New York, New York

Last week, I took a quick (3 days, 2 nights) trip to NYC to visit friends, go to museums and eat good food. Here are my highlights:

POD Hotel - For the most part, NYC hotel rooms are small. So why not embrace that and save money at the same time? I loved my perfectly-designed double room at the POD, but what I loved even more was that I paid as much for two nights than I would have for one night at an equally stylish hotel. It's also a block away from the 6 train which is very convenient if you're going to hit the museums on the Upper East Side, and because it's in Midtown, it's an easy to walk to most of the main tourist attractions. The only thing to note is that some of the rooms use the bathrooms in the hallway, which can lead to interesting smells and dormlike/noisy frolicking in the public areas, but I didn't really have a problem with this because I have a high tolerance for noise and I had my own bathroom.

Frick Museum - Still my favorite museum, probably because I'm such a fan of "America's Castles"-type residences. But the collection is outstanding if you like beautiful paintings by Old Masters (with some exceptions). My only quibble is that I wished Frick had collected some Sargents, but I'll take the Whistlers happily as substitutes. I thought it was ironic that the special exhibition consisted of paintings from the Norton Simon, but since I love that collection, too, I didn't really mind.

Madame X at the Met - Probably one of my favorite paintings of all time. When I was last in NYC, it was on loan to another museum, but this time, I got to fully admire John Singer Sargent's controversial painting at my leisure.

Tea @ Alice's Tea Cup - Amazing scones! I had "The Nibbler" tea service which consisted of one scone (pumpkin for me) with jam and cream, a rather hearty tea sandwich (Lapsang Souchong Chicken on multigrain bread), various cookies, and a pot of tea (Lavender Earl Grey). I was pretty ravenous, but this filled me up very quickly, so it makes me wonder who would consider this just a nibble.

Sofia Wine Bar - I needed a quiet place near my hotel to catch up with an old friend and found this new wine bar a block away. The sommelier was very accommodating and helped me to zero in on the perfect glass of Brunello.

Lemony mini croissants @ Sant Ambroeus - These came in a bread basket I had during Saturday morning brunch at Sant Ambroeus and I'm still thinking about them. Dusted with powdered sugar, they had a faint lemon flavor that brightened the buttery sweetness. This restaurant/pasticceria/gelateria gets extra points for the sweet but sophisticated design of its branding (the waiters even wore pink button-down shirts to match!)

Food @ MOMA - I like eating at museums when I get the chance and usually the food is okay to good, but I have to say that the food service at MOMA was revelatory. For lunch at Cafe 2, the lemon ricotta manicotti with swiss chard I had was sublime and better than many dishes I've had at proper sit-down restaurants. Later in the afternoon, despite already eating a chocolate chunk cookie at lunch, I shared the inventive MOMA sundae with a friend at Terrace 5: raspberry & fromage blanc sorbets, cheesecake, fresh berries, vanilla sauce. Decadent, but light.

MOMA Store - I bought a new watch here in addition to some other cool things, and spent more money than I had planned. If you like museum stores and good design, you'd probably drop a bit of cash here, too.

Pret a Manger - I loved these grab and go food shops in London and was glad to see them stateside. If only they were in L.A...

AirTrain - This is the first time I've had the chance to take the AirTrain to and from JFK and I have to say that it was very convenient (especially since my hotel was a few blocks away from the subway station.) Previously, I used to take the Grayline Bus from JFK to Grand Central, but I liked this much better. Unless I have more than one suitcase to carry by myself, I will definitely be sticking with the Airtrain for my NYC airport transfers.

I really enjoyed myself on this trip because I didn't have to really worry about orienting myself (which can be a drawback when you go to a new location). I just got to re-experience all the stuff I love, while checking out some of the new things I've heard about. To me, NYC is one of the best repeat travel destinations because it does a fantastic job of preserving its history and character while still moving forward at a dizzying pace. It's always easy to find something to satisfy any one of my many moods and I am never bored there. While I love home, it's definitely a nice change of pace from laidback and less-accessible Los Angeles.

Resolved, Year Two

My resolutions for 2009:

Resolved, that I will get enough sleep.
7-8 hours minimum per night, hopefully.

Resolved, that I will get to work on time.
Basically, anytime before 9 a.m.

Resolved, that I will not wait until the last minute to do my work and homework assignments.
While I have a sneaking suspicion that this will be a perennial resolution, I have hope that at the very least, I will get better and not procrastinate so much.

Resolved, that I cultivate a more active social life with an emphasis on my friends and family.
No doubt about it... It makes me happy to go out and do things. And I'm even happier when that includes the people I love. So, definitely more concerts, museums, galleries, restaurants, events, etc. in '09.

Resolved, that I will dance more.
Whether it means I get back into the swing scene a little, reacquaint myself with tango or just take more dance classes, this is a must. Two years away from something I love doing is ridiculous.

Resolved, that I will travel more this year.
I think this is the year of smaller domestic trips (especially now that I have the perfect car for roadtrips.) On my radar: SF (for the Cathedral of Christ the Light and the Academy of Sciences), Utah (for my sister), NYC (for friends and food), Minneapolis (architecture) and Atlanta (to swim with sharks). If I have any money left after paying off my debt and going to school, there is the possibility of Japan, but we'll see.

Resolved, that I will read more books.
In the past couple of years, I've definitely lagged on my book reading due to my crazy schedule. At the very least, I want to shoehorn in all of the books on my shelf that I haven't read yet. And that includes "The House of Leaves" and all of the other books that I think are going to scare the hell out of me.

Resolved, that I will make both my home and work offices more inviting.
For my home workspace, I need better organization and less clutter. For my office, I need color, better lighting and something fun on the walls. It's so drab right now.

Resolved, that I will eliminate my credit card debt.
I'm pretty determined about this one and if all goes according to plan, I should accomplish this within the the first half of the year.

Resolved, that I will contribute to my Roth this year.
This is the first year that I think my Roth is a better bet than the 401K that my work offers.

Resolved, that I will drink more water.
I'm borrowing this one from TB.

Flea Market

Several years ago, I used to wake up early on most Sundays and with a regular crew, go to one of the various flea markets around Southern California. The first Sunday of the month was the Pasadena City College or PCC Flea Market. The second Sunday was the massive Rose Bowl Flea Market. The third Sunday was the Long Beach Outdoor Antique and Collectible Market and the fourth was at the small but high-end Santa Monica Outdoor Antique and Collectible Market. If I bought anything, it was usually cool Art Deco/ Mid Century Modern stuff, vintage phones, 78 records, furniture and kitchen appliances. However, despite all the cool stuff I scored, what I loved most about going to the flea market was the whole experience of it: getting up early, people watching and hanging out with my friends.

When I heard about the new South Park Flea Market starting this Sunday, I started to feel a little nostalgic for the flea market era in my life. This flea market is put on by the same guy who puts on the Melrose Trading Post, which I never really attended because parking was always such a challenge and because in the past, I was more focused on antiques. However, I am excited about the South Park one because a) it's close by and not too big; b) it's a great event for the Downtown community; and c) I can take the subway there. I don't think I'll be able to attend tomorrow, but I would like to check it out sooner than later, preferably with cappuccino and chocolate croissant in hand and a good friend at my side.