Monday, February 28, 2011

My New York City To-Do List


My apologies for the lag in posting.  I've been playing catch-up ever since we returned from Alaska.  It didn't help that Jeff and I spent the weekend before last in Montreal, or rather on a 22-hour train ride to and from Montreal.  My parents flew up there (they're smart) for the weekend and extended the invitation for us to join them back in December.  And since it's become apparent that we lack the ability to turn down any invitation to travel, we accepted.  The flights were super expensive from New York ($500) and the train was very cheap ($80).  In retrospect, I should I have done some sort of time = money equation, before I jumped on that Amtrak sale.  

While riding the train, when I took a break from beating Jeff in both Scrabble and Monopoly (which, to be fair, rarely happens), I read my Principles of Real Estate Finance textbook.  Ironically, the chapter covered PV = FV − r·PV = FV/(1+r), which looks complicated, but is really just an equation for measuring the value of money over time.  Awesome.  I quickly skimmed through that chapter, in fear that if I took the time to crunch some numbers, it would be apparent that we had wasted both time and money by going to Montreal at all.


On a positive note, we got to spend two days wining, dining and shopping with my parents and there is no mathematical way to factor happiness into the equation.  So yes, we spent time and money, but we spent it in good company and I felt like we came out in the black.  On another positive note, the train ride allowed me plenty of time to dream up more challenges and to-do lists.   It also highlighted the fact that I'd like to take a break from traveling for a bit.  Therefore, I made a list of activities that I've always wanted to do, but never have in New York City, my own big backyard.

Here is my 2011 NYC To Do List:

Museums - Guggenheim,Whitney, Tenement Museum, Museum of Sex
Restaurants/Food - Peter Luger, Shake Shack, River Cafe, Popeye's Chicken, Katz's Deli, Doughnut Plant, Empire Diner, Eat from at least 5 well-known, highly reviewed food trucks.
Afternoon Event or Day Trip - Visit a few Hudson Valley towns via Metro North, New York Botanical Gardens, Forest Hills Gardens, Gospel Choir, Belmont Horse Race
Touristy - Double Decker Bus Tour, Onion Walking Tours in China Town and Harlem, Rockette's Christmas Show, Jersey Boys, Wicked
Night Life - Jazz Club, Burlesque Show 


I'm proud to see that the list isn't that daunting and I'm proud to say that it's because Jeff and I have done a really good job exploring NYC over the past 7 or so years.  We've visited tons of different of restaurants, bars, neighborhoods, and parks; we've watched tons of concerts, musicals, movies, parades, and participated in a crazy amount of road races, bikes tours, picnics, and double dates.  The list goes on.....

If you want to join me in any of the events/activities listed about, I'd love the company. Just let me know and we'll pick a date.



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