New York, I Like You
I’m really bad at being on vacation, which is at odds with how much I love to travel. Whenever I’m supposed to be relaxing and enjoying myself, I get anxious, thinking too much about the things I’ll have to deal with when I return home, all the money I’m spending trying to have fun, or the various places I don’t have enough time to check out. When that becomes too much, I end up sleeping in to avoid the crushing responsibility of having a good time. You know that part in Frances Ha where she sleeps through almost all of her Paris trip? Yeah, same.
This past September I spent my birthday on a solo visit to New York, one of my favourite cities. I’ve been making regular trips there since I was a teenager, and it’s been fun to visit the same familiar places each time, all while wandering aimlessly into new discoveries or checking out spots recommended by friends.
The day of my actual birthday I spent alone, which I try to do every year. I really hate birthdays, probably because of all the hype there is about trying to have a fun one and weird expectations of being celebrated by the people around you. I try to combat this unneeded anxiety by planning trips for myself and spending the day eating and doing whatever I want. I highly recommend this routine.
For lunch that day, I headed to the Flatiron location of SUGARFISH, sushi I’d first enjoyed when I went to LA last April. I treated myself to the Nozawa Trust Me, which is a very extensive and delicious tasting menu and I had a few small religious experiences during each course. If there’s a certain cuisine you adore, I think it’s important to take yourself out alone whenever you get the chance so you can really savour the experience in absolute peace. Especially if it’s your birthday.
Tuna from heaven A.K.A. SUGARFISH.
After that, I decided to spend the afternoon at the MET, a place I’d weirdly never been to considering I’ve been visiting the city for over a decade. I learned from my time living in London that whenever I’m feeling particularly high-strung, anxious, or just plain depressed that a visit to any sort of museum is the calming distraction that I need. There’s something about being surrounded by ancient artefacts and centuries of civilisation that always puts my small problems into perspective.
After a few hours of mingling with statues and picking out postcards, I went for a walk in Central Park during golden hour which, ew, am I right? Just kidding. What a beautiful way to spend an early evening. I tried to walk along the edge of the park and snag a peek at The Dakota because my love for Rosemary’s Baby knows no bounds, but it’s too huge to get any real glimpse at and walking up close is not an option because rich people love privacy. I digress …
Before dinner I popped into a Ricky’s, one of the best stores on the planet, to grab a bottle of Mountain Ocean Skin Trip, my all-time favourite body lotion that leaves me smelling like a coconut cookie. I also picked up the greatest k-beauty blackhead kit that I cannot, for the life of me, find anywhere online. If you do not live in New York, get on a plane right now just to go to Ricky’s and buy yourself handfuls of wonderful beauty treats. There’s one in Miami too, if you’re so inclined.
Now, if you love old restaurants that have been in business for over a century, this next part is for you. I spent my birthday dinner at John’s of 12th Street, which has been in operation in the East Village since 1908. I am 100% not a restaurant critic or a food writer by any means, but I will highly recommend this place for the classic atmosphere, the excellent service, and the delicious pasta. I had the mushroom sauce on angel hair with garlic bread and a Campari and soda. This would be a great place to go on a date but I don’t actually know because I plan on dying alone.
I spent the next day of my trip shopping in Williamsburg at some of my favourite places that I’ve been frequenting for years. Spoonbill Books is a spot I always check in on for great notebooks, postcards, and new and used books for great prices. Buying books on vacation is a moronic habit of mine because I like my luggage to be as heavy as possible. I managed to restrain myself slightly this time and only left with a copy of Eve Babitz’ Sex & Rage and a shiny gold notebook.
After that I went across the street to Catbird to window shop their beautiful handmade jewellery and curated beauty products. I picked up one of their candles, some Armenian paper incense, and a tin of Louis Sherry chocolates which I am now obsessed with collecting in various colourways.
Some souvenirs. The earrings are from Awoke Vintage in Brooklyn.
After shopping, I took the train to Metrograph to see a screening of Phenomena which was part of an Argento retrospective that the theatre had on at the time. They frequently show hard-to-find films and classics in a really beautiful space, and seeing this iconic bit of giallo horror on the big screen was a particularly special part of my trip. I hope to check out more screenings there whenever I’m in town again.
On my final day of vacation, I decided to venture further into Brooklyn to visit the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, which is 52 acres of peaceful green space filled with cherry blossom trees, a bonsai museum and hundreds of plant species from all over the world.
Just one corner of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
While I spent a lot of this visit wrapped up in an anxiety bender, looking back now a few months later, I’m grateful for the new experiences I had visiting a familiar place. New York always feels like an old friend with new and interesting stories to tell me. I’m looking forward to the next conversation. Until next time!
