Cupful of Joy: New York City: Day 1

After a quick flight to LaGuardia (I only managed to watch half of The Descendants), my mom and I found the bus stop at the airport and took a ride to the subway. We didn't realize that the E line was closed and were confused for a bit since the subway car said "E" but I figured out an alternative route and we made it to The New Yorker Hotel!

Our home for the next 5 days. It was a nice size but the
walls were thin and the water pipes were so loud!

Our view from the 36th floor. We could see
the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building!

Once we got settled in, we headed to Times Square to grab some lunch at Shake Shack. There was a lineup outside but it wasn't too bad and the weather was nice. As per my sister's recommendation, we shared the Shake Stack, a cheeseburger topped with a crisp-fried portobello filled with melted muenster and cheddar cheese. I'm not a fan of mushrooms but even I have to admit, it was delicious.

Shack Stack, French Fries, and a Strawberry Shake

After lunch, we headed to the TKTS booth under the red steps in Times Square to buy Broadway tickets. We lined up for about an hour and 15 minutes (waiting for the ticket booth to open); I panicked about not getting How To Succeed in Business tickets while my mom took in all the bright lights, signs, and masses of people at Times Square. In the end, we got great center mezzanine seats for $85 each (40% off original price).

Taking a walk in Times Square

In Times Square, people were taking pictures with Muppets and Disney mascots that were walking around. The characters looked so fake though. I kept calling them creepy pedophilia mascots - who knows who's under those costumes?! On a more positive note, we stopped at the M&Ms store and bought some coconut M&Ms and mint M&Ms. They're so good! How come we don't have them in Canada?

The coolest T-Rex at Toys R' Us. It moved and made sounds!

We couldn't decide where to go for dinner and we didn't have much time before we had to get to the theater so my mom and I ended up having dinner at Tick Tock Diner below our hotel.

My Chicken Pesto sandwich with sweet potato fries

Mom's Cobb Salad. Gotta make sure we eat some veggies!

After dinner, it was Broadway time! The first thing I did when I got in was check to see the cast for the night and hallelujah! No understudies today! (I'm still bitter about Hunter Parrish not being in Spring Awakening last time I was in NYC and he's not on Godspell anymore. I totally would've watched that too.)

How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying was so good! It's everything I imagined a Broadway show to be: great catchy songs, fun dance numbers, bright costumes, and some comedy thrown in. I'm so used to seeing Nick Jonas being quiet and reserved so it was a nice surprise to see him so enthusiastic and he's got great comedic timing. Speaking of which, I loved Michael Urie as Bud Frump. It was like watching him as Marc St. James from Ugly Betty again. The show was so much fun! I would totally watch it again.