New York City & Boston Vacation

In the middle of April we got to go on vacation together! We’ve been talking for YEARS about visiting New York City and seeing a broadway show and we finally got to do it. We even got to add a couple days in Boston in the middle of our trip! It was not a restful vacation by any means, but it was awesome to explore these to cities with Stephen =) Before I go day-by-day I should probably explain the stuffed animal pictures. Stephen’s mom gave me a little stuffed dog that looks a lot like our dog Sadie for Valentine’s Day. We decided to take it with us on vacation and take pictures with it along the way. I know it’s silly, but it was really fun!!

I had only been to NYC twice on long layovers at JFK. That means I’ve spent a few hours in the city here and there, but I’ve never gotten to see it all. And Stephen had never been before! We had so much fun exploring the city together, though we were definitely footsore by the end of our trip. Our first day we walked a LOT. It was kind of an overview of midtown with pit-stops at Central Park, Rockefeller Center and Times Square. At 4pm we caught bus near Penn Station that took us to Boston. When we got to our Airbnb that night we went straight to bed.

Our first day in Boston we did a duck tour, which was a super fun and relaxing way to see the city. We walked through Boston Common and did the freedom trail walk, but let me tell you, after all that I could NOT walk anymore. We didn’t really have enough time to go back to our Airbnb and rest, so we took refuge in a movie theater on the edge of the common and saw Beauty and the Beast. It was a great and much needed rest! After the movie we walked along the Charles River for a little while and then went over to Quincy market for dinner, dessert and watching the lights come on. We walked 16 miles that day, so once it got dark we went straight back and to bed.

Our second day in Boston we started at the New England Aquarium. The seals and sea lions are always my favorite. Then we went out to Harvard, walked around Harvard yard, and got coffee at a cute little Algerian coffee shop. We were really tired that day so we went back to our Airbnb for a nap before heading back out for the Red Sox game that night. I love major league baseball, and it was great seeing the green monster in person!!

The next morning we took the bus back to NYC and checked into our next Airbnb. It was my birthday, so we went to a fun little pizza place for dinner and then went up to the top of Rockefeller Center to watch the sunset over the city. It was wonderful!

Thursday we went to Ellen’s stardust diner for breakfast, which was definitely one of the highlights of the trip! The waiters and waitresses are all aspiring broadway actors and take turns singing broadway songs while they serve. It was awesome! Then we walked all the way down 5th Avenue to Washington Square Park, stopping off at Macy’s along the way. After that we took the train to the new Freedom Tower, Wall Street, and Federal Hall where Washington took his oath of office. That night we went to see Wicked on Broadway, and it was epic. We’d never seen the show before at all and on broadway it was just amazing.

Friday we went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the morning and did the 9/11 museum in the afternoon. The museum was so well done and I’m so glad we did it. After that we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge and ate at a Shake Shack (for the second time that week) right on the river for dinner. That night we watched the sunset over Manhattan from Brooklyn, which was a great way to close out our week. Like I said, it was not a restful vacation, but it was awesome!!

It took us all of three hours to find a Shake Shack to eat at =)

New York City & Boston Vacation