LuvOrlando
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2006
- Messages
- 21,484
We just got back from spending the day there today, and were there last Saturday too. I just love the city and have to say that while Midtown near Rockefeller Center is my favorite spot during the holidays, The Village has my heart this time of year.
Today the Cherry Trees were blossoming and the air was thick with a plethora of cool accents that co-mingled with the smells of international food wafting out of all the restaurants with doors thrown open to coax the sunshine & good moods inside. Just like last week my family and I followed our familiar feet to the youthful & electric area around NYU. I absolutely adore the area. Washington Square park was absolutely jumping with people of all ages... well mostly college age/ grad school age young adults but tons of families ect also. Last Sat we watched the acrobat street performers but today we were serenaded by jazz musicians. Last week we saw Matt Dillon and Mickey Rourke but today I didn't notice anyone. Oh, and the dogs frolicking in the dog park were adorable, never mind NYC's interesting Black squirrels... I've never seen them anywhere else and don't know if they are special somehow but I love them.
For lunch we walked down MacDougal to La Lanterna di Vittorio and it my family loved the meal which we ate in the back atrium. DD11 had vichyssoise (leek & potato soup) while DH and DS12 had the best NYC thin crust pizza I've had in a long time. But I wouldn't eat there, instead I waited to eat few doors down on the same street at Mamoun's Falafel restaurant. The Falafel place is not really sit down with only 2 small tables and 2 benches but the park is nearby and at $5/ sandwich it's a gem. The food is still every bit as good as when I waited on line there when I was 19. My DS, who had already eaten, munched so much of my falafel sandwich that I needed a second. My DH, who already had a pizza ate a chicken Kabob sandwich which was also as good as I remember. For dessert we ate 4 Baklava which are the most amazing I have ever had, unbelievable... so good that after eating I went back onto the 20 deep line to get 4 more to take home and another Falafel sandwich, and my sons still had some more.
Other than parking and tolls we only paid for lunch are were more than heppy with our day. Next time I want to try and do The Statue of Liberty, which I never did even though I'm from one of the boroughs, The Central Park Zoo and the row boats also in Central Park.... that is if I can ever convince myself to leave The Village (not too likely)
If you are up to it the bars around there are absolutely jumping with students once the evening rolls in, not my bag anymore but very, very cool from what I could tell looking in!
Ohh, an all time favorite of ours is the American Museum of Natural History's Planetarium. But, to be honest I'd save that for the winter or August heat and stay outside while the weather is welcoming. Spring is short in NYC and once the heat comes people's tempers grow short and it's just not the same place IMHO.
PS - Washington Square Park is one of very few places with public restrooms in NYC. It's nothing fancy and tends to be out of paper products and soap, sort of a bare bones BYO, but at least it's available.
Have fun
Today the Cherry Trees were blossoming and the air was thick with a plethora of cool accents that co-mingled with the smells of international food wafting out of all the restaurants with doors thrown open to coax the sunshine & good moods inside. Just like last week my family and I followed our familiar feet to the youthful & electric area around NYU. I absolutely adore the area. Washington Square park was absolutely jumping with people of all ages... well mostly college age/ grad school age young adults but tons of families ect also. Last Sat we watched the acrobat street performers but today we were serenaded by jazz musicians. Last week we saw Matt Dillon and Mickey Rourke but today I didn't notice anyone. Oh, and the dogs frolicking in the dog park were adorable, never mind NYC's interesting Black squirrels... I've never seen them anywhere else and don't know if they are special somehow but I love them.
For lunch we walked down MacDougal to La Lanterna di Vittorio and it my family loved the meal which we ate in the back atrium. DD11 had vichyssoise (leek & potato soup) while DH and DS12 had the best NYC thin crust pizza I've had in a long time. But I wouldn't eat there, instead I waited to eat few doors down on the same street at Mamoun's Falafel restaurant. The Falafel place is not really sit down with only 2 small tables and 2 benches but the park is nearby and at $5/ sandwich it's a gem. The food is still every bit as good as when I waited on line there when I was 19. My DS, who had already eaten, munched so much of my falafel sandwich that I needed a second. My DH, who already had a pizza ate a chicken Kabob sandwich which was also as good as I remember. For dessert we ate 4 Baklava which are the most amazing I have ever had, unbelievable... so good that after eating I went back onto the 20 deep line to get 4 more to take home and another Falafel sandwich, and my sons still had some more.
Other than parking and tolls we only paid for lunch are were more than heppy with our day. Next time I want to try and do The Statue of Liberty, which I never did even though I'm from one of the boroughs, The Central Park Zoo and the row boats also in Central Park.... that is if I can ever convince myself to leave The Village (not too likely)
If you are up to it the bars around there are absolutely jumping with students once the evening rolls in, not my bag anymore but very, very cool from what I could tell looking in!
Ohh, an all time favorite of ours is the American Museum of Natural History's Planetarium. But, to be honest I'd save that for the winter or August heat and stay outside while the weather is welcoming. Spring is short in NYC and once the heat comes people's tempers grow short and it's just not the same place IMHO.
PS - Washington Square Park is one of very few places with public restrooms in NYC. It's nothing fancy and tends to be out of paper products and soap, sort of a bare bones BYO, but at least it's available.
Have fun
Oh and we have black squirrels here on LI. We actually have one that lives a few houses down. I can stop and watch him till he disappears. They are so cool looking!
