Travels of the Unchaperoned White Girl

Never fear - I did make it home unscathed from both NYC and Davis, WV!

I went to NYC with an undetermined timeline. One of the nice things about being unemployed is that you literally do not have an elsewhere to be. I have never drank so much tequila in my entire life. I don't even think I like tequila? It was an amazing week. The last few times I have been to NYC (because I have gone every month since July in a series of strange opportunities), I have just been there Friday night to Sunday afternoon/evening. Not a ton of time to do sightseeing or wandering.

Made a bar friend this night! Which night? Not sure.

Pictured: said prosecco

The official reason for my trip was my 31st (eek!) birthday. We did the usual getting rowdy, going crazy, etc. Saturday afternoon, we went to a lovely brunch celebrated with prosecco. I definitely drink differently when in NYC - I had a few beers during the Steelers game, but that was basically all my beer consumption.

Sombero AND tequila. Totes necessary.

Somehow, we ended up at a nice Mexican place during and after the game that had $3 shots of tequila! That was definitely necessary to my weekend existence. We did a lot of tequila shots. Happy 31st to me!!!!

Once we got done with the constant partying, there were two days that I spent sightseeing - Monday and Tuesday.

Hamilton exhibit at the library

I started my Monday by walking in the direction of Rockefeller Center. On the way, I stopped at the Public Library at Bryant Park. I highly recommend going here if you are in NYC. It's free to go in, so there is no excuse not to! They usually have two exhibits; I only saw one this time: Alexander Hamilton (hey...I said I was a white girl. Is there anything more white girl than the current obsession with all things Alexander Hamilton?!). The other positive of going there is that they bathrooms. Super clutch in any situation. They have amazing architecture as well. Always a high point. I rented a Citibike and used it more than once! A total of 6 times. En route back from the Rockefeller Center area, I chose to bike down 7th Ave. Never mind that all the roads around it have bike lines, I felt that biking during rush hour on a road with no bike lines was 100% the right choice. I almost got his by a car, a bus, and a cab! Quintessential NYC experience.

Hamilton's grave at Trinity Church

Tuesday, I went over to Chelsea Pier. I decided that I should hop on the Citibike and keep going until I ran out of bike trail. This turned out to be the whole way in Battery Park. Not a bad thing, just a lot further than I thought I was going to go. I found the National Museum of the American Indian (also free!). It isn't my usual genre of museum, but it was definitely worth the time (plus more bathrooms). I had no idea what else was down there, but I had a ton of time until I needed to go to happy hour (back to our new fav Mexican place!). I looked at the v helpful signs and ended up wandering down to Trinity Church. I was walking around, looking at the gravestones, when I came across Angelica Schuyler Church. I'm standing like a weirdo staring and then all of a sudden, I remember the lyric from Hamilton "...she is buried in Trinity Church near you." Oh...I'm at the place where Hamilton is buried. Duh. Like I haven't listened to that soundtrack enough to know that line. The church itself is gorgeous! I bought their 25 cent guide so I could figure out where the hell Hamilton actually was. I did find him (you could tell the pamphlet hadn't been updated since Hamilton took over the white girl world because it didn't have enough about him in it). Eliza's grave is next to his (not pictured). I didn't realize that no one knows where Philip is really buried, so there is a plaque to the right of Alexander with a note. After that, I decided that going to the 9/11 Memorial was a good idea. It is beautiful and depressing. I didn't go into the museum (see my prior reference to a happy hour coming up), but I heard it is both awesome and depressing. I finished up my trip to NYC by going to a debate party which turned into a Beyonce party. One of the highlights of this weekend was getting carded - the 10th anniversary of my 21st and I got carded!

I was back from NYC for about 15 hours before I set off on my next adventure. This is a lot longer than I anticipated, so I am going to update on Davis, WV later!