jealous

Shari and her niece, Hannah, are in New York City. Color me green with envy. What a place. Vibrant city, foodie friendly and more. I am so jealous of their adventure. I love the Big Apple. My one and only visit was a year ago. I must return. That trip focused on the food factor. I adored that but recognize that there is so much more to explore. The theatre, more of Central Park, food, bars, people watching. I saw a glimpse of its greatness and I found someone to accompany me. Ironically, my initial thought was to explore on my own and then I ran into Manraj who happened to be living there during the week. He resided between Denver and New York. Since he was relatively new to the city, he was up for my suggestions of food. We checked out Motorino and L'Occanda Verde. Both were excellent. We had wine at a kosher wine bar near Time Square, too. I had a blast. It was nice to have someone to explore with, too. I tried many fantastic items as a result of running into Muni.
Shari's niece, Hannah, is fourteen. I am, also, jealous of her. I wish one of my aunt's had offered to take me on a vacation when I was fourteen. Seriously--what an opportunity. There are so many things to see and to view them as a teenager is amazing. They arrived today amongst a huge parade celebrating the recent marriage change. A parade of grandness that closed down parts of the city. Shari mentioned that they were unable to cross 5th Avenue. I can only imagine some of what they saw. The attire or lack of attire must have been amusing and eye opening for Hannah.
I contacted my friend, Mark, that is extremely user friendly not only as a guide, but also as a restaurant resource. He knows some incredible places. I told Shari that she must try to see him and meet him in person. Mark is great people. He is extremely busy but found time to follow up with both me and Shari. Impressive. Inspired to find time to return to New York myself. A show would in order this time around. Or possibly a 1/2 Marathon would be appealing. Then there is the food factor. Don't even get me started. I could spend a week, solid, just finding places to dine. I would have to return to some of the places I checked out last time--Motorino, Daniel and Colicchio & Sons. Superb dining all of them. And, recently, I borrowed a recipe from a blog that was inspired after dining at Motorino. I would definitely have to return there. I think I would want to check out some of the food stands, too. I am hungry just considering a trip to NYC.
I know that whatever Shari and Hannah decide to do that it will be a great adventure. A once in a lifetime trip. New York has that awe factor. Magical, it seems.
They did sample Motorino tonight. They both enjoyed the meal according to my voicemail. I will have to find out what they tried. Afterwards, they walked back to their hotel and stopped to enjoy ice cream. Gotta love summer and the ice cream factor.
Instead of ice cream, I chose mint tea and dark chocolate. Delightful way to conclude a productive day. Happy Sunday!