Exploring

Let’s Go: Montreal

At some point since we moved North, we started talking about how neither of us had been to Canada before and we thought we should remedy that, being that it’s just a short trip away! We ended up choosing to go to Montreal, because of its European feel and the great history there. We thought we were being so clever, deciding to go to Canada in July, which is the hottest month in NYC, but it turns out, Montreal is just as hot and swampy as it is here. OH WELL. đŸ™‚

We had been traveling quite a bit in the Spring, so we didn’t want to stay too long, so we decided to go over 4th of July weekend, so David would have an extra day off and we could just do a long weekend. Leaving Saturday morning, we had most of the day Saturday left to explore and we came home on Tuesday morning, giving us about two and a half days there. It ended up being a similar amount of time as we had spent in London last fall, which meant it was a teeny bit hurried, but we still had time to hit all the highlights that we cared about seeing, while still having some down time to relax. David is always so good about researching the best things to do and see and eat and drink wherever we go, so I let him do most of the planning this time, too.

We got to the airport in time to stop into the Sky Club for a drink, which, since it was around 9am, it was a mimosa this time. đŸ™‚ There had been a bunch of flights delayed and canceled the night before because of a storm that had blown through the city, so the club was packed and there were people sleeping all over the place.

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Flashback First Year: May and June

One Saturday morning in early May, we decided to go to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens to see the cherry trees in all their pink glory! It was really an amazing sight! They have a Japanese Cherry Blossom festival there, too, but we just went on a regular Saturday. It was PACKED with people, for good reason, but we were still able to relish the beauty of the trees and flowers. One thing I have missed since we have been living here is my backyard, where I used to sit and drink my coffee on weekend mornings. It was so peaceful and I loved taking a minute to get back in touch with nature. Here, you almost always have something blocking your view. It’s so wonderful to be able to go the parks in Brooklyn and the city and have some breathing room, and a place to enjoy nature again – listen to the wind through the trees and the birds singing. It helps that they are all beautifully designed and created for people to enjoy!

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Spring…maybe?

At the beginning of March, my best good friend from High School, Michal, came to visit some of her old friends in Brooklyn, so she came over to see our apartment and show off her SOCUTE son, Isaac, to me. I had no idea, but when Michal lived in NYC (for part of the 8+ years she lived here), she actually lived IN our neighborhood! I thought it was funny how when we were out walking, she was able to tell me the best places for pho or Indian food and which nail salons and laundromats were the best ones. It made me feel good about our choice of neighborhood (again), knowing that I trust her judgment completely. Here’s me and Isaac at what has turned out to be our most favorite bar & restaurant, called Blueprint.

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Couldn’t you just eat him up?!? He’s such a sweet natured guy and he’s already traveled around the world in his first year of life! Also, please note the lack of coat on me! It was beginning to warm up, slowly but surely!

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January and February in BK

Hold on for photo overload… it’s the only way I have of remembering what happened! Won’t it be fun when I get caught up and can real-time blog our life? We will see if that ever happens…

So, we made it to Brooklyn on January 17th, and David promptly left the next day to go to California to visit the Google home office. Luckily, my mom is retired and was READY to see us by then, so she was able to come stay with me while David was gone. She was SO helpful in getting things unpacked and organized, and besides that, we are the best of buddies so it was great to have her around to keep me company. Nelly LOVES Mom, even though I think Mom could probably do without her…

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(also, could we HAVE any more blankets? I guess I was preparing for the heat to go out or something?)

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Finding a New Home

So, we made it. In the dead of what would become the worst NYC winter in 100 years. But when we first arrived, not even that was able to deter our excitement. Luckily, since we moved so close to Christmas, David was able to have a few days off and we got to go exploring, along with alllllll of the tourists. We just walked around a lot and got a sense of where things were. We practiced our subway skills and honed our knowledge of the City. We sightsaw and learned that when you have to use the bathroom, you just stop into any bar or restaurant and get a drink. They’ll gladly let you use the bathroom if you pay them for something! đŸ™‚

Some of our sight seeing from that first week or three:

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Upper West Side brownstones. Soooo pretty. Almost made me want to live up there. Almost.

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