I need a vacation from my vacation

So, my trip to the Notre Dame game in the Garden State was fun. I showed up at Penn Station to catch the train to the new Meadowlands Stadium around 9:00 last Saturday morning. The place was a zoo. Got on the train without a ticket, resigning myself to having to pay twice the fee for not having a ticket. In the end it worked out and I didn't have to. The stadium is slightly impressive on the outside. The inside isn't even that, and it's a logistical nightmare to get inside. Notre Dame layed an egg that day. It was fun attending with a bunch of ND grads, and fun to see both ND and Navy....but those people got robbed on that stadium.

The rest of last week I kept saying I would clean house, but something always got in the way. Like...TV, eating, or....TV. I needed to clean because my dear friend Andrea from Dallas was coming to visit beginning Thursday, and then her friend from Boston was joining us on Friday. My apartment is small enough, that I need help making it impressive....and it's definitely not impressive when it's dirty. Thursday night 2 hours before Andrea showed up, I started cleaning (LOL). I got done. All I needed was a deadline. I hate that about myself.

Andrea got here safe and sound and we grabbed a late bite to eat. The Friday we had alot on the agenda (yes, there was an agenda. I'm a "planner" like that). We got up and miraculously got out of the house just 30 minutes after the agenda said we should. : )  We went to ground zero, South Street Seaport (where an impromtu hotdog held us over for lunch), and then we arrived at Tasty Hand-Pulled Noodle. Andrea had seen it on the Food Network show that talks about the greatest ____ I've ever eaten. Guy Fieri said THPN was the best noodle shop ever. I CANNOT SAY I DISAGREE. It's a tiny tiny spot, with room for about 20 people to dine....right in the middle of Chinatown. You can see the man in the kitchen pulling the noodles and smacking them (loudly) on the marble countertop. We had pork dumplings and a noodle main dish that was alot like lo mein....with chicken, shrimp, and beef. Heavens to mergatroid.....that was some good food. Those dumplings are unforgettable. Mmmm, mmm, MMM!!

Then we went to buy fake things in Chinatown. I ended up with one purse and one scarf, and Andrea ended up with a few items. The cops are all over the place, so the normally covert operation was extra covert. Walkie talkies....doors behind doors....the whole 9 yards. The agenda then called for us to go to Soho, but we were spent and went home to rest up for our evening on Broadway.

We went to eat at a good spot called The Eatery. I had short rib with horseradish mashed potatoes. Very good...I'd go back....not out of this world though. THEN we went to the big event (or, it was supposed to be) of the weekend....La Cage Aux Folles with Kelsey Grammer on Broadway. I'd had this bad feeling the whole time about this show....both that Kelsey would have a night off, and that a bunch of cross dressing men dancing around the stage wouldn't be all that great. Well, I was right. No Kelsey, and we left at intermission. I've only done that one other time in allllll the times I've seen shows on Broadway. TERRIBLE. And sadly, Kelsey Grammer wouldn't have made it much better. AND there was hardly anyone there. There were 3 tiers....we were on middle tier, and it wasn't half full. You hardly ever see that. Just....terrible. Sad for Andrea and her obsession with Kelsey.

By Saturday, Andrea's friend Korynn was in town. We woke up and went to Shake Shack for lunch...which included a shared cheeseburger and chicago style hotdog...fries...and of course, a shake. I think the earth is moving with every step I take at this point. Then, to Central Park. The autumn colors were beautiful. I'm going to go back next weekend with my fancy camera....hopefully it won't be too late....as it's getting cold quick here. Then shopping on 5th Ave. We also hung out with Korynn's friend Emily who lives here. Then the 4 of us went to Union Square Cafe for dinner. I had polenta with wild mushrooms and a poached egg for an appetizer, and pork bolognese for my main dish. Soooo soo good...can't wait to take mom and dad there. 2 meals there this year, 4 huge thumbs up. Then....the goal of the night. Stay out until at LEAST 2 a.m. to suprise the girls with a really fun event. My friend John told me I should take my guests to PDT (Please Don't Tell). It's a speakeasy in the East Village....with a secret entry in a hog dog shop. They only take reservations, and only beginning at 3pm on the day of. On average I think it takes people around 75 calls to get through at 3:00pm....it took me 68 tries. They sell specialty hot dogs, which is Andrea's favorite food. Aside from the hot dogs, I really thought they would get a kick out of a speakeasy with a secret entrance. To get in, you go to the hot dog shop, and step inside a phone booth. You pick up the phone, and a secret door opens on the other side, and you enter PDT. Soooooo cool!!!! The look on their faces were priceless. Everyone had a great time, and the hot dogs were great. I had one with kimchi on it...Andrea's had fried mayo. Yes, fried mayo. So much fun.

Sunday we were lazy and finally went out to Soho....then dinner at Locanda Verde in Tribeca. Mom had heard Kelly Ripa talk about it on the show last week, so I got resies. Crab and jalapeno crostini, with beef, veal, and pork ravioli as my main. Very good....neat spot. Props to mom for the idea!

Today, Andrea left after we dined at my favorite neighborhood spot, Benjamins. It's nothing special, just good food. She enjoyed her salad, so it was another successful food experience.

All in all it was a great girls weekend. We walked alot (which, we needed to do after what we ate). We also didn't go bonkers with the shopping. I'm proud of us. Fun!

Hooray that now it's a 4 day week! House news: the sale is still moving along and I'm getting my repairwork done. Fingers still crossed but no celebrating yet.

Can't wait for my fam to visit for Thanksgiving. I'm just gonna go bonkers if I don't get my hands on my niece sometime soon.

Things I've learned:
1. High's in the 40's today. It's cold. This is gonna be an interesting winter for me. Good thing I'm growing another layer.
2. Abe Lincoln in daisy dukes is a funny Halloween costume.
3. Bed Bugs were the most seen Halloween costume. Good thing I didn't go that route.
4. There's so much to do and see (and eat) in this city, I feel like I'll never get to it all!
5. I'm officially good at navigating this city. "Oh, it's just a grid of numbers" you might say. Well, not in Chinatown, Tribeca, Soho, and Financial District. Plus, I'm counting my expertise of navigating the subway system and knowing which way to turn when I come up out of a subway. I didn't get us lost ONE time this weekend!
6. New record for earliest to see someone peeing on the street. This time, Andrea and I almost stepped in the river o urine. COME ON PEOPLE, you're in NYC....there's alot of bathrooms!!!
7. OK, actually, I couldn't find a bathroom on 5th Ave on Saturday and almost had an accident. Whatever....that guy we saw is still gross.
8. Central Park is the prettiest in the fall.
9. If you aren't wearing tights or skinny jeans with riding boots, and mostly all black, you might as well stay inside, as you'll look like you're from Mars otherwise.



Pretty yellow tree in Central Park





Plaza Hotel and pretty tree




ducks and colors