Taking a small nibble of the Big Apple.

*groan* it's the third snooze I've hit so far. I should be getting up; there are lots more to rummage through in terms of baggage and toiletries. Dragging my feet to the bathroom, I stick a toothbrush in my mouth...thinking if I should be making breakfast for myself at this ungodly hour. It's an hour before my usual 'wake-up' time... I really shouldn't complain. 4.30 am really isn't too bad to stomach at all.
I'm fully dressed at my doorstep by 5... waiting patiently for Maggie to arrive. She's offered to give me a lift to the airport. *sigh* sweethearts like her don't come around too often in my life. On our way out the door; I hear a subtle whisper from above. *"HAve fun in New York SU!"* I look up. It's Katie waving from her balcony on the second floor. All cheery and beautiful as usual. It must be all that Starbucks coffee she gets at work every morning. I hope it was the caffeine and not my stomping around that woke her up.
I get to the airport; wave Maggie goodbye; walked up to check in at the counter; pull out my passport...and...wait.....*&$#@*)$!!! my wallet is missing!!!!!
My flight was due in exactly an hour. I'm checked in. My baggage is on the way to the plane... but I can't leave. Not without my purse.
I called Maggie in a frantic hurry. She came back for me. Let's just say the next 45 minutes of that morning was a fuzzy blur of terror; paranoia and stress. I was clearly upset and throwing fits around the airport. The lost and found department was closed till 9am..and I was at a loss. If not for Maggie; I wouldn't have gotten on the plane at all. She was everything I needed and more that morning. I can't imagine having gone through the morning without her comforting words and guiding advice. I had my fingers ready to cancel my list of credit cards.
Going past airport security almost with tears in my eyes... a stern fellow looks down at me and says..." Oh ..I think I've seen you somewhere; are you okay? How is your day?". I went ahead and told him about the horrible way my morning had begun. He says " OH, it's you! We have your purse.. it's at the security counter at the next terminal" I rejoiced with a squeal. The crowd turned too look. I'm not the type to have too much faith in mankind; but someone nice proved me wrong that morning. It was almost too good to be true. Sis used to remind me; if it's too good to be true; It probably isn't. I looked through my wallet... everything was in tact; money, cards, identification. Nothing was fiddled with..and it was handed in, 2 minutes after I had step foot into the airport. Running all the way to my terminal, hearing the stewardess page my name for final boarding through the departure halls, all I could think of at that moment was.....'wow'.... I made it. I'm here.
I guess lady luck decided to join me as our plane landed in La Guardia. I looked out the window. White speckles of glittery flakes floated down gently from the sky. Fluffy mounds began to appear on the runway. It was snowing!! I was so excited. It was the most beautiful snow I've ever seen. The wheels of the plane touched the runway. The plane swerved a little, jerked, swerved a little...made a funny noise... thoughts of escape routes filled my mind. Women in the plane began to voice their panic. It came to a halt. We were safe. Claps filled the aircraft. We were the last plane allowed to land as the snow storm began to brew. Other flights were delayed for hours and many departing passengers were sent home due to cancellations from bad weather conditions.I was thrilled. It was snowing ever so beautifully. I thought it was a perfect. That was the first 30 minutes I was outdoors. An hour later... I wished I was in a warm toasty room again.
Strolling down Park avenue; a yellow New York-an cabby flies by straight into a puddle in front of me. I twist side ways; a tall splash of grey and cold liquid covers half my back before I could run. I smile.... Welcome to New York. *shrug*The weather was wet and extremely chilly; but I wasn't going to let all that bring me down, I was determined to have as much fun as I could. What's more fun than food and shopping?! I didn't care much for Time's Square, the Statue of Liberty or the empire state building... I'm in NewYork to eat good food... and eat lots I must! *giggle*
I bet you'd like to know how I spent my weekend.

Pastries on Spring st. Soho.Pizza at Lombardi's
Eileens Cheesecakes @ Soho - delicious stuff! Try the cookies and cream ;)Jacques Torres. I Loved everything about this Chocolatier! The studio looks amazing; the chocolates were to die for and the atmosphere was incredibly swank. He has such great taste. My visit to Jacques Torres's chocolate-y heaven swept me off my snow covered cold feet straight into a cozy warm cup full of thick hot creamy chocolate. My day was made.Midtown Manhattan


Ice Skating @ central parkVosgue - Unique exotic flavoured chocolates. Chocolate truffles include paprika, curry powder, ginger, wasabi, coconut milk and violets. My favourite was the chocolate truffle infused with olive oil. Very creative... but personally; I feel you can put 'anything' in chocolate; my question is : WHY? Why would you want to if it already tastes perfect with caramel, nuts or ganache?
Japanese Noodles and ChinatownLittle Italy
Pastis - French cuisine with a homecooked family feel. Brunch was a little over priced for poached eggs and a slice of ham; but that being said, I had a nice comforting meal.
Grand Central Station Midtown Manhattan. Grand it certainly was. Incredible architecture.
Hat's on Houston. Close to West Broadway, downtown... a quaint hat store (Arth) had me trying on their huge range of cool caps and sexy head gear. Loved it! I had to snag myself a fancy hat to keep my ears warm.
Magnolia Bakery.
I made an effort to have the internationally renown bakery added into my list of-to-eat's. I was extremely excited to taste one of their famous cupcakes. I purchased 4 large cupcakes; 2 vanilla's, a red velvet and a chocolate. My heart broke as I took my first bite. Three out of four cupcakes were dry in texture. They had tunnelling holes in them which was probably due to overmixing of cake batter. The fourth chocolate cupcake had clumps of white flour hidden inside. *sigh* The frosting didn't help either... super-super sweet....grainy... flavourless and disappointing.Rice pudding : From Rice to Riches
Pink Berry: Frozen Yogurt - the coffee flavoured yogurt tasted a little funky.. but the fruit yogurts were yummy~Breakfast at Le Parker Meridian - Delicious and expensive; but worth every penny.
With my tummy full and wallet much lighter; I have now returned to Orlando, FLorida; and you know what guys? I'm happy to be back. Kassy was real sweet to pick me up from the airport and we drove past a couple of lakes on the way home. Ducks waddled peacefully amidst green weeds and beautiful lily's. I gazed into the sunset for a long while.... appreciating the ability to look up into a clear wide sky. I missed it.