Snapshots of NYC // Day 4 // Times Square, Wicked, and Top of the Rock // October 2017

In the fall of 2017 we took a trip to NYC. We had never been, and honestly had more fun than we were expecting to! I'm finally getting my act together and getting these posted! :) If you missed my posts with Days 1 & 2, and Day 3 check them out.

On day 4 we spent a lot of time in the Times Square area, not because we wanted to particularly see it... .but because we saw Wicked there and planned to visit Top of the Rock. So... we ended up hanging out there for most of the day.

The elevator at the Times Square Disney Store. I love it!!

She doesn't look happy about the crowd either.

ugh

Eat: We tended to eat several partial meals from time to time... It was a little sporadic!

• Bagels (Midtown) - I'm going to be real and say... I don't remember where we got these bagels. It was a chain near our hotel... and they were just ok for me. But hey, we tried NYC bagels. *shrugs*
• Hot Dog (from a stand) - Apparently this was a day for trying foods you really think of in New York. It did the trick.
• Magnolia Bakery - I got the German Chocolate Cake, which was SO GOOD. It was the bday cake that my mom made for my dad every year, and this is the best version I've had anywhere but at home. KC got the Banana Pudding -- which apparently is what you are supposed to get there. And he said it was really good. I can't eat bananas so I didn't try it. 1.5 years later we are thinking we got ANOTHER thing to split... since we ate so randomly on this day... but we don't know what it was. Bottom line: this place is super busy, but the food is good!!!
• Shake Shack (Times Square) - So, we've established that KC and I are Shake Shack fans. We went to the one in Times Square fairly late and split some food. It wasn't NEARLY as good as the one in Vegas or the one we had earlier in the trip. LOL

See: Times Square, and Top of the Rock.

Shop: 

• The Disney Store (Times Square) - A massive Disney Store?! Yes please! I loved that the escalator ride was accompanied by the lanterns from Tangled! 
• Toys R Us (Times Square) - We did go into a Toys R Us, because my sister Olivia said she wanted a New York Barbie. :) 

Do: while walking around the city itself is PLENTY to do, we did see some other great places as well!

• Wicked on Broadway (Times Square) - We decided to see a more typical musical while we were there as well. We landed on Wicked. Neither of us had seen it or really listened to the music. I am a hit-or-miss musical fan... sometimes they are A LOT for me. This was about as far on the "a lot" spectrum as I could go. The sets, costumes, etc. etc. were fabulous. The actors were talented too! Not sure I'd put this in my favorites though. Also, why do all musicals have to be at least a little depressing?! LOL
• Top of the Rock - We decided to go to Top of the Rock after hearing about the good reviews. I love to see a city from high up. As you can see from the photos it was PACKED up there. We bought tickets so we could be there around golden hour, just like everyone else did. If you don't like crowds I wouldn't recommend this. Here are some tips to make it easier:
• If you get motion sick or dizzy, I would not recommend looking up at the countdown video on the ceiling of the elevator on the way up. Just say no.
• Expect the crowd and wait your turn to get a good view/photos. Don't be too hesitant though, or you'll never get up to the glass.
• Go VERY early and stay if you are really concerned about the view photos. The ENTIRE upper deck was completely full the whole time.
• Have fun with whoever you're with and enjoy the view, ignore the people. If you see someone struggling to get to the front, offer to help. We kept seeing older folks up there who just looked dazed and overwhelmed. They eventually settled for other areas. That made me SO SAD.
• If you go up in the late afternoon or anytime close to sunset there is really no need to buy the "sun and stars pass" we went up somewhere near 4 pm and thought we'd eat and go back up later. But we ended up staying instead. It was a waste of money, so think carefully about whether you want it or not. 
• The staff inside the building were kind of rude to us, we tried to take a photo inside at the top, and they wouldn't let us even look out the windows there. I have no idea why. But later some teenagers did and no one said anything to them. Not sure if it is a rule, or if we just had grumpy people.

Stay: We stayed at Pod 51 hotel. It was very economical!!! It's bare bones, but very clean and in a safe area. Just make sure to check what type of room they are reserving. They do have shared rooms and shared bathroom situations.

Favorites: The Disney Store at Times Square, The German Chocolate Cake at Magnolia Bakery, and the VIEWS at Top of the Rock.

New Experiences: Wicked, Being Quite So High Up, Magnolia Bakery, and NYC Bagels and Hot dogs.

Have you been to NYC? What were some of your favorite things to do? 

Have you been to any of these places? 

Do you have any fun trips coming up?! We are heading to Memphis soon, and then somewhere really exciting in December! Any guesses?!

Other NYC Posts: Days 1 & 2, Day 3, and Anastasia on Broadway.

More NYC travel day posts coming soon!

Happy Travels!

XO,

Alexandra