What a difference two months make! It's FREEZING here. But still beautiful. I'll include a bit more on that at the end of this post. Ahh...this post. It will be my longest post and most wonderful to write, since it's all about ITALY!!! 

This entire journey has been fantastic thus far, but the last two weeks in Italy have most definitely been the richest. My "Eat, Pray, Drink, Love" tour I'll call it. There's been a lot of food, spirituality, vino, more food, more vino, and romance. This all started in Israel (c'mon - the heart of spirituality), and it flowed seamlessly into Italy. Before I visited Israel, I met a guy online who's from Rome (we'll call him "the Italian") but he moved to Tel Aviv two years ago. We started a dialogue and it took off from there. We met in Tel Aviv and our mini romance began. He ended up visiting his family and friends while I was in Rome, so we spent four days there together - nothing like a local showing you around. I'll get to that in a moment.

Roma

Before the Italian met me in Rome, I spent four days on my own and with friends exploring this phenomenal city. Some snapshots...

Campo de Fiori market

Insane gelato. I indulged quite often. What?

Typcal morning

 Piazza Navona

 Puntarelle alla Romana with mozzarella di bufala. YUM.

Strange things happen at the colosseum..

 Roman Forum

Bucatini all'Amatriciana. OMG.

 Spanish steps

 

Lasagna al Ragu, See a pattern yet?

View from Villa Borghese Gardens

I did a Vatican Museum/St. Peter's Basilica tour. Fascinating of course. Interesting fact...this sphere sculpture looked familiar to me:

Turns out it's by the same artist, Fritz Koenig, who designed the World Trade Center "Sphere for Plaza Fountain." 

I saw this sphere every day walking into work. Unreal. And this sphere survived the attacks. Here's some info if you're interested: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/11/world-trade-center-sphere-911-memorial-battery-park_n_1872779.html

Anyway, I really enjoyed the museum, Basilica (Pieta - wow) and Sistine Chapel. Pretty awesome. 

That was the first four days. Typically touristic and wonderful. The next four days were spent with the Italian. We were tourists together but in a much slower-paced manner. This was a beautiful lookout point..

He kept snapping pics of me, which felt awkward at first but then I got into it and pretended I was a Roman model. Totally lying. I felt funny the entire time ;)

The Tiber river is gorgeous this time of year. Perfect for a stroll on the sunny day. I had nine sunny days in a row in Rome. Yeah.

 The hat got me every time.

We ate and drank and strolled. Arm in arm. I kept pinching myself. Just standing at the counter downing an espresso was romantic. I know that sounds corny, but I live for this stuff. Let me have this one..

On our last day together we drove to the sea for lunch. We had the patio to ourselves and soaked up the rays. 

 Spaghetti Vongole. I had it three times in Italy. 

What can I say? It was the perfect mini romance and I'll never forget it. We're still in touch but live on opposite ends of the earth, so for now...c'est la vie ;)

Firenze

This was my second visit to Florence - first time was in May '98. It's such a different city during holiday time! Just gorgeous.

I climbed Giotto's Campanile Tower one morning for the views - 414 steps. The steep and narrow cement stairwells are only wide enough for one person, so figuring out how to squeeze by people coming down or going up was an adventure in itself. Here's the tower:

Views from the top 

Views of the Arno from the Ponte Vecchio bridge

Made a visit to the Pitti Palace and Bobili Gardens. Pretty view of the city from here.

I enjoyed my two days here very much. The food was delicious and the energy was palpable. I took a day trip to Tuscany (Sienna, Chianti, San Gimignano and Pisa).  Here's a few shots:

I couldn't get over the views from San Gimignano. One of the most picturesque places I've ever seen.

Venezia

I was debating making this trip, but I decided to spend two days here. I felt like I was in Vegas or on a Disney ride. It looked fake! I'm so glad I saw it. Here's a few pics from my visit.

I was in awe from the celiing at Doge's Palace. "Ornate" doesn't do it justice. 

My last meal in Italy. Heaven. 

So, that's my two weeks in Italy in a nutshell. Unforgettable experience in every way. And now I'm sitting in the Notting Hill flat I rented in London, enjoying the last few days of my journey. Today I walked through my happy place here - Kensington Gardens. Looks a bit different from two months ago.

October

Today

Portobello Road in Notting Hill (near my flat)

Afternoon Tea with the girls today (clotted cream = crack)

This was a once in a lifetime trip and I will cherish my memories and the new friendships I created.  I hope you all enjoyed hitting the road with me...it's been a pleasure sharing it with you guys!

Happy and Healthy New Year to you all!!!

Love you!

xx jack