Throwback Thursday: NYC Edition

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I went back and forth about what I wanted to do for my big 21st birthday for months.

First I wanted to go to the Bahamas... Then I came up with this bright idea to rent a cabin in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania. Side note: My birthday is December 23rd and I HATE cold weather. What was I gonna do in a cabin in the mountains? HA!

Two weeks before my birthday, I still had absolutely no idea what I was going to do. Finally, my sister, Kiki and I decided that we would take a trip to New York. I had never been to the city at Christmastime and my niece, Sameera was already there as she was attending school in Manhattan. It worked out perfectly. 

Even though it was cold and rainy, we had such a great time sightseeing and celebrating my birthday. We saw Keke Palmer as the first black Cinderella on Broadway and I even convinced my sister to go clubbing with me. ‘Twas one for the books!

Here’s a photo gallery of Amanee, Kiki, and Sameera Take New York: Part 2! #21stBirthdayEdition (Part 1 was earlier that year and a story for another day)

Times Square

Kiki and I on the Hop-On Hop-Off bus 

The Empire State Building 

Macy's Herald Square 

The Flatiron Building 

#BlackLivesMatter at The New School

Still toughing it out in the cold! 

The National September 11 Memorial 

Ice Skating at Rockefeller Center 

The Adventures of Amanee, Kiki and Sameera

Times Square at night 

Getting carded for the first time as a 21-year-old at Sugar Factory in the Meatpacking District 

My first legal drink

Sameera and I before the play

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella on Broadway 

The birthday girl!

Having a drink at Jay-Z's lounge, The 40/40 Club 

Big sis and I!

A very foggy view from the observation deck of the Empire State Building

Standing in the cold rain waiting for Cary Grant to appear... Didn't work out too well

Macy's Herald Square on Christmas Eve = A ZOO

For anyone interested in doing some sightseeing in New York, I highly recommend the Hop On-Hop Off buses. (Just like the ones in London) We saw almost all of the major landmarks in less than a day and we didn't have to leave our seats if we didn't want to. 

We tried to tough it out and sit on the open-air upper deck, but it was so cold at one point that we had to go downstairs and sit in the heat... Which was fine too! We still had the same view.

What are some of your favorite things to do in New York City? Leave me a comment!

-A.

P.S. I apologize for the quality of the photos. My iPhoneography has improved tremendously since then, if I do say so myself.

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