It was my first question, too. “What is “DUMBO” and what does it mean?” Is this an acronym or does it have something to do with the elephant? A quick google search later I found out the DUMBO stands for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. I found out about an arts festival there and Sunday after church hopped on the subway to Brooklyn. Enjoy a little peek into my Sunday afternoon. No narration, jut photos.
Ahhh the weekend. I have a choppy schedule at my new job. I had Friday night off, and worked Saturday, then had Saturday night off and all Sunday. Weekdays I get up early and take my boss’s son to the bus stop, then am off until 11am. Having a long morning is nice but it doesn’t give me much time to go exploring out of the Upper East Side, where I live. So Saturday night I planned out my Sunday itinerary and got up early to make full use of my day off.
I started of at “Bagel Bob’s” a little hole-in-the wall with a bar and couple small tables. I found it while reading an article on the best bagels in NYC. From the recommendation of the gal ahead of me in line I got the Cinnamon Raisin toasted with butter and a cup of coffee. Good bagel. Good coffee. And only $3.10 for both. They have dense and chewy bagels that are baked fresh during the day, and have a bunch of options for flavors and spreads. A fun little place to sit and people watch; the employees impatiently wait for your order and it’s bustling with locals coming in for their morning coffee and bagel.
After breakfast I went to a church my dad found online. It’s a little ways from where I live but I really enjoyed the service and got to meet a lot of new people. I’ll definitely be going back. The pastor even went to college in Michigan and has been to TC. A handful of Calvin grads, too. Oh the connections :P I went out for pizza with a group of people from the church after the service. They have “connection groups” that meet after the service or midweek to dive in depth into the Sunday message. I’m super excited about this new connection. I went to Times Square church Friday night but it was overwhelmingly large and not really my style. After the connection group I wandered off to East Village. Love love love. It’s a little grungy, a little loud, a little granola. Crowded bars, dreadlocks, old 10 speeds. Organic cafés. Even one street-side booth selling “wheatgrass shots” along with Acai smoothies.
Had to have some mid-day froyo. The Yogurt Station lured me in with their unlimited toppings and flavors self serve bar. Best idea ever. I always want to try everything, or have like 10 toppings but don’t want to pay $1.25 each! Here you grab a bowl, headed over to the yogurt station and pick your flavor. I tried pistachio and pomegranate. Then you take your pick of toppings. Everything from reeses to blueberries. You give the cashier your cup, they weigh it, and you pay per ounce. Love it. I just discovered on right around the corner from me too. :D
This is what I love about New York. It’s big, it’s diverse, it surprises you. I wandered into “Little Italy” and just happened across this Sunday carnival/street fair. Shoulder to shoulder packed streets. It was so fun. Lots of food all around. Sweets, sausages, pastas, deep fried pickles, canolis, gelatos.
After walking through Little Italy I went over to the West side of Manhattan to the Hudson River. I saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time, poised in the distance, and soaked up the sunshine on the boardwalk.
On the recommendation of a random guy I was talking to on the corner while waiting for the light to cross the street I went to Spice, a Thai restaurant, near Union Square. He didn’t lead me wrong. I got a chicken peanut curry with veggies and it was so good. The restaurant has a fun vibe with dim lights and fun music, and was packed full which is always a good sign ;)
Last night in Barcelona, what’s a girl travelling by herself to do? Go out for tapas, of course!
Brie and Truffle on a Tostada.
My first Foie experience. It was pricey and tasty ;)
This guy was much more committed as a photographer than I.
Casa Battalo, another Gaudi masterpiece.
Asparagus + Pastry dough something or other. Let’s just call it delicious?
This one was slightly dissapointing. An asiago and veggie tapa, I believe. It lacked something and was rather meh.
Sagrada Familia at night for the last time.
And the candles on the birthday cake? A Magnum Infinity bar.
And that was Spain. I got up early the next morning and set out on sore feet and faulty directions, catching my train to the airport with about 30 seconds to spare after hiking across the metro, hauling my suitcase up stairs and buying an extra ticket that I was told wouldn’t cost me anything. Regardless I made it to the airport and after some hassle and bustle spent my last euros on a pastry, a latte and a cappuchino. I needed that caffeine. My flight back to the states was 10 hours from Barcelona to Atlanta, which was filled with multiple on-flight movies and chatting to the guy next to me. Random connections. He had friends in the Houghton area. Haha. After a good 1.5 hour delay I made it on my flight to Grand Rapids and in less than 2 hours was hugging the fam :)
It’s hard to write a “summary” of the whole trip, and I don’t think I’ll try. I’ll just say it was wonderful and I don’t regret a thing.
XOXO
Livvy
This was my favorite lunch in Barcelona. At a little tapas bar I stumbled across on a narrow street after hitting up the Picasso Museum and seeing the mile-long line (Sunday is free day and Barcelona knows it.) I decided to do the next best thing: Eat.
I tried 4 amazing tapas… I don’t remember what the names/ingredients were but they were so. good.
I tried a Sidra, hard cider, expecting it to be sweet and tangy like our fresh-pressed cider after it sits a few weeks at home but it was not at all. Ew. It was acidic and sharp. Went back to the standard agua con gas y limon.
I hung out there for a while giving my feet a rest and watching the USA vs Spain Olympic Basketball game. The server was super nice and even tried to help me find an open Zara store. (To no avail, they all shut down Sunday.) I did a little more shopping before heading back to my apartment… I finally found my mebrillo (quince) at a little marketplace and these little sunflower seed crackers I had been looking for. I just used both the other day when I made a Spanish dinner for the family and two of my friends… Photos coming soon :)
Javea, Spain
