NYC recap part 1: 5 reasons to love the SOLO trip!~

I'm back and still super excited and amazed by how much I enjoyed this SOLO trip in NYC. It's my 5th time there and it's far away the most enjoyable one!!! Okay... go to straight why this trip was a real BLAST!

1. I found two new hobbies: cycling and photography. I did a Brooklyn bridge biking tour organized by central park biking tour and I can't believe how difference experience is to get around the city with a bike than walking. When you walk, you enjoy the side walk, stores and people; when you bike, you focus on the overview of the streets, the broad picture. oh... man! NYC is so beautiful. That leads to my second new hobbies, photography... I took so many pics of the buildings and wish I took a photography course before, but it's never too late, I'm thinking about taking one soon. I'll write a post with pics that I've took and you guys can give me your opinions.

2. A real foodie experience: traveling alone made so simple for a foodie who wants to try new food and new/exotic restaurant. I walked 30 blocks just for lunch and didn't have to convince anyone.

3. My first blog meet up experience: yeah~ I met the funny, warm, caring, positive and creative famous Sarah!!! We did what we loved (eat and a lot!) and have a great chat. I enjoyed so much her company!!! She was also really nice to offer me to join her and her friends to watch the fireworks after our lunch and had a real blast!!! Sarah, thank you so much!!! I'm so glad we finally met!

4. More open mind to meet new people: you guys probably had some experience on that. when you travel alone, you're just more open minded to meet new people. I consider myself not good at this but this time I felt I was more friendly and more accessible to meet new people and it was a great experience.

5. Conquer the fear. A solo trip can scare a lot of people including me, not in term of security but in term of being alone. We're so afraid of loneliness, especially among a crowd that the idea of being in a city that you know no one is frightening. But actually it's much less frightening than we imagine. The hardest part is to decide to do it than actually doing it. I'm so glad that I did and I'm sure more solo trips will come in the future.

Okay. Enough talking. Let's do the recap.
Friday: before I left I had this great combo for breakfast: oat bran & cauliflower topped with kamut berries and Parmesan cheese.I arrived NYC around 1pm, checked in the hotel which was near time square (so convenient) and walked 30 blocks to the famous Candle Cafe for a late lunchI had gazpacho as appetizerand paradise casserole as entree. It has a layer of quinoa, a layer of black bean and a layer of sweet potato. It was delicious!!!!! I finished them all!!! My first expansion!!!!!Afternoon was spent on walking around 5th Av taking pics. And then I went to Yoga for People for a hot yoga class (recommended by Sarah). It was a great class and so cheap! Only $5!
After the class I walked around Time Square, enjoyed a little the craziness there and went to hotel. I was too tired to eat out so I just bought a salad in chipotle.
Saturday: I wanted fresh baked bread for breakfast so I went to Amy's Kitchen which was about 10 blocks away from the hotel. Unfortunately it was closed. The great thing about NYC is that you can always find alternatives. I went to a place called The Food Emporium and bought a fresh baguette.And then I had the 3.5 hours Brooklyn bridge biking tour. We stopped many times and the guide explained the history of the place and I had time to take pics :)
Late lunch with Sarah was in Korean town, the place is called hangawi, Katie from CCV also reviewed it. The place is really nice, with all the small details that made it a really Asian place.
We had to change our shoes
Tables are the traditional korean/japanese low tables or tatami
I ordered the house special, with two appetizer, an entree and a dessert
Entree 1: sweet pumpkin porridge
Appetizer two: vermicelli noodles (made with sweet potato, Sarah's fav) with veggies.
the entree: the traditional Korean one pot dish that has rice, veggies, seaweed and mushrooms with a hot sauce. I loveeeeeeee this!!!!
it comes with two korean pickles
The dessert of a sweet cinnamon drink with pine nuts and apples
A pic of me and Sarah after the great meal
Okay. this is the part 1, I need to do it in two parts, otherwise this will be even longer than it already is. Stay tuned to part 2 with more foodie adventures with Sarah, fireworks and raw food! :)