No big surprise that I was late getting to the bus – I knew I wouldn’t miss the bus, but it was much closer than I would have preferred. As it turns out, I was glad not to get onto the bus until right before we left because I was trapped on it for much longer than I expected. The bus ride from DC to New York is about 4 hours, and I thought by leaving at 2 on a Friday I would beat some of the traffic. WRONG! Our 4 hour journey ended up taking about 6, and we didn’t stop for a bathroom or leg-stretching break until after about 5. It was frustrating not to have any idea how much further we had to travel or when we would take a pit stop. And let me tell you, I was definitely ready for the bathroom break!
Eventually, we made our way into New York, and through the Lincoln tunnel. We drove a bit through Manhattan as we made our way to Penn Station. I was so excited to see so many well known places for myself! My friend Ari met me outside the station, and we hopped on the subway to her house in Harlem. Her apartment was way bigger than I expected – with hardwood floors, a river view – it was a great place!
We dropped my bags off, freshened up, and headed out to a cool lounge in the West Village. Two of her friends were there, and it was nice to relax and people-watch, although the music was a bit too loud to really talk. We danced a little bit (the DJ was playing some great music!) and eventually decided it was time to grab a bite to eat and call it a night. We walked around a bit, heading to one of Ari’s favorite late-night pizza joints. There’s nothing like a 2am slice of New York pizza! I really felt like I was having the New York experience!
Eventually, we made our way into New York, and through the Lincoln tunnel. We drove a bit through Manhattan as we made our way to Penn Station. I was so excited to see so many well known places for myself! My friend Ari met me outside the station, and we hopped on the subway to her house in Harlem. Her apartment was way bigger than I expected – with hardwood floors, a river view – it was a great place!
We dropped my bags off, freshened up, and headed out to a cool lounge in the West Village. Two of her friends were there, and it was nice to relax and people-watch, although the music was a bit too loud to really talk. We danced a little bit (the DJ was playing some great music!) and eventually decided it was time to grab a bite to eat and call it a night. We walked around a bit, heading to one of Ari’s favorite late-night pizza joints. There’s nothing like a 2am slice of New York pizza! I really felt like I was having the New York experience!
Only in New York can you buy a pair of sunglasses at 2 in the morning!
After our snack, we grabbed a yellow cab and headed back to Harlem. I’m sure everyone knows this but me, but apparently in New York there are two kinds of cabs: yellow cabs and gypsy cabs. Now, I had heard Lenny Briscoe on Law & Order talk about gypsy cab drivers, but I didn’t really know what that meant. Ari explained to me that yellow cabs are owned by the company and are metered like a “normal” cab. But gypsy cabs are independent cabs and just charge you a flat fee for driving to your location. If you are a local you can get the hang of how much it costs to taxi places, but if you’re just visiting, the gypsy cabs can totally overcharge you. Anyways, in Virginia and anywhere else I’ve taken a cab, it seemed like there were lots of cab companies, so having only one “regular” taxi company was a little weird to me. Fortunately, Ari knows her way around, so the few times we did take a gypsy cab, she was able to negotiate a fair price.
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